What might appear to be a new collection of rare highlife gems is actually just a 'best-of' prior Soundway archival comps.
Here's the scoop from Soundway...
"Ghana Special: Highlife brings together groundbreaking tracks from Ghana’s golden era, where Highlife, rock, and soul merged with deep tradition. Featuring Asaase Ase with Ebo Taylor, Hedzoleh Soundz, Ogyatanaa Show Band, and more, this collection highlights the innovations that reshaped the sound of modern Ghanaian music. A curated journey through classics and hidden gems, celebrating timeless artistry in a new edition."
Note: If you've got the previous Soundway compilations, namely 2009's Ghana Special (Modern Highlife, Afro-Sounds & Ghanaian Blues 1968-81) 5LP box and/or Ghana Soundz Vol. 1 & 2 from 2002 and 2004 respectively – you, or the West African highlife fan on your Christmas list, may already own all of the tracks.
The 10-track Ghana Special: Highlife's black and white sleeve with no liner notes or band photos included (apart from the mystery trombonist on the cover credited as "A musician at Rothman's factory Christmas party, Accra, 1976") isn't anywhere near the high standards in archival projects we've come to expect from the label. If Soundway wanted to avoid the appearance of a corner-cutting cash-in for the holiday season, they could've added a bonus 7-inch single with recordings exclusive to the release or just a digital download card might've been nice. It certainly would've made the $40 price tag a bit more palatable for those who've supported Soundway over the years.
Ghanaian great Ebo Taylor is featured on the new Jazz Is Dead 021 LP. Don't miss his Toronto show w/ Pat Thomas in October.
Jazz Is Dead 021 comp features Ebo Taylor, Dom Salvador, Joyce and more
With the forthcoming Jazz Is Dead 021 compilation (due October 4th), Adrian Younge's Jazz Is Dead label is previewing their Series 3 selection of new albums by Ebo Taylor, Hyldon, Dom Salvador, Antonio Carlos e Jocafi, Carlos Dafé, Joyce e Tutty Moreno and The Midnight Hour, produced by label founders Adrian Younge and Ali Shaheed Muhammad.
Essentially, the Jazz Is Dead 021 album is a selection of unreleased songs from Jazz Is Dead Series 3 and more. This will be a very limited offering. Once the initial pressing of 1,000 units of black vinyl and 1,000 units of color vinyl are sold out, they will go out of print. Expect international tours and other limited memorabilia to accompany each individual release within Series 3.
Hear the first single "Obi da Woa (If Someone Likes You)" by Ebo Taylor, Adrian Younge (Kendrick Lamar, Ghostface Killah, The Delfonics) and Ali Shaheed Muhammad (founding member of A Tribe Called Quest). Opening with a triumphant horn line paying homage to his timeless classic “Love and Death,” the 88-year-old Ghanaian Afrobeat legend Ebo Taylor partners with Jazz Is Dead co-founders Adrian Younge and Ali Shaheed Muhammad to create the track “Obi do Woa (If Someone Loves You).” With a massive explosion of analog synths, funky horns and gritty percussion, Ebo’s voice pierces with undeniable force making this track the perfect introduction to the long-awaited Jazz Is Dead Series 3. Check it out:
Hailing from Ghana, Ebo Taylor is the pioneer of Highlife and co-founder of Afrobeat alongside his former college roommate Fela Kuti. At 88 years of ago, Ebo Taylor, traveled to the US for the very first time to perform at the now iconic, Jazz Is Dead Concert Series, selling out venues across the country. It was during this time he recorded a psychedelic Afrobeat album alongside Jazz Is Dead producers Adrian Younge & Ali Shaheed Muhammad. The swirling horns and gritty guitars are reminiscent of his seminal seventies recordings that made him one of Africa’s (and the worlds) most prolific and revolutionary artists.
