R.I.P. Hans Kinds, guitarist of Cuby & The Blizzards

Sadly, guitarist Hans Kinds – who played on Cuby & The Blizzards' early Nederbeat classics – has died at the age of 74. 

Sons of Kemet preview new Black To The Future album with "Hustle"

You can pre-order Sons Of Kemet's new album right here. Watch the clip for "Hustle" and BBC's doc on the Brit jazz explosion. 

 

Gary Louris highlights John Wesley Harding salute, The Good Lyre

The Jayhawks' Gary Louris covers "Kiss Me, Miss Liberty" for The Good Lyre benefit album in support of Sweet Relief out April 2. 

Here's the scoop from Wes...

"In tenth place, but only alphabetically, on THE GOOD LYRE is Gary Louris of The Jayhawks, doing Kiss Me Miss Liberty!

"Gary, my comrade-in-dressing-rooms-and-record-stores, is one of my favourite friends in music-making, his band The Jayhawks one of my favourite bands and perhaps America’s finest. I was lucky enough to make my most recent album with them - they are beloved of all British men with taste (including Sir Ray Davies). Someone requested this particular song, "Kiss me Miss Liberty," from JWH's New Deal recorded by the entire band and while that seemed a little ambitious in these days of spatial distancing, I thought we might get as close as possible. Gary pointed out that “I can’t face confinement anymore” has special new meaning now; mind you, he also thought I was singing “policemen” rather than “fall leaves” in the first verse. Glad we ironed that out. He also thought the melody bore more than a passing resemblance to his 2000’s song In The Canyon so I was relieved that mine was written years earlier!

"I also now remember that, it may have been Gary who got this thing going in my head. Because when someone suggested this song by The Jayhawks, I remember thinking: "Hey, that could actually happen!" And I think that's what started this off. So thank you.

"Please pass knowledge of The Good Lyre on to your friends (this has become known, recently, as "sharing") and into the beyond because that is how we will make the most possible money for the Sweet Relief Musicians Fund - who receive 100% of the profits - when we release on Bandcamp 4/2! 

Various Artists - The Good Lyre: Songs of John Wesley Harding

1. Ryan Miller - Your Ghost (Don’t Scare Me No More)

2. Eric Bazilian - The Person You Are

3. Tanya Donelly - The World (and All its Problems)

4. Josh Ritter - Sussex Ghost Story

5. Rosanne Cash - I’m Wrong about Everything

6. Gary Louris - Kiss Me, Miss Liberty

7. Britta Phillips - Sleepy People

8. Steven Page - Why Must the Show Go On?

9. Chris von Sneidern - Negative Love

10. Graham Parker - The Devil in Me

11. Wreckless Eric - Sick Organism

12. Bad Scene - You In Spite of Yourself

13. Casey Neill - Darwin

14. The Minus Five - Making Love to Bob Dylan

15. Marti Jones and Don Dixon - Dreamfader

16. David Lewis - Infinite Combinations

17. Bob Pernice - To Whom It May Concern

18. Marshall Crenshaw - I Just Woke Up

19. Dean Friedman - Top of the Bottom

20. Dag Juhlin - People Love to Watch You Die

B-Side Wins Again: Funkadelic

For some reason, Funkadelic's classic whumper "Funky Dollar Bill" was originally issued as a B-side back in 1971. 

Ace is celebrating the 50th anniversary of Funkadelic's "Funky Dollar Bill" original release with a reissue of the 7-inch single.  

Here's the scoop from Ace Records...

To mark the 50th anniversary of its first release, a 7-inch vinyl reissue of the George Clinton crew’s gloriously insane funk rock song – the original single version, now with previously unheard B-side.

Originally the flip of ‘You And Your Folks, Me And My Folks’ from April 1971, this is funk rock at its finest. It first appeared in a different version on the “Free Your Mind And Your Ass Will Follow” LP, but here we have the single version. And on the B-side of this release, we debut a previously unheard backing track.

