Rahim AlHaj has long functioned as a politically conscious musical goodwill ambassador. Last year, the Iraqi-American oud virtuoso, who fled his native country in 1991 after being imprisoned twice for his opposition to the Saddam Hussein regime, issued the powerful album Letters from Iraq, which brought to life correspondence he received from Iraqi women and youth. Now the two-time Grammy nominee tells his own remarkable story with One Sky, his third album for Smithsonian Folkways Recordings.
One Sky serves as the debut album for the Rahim AlHaj Trio, featuring in addition to AlHaj the supreme talents of Iranian santūr player Sourena Sefati and Palestinian-American percussionist Issa Malluf. The record is a deepily immersive…
…sonic experience as the three world-renowned musicians weave transfixing textures and melodies that transport listeners to a world of tranquility and beauty.
…He reached out to Sourena Sefati, master of the santūr (Arabic hammered dulcimer). Beyond Sefati’s impressive resume (he holds numerous music degrees, has performed as a soloist and in ensemble concerts across the globe, and has been featured on over 50 albums), he understood the power of AlHaj’s mission. Born in Ramsar, Iran, Sefati emigrated to the U.S. in 2014 and now teaches, performs and resides in New Mexico.
Supporting AlHaj and Sefati is Palestinian-American percussionist Issa Malluf. Born and raised in New Mexico, Malluf is a self-taught musician who has been internationally recognized as a specialist in Middle Eastern, Arabic and North African percussion. Among the artists Malluf has performed with are Amjad Ali Khan, folk duo A Hawk and a Hacksaw, and Peter Buck.
“Dialogue,” the opening track on ‘One Sky,’ unfolds like a dream, with the three players painting an elaborate tableau of delicate musical layers. AlHaj and Sefati engage in a dance around Malluf’s precise yet nimble rhythms. The music is soothing, but its story is harrowing: AlHaj originally wrote the piece for violin and oud to honor his friend Nazar al-Jabar, who played 1st violin for the Iraqi Symphony Orchestra. The violinist once told AlHaj of the time in 1994, during UN Security Council-imposed sanctions against Iraq, when he was forced to burn his violin to keep his infant son warm. It would be the last time he touched a musical instrument.
“Time to Have Fun” conveys an entirely different mood. Playful and hypnotic, it springs forth like a bolt of hi-beam light. The dance rhythm is called a khaliji, common throughout the Arabian Gulf and Iraq. Listeners might feel compelled to move their bodies, which, as AlHaj explains in the liner notes, is the very idea: “If you don’t feel moved to dance here, go find some children and dance with them.”
“A Gift from a Sufi Soul” features an almost Western-sounding rhythm that supports sinuous and vaguely mysterious riffs. As the song opens up, the rhythm (an intriguing pattern of 14 beats counted as 4+4+3+3) grows more insistent and the melodies expand. The meaning behind the song stems from the Sufi belief that, with guidance from someone who has already experienced it, one can become awakened to the soul’s connection with God. Awareness of who you really are, a state of being described as beyond “I am” and “I want,” is the gift a Sufi soul offers.
“Dancing Planet,” built around engaging and invigorating polyrhythms, is a fitting and celebratory coda to this mesmerizing journey. Asked how he came to write the piece, AlHaj explains that he envisioned an Irish jig or a Scottish reel. He recounts how he had never danced until his wedding day, when every molecule in his body was filled with joy and everyone seemed to dance with him in celebration.
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FLAC | 226 MB | LINKS
Ginger Baker – drums, percussion, vocals
Jack Bruce – bass, piano, vocals, harmonica
Eric Clapton – lead guitar, rhythm guitar, 12-string guitar, vocals
Tracklist:
01. Strange Brew
02. Sunshine of Your Love
03. World of Pain
04. Dance the Night Away
05. Blue Condition
06. Tales of Brave Ulysses
07. Swlabr
08. We’re Going Wrong
09. Outside Woman Blues
10. Take It Back
11. Mother’s Lament
320 kbps | 320 MB | LINKS
Eddie Boyd was a blues pianist, singer and songwriter who made his primary impact on the Chicago scene during the 1940s and 50s, before becoming a popular figure in the American Folk Blues tours of Europe during the 60s and beyond. Born on the same Mississippi plantation as Muddy Waters, and a half-brother of Memphis Slim, he moved to Memphis in the late 30s and in 1941 headed for Chicago, working in steel mills to finance his music activities. He played on many musicians sessions, and from 1947 recorded under his own name, initially for RCA, but subsequently for Regal, J.O.B., Herald and most notably Chess, before working with several other labels at the start of the 60s. His combination of boogie and jazz-tinged styles brought him an R&B No. 1 in 1952 with Five Long Years and subsequent Top 3 R&B hits with 24 Hours and Third Degree. This great-value 50-track 2-CD set comprises selected A and B sides from the 66 tracks he released on singles across this era for the RCA-Victor, J.O.B., Herald, Chess, Bea & Baby, Keyhole, Mojo & Art-Tone labels, and so represents a solid cross-section of his work. Its a entertaining showcase for his ability to work across the blues spectrum, from moody slow blues to fine rocking blues alongside some of Chicagos best musicians, and its an enlightening introduction to an underrated bluesman who merits a great deal more attention than he has received over the years.
