Newness Abounds

It is time for one of our irregular round-ups of some of the freebies I have been sent over the last couple of months by the nice people in Promoland (for which I am eternally grateful). We will go through them in order of release date.

"The Dance of Death" by Frankie Archer, which came out last month on the ludicrously named prrr of the bear label (the lower case is theirs not mine). Electronic infused remakes of old folk standards all the way from Northumbria. Think The Unthanks with more synths.

"A Blooming Body" by Cinder Well which was unleashed into the world earlier in July. Cinder - Amelia Baker to her Mum - has featured here previously as I am a bit of a sucker for her moody singer-songwriter stuff (now there's an insightful write-up for the promo blurb). The new album is well up to the standard set by her previous effort, 2023's "Cadence".

"Interpreting Heart Sounds, Vol. II" by A. Lee Edwards is old school country-folk in the style of Guy Clark etc from a former member of Lou Ford, a name that might perhaps ring bells for Charity Chic but probably nobody else. The album is due to be issued on 4 September. With his clever addition of the 'A.' Mr Edwards has replaced A. Wesley Chung at the top of my iTunes. Well done Sir! 

"Never Learned The Tide" by Twilark follows a week after A. Lee on 11 September. Twilark is the pseudonym of Canon Pence who is part of the vibrant North Carolina music scene that has brought us the likes of Hiss Golden Messenger, Tift Merritt and many more. With guests like Erin Rae and Spencer Cullum on board it is worth checking out. 

"Helpless Love" by Katherine Perkins. The first single "Phoenix" was released last week, the album is out on 25 September. A new name to me, this is her second album after 2024's "Being Younger". The blurb writers who drop names like Lucinda Williams and Aldous Harding but personally she most reminds me of Diane Birch. To compared with any one of those three Ms Perkins must have something going for her.

"Period Piece" by V.V. Lightbody - announced yesterday and out on 9 October. A prolific session and touring musician under her real name Vivian McConnell, including a spell in Harry Styles' live band, this is V.V's third album and the first she has produced herself. She's done a pretty nifty job. I was going to insert a clever Harry Styles reference here but then remembered I couldn't name any of his songs. 

I was also going to include a plug for an upcoming album by a Philly band Song People but even mentioning it exists is embargoed until 11 August. In the meantime if the idea of Jefferson Airplane having it out (very politely) with 10,000 Maniacs you might want to go check out their Bandcamp page.

"Young Edwin Of The Lowlands Low" - Frankie Archer

"Beyond The Pale" - Cinder Well

"South Of Sylva" - A. Lee Edwards

"Oranore" - Twilark

"Molecules" - Katherine Perkins

"Precious Moments" - V.V. Lightbody

As good as all these records are there is another new release that tops them all which I have not included as it was not a freebie. Any regular readers may know that Swamp Dogg is a musical hero of mine and his latest album "Swamp Dogg Contemplates The Afterlife" - understandable at 84 - continues a run of fantastic form from the Great Man in recent years. 

There are several tracks on the new album that are as good as anything that Swamp has ever done, which is saying something. One of the many highlights is this cover of a Jenny Lewis song. Jenny joined him on one of his old tunes on his 2024 bluegrass album "Blackgrass: From West Virginia to 125th St" and they seem to bring the best out of each other.

The Miracle Of Bim

I mentioned in a post last week that I was excited to have picked up a copy of Bim Sherman's "Miracle" album (1996) for just 50 cents while in Greece recently. I have now had the opportunity to listen to it a couple of times.

As Swiss Adam has noted, any Bim Sherman album has to be a bargain at that price. He is right, but this one is not what I was expecting from the credits - Adrian Sherwood at the controls with contributions from Talvin Singh and the On-U regulars Skip McDonald, Doug Wimbush and Bubblers Ogilvie.

The only clue in the credits that this may not be the typical sound you might expect from that lot is that Skip McDonald is credited on acoustic guitar only. He plays it very tastefully, and rather too tastefully for my tastes at times (too many tastes - sorry). The whole album is very, very mellow.

Overall it is a decent listen but that is almost entirely down to Bim's vocals and Talvin on the tablas. And while it is definitely still a bargain at 50 cents I am not sure I will be digging it out as regularly as much of his other stuff. This is for certain moods only.

"Can I Be Free From Crying" - Bim Sherman

"Bewildered" - Bim Sherman

Two Gigs Goggins

Yesterday I went to two concerts purely so that I could get to use that heading. Alliteration doesn't come cheap folks.

In the afternoon Mister F and I made our way to the Boogaloo pub in Highgate to see old favourites Wreckless Eric and Amy Rigby. Not that we actually saw them. The place was rammed and from where we were I could catch the occasional glimpse of Eric's head but that was about all. Never mind. The noises they made were splendid as always.

After dropping Mister F back at the tube I mooched around a rather dull part of North London for a couple of hours before heading to the Jazz Cafe in Camden for Noura Mint Seymali. She has appeared regularly on the blog over the years but this my first time seeing her live.