With lyrics by Ray Davis allegedly written about his bandmates fried on drugs, and the need for those dollar bills for that and indeed a whole list of things that the mighty dollar buys, the song condemns the malign influence that it brings to bear on life. Billy Nelson rips through the vocal as apparently the most ripped member of the band.

Underpinning the whole thing is Eddie Hazel’s wah-wah wild guitar and Tawl Ross’ answering riff that echoes Led Zeppelin’s ‘Whole Lotta Love’ as much as that song echoed the Small Faces’ ‘You Need Loving’, itself fairly closely related to Willie Dixon’s ‘You Need Love’, as performed by Muddy Waters, and so the vernacular tradition goes on.

Indeed, said vernacular tradition is thoroughly reworked in Bernie Worrell’s deconstruction of barrelhouse piano with the right notes, but not necessarily in the right order. Bernie had just joined the band, but was obviously a fast learner. The backing track displays the full insanity of this gloriously insane song.

Get a copy of the reissue directly from Ace Records right here. 

The Robinson'sons take on Mickey & Sylvia

Mickey & Sylvia's 1957 rocker "No Good Lover" is a good test for Nichol's picking and Tyler's drum fills. 

Happy Birthday Dwight Trible!

Celebrating Dwight Trible's birthday with a great versions of Horace Tapscott's "Mothership" and Donny Hathaway's "Tryin' Times"

Get a copy of Dwight Trible's fantastic Mothership album via Bandcamp right here. 

Whaddya mean you don't know Nicodemus aka St. Nic

Detroit biker/poet J.R. Houvener aka Nicodemus self-released his loner/stoner epic Space Child Squall in 1977. 

Pharoah Sanders joins Floating Points & LSO for Promises

Check out a few tracks from the new Pharoah Sanders & Floating Points collaborative album Promises below. 

Floating Points & Pharoah Sanders' new Promises album is out now. Get it from your favourite platform right here.

John Hiatt enlists Jerry Douglas for Nashville reverie Leftover Feelings

John Hiatt and dobro great Jerry Douglas didn't need a drummer for Leftover Feelings. Watch the first two videos below.

Here's the scoop from New West Records...

John Hiatt with The Jerry Douglas Band will release Leftover Feelings on May 21st via New West Records. The 11-song set was produced by Jerry Douglas and recorded at the historic RCA Studio B in Nashville. A meeting of two American music giants in a legendary setting, Leftover Feelings is neither a bluegrass album nor a return to Hiatt’s 1980s days with slide guitar greats Ry Cooder and Sonny Landreth. There’s no drummer, yet these grooves are deep and true. And while the up-tempo songs are, as ever, filled with delightful internal rhyme and sly aggression, The Jerry Douglas Band’s empathetic musicianship nudges Hiatt to performances that are startlingly vulnerable. 

The collaboration follows Hiatt’s 2018 studio album The Eclipse Sessions. Receiving widespread critical acclaim, The New York Times said “Hiatt still writes, as evidenced by his latest release, The Eclipse Sessions, a collection of timeless tunes that show his unassuming mastery,” while Guitar Player called him “...an artist on par with American greats such as Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, Paul Simon, and Bruce Springsteen.” Jerry Douglas is a Dobro master who reinvented the instrument and is responsible for bringing it to popular presence in modern times. The Jerry Douglas Band’s 2017 studio album What If was nominated for a Grammy Award in the “Best Contemporary Instrumental Album” category with Rolling Stone saying, “Even after 14 Grammys, Jerry Douglas is still exploring unlikely musical pairings…” 

Historic RCA Studio B was one of the cradles of the “Nashville Sound” in the 1950s and 60s. A sophisticated style characterized by background vocals and strings, the Nashville Sound and Studio B played major roles in establishing Nashville’s identity as an international recording center. Hitmakers in Studio B included Country Music Hall of Fame members Eddy Arnold, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton, Elvis Presley, and more. Songs recorded within its walls span decades, genres and emotions, with Presley’s forlorn “Are You Lonesome Tonight?” and Parton’s autobiographical “Coat of Many Colors” among them. 

