April 2011
April 2011
Every month I make a list of the recordings I’ve been listening to most often over the past few weeks. Here’s my list for April 2011.
Sergey Starostin: Zhyli-Byli (2011) – This singer and reed player builds on Russian folk music to produce some beautiful, haunting sounds. Try this video of Starostin playing two flutes at once for an introduction to this fascinating musical world.
Karuna: Hyvää Matkaa (2010) – The Finnish trio Karuna takes the listener on an enjoyable trip through new compositions anchored in traditional folk dance music. My full review and some audio samples are available on RootsWorld.
Geoff Berner: Victory Party (2011) - Klezmer and Eastern European folk music interpreted through a punk lens by the Canadian accordionist provides an album filled with great lyrics, wonderful arrangements, and most of all some mind-bending juxtapositions. Here’s the video for the title track from Berner’s previous release, Whiskey Rabbi.
March 2011
March 2011
Every month I make a list of the recordings I’ve been listening to most often over the past few weeks. Here’s my list for March 2011.
Khaira Arby: Timbuktu Tarab (2010) – The desert blues music coming out of Mali these days is incredibly good, and Khaira Arby is at the forefront. Her singing, her energy, her backing band – everything works together perfectly. Watch this video of “Sourgou” and you’ll see what I mean.
Natacha Atlas: Mounqaliba (2010) – Natural sounds, electronics, jazz, and Arabic classical forms are all used to convey her message. This is a dark yet beautiful record. Here’s a video Natacha Atlas created of her music mixed with images of the recent uprising in Egypt.
Väsen: Väsen Street (2009) – This Swedish folk trio will be on tour in the US shortly, and they will be in my town at the Boise Contemporary Theater on March 10th. All you Boiseans had best be there. Here’s a video of the title track from their most recent recording.
Marcus Shelby Orchestra: Soul of the Movement (2011) – Anthems from the Civil Rights Movement and inspiring originals from this San Francisco big band. Great arrangements and great musicians all around. Here’s a label-produced video featuring clips from many of the songs on the record. It’s heavy on the gospel numbers, but also features some stellar instrumental solos.
Yorgis Goiricelaya: Elegance (2010) – Latin jazz from a number of angles with different ensembles all anchored by Goiricelaya’s bass with some very nice textural surprises. Here’s a video of the band performing the tune “El Manicero” at an outdoor festival.
Maria Kalaniemi: Vilda Rosor (2010) – The accordionist from Finland brings along a good-sized band that includes banjo, fiddle, double bass, and electric guitar for an wild spin through traditional Finnish tunes and a few originals.
Stravinsky Conducts Stravinsky: The Firebird (1961) – I haven’t written much about classical music on this blog, but I do listen to quite a bit, and lately I’ve been listening to this recording of Igor Stravinsky’s ballet The Firebird with the composer himself conducting the Columbia Symphony Orchestra. It’s part of the Stravinsky Conducts Stravinsky series that Columbia Records put out in the 1960s. Here’s a video of Stravinsky conducting The Firebird with the New Philharmonia Orchestra.
February 2011
February 2011
Every month I make a list of the recordings I’ve been listening to most often over the past few weeks. Here’s my list for February 2011.
King Sunny Adé: Juju Music (1982) – This was King Sunny’s first major international release, and through it much of the world was introduced to juju music. Here’s a recent video performance of his updated “365 is My Number.”
Rodrigo y Gabriela: 11:11 (2009) – Mexican heavy metal acoustic guitarists from Ireland. Instead of trying to make sense of that description, watch them play Buster Voodoo.
Bassekou Kouyaté & Ngoni Ba: I Speak Fula (2010) – Great music from this master of ngoni, a traditional West African stringed instrument. Guest musicians include Toumani Diabaté on kora and guitarist Vieux Farka Touré. Kouyaté’s wife, Amy Sacko, contributes some great vocals. Here’s a great video of Ngoni Ba.
Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars: Rise & Shine (2010) – Roots reggae and Afropop from a group of musicians who five years ago were refugees from an unimaginably horrible civil war. This is their second record and includes backing from New Orleans musicians Trombone Shorty and members of Bonerama. Here’s a video of Goat Smoke Pipe.
Looking Back: 2009
Looking Back: 2009
I don’t limit my listening to only the newest records that have come out in the last few months. I’m always digging back through my collection listening to music I love. I also like to explore the back catalogs of artists who are new to me. I want to write an occasional blog post that looks back to a previous year, and I’ll start with 2009 (which I recognize wasn’t all that long ago). Here’s a list of albums from 2009 that I’m listening to often these days.
