Romanian Jazz

A dear friend of mine is heading down to Bucharest for a weekly sejour, partly inspired (I suspect at least) by the fine writings of Romania's celebrated author Mircea Cărtărescu.

I hereby got a good enough reason to return to this great compilation of 1960's-70's Romanian Jazz that the Jazzanova affiliated label Sonar Kollektiv licensed a few years ago from the Electrecord archives.

I find it rather impressive that this poor country (in economic standards i.e.), that were held in repressive strains already from the late 1940's Communist regime and onwards during Nicolae Ceauşescu's 25 years of totalitarian power, still managed to produce such viril and modern music on the other side of the iron curtain. Perhaps jazz escaped the rigorous censurship that inflicted on many other art forms, for instance on writers such as Cărtărescu?

While listening repeatedly to the several stand out tracks on here, whereof Marius Popp's energetic Xybaba is probably my personal favourite, and doing a little research I stumbled upon this blog, devoted solely to Romanian jazz.

I've been diggin overthere all afternoon and recommend a visit. Pictured above is a few of their shared albums that so far have ended up in my digital treasure trove. I'm especially thankful for bassist and pianist Johnny Raducanu's Jazz in tera mea/Jazz in my country, that features the killer track Balada, also included on the Sonar comp.

Please do yourselves a favor and invest in a copy of Sonar Kollektiv's stunning and consistent compilation if you develop an interest, as the originals are probably impossible to find anyway. I could also recommend the other volumes in the Kollektiv's reissue series of vintage eastern european jazz, Poland's pride Novi Singers, and more.

Further listening:

I've been posting groovy Romanian music before here at Jo/No's, yet of a distinctly more contemporary nature as Roman Manele, the modern day working class music of Bucharest. A clip is still visible (and danceable to say the least) at the bottom of the post Cumbia Galore / Midsummer Manele.

Nigerian Special

The Don Isaac Ezekiel Combination - Amalinja (from Nigeria Special, Soundway 2008)

The last couple of years, since the world's righteous discovering of the late great inventor of Afro Beat, Fela Kuti, record buyers have all of a sudden been blessed with a hefty amount of killer compilations and reissues of vintage African music.

Labels like Strut, Vampisoul, Honest Jon, Soundway, Academy, Buda Musique, Analog Africa and Daptone have been contesting both each other and themselves to dig deeper into the crates to create marvelously colorful packages stuffed with obscurities and extensive liner notes showcasing an seemingly endless variety of musical riches from the enormous continent.

Out of these mighty fine labels I personally have a certain weak spot for Soundway Records, that have been building up an impressive catalogue of mostly African and Latin music. While the fuzz drenched Nigeria Special is perhaps not my favourite of their releases (that would probably be their stunning Colombia! comp, that I've been going on about before here) I have found myself coming back to this particular tune over and over again. It might not strike you initially as an obvious hit but this rather mellow scorcher with it's repetative grooves have proved itself to be a real slow grower.

There is plenty of excellent and streamable radio mixes of vintage African funkiness available all over the web for those willing to dip further into these previously unheard territories, for instance over at the amazing vinyl rescue squad Voodoo Funk.

One of the nicest and most varied playlist that I've heard in a long while is Soundway's head and compiler of Nigeria Special Miles Cleret's own joyful afro mix available here, showcasing music from 11 African countries. Warmly recommended!

Libyan Disco

Ahmed Fakroun - Yo Son (Prince Language re-edit of Soleil Soleil)

While I honestly speaking have not heard too much Libyan music in my days, I had no idea that the Gaddafi runned dictatorship in the mid 1980's could boast with their own funky version of David Byrne's Talking Heads!

Multiinstrumentalist Ahmed Fakroun musical career started already in the early 1970's after which he had several lenghty recording and performance sejours in England and France. In 1983 his Mots D'Amour album were released including the hit single Soleil Soleil to make his mark in world music circles, combining traditional Arab instruments and melodies with modern electronic music and dance rhythms.

But then came the US aerial bombing of Libya in April 1986, followed by years of international sanctions and isolation, as evidence of terror links turned Libya's government into a pariah of the West and seriously impeded its citizens' freedom of movement and Fakroun's international career plans were effectively put on ice.

In later years however, obscurity-hungry club DJs have rediscovered a couple of his old hits and it has popped up several remixes of Fakroun material from people like Mudd and Les Edits Du Golem. Prince Language's gracefully extended version of Soleil Soleil, renamed Yo Son (available as a Editions Disco 12inch), is in my opinion by far the grooviest of the bunch yet. But then again the original surely stands tall as it is:

Ahmed Fakroun's original recordings can be bought from his official website and thankfully be legally downloaded through 7digital's Indiestore, where the artists receive 80 percent of the revenues.

After reading this BBC interview with the man about his newly won promenance I listened through what were for offer and ended up buying a couple of MP3's (swift, safe and easy through PayPal), whereof I really recommend Njoom Al Lyel. Produced in England 1974 by famous BBC Radio producer Tommy Vance, it features some funky flute workouts over a deep groove well worth my 99 cents. Is this perhaps the next of Fakroun's tunes that is up for a remix treatment?

Dubwise Soul Queen

Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings - How long do I have to wait for you? (Ticklah Reggae Remix)

Sharon Jones is a wildly entertaining 50 year old power engine and the most worthy successor to James Brown the world have ever seen. Her band, the Dap-Kings, were the ones who gave Amy Winehouse's Back to Black album that classic 1960's soul feeling, that was such a vital part in that album's appeal and widespread success. Since then, Jones and her gang have started to get some well deserved appreciation in their own right.