Noura was in fine form throughout the near 90 minute set. For the first few songs she was seated and accompanied herself on the ardine (a 9-string harp), and very nicely too. But it was after the stool and ardine were discarded that the show really got into gear with Noura howling, growling and cajoling both the band and the audience to party harder.

The band more that did justice to her magnificent voice. The main man was Noura's husband Jeiche Ould Chighaly on twangy wah-wah guitar with bassist Ousmane Touré and drummer Matthew Tinari holding it all together. A great night. In fact, a great day (if you don't count Woodside Park).

In the audio slots we have a track from each of Noura's three albums to date "Tzenni", "Arbina" and last year's "Yenbett", all of which you can find on her Bandcamp page. I have put Eric and Amy in the videos so I can remind myself what they look like.

"El Barm" - Noura Mint Seymali

"Arbina" - Noura Mint Seymali

"Lehjibb" - Noura Mint Seymali

Record Sleeves

There is a new museum in town. To be more specific, in Camden Town, tucked away in a quiet street about ten minutes walk from the tube station.

The Museum of Youth Culture opened in May and it describes itself as "the world's first museum dedicated to the lives of teenagers and young people", not that there were many of the latter visible when I visited. It was mostly old farts like me getting nostalgic. But it is a fun place and worth a visit if you are in the area.

The specific reason I was there was for an exhibition of the covers of the first 100 albums issued by Greensleeves Records, starting in 1978 with what was a student staple in my day, "Best Dressed Chicken In Town" by Dr. Alimantado, and running through to 1986. The exhibition closes tomorrow (25 July) so you had better pull your finger out if you want to get there.

Seeing the display brought back memories of time spent in Daddy Kool record store in Soho after I first moved to London in 1984, and was a reminder of the consistently high standard of the records Greensleeves put out in its early years. I did a quick tot up and reckon I have at least a third of the albums on show, including these six (in descending order of righteousness):

"Jah Will Provide" - Hugh Mundell

"Got To Praise Jah Jah" - Triston Palma

"Felt We Felt The Strain" - Keith Hudson

"Don't Fuss Nor Fight" - Barrington Levy

"How You Keep A Dance" - Yellowman

"Skidip" - Eek-A-Mouse

Speaking of Dr. Alimantado and Daddy Kool as we were:

Ancient Greeks

Last week I was in Greece. I started and finished in Athens - working at the beginning of the week, sightseeing and record shopping at the end - with a few days in Chalkida (the C is silent) in between.

I have been to Athens many times but this was my first visit to Chalkida. The city straddles the Euripus Strait at the point where the mainland and the island of Evia nestle up together and is quite ridiculously scenic as this view from my hotel room shows.

It also has a lot of history. There is evidence of settlement there on the island side going back to the 12th century BC and 400 years later it was a major power with colonies in what is now Italy. The first bridge linking it to the mainland was built 2500 years ago.

However apart from the 17th century Ottoman castle on the mainland there is not a lot of evidence of this history. Because of its strategic importance the city has been attacked, destroyed and rebuilt many times over the centuries. The same can't be said of its former rival Eretria 20 miles down the coast. Everyone lost interest after it was trashed in 87 BC so there are still a lot of Roman remains lying around. 

For anyone who is interested there are more photos of Chalkida, Eretria and Athens over on Flickr. For all the rest of you, let's crack on with the dodgy music. It's why you are here.

While in Athens I paid my regular visits to Basement Records in Kolonaki and Zaharias Records in the Monastiraki flea market, and as usual came away with lots of goodies. Picking up a copy of Bim Sherman's 'Miracle' album for just 50 cents was probably the highlight. That will no doubt feature here at some point.

One of the other purchases was the 1985 edition of  'Chrysí Diskothíki' (Golden Record Library), a series of CDs issued by the local branch of EMI covering the 1950s to the 1990s. Most of the tracks on this edition were fairly traditional folk and rebetiko songs that could have dated from any year in that period. These are the only two that you could say with any degree of confidence are from the 1980s:  

"Risko" - Fatme & Nikos Papazoglou

"Pimenikon Rock" - Giorgis Miliokas

Also big in Greece in 1985 - Lena Platonos and future Eurovision regular Marianna Efstratiou.

Ernie's El Dorado Pt 20 - Suriname

I am back from my actual travels but news of them will have to wait. I barely had time to change my socks before hopping straight on the first available radio wave for our virtual trip to Suriname, the former Dutch colony perched on the top of South America that celebrated 50 years of independence last year.

We are going to start with what I am pretty sure is the only CD in my collection by a Surinamese act, the eponymous 1995 album by Carlo Jones & The Surinam Kaseko Troubadours. Fans of the Troubadours will be pleased to note it is the classic line-up featuring Jules Klimsop on trombone.

All the lyrics are in the local creole language known as Sranan Tongo. The title of the chosen track translates as "If the cook and the maid start quarrelling you'll have learned what happened to the butter". I'm sure you can all think of parallels in your own lives.

For the benefit of those of you less steeped in Surinamese culture than what I am, kaseko is an indigenous musical style that fuses African, European and American sources. According to Wikipedia and the sleeve notes of Carlo's album the name is derived from 'casser le corps' ('break the body'), a term once used for dancing next door in French Guiana. 