This October, Ebo Taylor embarks on a historic tour across the Americas, accompanied by The Ebo Taylor Family Band and his protégé, Pat Thomas. For the first time ever, Ebo will bring his legendary sound to stages in Mexico and Brazil. These performances also mark the debut of Jazz Is Dead concerts on both Mexican and Brazilian soil. They'll play a rare Toronto show at The Phoenix Concert Theatre on October 31. Tickets are $42.50 – get 'em right here.
Jazz Is Dead announces another offering of top-shelf recordings taking listeners on a journey through the funky sounds of Ghana all the way to down to the psychedelic soul and samba of Brazil. Produced by label founders Adrian Younge and Ali Shaheed Muhammad, Jazz Is Dead Series 3 features new analog recordings from living legends Ebo Taylor, Hyldon, Dom Salvador, Antonio Carlos e Jocafi, Carlos Dafé, Joyce e Tutty Moreno as well as an unreleased LP from The Midnight Hour: Lost Tapes.
For Adrian Younge and Ali Shaheed Muhammad, collaborating with music icons and personal heroes is a dream come true. As Younge notes, “with Series 1, our first 10 LPs, we established the sonic foundation of the Jazz Is Dead label. It’s that experimental jazz/funk that we would always search for while digging through records. With Series 2, we expanded upon this approach spending more time with our ideas and the nuances of our sound. But with Series 3, we hit a new level we never thought we could attain with the legends. The tears, the laughs and the disbelief at what we’ve accomplished is astounding. For some of these artists, these albums can be viewed as some of their best recordings to date proving that they still have a lot to say.”
In 1970s Brazil, the Black Rio Movement redefined what soul music meant for black pride in Rio de Janeiro (and Brazil). Afro-Brazilians came together and developed a funk and dance scene that challenged Brazil’s military dictatorship and the systemic racism that plagued their people. Dom Salvador, Hyldon and Carlos Dafé were all instrumental in establishing the voice of Black Rio. It was during Jazz Is Dead's concert series with these maestros that they were able to identify the through line connecting each of their individual stories to the seminal Black Rio Movement.
From Brazilian jazz to samba funk, Dom Salvador is the grand master of the Black Rio movement who later became the musical director for Harry Belafonte. Salvador is one of Brazil’s most recorded pianists and producers with over 1000 recordings to his credit. On his forthcoming release with Jazz Is Dead, producers Adrian Younge and Ali Shaheed Muhammad highlight Salvador’s unique fusion of jazz, funk and samba.
Hyldon is recognized worldwide as a torchbearer of Brazil’s psychedelic soul. In the 1970’s, Hyldon worked with Jazz Is Dead alumni Azymuth, to produce some of Brazil’s most coveted albums. On his forthcoming release with Jazz Is Dead, Adrian Younge partners with Hyldon to create a new album that echoes the sentiments of his 1975 classic “Na Rua, Na Chuva, Na Fazenda.” In addition, this new album is one of the last recordings of the late Ivan “Mamão” Conti, drummer of Azymuth.
With his sultry voice, Carlos Dafé is notoriously known as Brazil’s Prince of Soul. He is also a voice heard on Arthur Verocai’s holy grail self-titled, debut album. On his forthcoming Jazz Is Dead release, Dafé meets Adrian Younge’s world of psychedelic and orchestral soul: a perfect harmony reminiscent of the Brazilian greats Tim Maia and Cassiano.
Antonio Carlos e Jocafi made some of the sweetest samba-soul of the 1970s by way of Salvador, Bahia. The duo emerged out of Brazil’s competitive music festivals mixing funky grooves, acid-rock guitars and sophisticated harmonies. Nearly 50 years after their initial release, Jazz Is Dead brought the pair to perform in the US for their very first time. It was during this trip they recorded their forthcoming Jazz Is Dead album in collaboration with Adrian Younge and Ali Shaheed Muhammad. Together they created a delightful, anthemic album mirroring their classic Bahian sound.