Built when Hiatt was five years old, Studio B was designed for music to be made in real time by musicians listening to each other and reacting in the emotional moment. That’s what happened here: Five players on the studio floor, making decisions on instinct rather than calculation. “I was immediately taken back to 1970, when I got to Nashville,” said Hiatt upon entering the studio. A half-century ago, Hiatt lived in a ratty, $15-a-week room on Nashville’s 16th Avenue, less than a mile away from RCA and Columbia studios that were the heartbeat of what had come to be known as “Music Row.” “You can’t not be aware of the records that were made there…Elvis, the Everly Brothers, Waylon Jennings doing ‘Only Daddy That’ll Walk the Line’ (which is referenced in the new song “The Music is Hot”). But that history wasn’t intimidating, because it’s such a comfortable place to make music.” 

John Hiatt with The Jerry Douglas Band’s Leftover Feelings will be available May 21st on compact disc, standard black vinyl and across all digital platforms. A limited to 750 edition autographed by John Hiatt & Jerry Douglas and pressed on clear & black splatter vinyl will be available exclusively at Barnes & Noble, a blue marble vinyl edition limited to 2,000 copies will be available at Independent Retailers worldwide, while a gold marble vinyl edition limited to 700 copies is available for pre-order via New West Records right here. 

Check out the videos for  “Mississippi Phone Booth” and “All The Lilacs In Ohio,” both directed by Lagan Sebert and Ted Roach.  

That time Mickey Baker sat in with Coleman Hawkins' Quintet

Here's guitar slinger deluxe Mickey Baker joining Coleman Hawkins and crew for a swingin' "South Of France" 

Watch Alejandro Escovedo play "Bottom Of The World" in Austin

For all those who didn't get to go to Austin for SXSW this year, here's Alejandro Escovedo tearin' it up at the Continental Club.

Jane Weaver chats about her fab new Flock album

Jane Weaver discusses her impressive new Flock album with Emily on Rough Trade's Edit podcast right here. 

Here's the scoop on Flock...

Flock is the record that Jane Weaver always wanted to make, the most genuine version of herself, complete with unpretentious Day-Glo pop sensibilities, wit, kindness, humour and glamour. A consciously positive vision for negative times, a brooding and ethereal creation. 

The album features an untested new fusion of seemingly unrelated compounds fused into an eco-friendly hum; pop music for post-new-normal times. Created from elements that should never date, its pop music reinvented. Still prevalent are the cosmic sounds, but ‘Flock’ is a natural rebellion to the recent releases which sees her decidedly move away from conceptual roots in favour of writing pop music. Produced on a complicated diet of bygone Lebanese torch songs, 1980's Russian Aerobics records and Australian Punk. 

Amongst this broadcast of glistening sounds is ‘The Revolution Of Super Visions’, an untelevised Mothership connection, with Prince floating by as he plays scratchy guitar; it also features a funky whack-a-mole bass line and synth worms. It underlines the discordant pop vibe that permeates ‘Flock’ and concludes on ‘Solarised’, a super-catchy, totally infectious apocalypse, a radio-friendly groove for last dance lovers clinging together in an effort to save themselves before the end of the night. 

The musician’s exposure to an abundance of lost records served as a reminder that you still feel like an outsider in this world and that by overcoming fears you can achieve artistic freedom. Jane Weaver continues to metamorphosize.

Get a copy of Jane Weaver's new Flock album here. Watch the videos for the lead track "Heartlow" and "The Revolution of Super Visions" below. 

Guided By Voices share two rippin' tunes off Earth Man Blues

Listen to "Trust Them Now" and "Free Agents" off GBV's new Earth Man Blues album out April 30th via Rockathon Records. 

MatzoBall Jones shares his Discotheque-atessen mix

MatzoBall Jones aka DJ Matt Weingarden offers his swingin' Discotheque-atessen mix to spice up your seder this weekend. 