I'm no expert but it seems to me equally plausible that it derives from kaiso, the Nigerian music that evolved into calypso when transported to nearby Trinidad, the name of which in turn is said to derive from the Igbo expression 'ka anyị sonye' ("let's join"). Just listening to the album it is clear that Carlo and calypso share common DNA.

There may be a dispute about the origins of the name kaseko but there is no dispute among the cognoscenti that the all time King of Kaseko was Lieve Hugo. First with the Washboard Orchestra and then as a solo artist he swept all before him in the early 1970s before his untimely death aged only 40 in 1975, just ten days before the independence celebrations at which he was due to perform.

Today's selection comes from Hugo's album 'Mi Lobi Wan' which was posthumously released in 1978. I picked this track because it makes cheeky use of the old 'Peanut Vendor' melody but the whole album is a marvelously raucous affair.

On the mean streets of Paramaribo where the culture wars are fought you are either on the side of kaseko or kawina, the other notable indigenous style and itself one of the many ingredients stirred into the kaseko stew. It is percussion led and features call and response vocals, as demonstrated by Monti Kriyoro. I found this track on 'Kondre Sranan Vol. 2', one of a series of albums on the Walboomer label highlighting Surinamese music.

I can tell you nothing about Monti Kriyoro. He is a source of bafflement for Google's AI overview which informed me: "You are likely thinking of Motion Grill & Krioyo, a popular restaurant in Curaçao known for its excellent grilled meats and fresh seafood". I wasn't but I am now.

There is no such identity crisis for Ronald Snijders, the jazz flautist from Paramaribo who has enjoyed such success that he was appointed a Knight of the Order of Orange-Nassau, one of the main honours in the Netherlands. A lot of what I have heard is a bit bland for my taste but I do like this track from his 1981 album 'Black Straight Music' on which you can hear the influence of kawina.

We will switch now from indigenous sounds to international, starting with some funk and disco. Ten years ago the admirable Rush Hour label in Amsterdam released a compilation of Surinamese singles from the 1970s and 1980s titled 'Surinam Funk Force'. There are some cracking tunes on there including this one by Astaria. Most of the members of the band were Javanese Surinamese, an ethnic group of Indonesian descent making up about 15% of Suriname's population. The track was originally released in 1978 on their album 'Sang-Hede'.

It is possible that Rush Hour got the idea for the compilation from "Sumy Funk Force", the opening track on Sumy's 'Trying To Survive' album which they have also reissued. Dating (or arguably dated) from 1983, it is very much of its time and it is worth your while clicking on the link above just to see the cover. "Soul With Milk" is the bonkers highlight.

Some punk from 2012 next from De Rotte Appels, a short-lived band from Nickerie that mutated into hardcore and thrash ensemble Luguber. You can read all about the latter in this interview if you are so inclined. If you enjoy this track you might enjoy at least some of the other 37 tracks on the 'Punk's Not Deaf' compilation.

We end, as always, with some MAR. There is quite an active reggae scene in Suriname but I'm ignoring the specialists to pay tribute to a distinguished veteran. Iwan Esseboom has been making music for nearly 50 years under various guises, mainly kaseko and kawina but he also dabbles in reggae as this track shows. First released in 1986, you can find it on his 2012 retrospective collection '35 Years In Showbiss'. 

"Way Way Krema Yu Sa Yere Basi Tongo" - Carlo Jones  & The Surinam Kaseko Troubadours

"A Boro Gwé" - Lieve Hugo

"Mi Wan Bosin / Kar In Gimi / Libi Na Uma" - Monti Kriyoro

"Sa-Ra-Ma-Ka" - Ronald Snijders

"Jamasa Roro" - Astaria

"Soul With Milk" - Sumy

"Punkers!!!" - De Rotte Appels

"Pikin Fu Sranan" - Iwan Esseboom

Many of the songs are performed in the Surinamese creole language Sranan Tongo. Alyson in particular might be interested to note that it has also been used in a Eurovision entry. In 2021 the Netherlands were represented by Surinamese singer Jeangu Macrooy who used it in the chorus of his song "Birth Of A New Age". It only got 11 points (11 more than the UK). See if you think it deserved better.

Pun Fun 7: The Results

Ladies and gentlemen, we have a winner:

C with "(Shake, Shake, Shake) Shake Djibouti"

With this victory C joins George in the ranks of two times winners, so extra congratulations are in order. C pipped Alyson by just a few points and the two of them were some way clear of the rest of the pack. The battle for the minor places was much tighter.

Here is the top five in full:

1.  (Shake, Shake, Shake) Shake Djibouti - KC & The Sunshine Band (C)
2.  When Amman Loves A Woman - Percy Sledge (Alyson)
3.  Hurry Up Harare - Sham 69 (Charity Chic)
4.  Mouldy Old Doha - Lieutenant Pigeon (Dave)
5.  Get Out of My Dreams, Get Into Dakar - Billy Ocean (JWA)

It is (perhaps) interesting to note that all of the cities in the top five are in Africa and the Middle East. Maybe the music we play here is having a subliminal influence on you all. 