Anouar Brahem: The Astounding Eyes of Rita — Last December, I called this my favorite recording of 2009. I love Brahem’s compositions and arrangements as well as his oud playing. The bass clarinet of Klaus Gesing is outstanding. Here’s a video of the quartet playing “Dance With Waves.”
Bassekou Kouyaté & Ngoni Ba: I Speak Fula — Great music from this master of ngoni with a band created for not just one but four ngoni players. The ngoni is a traditional West African stringed instrument that is in some ways an ancestor of the modern banjo. Guest musicians include Toumani Diabaté on kora and guitarist Vieux Farka Touré. Kouyaté’s wife, Amy Sacko, contributes some great vocals. Here’s a great video of Ngoni Ba.
Salif Keita: La Différence — I’ve been late to the Salif Keita party, but I’ve made up for it in the past few months. A singer from Mali who comes from royal lineage and is also albino, he sings about political and environmental issues among other topics. I’ve also been enjoying his back catalog, especially Moffou.
Tom Russell: Blood and Candle Smoke — An incredible set of songs from America’s greatest songwriter. I fell in love with Tom Russell’s songs when I heard him sing “Gallo del Cielo” over 20 years ago. Very few songwriters tell stories as well as Tom Russell. And very few songwriters capture contemporary culture as well as Tom Russell. Put those two forces together and add Calexico as the backing band and you get one of the best records of the past decade. Here’s a video of my favorite song on the record, “East of Woodstock, West of Vietnam.”
Annbjørg Lien & Bjørn Ole Rasch: Come Home — Two members of Norwegian folk ensemble Bukkene Bruse put together a great duo record. Lien plays Hardanger fiddle and nyckelharpa while Rasch plays harmonium. The songs include re-imaginings of older Lien compositions “The Old Car” and “January.” I couldn’t find any good videos of the duo, but here’s a nice one of Bukkene Bruse performing ”Maria, Hun Er En Jomfru Reen“ with Lien on nyckelharpa and Rasch on keyboards. This duo recording is worth seeking out.
January 2011
January 2011
On my old website I made a list like this one quarterly. With this new website comes a new practice: I’ll post a list monthly. Here are the recordings I’m listening to most often in January 2011. All of these were featured on my Favorites of 2010 list.
Lobi Traoré: Rainy Season Blues (2010) – An accidental recording of sorts. This was supposed to be a recording of Traoré and his band, but circumstances prevented that so Lobi picked up an acoustic guitar and sang this great set of songs. He passed away shortly after this record was made. Here’s a video collage of music and interviews with Lobi Traoré.
Razia: Zebu Nation (2010) – Based on roots music from Madagascar with Afrobeat influences with some incredible accordion work from Regis Givazo all built on a foundation of a strong environmental conscience. Here’s the video for her song “Mifohaza” (“Wake Up”).
AfroCubism: AfroCubism (2010) – African and Cuban musicians get together to implement the original idea behind the Buena Vista Social Club. Here’s video of the AfroCubism players from their first day in the studio.
Yvette Landry: Should Have Known (2010) – Of all the US-based roots music that I heard this year, this record of Cajun honky-tonk was my favorite. Here’s a video of Landry playing her song “Friday Night Special.”
The Last Lists of 2010
The Last Lists of 2010
This is my last post about everyone’s favorite music of 2010. A number of these sites have audio and video samples. I hope you’ve found a lot of music to explore that was released in 2010, and you have my permission to explore the back catalogs of these artists too. I’m ready for even more great world and roots music in 2011.
- The Festive 50 from The Jazz Breakfast
- Best Albums from Lucid Culture
- Best World Music Albums from Jill Turner of World Music Central
- Best World Music Albums from National Geographic
- Postcard Top 20 and Favorite Bluegrass and Acoustiblue from Fervor Coulee
- Best Albums from Andrew Mueller of BBC Music
- Best Releases from John Kelman at All About Jazz
- Jazz Favorites from Something Else
- Favorite Jazz Albums from AllMusic
- Best of Jazz from Scratched Into Our Souls
My Favorites of 2010: #1
1. Omar Sosa & NDR Bigband: Ceremony
This was the first 2010 release I received. I got a review copy in November of 2009, and nothing else all year gave it a serious challenge for the top spot on my favorites list. It’s the perfect blend of Latin, African, and European jazz styles. Omar Sosa, the composer and pianist, was raised in Cuba and has deep roots in the culture and religion of West Africa. Jaques Morelenbaum, the arranger and cellist, comes from Brazil and brought his bossa nova background to the table. And the Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR) Bigband, the jazz orchestra of North German public broadcasting, is one of the great big bands playing today. Together they put together an extremely enjoyable and celebratory record that I kept dipping into all year long. This may have been my easiest choice, as this was a favorite of mine from the first moment I dropped the needle.