Peter Case covers Lead Belly's "When I Was A Cowboy"

Peter Case's update of "When I Was A Cowboy" has the Tex-Mex feel of a Sir Douglas Quintet rocker fueled by Augie Meyers. 

Happy Birthday James Moody!

Remembering saxophonist/flautist James Moody with "Moody's Mood For Love," "Heritage Hum" and an interview from 1998. 

R.I.P. Bertrand Tavernier, 1941-2021

Sadly, iconic French filmmaker Bertrand Tavernier (Coup de Torchon, Round Midnight) has died. He'll be greatly missed.

Mia Doi Todd shares new video for "Take Me To The Mountain"

"Take Me To The Mountain" is off Mia Doi Todd's new Music Life album. Watch Azul Niño's beautifully shot video below. 

Happy Birthday Albert Burbank!

Remembering clarinetist/singer Albert Burbank with two versions of "Eh La Bas" from 1944 and '51.

Quarantunes: Gary Louris

Watch Jayhawks mainman Gary Louris play a few old faves as part of his ongoing "Sh•t Show" series you can follow here. 

You can pre-order Gary's forthcoming solo album Jump For Joy right here. Listen to "New Normal" below. 

R.I.P. Don Heffington, 1950-2021

Sadly, percussionist/songwriter Don Heffington has passed away in Los Angeles at the age of 70. He'll be greatly missed. 

Dave Alvin remembers Don Heffington

"I don't know what to say. Don Heffington has passed away. Goddamn I'm gonna miss him. 

"To say Don was a great drummer/musician just doesn't cut it. I've known Don for forty years and he was always (and I stress always) an inspiration to me. Don was always the coolest guy in the room. He had been a teenage jazz prodigy who saw John Coltrane playing on West Adams as well as hanging out at the Ash Grove soaking in the blues. A few years later, Don worked as the house drummer at Art Laboe's Oldies But Goodies club on Sunset, backing up every doo wop group, one hit wonder and rock and roll legend that stepped on it's stage. Somewhere along the line he also became a rock solid country drummer that could swing a country shuffle with the best Nashville had to offer. 

"He played/recorded/toured with Dylan (that's Don on Dylan's surreal opus Brownsville Girl), Emmylou Harris, Lone Justice, Chuck E. Weiss, Buddy Miller, Peter Case, Victoria Williams, Lucinda Williams, Van Dyke Parks, Rosie Flores, Ronee Blakley, Amy Allison and the list goes on and on. He also played drums on most of my solo records from Ashgrove onwards through Eleven Eleven to parts of my albums with my brother Phil, Jimmie Dale Gilmore and up to my recent From An Old Guitar release (that's Don laying down the groovin' back beat on my version of Highway 61 Revisited, showing why Dylan once said that Don was his favorite blues drummer). 

"But Don was also a songwriter/poet who wrote amazing, quirky songs that defy easy descriptions. He was always pushing ahead artistically/philosophically, whether it was producing albums or searching for the right rhythms and always reaching for something that no one had played before. Playing with Don was always exciting, educational and a flat out gas. With his all knowing hipster smile, he gently pushed you into performances that you didn't know you had in you. 

"Here is a fuzzy shot of Greg Leisz, Don, Bob Glaub and me (taken by engineer Craig Parker Adams at his Winslow Court Studio) when we were recording my album, Ashgrove. I have so many warm, inspirational, hilarious memories of recording various albums/songs/goof-offs with Don through the years, but the Ashgrove sessions are perhaps the closest to my heart. All four of us were kids that hung out/grew up at the Ash Grove and learned so much about music/life there. Because of that fact, for the Ashgrove sessions, I called this quartet, The All Star Ash Grove Kids Blues Orchestra. 

"I still don't know what to say except that I will be forever grateful to have known, made music with, laughed with and learned from Don Heffington. Goddamn I'm gonna miss him." - Dave Alvin

 

Definitive collection of UK freakbeat faves Fleur de Lys out Friday

The 25-track ultimate Fleur de Lys compilation contains all the singles they released on Immediate, Polydor and Atlantic. 

Here's the scoop...