Thanks to all of you who submitted a pun and/or voted, your enthusiasm is much appreciated. We are going to take a short break for the summer so you can all recharge your punning batteries and ease any word play weariness. Pun Fun 8 will appear some time in September. Until then, as is traditional, we hand over to our winners to see us out.

P.S. This will be the last post here of any sort for a week or so as I am heading off on my travels right after I press 'publish'. That is why the results are being announced a day earlier than usual. Obviously I can't reveal my mystery destination but I can assure you that when I return all pun related posts will appear on a Monday and never on a Sunday. 

It's That Man Again

This is by way of a follow-up to Wednesday's post in which I gave a detailed review of a gig by two Jon Langford related combos.

The day after the gig I wandered over to the very estimable Flashback Records on Bethnal Green Road who are currently having one of their rare 'ten CDs for £5' clearance sales. I picked up a bundle of goodies  which included albums by Orchestra Baobab, Eek-a-Mouse, The Weather Station and Anthony Braxton among others.

Top of the pile was a further fine slice of Langfordiana, 'I ♥ Mekons' by... well, you can work that out for yourselves. It came out in 1993 after a bit of a delay when Warner Bros rejected it for not being good enough. The foolishness of this assertion was clear to all when it eventually got released by Chicago's Quarterstick Records, the start of what proved to be a long and productive relationship.

At the time of its release some twerp in Melody Maker described the album as being "simultaneously a brilliant, exhilarating pop record and an exploration of the assumptions behind other people’s pop records." I'm not sure what the second part means but I would have to concede he is right about the first.

I had the pleasure of seeing The Mekons live last year with a line-up featuring most of the members involved in 'I ♥ Mekons'. It was a great night. They are coming back to the UK again later in the year. I may be on a secret mission when they play London but fingers crossed I will be able to get to the gig. If they come to your town you should definitely go along.

"Dear Sausage" - The Mekons

"Point Of No Return" - The Mekons

From Waco to Gwent

Another Thursday, another great gig.

Following on from King Ayisoba in Dalston, last week Mister F and I made our way to the Lexington in London's swinging Islington to see the Waco Brothers. It was an evening of delights both expected and unexpected.

The expected delight was the Brothers themselves. They were out in full force with their three front men - Jon Langford, Dean Schlabowske and Tracey Dear - and the rest of the gang all in fine raucous form. They bashed their way through hit after hit leaving no shit left unkicked and a great time was had by all (apart from one sour-faced old bastard but he doesn't count).

The unexpected delight was the support act, a Jon Langford project that had previously passed me by. Jon Langford's Men of Gwent is mainly him and a bunch of other blokes from his home town of Newport. Most of their set was performed without La Langford - we were encouraged to think of them as The Shadows without Cliff "but not the Glitter Band" - but the show did not suffer at all from his absence.

Musically they reminded me a bit of 1970s pub-rock (in a good way). Think Brinsley Schwarz or Ducks Deluxe if they only sang songs about Newport and other seaside towns in South Wales.

Today's selection features two of the 20+ highlights of the Brothers' set, plus a song about Tenby from the Men of Gwent. I chose it because back in the early 1970s my uncle managed a zoo on the St. Katherine's Island mentioned in the song.

"Do You Think About Me?" - Waco Brothers

"See Willy Fly By" - Waco Brothers

"Tenby Boatman" - Jon Langford's Men of Gwent

Finally in the videos we have the three songs that made up the Brothers' rabble rousing encore.

Pun Fun 7: The Contenders

Voting is now open for Pun Fun 7.

This time out you were challenged to insert a reference to a capital city into a popular song title. And between you you've come up with what can only be described as an interesting and varied selection. Thanks to everyone who submitted an entry, and give yourselves a collective bonus point for resisting the temptation to suggest some Seoul music.

Voting is open to all readers not just those who entered. Let me know your top five in order of preference. I'll award 7 points for every first choice, 5 for second and then 3, 2 and 1 for the rest.

You can either submit your votes in the comments section below or by email to leggies27@hotmail.co.uk if you would rather preserve the sanctity of the ballot. 

The deadline for voting is Saturday (11 July) and the results will be announced first thing on Sunday. Normally voting closes on the Sunday and the results are announced on the Monday, but I am off on my travels again on Sunday morning so need to fit it in before then. We can't leave you all on tenterhooks until I get back. 

Here are capitals that made the cut:

1. Bern Baby Bern - Ash
2. Pyongyang-a-lang - Bay City Rollers
3. Get Out of My Dreams, Get Into Dakar- Billy Ocean
4. Its Oslo Quiet – Bjork
5. Nobody Does It Ulaanbaatar - Carly Simon
6. I'm Tallinn You Now - Freddie & The Dreamers
7. (Shake, Shake, Shake) Shake Djibouti - KC & The Sunshine Band
8. Tashkent Get You Out Of My Head - Kylie Minogue
9. Mouldy Old Doha - Lieutenant Pigeon
10. Nuuk What They've Done To My Song Ma - Melanie
11. When Amman Loves A Woman - Percy Sledge
12. Pretty In Minsk – Psychedelic Furs
13. Beat On The Bratislava - Ramones
14. Hurry Up Harare - Sham 69
15. Pulling Brussels (From The Shell) – Squeeze
16. Making Plans For Taipei - XTC

Before we leave, here are the official sponsors of this edition of Pun Fun with an important message to you all.