320 kbps | 84 MB | LINKS
If the lake of Texcoco surrounded the island where the great Mexican Tenochtitlan was founded, this Texxcoco is the one that surrounds Las Palmas de Gran Canarias where the new empire of punk pop is rising. Uproar and pedals. Melody and turbo. Although one of the latest tracks released by this very young islanders is called No Beach (2018), in their music there is sun and plenty of waves: on one of the shores a little garage, and on another the surfy melodies breaking against corals of edgy guitars and the chords of shark basses. All in a rapid crawl. Wham, bam, punk!
320 kbps | 91 MB | LINKS
Tracks:
1. Week In Tennessee (03:30)
2. My Sweet Love (03:24)
3. I Can’t Shake It (04:11)
4. Heart and Mind Alike (03:41)
5. Four Little Words (03:59)
6. Fly Low Tonight (03:38)
7. She Won’t Realize (04:24)
8. Take Me If You Want Me (03:22)
9. Dying To Tell You (04:26)
10. What You Want To See (03:36)
320 kbps | 83 MB | LINKS
Beninese artist Angélique Kidjo’s reimagining of Talking Heads’ 1980 album Remain in Light began life as a live project. Kidjo performed her version of the record at Carnegie Hall in 2017, with an appearance from Talking Heads frontman himself, David Byrne. Kidjo first encountered Remain in Light after fleeing her native Benin, West Africa and its communist regime. Relocated to Paris, she recognised the African influences of the record, and her recorded version aims to unite western and African music, but also to highlight the origins of so much of what western music is indebted to.
Rather appropriately, the album features both western and African musicians from Tony Allen to Vampire Weekend’s Ezra Koenig, but it’s Kidjo’s presence that looms largest over the record (save Allen’s inimitable beats). Overall, the album’s songs feel fuller and less wiry in Kidjo and her collaborator’s hands. In many respects, the differences aren’t radical, if only in the sense that the band’s influences are so pronounced on the original album. But that said, there are moments that are almost unidentifiable.
As perhaps the record’s most recognisable song, the familiarity of ‘Once in a Lifetime’ remains apparent, but it also offers up a distinct departure. Kidjo flips the strangeness of the original for unadulterated celebratory joy, along with some wonderfully punctuating brass work, in lieu of Byrne’s middle class, existential anxieties. On ‘Born Under Punches’ the rhythms feel less awkward stripped of their post-punk fusion and the input of African musicians, which makes the flow feel infinitely more natural. In contrast, the lack of jitteriness on ‘Crosseyed and Painless’ is a slight loss, as it’s traded for a more danceable, if less edgy, version.
Although fully honouring her own heritage and addressing Talking Heads debt to it, her reworking’s are entirely contemporary. Musically and vocally the record imaginatively transposes it’s many memorable details, as on the jazz inflections of ‘House in Motion’ and an elastic bass line that mirrors Tina Weymouth’s own rubbery work.
One of the obvious distinctions are the vocals. Their voices are so utterly different, and that in itself sheds new light on the songs. Kidjo’s vocal has a richness, depth, and confident delivery that contrasts heavily with Byrne’s sinewy yelp. While it would be fruitless and limiting, to pursue a better or worse scenario, there are moments that are more successful on each version. ‘Listening Wind’ proves a real triumph mining an emotional resonance not entirely evident in Byrne’s detached vocal, as Kidjo makes it soar.
It’s a great thing that Talking Heads’ record has been fully opened up to what inspired it, and this project has proved a wonderful opportunity to reclaim this music and offer it’s origins out to a wider audience. While both records can be enjoyed in equal measure, Kidjo has highlighted what a worthwhile venture it is to not merely cover a much-lauded album but to recover and celebrate its influences.
Sixth in row in this week of juju we’ve got the great I.K. Dairo and
his Blue Spot. From 1980 and on Skylark Records this is an ode to
Ayinla Omowura, an apala star. We’ll get back to him one fine day.
I.K. Dairo is the one juju artist who used the accordion in his music.
The records on which are rare however, sorry, not this one. Always
on the lookout for his records, unfortunately they are hard to find.
The various online discographies are far from complete, he made
many but little is displayed. Get and share as usual..
Zesde in rij tijdens onze week van de juju is de grote I.K. Dairo met
zijn band de Blue Spot. Uit 1980 en op Skylark Records is dit een ode
aan Ayinla Omowura, een apala ster over wie een andere keer meer.