The dynamic voice of singer/composer Joyce combined with the syncopated rhythms of her husband, the legendary drummer Tutty Moreno, forged a new trajectory in Brazilian music. This sound also inspired the acid jazz movement of the 1990s when DJs like Gilles Peterson discovered classic hits such as “Feminina” and “Aldeia De Ogum”. Jazz Is Dead brought the couple to Los Angeles to perform a special concert and record a new album. With Adrian Younge’s beautiful string arrangements and Joyce and Tutty’s experimental samba-jazz, their synergy reverberates on the forthcoming Jazz Is Dead album.
In 2016, Adrian Younge and Ali Shaheed Muhammad came together to create a new group, The Midnight Hour. With the fusion of hip hop, jazz and breaks the album continues the conversations started by yesterday’s jazz and funk pioneers; those that created the bedrock of samples for hip hop’s golden era. On their forthcoming Jazz Is Dead album, The Midnight Hour: Lost Tapes, Younge and Muhammad dig deep into their vault of analog tapes to share music previously unreleased.
The previously unreleased Palaver album recorded in 1980 by Ghanaian highlife guitar great Ebo Taylor is out now on BBE Music.
Here's the scoop... BBE Music unearths ‘Palaver’, a long-lost, previously unreleased 1980 album from Ghanaian guitarist and songwriter Ebo Taylor.
If Fela Kuti was the king of Nigerian Afrobeat, then Ebo Taylor, 83 and still playing hard, is the king of Ghana Funky-Highlife. No doubt whatsoever. Much of Ebo’s beautiful 70s and 80s output has been reissued, as more and more Afro music lovers are being converted to his unique pan-West African sound.
In 1980 while on a club tour of Nigeria with his regular touring band, Ebo bumped into Chief Tabansi of Tabansi Records. They agreed that Taylor would record a one-album session to be released exclusively on Tabansi. Within a few days the deal was signed, the session completed, the tapes signed off, and Ebo and his band went on their way to complete their Nigerian tour.
But for reasons that no-one (including Ebo) can now fully recall, the master tapes got shelved in a dusty backroom in Tabansi’s Onitsha HQ. Where they remained, undisturbed, unreleased, unplayed, for almost forty years.
Last year, Peter Adarkwah of BBE Music signed off on a major multi-album reissue deal with Tabansi and its affiliated labels. ‘What about unissued material, if we find any?’ Joe Tabansi, Chief’s son and current administrator of the label, casually asked.
Yes, replied Peter - but WHAT unissued material?
Upon which, Joe produces these masters. The tapes are rushed to the redoubtable Carvery vinyl remastering and pressing plant in East London, and all at BBE soon realised that they had a masterpiece on their hands. All-new material, all Ebo’s own compositions, all recorded with Ebo’s crème-de-la-crème touring and recording players, including George Amissah. Mat Hammond, George Kennedy and George Abunuah among others.
Here it is, for the first time, anywhere. Ebo Taylor’s Lost Nigeria Sessions.
Pat Thomas's Coming Home: Original Ghanaian Highlife & Afrobeat Classics 1967-81 is out now on Strut.
The U.K.-based Strut label has just released the first early career retrospective for Ghanaian highlife master Pat Thomas, covering the Golden Voice Of Africa's late ‘60s big band highlife recordings, funky '70s Afrobeat jams through to the disco hi-life movement of the early ‘80s. With the 65 year-old Thomas now dazzling audiences on the road in support of last year’s album with Kwishibu Area Band, the well-chosen Coming Home 2CD / 3LP collection offers an enlightening glimpse of Thomas’ exceptionally productive and incredibly influential career in Ghana prior to his arrival in Toronto during the 80s and inevitable resurgence.
Growing up with music around him (“my uncle, King Onyina, was an important highlife musician”), Thomas was inspired to become a singer after hearing vocalist Joss Aikins: “He sang with Broadway Dance Band and Decca in Ghana chose him to sing with any group that came into their studios.”