 

250 Up

The United States of America celebrates its 250th birthday tomorrow. I don't work weekends so we're marking the occasion today.

This post is dedicated to all of our highly prized American readers - from California (the state from which we have had most visitors according to my flag counter) all the way to Alaska (no visitors for six years) and all points in between.

I imagine many of you will be celebrating in traditional style by hosting a wrestling contest on your front lawn and then vandalising your local swimming baths. But whatever you are doing, have fun.

The first track in today's selection was recorded when the US was only 151 years old and a veritable spring chicken. The second was released to coincide with its bicentenary. The rest are all dangerously modern.

"Fourth of July at the Country Fair" - Bill Chitwood & His Georgia Mountaineers

"4th Of July" - Sweet

"4th Of July" - S.C.A.B.

"July 4th" - The Dogs

"Chain Gang Fourth Of July" - Chris Pierce

When The King Came To Call

Last week the mighty King Ayisoba was in the UK for a short tour to promote his new Adrian Sherwood produced album "Pure Confusion".

On Thursday I went over to the air-conditioned Cafe Oto in London's fashionable Dalston together with some local hipsters and some ex-pat Ghanaians to take in the show. A great time was had by all.

The King barked and crooned to his heart's content while plucking away furiously at his kologo (a traditional Ghanaian two-stringed instrument that produces a sound reminiscent of a banjo), pausing regularly to ask us whether we were happy. We were.

The King was accompanied by three percussionistas bashing and shaking assorted drums and gourds. Together with the King and his kologo they rattled along in a manner that was hard to resist (not that I really tried to resist to be honest).

The band included Ayuune Sule who is a very talented singer and kologo player in his own right as he proved by doubling up as the support act. It would have been worth going for his set alone.

Our mini-set consists of the opening track from the King's new album, a track from "Work Hard" (2023) which features Ayuune Sule, then finally something from the latter's own "Putoo Katare Yire" album (2021) which was a real crowd pleaser last Thursday.

"Property" - King Ayisoba

"People Talk Too Much (feat. Ayuune Sule & Zea)" - King Ayisoba

"Don't Be Lazy" - Ayuune Sule

One of the King's guests on "Pure Confusion" is Ghanaian reggae titan and three time Grammy nominee Rocky Dawuni. After I posted a couple of photos from the gig up on Instagram last week whoever manages his social media put four flame emojis in the comments. Normally I would ignore such a flagrant attempt to ingratiate themselves but MAR rules apply. So here's Mr Dawuni for you.

Pun Fun 7: The Theme

Pun Fun returns for a quick outing before the summer holiday season starts (although the holiday weather has arrived early, at least for those of us in Europe).

I thought about picking the World Cup as a topical theme but I suspect there is too much of that happening already for some folks. So instead I have chosen a theme that is even more global:

CAPITAL CITIES

We will accept entries using the capital cities of any of the countries, territories, dependencies, non-sovereign states and even entities whose sovereignty is disputed that appear on this list. 

As it says in the introduction "the capitals included on this list are those associated with states or territories listed by the international standard ISO 3166-1", so if you have any quibbles please take them up directly with the International Organization for Standardization (contact details here).

To avoid upsetting our many Scottish readers we will follow the example of FIFA and treat the four constituent parts of the United Kingdom as separate countries. We also endorse FIFA's recommendation that you take regular hydration breaks while punning to reduce the risk of your brain cells overheating. Unlike FIFA we don't take bribes (although you are welcome to try).

Entries are to be sent to leggies27@hotmail.co.uk by Sunday 5 July. Voting opens next Monday.

Good luck everyone. I'm looking forward to seeing what you can come up with for Bandar Seri Begawan, Yamoussoukro, Ngerulmud or any one of the three Georgetowns (all named after the twice winner and patron saint of puns I believe).

Meltmusic

Some songs about melting. I can't think where I got the idea from. In fact I can't really think at all until it cools down a bit, hence this brief introduction.

"Melt Not My Igloo" - Larry Jon Wilson

"Your Ice Cream's Gonna Melt One Day" - Jeremy Scott

"Melt The Guns" - XTC

"Melt Me" - Lily & Maria

"Melt Your Heart" - Jenny Lewis & The Watson Twins

"Bent And Melted Next To Paul Westerberg" - Steve Westfield & The Burnouts

 

In other news, RIP David Clayton-Thomas. This one chose itself.

Ernie's El Dorado Pt 19 - Peru

After a bit of a hiatus caused by real travel we are resuming our virtual tour of the Americas. We are onto the final stretch, with just four more countries to go after this one.

On some stops on the tour we have been hampered by the relatively limited availability of local music - and that is likely to be an issue on our next stop as well - but is certainly doesn't apply to Peru. There is loads of great music from there and we have featured a fair amount of it here in the past, mostly boogaloo and psychedelia. We are going to kick things off today with a couple of examples of each.