I.K. Dairo is voor zover ik weet de enige juju artiest die de accordeon
gebruikte. De platen waarop hij dit doet zijn helaas zeldzaam, sorry,
niet op deze dus. Ondanks de eeuwige zoektocht naar zijn platen
vinden we ze slechts spaarzaam. De diverse online discografieën
zijn helaas verre van compleet. Hij maakte er vele maar weinige
zijn terug te vinden. Veel luisterplezier met deze plaat..
tracks ;
01 – A nbe o edumare
—–Ohun ti owu ki aleje
—–Moreni gboju le
—–Folorunso awomolo
—–Motiri osu ayo
—–Abe j’oye
02 – Late chief alhaji ayinla omowura
—–Chief ibikunle armstrong
—–Chief s.b. bakare
320 kbps | 83 MB | LINKS
Beninese artist Angélique Kidjo’s reimagining of Talking Heads’ 1980 album Remain in Light began life as a live project. Kidjo performed her version of the record at Carnegie Hall in 2017, with an appearance from Talking Heads frontman himself, David Byrne. Kidjo first encountered Remain in Light after fleeing her native Benin, West Africa and its communist regime. Relocated to Paris, she recognised the African influences of the record, and her recorded version aims to unite western and African music, but also to highlight the origins of so much of what western music is indebted to.
Rather appropriately, the album features both western and African musicians from Tony Allen to Vampire Weekend’s Ezra Koenig, but it’s Kidjo’s presence that looms largest over the record (save Allen’s inimitable beats). Overall, the album’s songs feel fuller and less wiry in Kidjo and her collaborator’s hands. In many respects, the differences aren’t radical, if only in the sense that the band’s influences are so pronounced on the original album. But that said, there are moments that are almost unidentifiable.
As perhaps the record’s most recognisable song, the familiarity of ‘Once in a Lifetime’ remains apparent, but it also offers up a distinct departure. Kidjo flips the strangeness of the original for unadulterated celebratory joy, along with some wonderfully punctuating brass work, in lieu of Byrne’s middle class, existential anxieties. On ‘Born Under Punches’ the rhythms feel less awkward stripped of their post-punk fusion and the input of African musicians, which makes the flow feel infinitely more natural. In contrast, the lack of jitteriness on ‘Crosseyed and Painless’ is a slight loss, as it’s traded for a more danceable, if less edgy, version.
Although fully honouring her own heritage and addressing Talking Heads debt to it, her reworking’s are entirely contemporary. Musically and vocally the record imaginatively transposes it’s many memorable details, as on the jazz inflections of ‘House in Motion’ and an elastic bass line that mirrors Tina Weymouth’s own rubbery work.
One of the obvious distinctions are the vocals. Their voices are so utterly different, and that in itself sheds new light on the songs. Kidjo’s vocal has a richness, depth, and confident delivery that contrasts heavily with Byrne’s sinewy yelp. While it would be fruitless and limiting, to pursue a better or worse scenario, there are moments that are more successful on each version. ‘Listening Wind’ proves a real triumph mining an emotional resonance not entirely evident in Byrne’s detached vocal, as Kidjo makes it soar.
It’s a great thing that Talking Heads’ record has been fully opened up to what inspired it, and this project has proved a wonderful opportunity to reclaim this music and offer it’s origins out to a wider audience. While both records can be enjoyed in equal measure, Kidjo has highlighted what a worthwhile venture it is to not merely cover a much-lauded album but to recover and celebrate its influences.
320 kbps | 82 MB | LINKS
On May 4th, the un-Googleable rock band Hawk, led by the enigmatic American artist David Hawkins, will release its highly-anticipated new album, Bomb Pop, featuring the all-star lineup of Pete Thomas (Elvis Costello, Johnny Cash, Elliot Smith) on drums, Ken Stringfellow (The Posies, R.E.M., Big Star) on bass, vocals, keyboards and guitar, and Gary Louris (The Jayhawks, Ray Davies) on vocals, and longtime Hawk and Be guitarist Aaron Bakker. Hawkins, also leader of the orchestral folk-rock band Be, is an acclaimed abstract painter and co-founder of the avant-garde ‘happening’ group The Black Mountain Collective.
Bomb Pop is the follow-up to Hawk’s acclaimed albums I’m On Fire, Princess America (which featured a cameo in voice and word by Lawrence Ferlinghetti) and college-radio sensation Rock n Roll. “This is my dream band,” said Hawkins recently at his home in Venice Beach when speaking of the new album. “To have Pete on drums, Ken on bass, vocals and multiple instruments, Gary singing with me, and Aaron on lead guitar, it doesn’t get much better than that. I’m really honored to have these guys playing with me.”
Bomb Pop is more distilled, compact, even upbeat; verging toward power pop over the Stonesy blues of “I’m On Fire”. As a whole, the album works on several levels, the historic, the symbolic, and the spiritual. By the end of Bomb Pop, you just want to hear it again. And again. This is a rich and powerful song cycle that will renew your faith in rock music, and you’re one of the first to hear it. Put it on, and turn it up.
![Place Called Rage - Place Called Rage (1995) [Reissue 2012]](http://lossless-galaxy.ru/uploads/posts/2012-09/1347511562_front.jpg "Place Called Rage - Place Called Rage (1995) [Reissue 2012]")