Atlantic Records, Andrew Loog Oldham, Shel Talmy, Cream, Isaac Hayes and er... Tony Blackburn, all these and so many more turn up in the story of Southampton band the Fleur De Lys and so many more. You may not have heard of them, and if you have it may be just because of their glorious cover of The Who’s "Circles" – an ultimate freakbeat anthem which this compilation is named after – but the singles they released in the second half of the 1960s are one of the greatest collections of singles by any band, ranging from R&B through freakbeat and psych and back into club soul. 

Emerging from the English South Coast’s competitive club scene they signed to Rolling Stones’ manager Andrew Loog Oldham’s pioneering indie label Immediate where they recorded two singles before being taken under the wing of Frank Fenter who worked out of the UK Polydor office running the UK arm of Atlantic. The group went through numerous line-up changes as they recorded a series of singles which are now some of the most collectible of the era. 

Acid Jazz and Countdown Records have been the custodians of the Fleur De Lys catalogue for the last decade and this compilation is the culmination of that work containing all the singles that they released for Immediate, Polydor and Atlantic (where they edged Led Zeppelin to become the first UK signed band to that legendary label). Issued digitally, on CD and in a limited edition gatefold coloured double vinyl, it has been produced with the full co-operation of the group’s Keith Guster, allowing us to use previously unseen photos and illustrations. Compiled by Eddie Piller and Dean Rudland along with the band’s official biographer Paul ‘Smiler’ Anderson, who has contributed an extended note that tells the band’s story in compelling detail. Available March 26. 

Get a copy of the Fleur de Lys' Circles 2LP via Bandcamp right here. Listen to "Circles," "Mud In Your Eye" and "Hold On" below. 

Happy Birthday Carol Kaye!

Celebrating the birthday of Wrecking Crew bassist deluxe Carol Kaye with her Picking Up On The E-String album and interview.

Midweek Mixdown: Nicola Conte & Cloud Danko

Nicola Conte & Cloud Danko picked some rare Italian tracks for their new Umoja Unity show. Listen on Mixcloud right here.  

R.I.P. Gary Leib, 1955-2021

Sadly, cartoonist/musician Gary Leib of Idoiotland and American Splendor fame has passed away. He'll be greatly missed.  

LINKS

The Comics Journal – Gary Leib, 1955-2021

Watch some of Gary's animated clips right here.

Happy Birthday Sticks McGhee!

Remembering guitar slinger Granville 'Sticks' McGhee with four houserockers knocked out for King, Red Robin and Groove.

Watch the new April March & Olivia Jean video for "Allons-y"

"Allons-y" is off April March & Olivia Jean's split Palladium 7" EP out now on Third Man Records. 

Here's le scoop...

April March and Olivia Jean's split 7" Palladium EP is out now. The pair has recorded three renditions each of the same tune, with April March singing "Allons-y" in French and Olivia Jean singing "Let's Go" in English. Each track is presented in a different musical style (with Olivia Jean taking the English versions and April March taking the French) for a total of six tracks. 

Watch the Brad Holland directed clip for "Allons-y" below.

 

Get a copy of the Palladium EP by April March & Olivia Jean via your platform of choice right here. 

Straight outta Guadalupe, it's accordion ace Rémy Mondey!

Check out Rémy Mondey's "Meringue sé mizik a mwen" featuring some great saxophone work from Emilien Antile.

B-Side Wins Again: Liam Bailey feat. Lee 'Scratch' Perry

Hidden on the flipside of Liam Bailey's "Champion" remix is the wicked "Ugly Truth" with vocals from Lee 'Scratch' Perry.  

About Liam Bailey...

Back before the world knew of Liam Bailey's crooning, acoustic Reggae, or his comparisons to an Otis-Redding-type soul sound, or even the depth-of-texture his vocals provide the occasional UK Drum & Bass track—Liam was just another lad in Nottingham, England, being raised by a single mom with a heavy record collection. 