Boogaloo originated in New York in the early 1960s, blending jazz and R 'n B with mambo and other Cuban rhythms to create a truly groovy new sound. It became popular across Latin America but particularly in Peru where everyone who was anyone had a go.

Back in 2019 the Vampisoul label released a four volume series called "¡Gózalo! Bugalú Tropical" capturing the Peruvian boogaloo and related scenes of the 1960s and 1970s. Our opening double salvo from Charlie Palomares y Su Yuboney and Tito Chicoma y Su Orquesta both adorn Volume 1, but the other three records are worth a listen as well.

For those young Peruvians who turned their noses up at boogaloo there was always psychedelia, which started flourishing in Peru in the late 1960s. Foremost among the many bands turning their hands to it were Traffic Sound, who between 1969 and 1971 released three top notch albums, "Virgin", "Traffic Sound" and "Lux" (from which today's selection comes). The band's original bass player Willy Thorne left just before they recorded "Lux", presumably in order to commit himself fully to his snooker career.

After Traffic Sound the next biggest act on the Peruvian psych scene was Laghonia whose 1970 debut album "Glue" is considered a standard in some quarters. Most of the tracks on the album had originally been released under the band's previous name New Juggler Sound. This included the title track - they overdubbed some organ for the 'new' version but otherwise it is the same recording. I've opted for the original which you can find on the compilation "Back to Peru Vol. 1".  

Before moving on, a quick plug for the excellent Munster Records of Madrid who reissued all of the albums mentioned in the previous two paragraphs and many other goodies as well. 

I know nothing at all about our next act, who bring us some funky flute-infused cumbia from the early 1970s. If Discogs is correct this was the A-side of El Comienzo's only single. I found it on "Cumbias Psicodelicas: Vol. 1 Ayahuasca", a compilation on Peru's own Repsychled label. 

Moving forward to 1981 we find Los Orientales De Paramonga and their album "Lo Fuerte Del Gua Gua". Their career had peaked in the previous decade under the watchful eye of Argentinian ex-pat musical Svengali Enrique Lynch, but at this stage they were resorting to jumping on any passing bandwagon open to expanding their sound. They made a decent job of it in my view.

The most prominent artist we are featuring today by some distance is Susana Baca. A three time Latin Grammy winner, former Minister of Culture, singer and folklorist, Ms Baca is a key figure in the revival of Afro-Peruvian music and culture. Between 1997 and 2011 she released six albums on David Byrne's Luaka Bop label. This track comes from the second of those, "Ecos de Sombras" (2000). 

Finally we bring things right up to date with our MAR selection. Rolo Gallardo and Triblin Sound both have a long list of production credits to their respective names. Last year they teamed up to release an album called "Peru Dub Dealers". This track features Rawa on vocals. Whether he is the shaman of that name who appeared at London's South Bank in 2019 or whether it is a Willy Thorne type case of mistaken identity I do not know.

"Push Push Push" -  Charlie Palomares y su Yuboney

"Fat Mama" - Tito Chicoma Y Su Orquesta

"White Deal/ Poco/ Big Deal" - Traffic Sound

"Glue" - New Juggler Sound (Laghonia)

"El Arbol" - El Comienzo

"Disco Disco" - Los Orientales De Paramonga

"Panalivio/Zancudito" - Susana Baca

"Senenpani" - Rolo Gallardo & Triblin Sound

Zoila Emperatriz Chávarri Castillo was just a humble Peruvian warbler when she signed to Capitol Records. They changed her name and her fame began. Here's Eddie Cantor to introduce her.

Lagos Life

My secret trip to Nigeria ended up being a bit of a disappointment. That is no reflection on the country or the many friendly people I met there, it was just a bit jinxed.

I was there to do some work in Lagos and the plan was to head on to Calabar for the weekend. That did not happen because the airline cancelled the only flight so there was no way of getting there (not an unusual occurrence according to my local contacts). 

In Lagos itself torrential rain on both days when I had a bit of free time led to a fair amount of flooding which, added to the already very busy traffic, meant that I was not able to get to most of the sights on my to do list. With more of the same predicted for the weekend, I decided to cut my losses and head home a couple of days early.

However, I really liked the little of Lagos I was able to see, and if I get an opportunity to go back in the future and explore the city further I'll definitely do so. 

I very much enjoyed visiting the J. Randle Centre for Yoruba Culture and History (head to City Mall and look for the giant eyo figure across the road). The visit was enhanced by my self-appointed guide Tishe, aged about 10, who took pity on the old tourist and shared lots of interesting information about the exhibits until his Mum came to get him for family photos.

The biggest highlight though was The Jazzhole, which has gone straight into my list of Top 10 record stores. As you enter you find yourself facing huge piles of books, vinyl and CDs. If and when you get past them there are a few tables and a cafe serving tea, coffee and excellent cake and a small performance area behind that with a drum kit all set up and ready to go.

I could happily have spent a whole day there browsing, eating cake and chatting to the charming owner but regrettably I only had 90 minutes to spare. I still managed to come away with a small pile of CDs, most of them Nigerian but a couple from elsewhere in Africa and one by Alpha & Omega from far-flung Devon.

