Skip to main content

Programa No. 143 - “modern” African music

 


Here on Al compás del mundo you’ve previously heard programs of music from Asia, Europe, Latin America, North America, and, of course, Africa. In the case of the latter, I’ve broken that down more narrowly to Northern or Southern Africa, music with Latin roots, the youth movement in Mali, and other genres from within the continent. At times I attempted to distinguish traditional sounds from the more modern studio recordings. But my distinguishing isn’t always up to snuff. This week’s program gives evidence to that delicate dance between the music of the elders and what the kids want to hear. The songs in this playlist come from all over Africa, including the remote island, La Réunion, off the eastern coast of Madagascar, and hail from the last quarter of the 20th century to the present day. I believe that qualifies as “modern”. And yet within that time frame we find those musicians that adhere to long established instrumentation and singing styles like the Akalé Wubé Krar Collecive, in contrast to computer created accompaniment as heard in Mbongwana Star’s lead off. In fact, while not a trend I favor, more and more recording artists have taken advantage of synthetic electronic sounds for bass, drum, backgrounds and most everything else. Like I said, I’m not terribly fond of the results, but under the direction of a talented producer good things can be heard. And I can understand the economics involved: a single music machine (or two) can take the place of an entire band and do away with the cost of hiring a gang of musicians. Something I’ve noticed in my research of 1950s-80s, mostly West and East African groups, was the sheer number of band members in these congregations. Ten to twelve musicians seemed par for the course, on average. How did they tour (travel, eating, sleeping)? Was there a living wage paid at shows that could support that many participants? Setting up and taking down equipment had to be a major hassle, etc.  A labor of love.

Whether you have a preference for more organic, traditional sounds, or are attracted to the wizardry of electronica, this week’s program offers a select variety of both approaches. As the world around us evolves and changes, so does the music we are favored to hear. - JH

Playlist - Al compás del mundo, programa #143,  “modern” African music
First broadcast 8-29-24

 

01 Mbongwana Star - From Kinshasa to the Moon (Congo)

02 Papé Nziengui - Gho Mitsaba Na Voko (Gabon)

03 Sogha Niger - Fulbe (Niger)

04 Ursulla & Black Star Music Club - Mpende Anaekupenda (Tanzania)

05 Akalé Wubé Krar Collective (Ethiopía and USA)

06 Abdou el-Omari - Ahmed Malek (Morocco)

07 Hachalu Hundessa - Tulluu Jala (Ethiopía)

08 Dindia Official - Mouyanga ba mambangue (Gabon)

09 Ndenga Andre Destin et Les Golden Sounds - Yondja (Cameroon)

10 Jonah Sithole & The Black Unlimited - Zvichemo (Zimbabwe)

11 Sekouba Bambino - Ka Souma Man (Mali)

12 Rossy - Tsihai Akory Atao (Madagascar)

13 Jacqueline Farreyol - Roule Ton Maloya (La Réunion)

1960s Benin 'jazz' group


 


 

 

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

British Invasion - 1960s

I wanted to declare “Kick out the jams, mo’fos!” as a signpost towards the message in this week’s Al compás del mundo radio show, but that actually came about a little later. As humanity descended ever deeper into the Cro-Magnon state, Iggy Pop and the punks claimed that honor. What we have here instead, is a post-WWII let’s shake up the political order a bit, and no, not everyone has signed up to be an unconscious consumer attitude. There’s something afoot with these lads. Not exactly revolutionary fervor, but most certainly promoting a change in the general way of things. Recalling Che Guevara’s famous quote “Do Wah Diddy Diddy”, the Animals, Yardbirds, Rolling Stones et. al. pouted and preened – some more than others – in a way that hadn’t quite been done before. Youthful vigor ensued. These groups pushed the evolutionary chain of popular music a step further and we’re all better off for it.  Set list Al compás del mundo programa #183, 6-5-25 - The British Invasion, 1960s 01 Yar...

Funk and Soul

  Al compás del mundo - programa #169, 2-27-25, Funk and Soul   01 The Commodores - Brick House 02 Tower of Power - Drop It In The Slot 03 Parliament - Ride On 04 Sly & The Family Stone – Frisky 05 The Webb People – I’m Sending Vibrations 06 Ruby Delicious - Rock Steady 07 Mandrill - Git It All 08 The San Francisco TKOS – Herm 09 Ohio Players - Fire 10 Parliament - Mothership Connection (Star Child) 11 Kool & The Gang - Jungle Boogie 12 Chico and Buddy - A Thing Call the Jones 13 Little Ann – Possession 14 Lafayette Afro-Rock Band - Time Will Tell 15 Parliament - Ain't Nuthin' But a Jam Y'all   What did James Brown mean when he said “we’re gonna have a funky good time”? This “funky” of which he spoke, was it strictly musical (and danceable), or maybe sexual, sociable, or even political? Or maybe a little bit of each? Funk, funky, funkify, funkadelic, funkalicious…all pointing at the pleasure principle…a new dialect for the “blue...

Nuyorican boogaloo cha-cha-cha

 I’m labelling this week’s playlist as “Nuyorican” music, the lion’s share of the players from Puerto Rico or of Puerto Rican ancestry.  Two notable exceptions are Joe Bataan, a Filipino-African American, and Mongo Santamaria born in Cuba. What they all have in common, however, was centered around the music scene of New York City where African American and Latino musicians forged a common ground in creating “boogaloo” dance music, mixing elements of R&B, Soul, and Latin dance rhythms. The boogaloo genre was fairly short-lived, enjoying popularity during the 1960’s before giving way to salsa, in what was largely an East Coast and Caribbean impulse. “Watermelon Man” and ”El Watusi” were early and major boogaloo hits, but truly, most of the titles included in the program were popular recordings in their day, whether cha-cha-chas like Tito Puente’s “Oye Como Va”, or GFyEN’s guajira. I’ve gathered them here for an hour’s worth of revelation for those too young to have heard thi...