When a new incarnation of Broadway Dance Band was created in ‘67, led by Ebo Taylor, Thomas received his first big break. “Ebo started to write new songs. I added the lyrics and sang them and it worked very well. Ebo and I agreed on things at a very early stage. I understood him and where he was coming from with his music.”
The partnership with Taylor would become one of the enduring forces in Ghanaian music during the ‘70s, creating a fresh, progressive new highlife sound. They played together as The Blue Monks – regularly appearing Accra's popular Tip Toe Gardens nightclub – before forming Sweet Beans in '74 with the backing of Ghana’s Cocoa Marketing Board. Listen to "Merebre" off the False Lover album by Pat Thomas & The Sweet Beans.
The False Lover album for the Gapophone label established Thomas across Ghana. His backing band, The Sweet Beans – featuring bassist Anim Addo, drummer Kofi Addison, guitarist Bannerman Wood, keyboardist Bob Fician, percussionist J.N.K. Asiedu, trumpeter Lovis Hammond, saxophonists J.R. Arhin, Atta Kennedy, Korle Patrick and Conacov – eventually disbanded but the musicians stayed together as Marijata. “The guys initially used Jewel Ackah as their vocalist but they involved me and I re-vocalled the album. This became the ‘Pat Thomas Introduces Marijata’ LP. At that time, I would go to George Prah at Gapophone to ask for money and he would say, ‘if you want me to pay you, go and write a song!’ So, tracks like ‘Coming Home’ came about that way, written on the spot.”
A second Marijata album followed before a damaging coup in Ghana in 1979. “Jerry Rawlings’ 'house-cleaning' was designed to stop corruption but it seriously damaged our country’s music culture. That's when the music died. Before that, there was so much music everywhere. It was so important and then the coup destroyed it all. Bars and venues closed everywhere because of the strict curfews.” Check out the scorching "I Need More" from 1977's Pat Thomas & Marijata album on Gapophone.
Thomas left for Berlin and stayed true to his highlife roots, becoming the first Ghanaian to record highlife there. “Guitarist George Darko was already there playing clubs with his band and I then began to work with some great Ghanaian highlife players who eventually became the Roots Anabo Band. There was Ekow Brown, Sammy Quist on guitar and a guy called Willie. We were put in a big studio, Audio-Tonstudio, where many big artists had recorded. We simply called the album 1980. George Darko played on it, Bob Fician came in on keyboards, Kologbo on rhythm guitar, Nat Osmasu on bass." Listen to the synth-tweaked dancefloor destroyer Yamona from the 1980 album below.
Thomas then travelled to Togo and London before heading to Canada where he spent much of the rest of the 80s living, teaching and performing in Toronto as part of the vibrant Queen West music scene. “A professor/doctor friend arranged for me to come over to Toronto. There was a band there who took me on. While I was flying in, looking at Toronto from the sky, I thought it looked so heavy! I had a sense that I was going to live in this city and I end up there on and off for 10 years. I taught percussion privately there, played for universities, Ghanaian societies and a WOMAD Festival. The band and I also landed a one-year contract at The BamBoo nightclub in the city.”
Pat is now back in Ghana, recording and touring worldwide with Kwashibu Area Band, a project put together by talented young musicians Kwame Yeboah and Ben Abarbanel Wolff. Explains Thomas, “Highlife is part of Ghana's musical DNA but, what people like Ebo Taylor and I did was to make it fresh and modernize it, make it more relevant to our day and more funky. We took the great Kwa music of Kumasi and other local styles and added Western elements with new horn arrangements, vocals, guitar and other developments. Since then, highlife has become the world's music and I am proud to still bring it to audiences wherever we play." Check out the horn-hyped "We Are Coming Home" from 1976's Stage Two album on Gapophone.
Batuki Music Society presents a special double bill featuring Ghanaian highlife legend Jewel Ackah and Adam Solomon's African Blues & Jazz Trio at the Lula Lounge onThursday, August 29. Backing stellar vocalist Jewel
Ackah will be members of Toronto's own highlife heavy-hitters, Afrafranto, including Jewel's son, Kofi Ackah.
