Pico Culture #05: Zimbabwe Hits, with Pico master Alex Aleman (1986)

(Discafrique - AFRI LP 01).

This compilation presents various bands from Zimbabwe from the early 80's,  The LP remained a period at the back of Muzzicaltrips bag as the title track is perfect to lift the tropical dancers, including fresh inimitable rhythm, sebene and weird effects...

Luis Agudo - Afrosamba (Afrobrazilian jazz&drums, 1984)

(VPA 172).

Luis Agudo (1940-) is an Argentinian percussionist who developed an unique style based on brazilian and african drums and rhythms. He's a real rhythmic explorer, building his own percussions. This led him to play worldwide for many jazz musicians (Baden Powell, Dizzy Gillespie, Elvin Jones, Junior Cook...).

This record is a solo recording realized in Italia (original press from Red Records) where he shows his wide variety of sounds, rhythms and effects.

Lemed Janvier et l'Orchestre African Allstar (Soukous from Benin, 1981-82)

(Oueme LJ001).

Lemed Janvier took part of recordings with Orchestre Poly Rythmo, Les Volcans du Benin and Tabu Ley from Congo.
Being form Benin but having lived in Kinshasa, he can also sing in lingala like a congolese  musician (and generally alternating some french or english parts). This late album was released in Benin and contains infectious soukous ryhtmic guitars (Señores Picoteros, pienso que le va a gustar). Global sound remains more in the 70s with African Allstar band, and includes also few suprisingly funky short breaks.

First tracks deals with a topic often adressed: the fact that the slanders and rumors do not affect the musicians.

Alpha (Chancy Records, Haiti, 1981)

(Chancy Records CCLP7994). 

Although Alpha band comes from Guadeloupe, this LP is produced by haitian bass player (Tabou Combo) Adolphe Chancy.
New York based label Chancy Records (CC Production for Coppet + Chancy) released from the late 70s many haitian bands (Tabou Combo, Coupe Cloue, Skah Shah, Gemini Allstars...) and few bands from the "french" West Indies as Alpha or Selecta International.  Another aspect of the significative influence of haitian cadence on Guadeloupe and Martinique musicians.

MIX /// Tropical Roundtrip by Muzzicaltrips (Palmwine Radioshow #50)

(PWRS50).

Here's a Muzzicaltrips selection recorded for Palmwine Radioshow. A special repost as some really nice tracks there...

Sharing Heritage (Original roots voodoo music from Haiti)

(Center for African Studies, Haiti).

It is a well documented fact that the Dahomeans participated in the slave trade only as a measure of "self defense"... But they had sworn among themselves never to sell anyone from their ethnic group (the Aja people).

Unfortunately towards the end of the 18th century, a "crazy man" named Agongolo seized power in Dahomey : he violated the oath of the Aja, and he sold even his own parents into slavery. In 1806, 4000 Dahomeans of royal blood who fell victim to the heinous act of Agongolo, landed in Haiti. Henry Christophe, King of Haiti had "bought" them from an English trader... Once in Haiti, these Dahomeans were set free. They were entrusted with the upkeep of the affairs of the Court of the King Henry. When King Henry died, they followed their leader Alluda Mugnon into the Artibonite Valley. There they founded their own village...

This recording is the first recording ever of the religious Vodu practices of these people. (Liner notes)

Alejo Duran sings and tells his life (Colombian archives, 1986)

Alejo Duran is a legend in Colombia, as king of the most popular style: Vallenato. This day of 1986, going out the recording studio where he comes back to events of his life, Alejo Duran said to the interviewer: "I would like this reel to be kept up to the day I die... supposing this day ever happens". He died three years later and this LP was released in 1989.

Yusef Lateef in Nigeria (African tradition + jazz experiment, 1983)

(Landmark LLP-502).

Flute and tenor sax player Yusef Lateef (1920-2013) just passed away, so here's a post dedicated to this real sound explorer (before being a jazzman), who integrated eastern or african influences in many of his recordings. Famous for his deep, free and spiritual music all along the 60's and 70's in the US, he also directly enriched his open-minded approach spending years in Nigeria in the early 80's.

Lukoki Diatho and Joe Mpoyi - Vava (Congolese singers in the 80s)

(Maikano MAILP1031).

Following years of success with Franco's TP OK Jazz, singer Lukoki Diatho ran several projects with his colleague Joe Mpoyi Kaninda in the mid 80's (Orchestre Canons du Zaire, Tiers Monde Cooperation). This album "100-1" is one of them, although name of the band is not mentioned.
Title track denounces liars and cheaters, surnamed "100-1". Competition between bands, betrayal and honesty have been recurrent themes in congolese soukous, same as love and woman relations which is the topic of "Vava" track presented here.

Jazz Hot magazine views about Fela and Afrobeat in 1981

Every year is celebrated a Fela Day (few weeks ago in Paris), proving that Fela Kuti's spirit is still gliding around, despite a very varied comprehension. Good occasion anyway to search in muzzicaltrips archives, and look at how evolves perception of african music along the years. Here's an article about Fela Kuti which reveals part of the perception of a jazz magazine from 1981 (Jazz Hot, first jazz magazine in Europe created in 1935).

MIX /// Tropical Roundtrip Selection (from Colombia to Africa)

(Muzzicaltrips TRT019).