The only one that I have had the chance to listen to yet is "Selfishness & Greediness", the 2022 album by Lekan Animashaun (Baba Ani for short). Mr A was a long-time member of Afrika 70 and Egypt 80, taking over as leader of the latter group when Tony Allen left and remaining so when they started working with Seun Kuti after Fela's death.

By sheer coincidence, Strut records will be reissuing Mr A's 1977 solo album "Low Profile" this Friday. If you can't wait until then here is a track from his more recent record. At 13 minutes long it also counts towards Monday's Long Song for those of you who celebrate it.

"Esan" - Lekan Animashaun

 

Off Again

I'm off on my travels again early tomorrow morning, a few days work in one location followed by a hopefully relaxing long weekend in another. As usual I'll need to draw a veil over exactly where I'm going.

I'll be back on here towards the end of next week. Until then here are some randomly selected tunes for you to enjoy.

"Nigeria London Na Lagos" -  Bob Ohiri & His Uhuru Sounds

"Lagos Sisi" - Bola Johnson

"Calabar-O" - West African Rhythm Brothers

"Calabar" - Sacassaia

Dusty Tracks Part 2

We're back with more from the gift that keeps giving, Dust-t0-Digital's "Excavated Shellac" box set. More details of what it contains and how I came to acquire it through the good offices of the mysterious JWA can be found in Monday's post.

This time we are featuring two tracks each from Discs 3 and 4 of the box set. In order, the place and time they come from are: Mauritius (l958 or thereabouts), Malta (1932), Iraq (1930) and South Africa (1967). 

"Dans La Ville Mahebourg" - Francis Salomon

"Iz-Zakkiek" - Emmanuele Cilia

"Bilmez Pt 1" - Kawis Axa

"Maheshe" -  Durban Lions

I was lucky enough to spend a couple of days in Mahebourg last year while working in Mauritius. A lively town and a lovely spot (see photo below) but I didn't do any dancing. I was wary of getting dizzy.

James Blood Ulmer RIP

It was sad to hear the news yesterday that the great guitarist and all round cool dude James Blood Ulmer left us last week.

Born in 1940, for the first part of his career Mr Ulmer was a sideman plating with the likes of Art Blakey, Paul Bley and Ornette Coleman. The latter featured heavily on 1979's "Tales Of Captain Black", the first LP released under Mr Ulmer's own name. But it was his next record that first brought him to many people's attention, including mine. 

I may have told the story here previously of how way back in the days of fanzines I wrote to Rough Trade asking whether they could spare any 7" singles for me and my pals to review. In return they sent some goodies by the likes of The Fall and Fad Gadget and a single by someone I had never heard of before. That was James Blood Ulmer, the record was "Are You Glad To Be In America?", and it blew open my then tiny mind.

Many years later I was lucky enough to see Mr Ulmer live in London a couple of times. Despite being well into his 70s by then he still sounded great and it was a privilege to be there.

Here is the record that started it all for me, a track from "Tales Of Captain Black" and one from "Odyssey" (1983) in which he explains that he had to go, as he now has. And if you have 52 minutes to spare you might enjoy the video.

RIP Mr Ulmer.

"Are You Glad To Be In America?" - James Blood Ulmer

"Arena" - James Blood Ulmer

"Please Tell Her" - James Blood Ulmer

Dusty Tracks Part 1

Some people (well, Rol) claim that I am some sort of international man of mystery. I'm not really but I play along with it.

Someone who really is mysterious is the entity known only as JWA, a regular reader and underrated punster whose corporeal form appears to exist in both Sweden and the USA at exactly the same time. Other than that I know nothing about their identity.

What I do know though is that JWA is extraordinarily thoughtful and generous. They recently sent me a copy of a box set called "Excavated Shellac: An Alternate History of the World’s Music" released by the Dust-to-Digital label. As the name suggests Dust-to-Digital specialises in restoring and reissuing vintage recordings and we have featured tracks from its great catalogue a number of times here over the years.

"Excavated Shellac" includes 100 tracks from 89 countries over four CDs, all of which were originally recorded between 1907 and 1967. It comes with a fascinating 180 page book that discusses not just all the tracks themselves but the history of recorded music in different parts of the world. I can't possibly thank JWA enough for the gift.

Today we have two tracks each from Discs 1 and 2 for you to tap your toes to. They hail respectively from Mozambique (1953), Serbia (1927), Jamaica (1937) and Tahiti (1936).

"O Ta Nikona" - Enosse Kuhanya Muni

"Jeleno, Momo Jeleno" - Šule Radosavljevič-Šapčanin

"Perseverance" - Count Lasher

"Haere Roa Roa" - Tamari Tahiti

We'll be back with some selections from Discs 3 and 4 later in the week. In the meantime here is a song that celebrates Dust-to-Digital's mission (although you would probably need to replace "Rockin'" with "Capturing rare and unusual recordings" for it to be completely accurate).

Readers' Choice

Last week I asked readers to choose a number between 1 and 7000 to help me mark the appearance in the previous post of the 7000th song to be featured on the blog. 