While I really enjoy her latest album 100 Days, 100 Nights I dig her earlier, funkier releases even more and this lovely Reggae remix by Ticklah a.k.a Victor Axelrod is of an equally great original culled from her 2005 album Naturally (Daptone Records).

Below is another example of one of her earlier tracks in a non-offical video (?) sporting some awesome dance moves from the fabulous 1970's TV show Soul Train to the sound of "Just Dropped In (To See What Condition My Condition Was In)", released as a seven inch single in 2005 but apparently recorded for a Kentucky Fried Chicken commercial already back in 2002 but never used.

And here is the psychedelic original by Kenny Rogers & The First Edition, which might strike some readers as familiar as it was featured in the Coen Brothers cult movie The Big Lebowski.

Syria Calling Pt.2

Gaida Hinnawi - Almaya (from Levantine Indulgence, 2009)

Returning to Syria, well this girl might feel more at home in a jazzy loft downtown New York as a matter of fact, but she is still obviously coloured by her native roots in Syria and of traditional Arabic folk songs. I just love the rolling drum beat (that reminds me vaguely of the popular handclap driven Diwali riddim a couple of years back) and the hushed trumpet solo towards the end.

Compared with my previous post of Syrian music though, Gaida Hinnawi surely has a more sofisticated and polished appearance a looong way from Sublime Frequencies affiliated roughneck Omar Souleyman's contemporary output.

I discovered this sweet and hummable tune earlier this year at the collective Aurgasm blog, which often is a great place to discover new talents of a rather easy digestable nature.

The always intruiging record label Sublime Frequencies has apart from the two intense albums by Mr Souleyman also released an interesting double CD entitled I Remember Syria that the label describes as an:

"...expose of music, news, interviews and field recordings from one of the least-known quarters of the Arab world. The country of Syria has been politically and culturally exiled for decades by the western media leaving little known of its rich heritage of art, music and culture. Recorded and surgically-assembled by Mark Gergis from two trips to Syria in 1998 and 2000, disc one of this 2-CD set features recordings made in Damascus and is a virtual documentary of sound from the legendary Capital including street scenes, a wedding, a mosque interior, spontaneous live music and interviews with citizens, radio broadcasts, a song about Saddam Hussein, and the mystery of an underground city called "Kazib". Disc two extends to Greater syria with the same approach capturing live musicians, political opinions, radio excerpts, an interview with an anonymous homosexual, and unique sound documents from this small but highly-influential corner of the Middle East."

Reggae Longing

John Holt & The Aggrovators – You’ll never find another love like mine (12inch mix)
Jackie Mittoo – You’ll never find


More lazy Sunday favorites; a slick lovers tune extended in a disco dub style plus an instrumental keyboard version to follow. None of these players might need much of an introduction and production team Sly & Robbie are apparently involved in this versioning of R&B singer Lou Rawls 1976 original.

Organ player Jackie Mittoo is truly a defining figure of Reggae music; from forming the Skatalites at the age of 15 to his work as in-house writer, arranger and producer at Jamaica’s finest record label, Studio One, during the sixties to his own recordings.

If you give a listen to any Jamaican music from late 1960's chances are big that Mittoo has worked his warm handed magic on it in one way or another. Or for that matter much later Jamaican music too, as versioning and reinvention of classic rhythms is the back bone of most Jamaican music styles, and Mittoo's rhythms has been re-used more than most.

I don’t know if these particular versions are currently available on re-press, Mittoo's version is at least not available on any of the more widely distributed titles of his (for instance it's not included on the otherwise recommendable album pictured above) that I own or know of. I however scored them over at covers concerned Versions Galore last summer.

The groovy Juice Box, on the other hand, is included on Universal Sound's brilliant carreer sum-up, The Keyboard King at Studio One. Recommended to everyone who wants a little summer feeling in their lives all year around!

Django Fever

Django Reinhardt et Stéphane Grappelly - Vous qui passez sans me voir (1930's?)

I've been waking up every morning for the last 8 months to this adorable ditty, as it has been the alarm buzzer on my cell phone, and even though it marks the moment when I have to drag myself out of bed I haven't got fed up with it yet?! That's what I call a mighty feel good tune! Also, it works just fine to stroll around at home to on a lazy sunday afternoon while making lingonberry jam, which have been my main occupation of today.

Gypsy guitarist extraordinaire, Django Reinhardt, is caricatured above (and below) in the animated motion picture Les triplettes de Belleville (2003), a fantastic film that I most wholeheartedly recommend to everyone to see. In case you're wondering about his left fingers, Django lost two of them in a fire at the age of 18, but despite his handicap he succeeded to become the biggest pre-war jazz guitar legend of all.

I've spent most of my Sunday spinning old and joyful vinyls by the Boswell Singers, Slim & Slam and the Flat Foot Floogie Boys and, my favourite blues singer, Josh White. I also been rediscovering my old favourite blogger Dr. Auratheft's Blues Gitane radio mix, featuring Django and other French 1930's Gypsy, Musette and Cajun artists.

The Doctor recently decided to retire his blog after 5 years and 250 radio shows and he will be sorely missed. I recommend any music fiend to do yourself a favor and plunge into his vast catalogue while it's still available online!