A real tropical roundrip, beginning in colombia with classy 60s cumbia, guiro y guaracha, merecumbe, maracumba, currulao, afrocolombian...
A selection warmly advised to people still convinced that all latin music is more or less salsa... Actually we begin with few examples of the countless styles having emerged in Colombian regions, as merecumbe, being a blend of merengue+cumbia initially popularized in the 50s by Pacho Galan, and here played by Lucho Bermudez.

Dieuf-Dieul de Thies (Unreleased senegalese sounds from early 80s)

(TRLP017).

An obscure 80s band from Thies in Senegal have just been brought back to life by label Teranga Beat. Dieuf-Dieul played from 1979 to 1982, but it appears their music never have chance to be released on a proper vinyl nor tape album until today. That's why i found interesting to present this record on Muzzicaltrips and to discuss with Teranga Beat Label founder, about these recordings and amazing piece of senegalese musical heritage.

Dieuf-Dieul was run by Pape "Abdou Aziz" Seck, ex member of Guelewar from Gambia,  not to be mismatched with  70s figure Pape "Serigne" Seck (from Star Jazz de Saint Louis, Star Band de Dakar, Number One du Senegal). To have an idea of  his carreer, Pape Seck played guitar in following bands:

Johnny Copeland - Ngote (Poly Rythmo cover, 1985)

(FIEND47).

If you follow muzzicaltrips you probably know already the Poly Rythmo funky bomb "Ne te Fache Pas". But could you imagine to find it covered by a jazz-blues american musician? I could not, so it was a real surprise when I discovered this cover version.

Alhaji Wasiu Ayinde Barrister - Erin Goke (Fuji music, 1987)

(Omo Aje, OLPS1338).

Fuji is a kind of smooth transe music...

Marc Nkodo David - Marco Star African Xyl (Cameroon, 80s)

(Marc 001).

This album has been recorded at Radio Cameroun studio, probably in 1983. Marc Nkodo David plays the solo guitar, name of the band being Marco-Star. The recording is not perfect but the music is very interesting rhythmically. During one song he explains that the rhythm they're playing is  called "angazuma" (engagement?). Any additional info is welcome.

Pico Culture #02 - MIX /// Terapia Africana Mix (A selection of pico african hits)

From the 70s, while the soundsystem culture was developing, more and more african records arrived on the colombian coast due to increasing commercial exchanges between international harbors.

Some african songs became hits, african styles being surnamed: nova for highlife tracks, rastrillo for kenyan tracks... It was such a big success for the youth of Cartagena and Baranquilla that even each popular song received his own surname. Also several tracks have been bootlegged in terapia/champeta  compilations (which leads to find improbable records including a pure benga followed by an awful 80s techno), and not always credited the original artist/title, but just the local surname known by everybody.

Pico Culture #01 - Introducing "El Pico"

A very interesting cultural aspect on the colombian caribbean coast, particularly in Cartagena and Baranquilla  is the Pico Culture. A Pico is a soundsystem that usually plays vinyls (very loud!) during weekends. It developed on the coast from the 60s and evolved up to now with different influences during each decade. The caribbean coast has always been for Colombia the "front door" for other countries, so Baranquilla as principal harbor, received influences (and records) from all around the caribbean and also from Africa. As result, big proportion of the music played is african vinyls from Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Zaire, Angola (some DJs play 100% african music). But the selection can also be very diverse (cumbia, gaita, guaguanco, pachanga, tumbele, calypso, reggae... ), demonstrating importance of this crossroad within black atlantic interconnections. In parallel, it also developed a local style played on the soundsystems, initially called "Terapia" then "Champeta". Althoug corresponding more to a "80s sound" (including effects and new technical possibilities), it reveals amazing soukous influences which contributed to a kind of renewing of the african consciousness in popular areas of Cartagena and Baranquilla.

Charlie Sekato & Orchestre Les As du Benin (Ziglibity, 1981)

(BAM LP-1002/81)

This album has been recorded in Togo, includes the Orchestre les As du Benin, but is produced by Abidjan label Bam Records. I don't know where Charlie Sekato comes from, but he gives here a Ziglibity track, typical rhythm from Ivory Coast popularized by Ernesto Djedje.

Perucho Conde - La Cotorra Criolla (Early Latin Hip Hop from Venezuela, 1980)

 

(EPIC EPC8899).

A bonus track from the 45rpms found in Barcelona...

And here's a crazyness made in 1980 in Caracas: an humorist rapping in spanish on a fat disco instrumental. When first hip hop from the US arrived in Venezuela it was surnamed "musica cotorra" (cotorra = parrot) I guess because of the singers flow. So Peruche Conde made a hip hop typically from Venezuela with this hit "la cotorra criolla" (criolla = creole). Lyrics are very funny, but behind the humoristic approach, it's a real social and protest song (!) denouncing poor living conditions (prices increase, low salaries, no social welfare, pre-election promises...).

Francis Bebey - Africa Sanza (Cameroon, 1982)

(OZIL 3312).

Guitar player, singer, composer, writter... Francis Bebey (1929-2001) takes a trip back here to the roots of his african music, playing only sanza (instrument on the picture), flutes and drums on this album. Although, exploring these traditional patterns allows him to produce universal sounds, which was one of Francis Bebey aspirations.