I wrote a longer review of Ceremony for RootsWorld which also contains audio samples.
Beyond this recording, there was a lot of great international jazz released this year. Mulatu Astatke and Frøy Aagre made my list of favorites. Sunna Gunnlaugs from Iceland wasn’t far behind. And I’ve mentioned releases from The Espen Eriksen Trio, Elephant9, Jaga Jazzist, and Bushman’s Revenge (all from Norway) in previous posts.
My full list of Favorites of 2010 is archived in the Resources section of this website.
My Favorites of 2010: #2
2. AfroCubism: AfroCubism (2010)
There’s a lot written, especially in the jazz world, about Afro-Cuban music. It’s easy to find musicians who borrow from both Cuban and African influences, including Cubans who borrow from African styles and vice versa. This recording may raise the bar for future Afro-Cuban collaborations.
The AfroCubism project is one of the most publicized and long-awaited releases of Afro-Cuban music in recent memory, partly because it came out of what was supposed to have happened when the Buena Vista Social Club was recorded years ago. These musicians from Cuba, Mali, and Guinea came together to create music together and learn from each other in the process. The results are impressive and live up to the hype. The influences here blend as if these players had been working together for years. It’s great to hear, for example, son cubano sung in Spanish and backed by ngoni and kora. I got this record as soon as it came out last month and have been playing it often.
Samples are available from the Nonesuch Records website.
Unfortunately I didn’t listen to much other Cuban music this year, but I did listen to a number of musicians from Africa who released great music this year. Razia, Lobi Traoré, and Terrakota had albums on my list of favorites, and the Sierra Leone Refugee All-Stars weren’t far behind. I found the new release from King Sunny Adé late in the year; if I’d heard it earlier it might have challenged for a place on my list. Khaira Arby falls in that same category. And Bassekou Kouyate (who is one of the musicians on AfroCubism) and his band Ngoni Ba put out a record in either late 2009 or early 2010 that made a number of other people’s 2010 lists. Such is listmaking when we bind ourselves by the calendar year.
My Favorites of 2010: #3
3. Mulatu Astatke: Mulatu Steps Ahead (2010)
The Ethiopian vibraphonist and composer put out a great record with backing from members of the Boston-based Either/Orchestra and The Heliocentrics from London. The arrangements also include traditional Ethiopian instruments: washint, masenqo, krar, begena. The sounds are startlingly ethereal, especially considering the size of these ensembles. One track lists 18 individual musicians, and yet this is intimate music, music that feels like it could have been made in my living room. I was mightily impressed with the musicality of everyone involved in this record, and it was an easy one to place high on my list of favorites this year.
These sentiments are echoed in a longer review of Mulatu Steps Ahead that I wrote for RootsWorld which also contains audio and video clips.
My Favorites of 2010: #4
4. Razia: Zebu Nation (2010)
Razia Said, who now lives in New York City, was raised in Madagascar where currently there are some 50 mammal species that are threatened or endangered. This environmental stress is caused both by global climate change and by deforestation still being undertaken to create rice and coffee plantations. This record is full of songs urging us to remember that it is not too late to stop the environmental damage in Madagascar and around the world.
Before embarking on a career in music, Razia earned a doctorate in pharmacology, and she brings both her scientific mind and her African music roots to this record. Musically she draws from Madagascar, primarily from salegy and tsapiky, as well as wider influences from Fela to James Brown and Jimi Hendrix. Electric guitar, accordion, and percussion are the featured instruments in this music with sitar making a welcome appearance.
Most of these songs are sung in Malagasy, the national language of Madagascar. The single work in English, “Slash and Burn,” is a gut-wrencher. The lyrics remind me of some of the Appalachian songs about the devastation brought to that region by the coal mines, reaffirming that these issues affect us all. Razia sings:
On the mountain side
Still the children play
Things feel the same way
But something is gone
It’s all gone up in smoke
The liner notes end with this call to action: “Let’s fight, let’s create some change because IT’S NOT TOO LATE.”
This is music I love with a message I support. I came to this record late in the year, but I’ll be spending a lot more time with it over these next few months and beyond.
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