Jewel Ackah, born in Ghana’s western Nzima region in 1945, initially had aspirations of being a professional soccer player but found his true calling as a singer, starting with a cover band called The Pick-Ups in 1965 before finding fame in 1967 with C.K Mann’s Carousel 7.
He then moved on to a succession of groups, namelyEbo Taylor and the Railway Band, theEl Dorados (of the Aboso Glass
Factory) and the Medican Lantics,
the resident band of the Atlantic Hotel in Takoradi. In 1973, Jewel joined A.B. Crentsil’sSweet Talks, in Tema and continued to perform with them regularly during the mid to late 70s. In 1979 he fronted a new Sweet Talks line-up, and recorded Hallelujah!
Amen! with the S.T. Express followed by the release of the solo set Asomdwee Henee. During a brief stint with TheGreat Pilsner’s
Band, a brewery-sponsored outfit led by Jimmy Kwapps, he took time out for a 1980 session with guitarist Kwame Nkrumah to revisit their favourite highlife hits of the 50s that resulted in the lovely Yeridi A
Wu album.
After a couple of ill-fated attempts at reaching a younger audience with the soca-inspired Super Pawa and funk-highlife hybrid London Connection albums, he returned to a more conventional modern highlife concept with his own Butterfly Six
in 1985 with which he performed through the early 90s. However, he did reunite with A.B. Crentsil and Pat Thomas for the 1986 album Electric Hi-Life. Ever since, Jewel has issued a steady stream of gospel
albums such as Me Su Fre Wo
in 1994 and ‘Ahwereshow’ in
1995. Hopefully the upcoming Lula Lounge show is an indication that Ackah is now aware of the incredible resurgence of interest in West African highlife from the 60s and 70s and he'll once again return to the classic sound for which he's best loved.
Opening the show is the African Blues & Jazz Trio featuring Adam Solomon on guitar and vocals, bassist Conrad Henderson and Phil
Caffery on drums. Affectionately known as "The
Professor," Adam Solomon
performs as a blues soloist as well as with his band Tikisa, creating a unique
sound that combines traditional and modern coastal East African rhythms, fiesta,
rumba, soukous, makossa and highlife music. He has released three three albums, Safari, Mti Wa Maisha and Rocket
Express II: African Renaissance Blues.
Adam Solomon is also a member of the Juno award-winning super group African Guitar
Summit.
Event:Jewel Ackah / Adam
Solomon's African Blues & Jazz Trio
Date: Thursday, August 29
Venue: Lula Lounge (1585 Dundas St. West. Toronto)
Single Artist Releases 1. WITCH - We Intend To Cause Havoc! 2. Don Cherry - Organic Music Society 3. The Flatlanders - The Odessa Tapes 4. Hannibal Marvin Peterson - The Tribe 5. Feedtime - The Aberrant Years 5. Ebo Taylor – Twer Nyame 6. Dan Penn – The Fame Recordings 7. Myrian Makenwa – La Extraordinaria 8. Edzayawa - Projection One 9. Tim Maia – Nobody Can Live Forever 10. Henri-Pierre Noel - Piano 11. Azanyah - The One 12. Yabby You & Bretheren - Deeper Roots: Dub Plates & Rarities, 1976 to 1978 13. Can - The Lost Tapes 14. The Funkees - Dancing Time: The Best Of Eastern Nigeria’s Afro Rock Exponents, 1973-77 15. Lee Perry - Sound Doctor: Lee Perry And The Sufferers' Black Ark Singles & Dub Plates 