Being the son of an English mother and British Jamaican father who wasn't around, Liam will admit his childhood was fairly chaotic and filled with "all the cliches that happen when people start mixing up in the '80s in England." Those records he'd listen to, sitting cross-legged in front of the speakers, not only provided some solace for a young Liam then. With names like Bob Marley and Dillinger, Stevie Wonder and The Supremes, The Beatles and Jimi Hendrix on their dust jackets, those records would eventually carve into shape the singer/songwriter we know today. 

Fast-forward to 2005, Liam is in London and doing the whatever-gig-you-can-get musician hustle, ideally looking to land a record deal. And it was through this time that Liam first teamed up with Leon Michels, musician/producer luminary, and the co-founder of Brooklyn's own Big Crown Records.

In 2007, Liam's management introduced him to Sounding Out the City, the first record from Leon's El Michels Affair. It blew him away. Liam jumped at the chance to connect with them and collaborate on some writing sessions. Within a week, Liam flew out to New York, met and vibed with Leon and the group, and began writing and recording songs. "It was an amazing first trip to New York," Liam recalls of meeting Leon. "And I've been working with him ever since."

That trip helped kick off what was to follow next for Liam: a slew of record releases, label deals, and working with some wildly-notable mainstream producers. Even a just-famous Amy Winehouse heard one of Liam's apartment-made, lo-fi recordings through a friend and liked what she heard. Regardless of the audio quality, Liam's particular sound shone through—all guitar, warm-rough and genuine soul. She signed him to her label shortly after.


But, as the story can go with major labels, they already had an idea of the Liam they wanted to make, promote, and push. With the typical pay-day enticement, Liam did his best to fit into whatever shape they put him to. "'Maybe I can make it work,' that's what you're thinking," Liam remembers. "But, you quickly find out that you can't." The prospects of trying to maintain for these labels became quickly apparent: you may win, and then lose yourself—or you just lose.  

Still, Liam considers himself lucky. "I always knew that I wasn't defined by the deal that I was in," Liam reminisces. "I had this feeling that I'd just keep going..." Liam confirms it was this youthful arrogance that both contributed to those past prospects going pear-shaped, but then also helped him to save himself. "It taught me the value of listening to your instincts, the importance of believing in yourself—and not trying to find that self-empowerment through something you don't understand." 

But the work accomplished and captured from that 2007 NY trip continued to linger. The evident chemistry of Liam, Leon, and the group produced something else lasting from that 2007 NY trip: the 7-inch "When Will They Learn/I'm Gonna Miss You." Released five years after it was recorded, "When Will They Learn" was a near-instant roots classic and still bangs up club Reggae nights to this day. With a strong relationship established, Liam would regularly reconnect with Leon and collaborate. Finally, in 2019, the time was right to do a full-length album together. And this time, it would be free of any restricting major label presumptions and opinions. 

Liam Bailey – Ekundayo (Big Crown)

His debut album on Big Crown Records is called Ekundayo. And the word's meaning may be all you need to know to get to the essence of this project. It means "sorrow becomes joy" in Yoruba, a language spoken mostly in Western Africa. Liam's potently unique voice has always had to fight against label agendas to get through. Now, teaming back up with Leon and his production, that restraint has given way to a pure, liberating freedom that trusses up the entire record like a spine.  

"This is the record we always wanted to make," says Michels, nodding at those past projects, where they bottled a spark of lightning in a studio session. But then there always was the slightly deflating feeling of whether or not Liam's label situation at the time would like it. 

On the surface, Ekundayo is a weighty Reggae record, full of new and old textured riddims. But listen more in-depth, and you'll find subject matter that's more recognizable from a modern-day R&B record. 

An example of the former is the first single off the album. Sung to the most beautiful woman at the nightspot, "Champion" is a joyous anthem powered by a silly-thick Juno-bass throb and 808-proof drums. In short, "Champion" is dancehall-ready. But then there's a song like "Don't Blame NY." Moody and sparse with a somber drive, you might have to resist the urge to compare it to a Frank Ocean-ish type vibe. Liam's voice is in a different but fitting element here, showing stripped-back emotion and soulful restraint. And then, anyone who has lived and tried to thrive in New York won't have a hard time relating to the lyrics. 

Credit to Leon's hand, elements of Jamaican production are everywhere, peppered across the record. Like the pitch-perfect organ stabs that push through the authentically positive "White Light," or the muted, percussive guitar strums that chug along in the back of "Fight."


In the same vein of any fantastic singer/songwriter album, Ekundayo is a reflection of who Liam Bailey is, a portrait of him for us to consider and take in. And what we see is an artist growing into himself, taking on topics and approaches he never would think of just a few years ago. Some evidence: "Ugly Truth" is about reconnecting with his biological father, a subject he once thought would be too personal to address. Sometimes we can't express ourselves before we're ready to. 

The journey from conforming to major labels to this latest record has been a long one for Liam, and a bit of a struggle. But struggle may be the only way we truly grow and evolve. With a new clarity of purpose, sound, and life, Liam has found joy out of those struggles. And it's called Ekundayo. 

Watch Liam Bailey's recent Tiny Desk (Home) Concert for NPR right here. 

Happy Birthday Juke Boy Bonner!

Remembering Texas blues guitar slinger Weldon "Juke Boy" Bonner getting down at the Montreux Jazz Fest in 1975. 

Whaddya mean you don't know Teaspoon & The Waves

Check out Teaspoon & The Waves' "Oh Yeh Soweto" clearly inspired by Lamont Dozier's "Going Back To My Roots" 

Here's the scoop from Mr. Bongo...

Released in 1977 on Soul Jazz Pop, a subsidiary label of Gallo/Mavuthela Music Company, Teaspoon & The Waves’ self-titled album is an absolute masterpiece. Best known for the song 'Oh Yeh Soweto’, which is an astonishing adaptation of Lamont Dozier's anthem "Going Back to My Roots," this track has become a contemporary underground club classic in recent times and has been featured in sets from a cross-section of DJs. With such a massive calling card song, it could be easy to write off the album as a typical one-tracker (like so many records often are), but that is a long way from the truth. Each of the remaining four tracks are super strong and, for us here at Mr Bongo, this has to be our favourite South African record of this era. 'Saturday Express' is a jazz-funk/disco stomper which will soon be lighting up dancefloors again. 'Wind and Fire' is true afro-jazz-funk excellence, with great spacey synths and reggae-inspired guitar grooves riding throughout. The opener, 'Friday Night’, also has a slightly reggae-tinged tropical groove, whilst 'Got Me Tight' finishes off the session with a feel-good jazz-funk workout that features cool, quirky, Patrick Adams-esque synths. 

Saxophonist Felix 'Teaspoon' Ndelu has had an amazing and rich musical career. Releasing albums on records labels Soul Jazz Pop, Hit Special, Gallo GRC, alongside working with and writing for South African artists such as Mpharanyana, Stimela, Sipho Gumede and Sgu. He also features on the Paul Simon track 'Gumboots' taken from the iconic 'Graceland' project. Though best known for 'Oh Yeh Soweto' we hope this re-issue helps demonstrate that there is much more magic in this wonderful musician's repertoire to discover. 

Get a copy of Mr. Bongo's reissue of Teaspoon & The Waves' self-titled album right here. Listen to "Oh Yeh Soweto" and "Saturday Express" below. 

 

Happy World Poetry Day!

Here are some entertaining Hollywood takes on beat poetry from High School Confidential, The Munsters & Johnny Staccato. 

Watch "What's In My Bag?" with Juana Molina

The recordings chosen by Juana Molina for this live version of What's In My Bag? brought back many childhood memories.

Happy Birthday Son House!

Remembering delta blues great Son House with a 1968 performance with Buddy Guy and a couple of classic clips. 

New book about The Fall due April 1st – no foolin'

EXCAVATE! The Wonderful and Frightening World of The Fall includes essays & ephemera from fans and the bandmembers.

Here's the scoop on EXCAVATE!...