1972 To 1978 16. Sandy Denny – The Notes and Words: A Collection of Demos and Rarities 17. William Parker - Centering: Unreleased Early Recordings, 1976-1987 18. Henri Guédon - Cosmozouk 19. Grupo Los Yoyi - Yoyi 20. Buck Owens - Tall Dark Stranger 21. The Lijadu Sisters – Afro-Beat Soul Sisters: The Lijadu Sisters At Afrodisia, Nigeria, 1976-79 22. Reverend Gary Davis - An Afternoon With Reverend Gary Davis 23. Ilaiyaraaja – Fire Star: Synth-Pop & Electro-Funk from Tamil Films 1985-1989 24. Pauline Oliveros - Reverberations Tape and Electronic Music 1961-1970 25. Alfonso Lovo - La Gigantona 26. George Jackson - Let The Best Man Win: The Fame Recordings Volume 2 27. William Sheller - Lux Aeterna 28. Derdiyoklar İkilisi - Disco Folk 29. Augustus Pablo - Dubbing On Bond Street 30. Lee Hazlewood – The LHI Years: Singles, Nudes & Backsides, 1968-71 31. Afro Funk - Body Music 32. Pharoah Sanders - In The Beginning 33. Ahora Mazda - Ahora Mazda 33. Rob – Make It Fast, Make It Slow 34. Brenda Ray – D'Ya Hear Me! Naffi Years, 1979-83 35. Karen Dalton - 1966 36. HE3 Project - Chapter Three 37. Tronics – Love Backed by Force 38. Emil Richards - Stones / Journey To Bliss 39. The Outsiders - Monkey On Your Back: Their 45s 40. Baris Manco - Sakla Samani, Gelir Zamani 41. Doug Jerebine – Doug Jerebine Is Jesse Harper 42. Lou Ragland – I Travel Alone 43. Shin Joong Hyun – Shin Joong Hyun & Yup Juns 44. Mahmoud Ahmed - Mahmoud Ahmed Accompanied By The Ibex Band 45. Roy Porter Sound Machine – The Story of Roy Porter Sound Machine 1971-1975 46. Domingo Cura – Tiempo De Percusion: An Anthology, 1971-77 47. Royal Band de Thiès – Kadior Demb 48. Justin Rutledge & The Junction Forty - No Never Alone 49. Afro Kelenkye Band - Jungle Funk 49. Salah Ragab & The Cairo Jazz Band - Unreleased Egyptian Jazz 1968-1974 50. Ironing Board Sam - An Introduction To Ironing Board Sam
Various Artist Compilations
1. Diablos Del Ritmo: The Colombian Melting Pot,1960-1985
2. The Return Of The Stuff That Dreams Are Made Of
3. Jukebox Mambo: Rumba & Afro-Latin Accented Rhythm & Blues 1949 to 1960
4. It's Saturday Night!: Starday-Dixie Rockabilly 1955-1961
5. Personal Space: Electronic Soul, 1974-1984
6. R&B Hipshakers, Vol. 3: Just a Little Bit of the Jumpin' Bean
7. Holy Spirit: Spiritual Soul & Gospel Funk from Shreveport’s Jewel Records
8. TV Sound & Image: British Television Film & Library Composers 1955-78
9. Work Hard, Play Hard, Pray Hard: Hard Time, Good Time & End Time Music, 1923-1936
10. A Search For CMS African Records by Blue Flamingo
11. ¡Saoco! The Bomba and Plena Explosion in Puerto Rico 1954-1966
12. The Detroit Funk Vaults: Funk and Soul from Dave Hamilton, 1968-1979
13. Killed By Synth, Vol. 1
14. The Rojac Story: The Best Of Rojac & Tayster
15. The Original Sound of Cumbia: The History of Colombian Cumbia & Porro As Told By The Phonograph 1948-79
17. Soul Cal: Funky Disco & Modern Soul Masterpieces 1971-1982
18. Fetén: Rare Jazz Recordings From Spain, 1961-1974
19. Now's The Time: Deep German Jazz Grooves Vol 2: 1957-1969
20. Cooler Than Ice: Arctic Records & The Rise Of Philly Soul
21. Loving On The Flipside: Sweet Funk And Beat-Heavy Ballads 1969-1977
22. Royal Grooves: Funk & Groovy Soul from the King Records Vault
23. Tomorrow's Achievements: Parry Music Library 1976-86
24. Down Under Nuggets: Original Australian Artyfacts 1965-1967
25. Spiritual Jazz Volume II and III: Esoteric, Modal And Deep European Jazz 1960-78
26. Eccentric Soul: Omnibus Vol. 1
27. Regional Garland - Mixed Sugar: The Complete Works, 1970-1987
28. Hall of Fame: Rare and Unissued Gems from the Fame Vaults
29. From The Vaults Of Ric & Ron Records: Rare & Unreleased Recordings 1958-1962
30. Sensacional Soul Vol. 3: Spanish Soul Stompers 1966-1976
31. The Music City Sessions, Vol. 1-3
32. Eccentric Soul: A Red Black & Green Production
33. Zendooni: Funk Psychedelia & Pop From Iranian Pre Revolution Generation
31. Wail Man Wail! The Best of King Curtis 1952-1961
32. Twin Cities Funk & Soul: Lost R&B Grooves From Minneapolis/St. Paul 1964-1979
33. Deep Enough Volume 1: Deep Jazz, Deep Funk & All Kinds Of Deep Grooves
34: Man Chest Hair: 17 Outbursts Of Unreleased Testosterone From The 1970s Mancunian Rock Underground
35: Java-Java: Indonesia Screaming Fuzz, Vol. 2
36. Soul Braza: Brazilian 60's & 70's Soul Psych, Vol. 2
37. Ike Turner Studio Productions: New Orleans And Los Angeles 1963-65
38. Cumbia Beat Vol 2: Experimental Guitar Driven Tropical Sounds From Peru 1966-1983
39. You Turned My Head Around: Lee Hazlewood Industries 1967-1970
40. Sofrito: International Soundclash
41. Lost Soul Gems: From Sounds Of Memphis
42. Surinam: Boogie & Disco Funk From The Surinamese Dance Floors, 76-83
43. Strange Passion: Explorations In Irish Post Punk DIY & Electronic Music 1980-83
44. Ivory Coast Soul 2: Afro Soul In Abidjan From 1976 To 1981
45. Ritmo Caliente
46. Khana Khana: Funk Psychedelia & Pop From Iranian Pre Revolution Generation
47. The Best of Perception & Today Records
48. Diggin' Down Argentina: Nuggets From The Rioplatense Scene 1967-1976, Vol 2
49. Jende Ri Palenge: People Of Palenque
50. Dabke: Sounds Of The Syrian Houran
The Paris Djs have done a fantastic job of promoting the funky freshest in post-Fela Afrobeat innovation from around the globe with their ongoing series of 21st Century Afro Spectacular podcasts but the recently posted third edition could be their best ever.
As usual, Djouls' & Grant Phabao's monstrous 25-track mix moves from modern Afrobeat, Afro-funk and Afro-Latin joints to Ethio grooves and boasts a few exclusives like the unreleased track from Franck Biyong's new project with the Diamane Bantu Messengers, the first sampling from the much-anticipated new Antibalas album, and a taster from Ebo Taylor's new album along with crucial cuts from Akalé Wubé, The Liberators, Chico Mann, Shogun Orchestra, El Michels Affair, Beta Hector, Sierra Leone's Refugee All-Stars and a mind-roasting closer from Italy's Classica Orchestra Afrobeat featuring a very special guest collaborator.
Of course, there are also a few choice digging discoveries, this time presenting Dereb The Ambassador, The Macrotones, Bixiga 70, Topaz and Papa Chango. It all bodes well for the forthcoming Afrofunk/Tropical/Reggae/Funk/Soul compilation release by the Paris DJs Soundsystem due in September. In the meantime, you can check out Volume Three of The Paris DJs' 21st Century Afro Spectacular right here