Faber presents a definitive insight into the ever-influential world of Mark E. Smith and the Fall, featuring never-before-published essays and ephemera from fans and collectors, edited by Tessa Norton & Bob Stanley.

‘To 50,000 Fall Fans: please buy this inspired & inspiring, profound & provocative, beautiful & bonkers Book of Revelations, choc-stock-full of loving Acts by true Apostles, simultaneously both the scrapbook you wished you’d kept and a portal to futures & pasts, known & unknown, & a Fantastic Celebration of this Nation’s Saving Grace.’ – DAVID PEACE

‘Mind blowing… brilliant.’ – TIM BURGESS

‘A container sized treasure trove bursting at the hinges with strangeness and wonder . . . I strongly advise you to buy it.’ – MAXINE PEAKE

This is not a book about a rock band. This is not even a book about Mark E Smith. This is a book about The Fall group – or more precisely, their world. Over a prolific forty-year career, the Fall created a world that was influential, idiosyncratic and fiercely original; it was an education. Who wouldn’t want to be armed with a working knowledge of M.R. James, contemporary dance and Manchester City?

Bringing together previously unseen artwork, rare ephemera and handwritten material, alongside essays by a slate of fans, EXCAVATE! is a vivid, definitive record – an illumination of the dark corners of the Fall’s wonderful and frightening world.

EXCAVATE! will be published on the 1st April 2021 by Faber in hardback, ebook and audio. Pre-order via Rough Trade right here. 

Bob Stanley is the author of Yeah Yeah Yeah: The Story of Modern Pop (Faber, 2013) and Too Darn Hot (Faber, forthcoming) and has written for the Guardian, The Times, NME and The Face. He is also a film-maker and founding member of the group Saint Etienne. He was Writer in Residence at the British Library in 2017.

Tessa Norton writes regularly about art, books and music for various publications including The Wire, and for exhibitions and events including Liverpool Biennial and The Tetley. She published the artists’ book The Fields Here Are Full of Ghosts with Wysing Arts Centre in 2019, and she is a Jerwood Arts Fellow at FACT gallery for 2020-21.

Welcome Spring with the Ibrahim Khalil Shihab Quintet

Here's "Spring" by South Africa's Ibrahim Khalil Shihab Quintet feat. saxophone great Winston 'Mankunku' Ngozi. 

Here's the scoop from Matsuli Music...

South Africa’s lost jazz history contains many an overlooked classic. But even within that hidden tradition, there are few albums that suffered such an unlucky fate as Spring, the monumental 1968 debut album by pianist Ibrahim Khalil Shihab, formerly Chris Schilder. 

Though Shihab was only twenty-two when Spring was recorded, he was already a lynchpin of the Cape Town scene, and the album was to be his first major statement as leader and composer. It is a magnum opus gilded by the presence of the upcoming saxophonist Winston ‘Mankunku’ Ngozi, who was soon to find huge acclaim with the hit album Yakhal’ Inkomo. 

Three months of touring southern Africa in 1968 honed the band to the point that this entire album was recorded within the just two hours of allocated studio time. This album was repressed just once before the master tapes were destroyed by an ignorant record company executive. While it has remained out of print since then, the album was ‘kept alive’ as an ‘add-on’ to a 1996 CD of Mankunku’s Yakhal’ Inkomo. As a result, many modern jazz lovers still incorrectly believe these five compositions come from Yakhal’ Inkomo. 

With this edition of Spring, Matsuli Music corrects an historic wrong. This edition of Shihab’s stunning debut, produced with the blessing of the man himself, is the first time it has been properly available in over forty years, and the first time it has ever been available outside South Africa. Restored and presented with new liner notes by Valmont Layne, Spring can now be seen for what it is: a peerless masterwork of Cape Jazz, blessed by the presence of the great Mankunku, but truly animated by the subtle vision and original musical spirit of its creator, Ibrahim Khalil Shihab. 

Get a copy of the reissue of Ibrahim Khalil Shihab Quintet's Spring album right here. Listen to the title track below.