Six of you kindly did so. These are the songs that correspond to those numbers on my spreadsheet (on which songs are listed alphabetically by artist and then alphabetically for each artist where there has been one song from the aforementioned artist - for those of you taking notes).

The Big 6 have come up with a pretty cool playlist. Of course that would not have been possible if I hadn't been cool enough to share the songs in the first place. Collectively we're a pretty cool gang. Bonus points go to C and her ESP for picking a number with the word "number" in the title.

"Wild Mountain Thyme" - Marianne Faithfull (Walter - 1893)

"Something On Your Mind" - Karen Dalton (Charity Chic - 1314)

"Peculiar Number" - The Abyssinians (C - 15)

"Sister Carol" - Barrington Levy (Spence - 3535)

"On A Saturday" - Keith West (The Swede - 6666) 

"Dark Eyed Sailor" - Folkdove (Pete From Minnesota - 2026)

Walter chose 1893 because it is the year the mighty VfB Stuttgart were founded. While I'm always happy to hear the young Marianne Faithfull singing old British folk songs - and similarly happy to hear a bunch of Breton hippies doing the same on Pete's selection - I can't help wishing Walter's team had been founded just a year earlier. If it had been he would have selected what I consider the greatest mash-up of all time. Here it is. 

Pun Fun 6: The Results

Ladies and gentlemen, we have another winner, or rather winners. After some of the most extraordinary voting I have ever witnessed, tied at the top of the 'Herbs and Spices' chart are...

GEORGE with "Chive Talking" and...

MODESTY FORBIDS with "The Bitterest Dill (I Ever Had To Swallow)"

The votes were scattered far and wide, which I think you should take as a tribute to the overall quality of your entries. Nine different puns (i.e. half the entries) received at least one first choice vote. Weirdly the pun that got the most first places - "Thyme Is On My Side" (Chris) - picked up just a single point from the rest of the voting panel combined and as a result didn't even make the Top 5. Here's what did.

=1.  Chive Talking - The Bee Gees (George)
=1.  The Bitterest Dill (I Ever Had To Swallow) - The Jam (Ernie)
3.    What A Fool Bay Leaves - The Doobie Brothers (Steve)
4.    Parsley Dutchie - Musical Youth (Charity Chic)
5.    The First Time Ever I Saw Your Mace – Roberta Flack (Alyson)

As well as the top 5 and Chris, I should also commend Rol (Roxette) and Pete (whose Smiths pun was described by one enthusiastic voter as "not only the best offering this month, but one of the best puns of the series so far"), both of whom narrowly missed out on fifth place.

Thanks to all of you who submitted a pun and/or voted, your enthusiasm is much appreciated. I'm not quite sure when we'll be back with Pun Fun 7 as I'm going to be out and about quite a bit in June and July, but we will return. 

Until then, as is traditional, we hand over to our winners to see us out.

7000 Rickie Lee Fans Can't Be Wrong

A two-part post for you today.

Part 1. We passed a landmark in Wednesday's post on the music of the noble nation of Paraguay. If my WIAA-approved spreadsheet is correct we have now featured over 7000 songs in the audio files that I include in posts. 7006 to be exact, at an average of roughly 400 a year.

I know 7000 isn't much of a landmark but I can't wait another eight or nine years to reach 10000, I may be completely gaga by then. So 7000 it is. Feel free to drop a number between 1 and 7006 into the comments section and if we get enough of them I'll collate them in a post.

Part 2. I went to see Rickie Lee Jones at the Barbican on Wednesday. This doesn't really qualify as news either as I have seen her umpteen times over the years. 

Rickie Lee was in good form with a fine backing band providing a bit of shading to the songs using guitar, violin, piano and accordion (a special shout out to Petra Haden on violin and vocals, who has done interesting stuff in her own right). 

The set was heavily weighted towards Rickie Lee's first two albums. While they are both great records personally I would like to have heard more from the rest of her extensive catalogue. The 'newest' song she played was "A Tree On Allenford" from 2003 and for me it was one of the highlights of the set.

There was some exciting news. Rickie Lee told us she currently working up new material with Brad Cook, the producer and session musician who has worked with the likes of Waxahatchee, Hiss Golden Messenger, Iron & Wine and many more. It has been ten years since Rickie Lee released an album of original songs so hopefully the new stuff will see the light of day before too long.

Rickie Lee has featured here on plenty of occasions, but if my WIAA-approved spreadsheet is correct these particular songs have not.

"Circle In The Sand" - Rickie Lee Jones

"Jimmy Choos" - Rickie Lee Jones

"Stewart's Coat" - Rickie Lee Jones

Ernie's El Dorado Pt 18 - Paraguay

And we roll into Paraguay. Perhaps the most interesting fact I learned while doing what passes for research was that it is the only country in Latin America where the indigenous language is still more commonly spoken than the language of their colonisers - 90% of the population speak Guarani compared with 85% who speak Spanish. Good for them. 

There is also a sizable German-speaking minority, most of them highly respectable and no relation to Nazi war criminals, the former dictator Stroessner or the failed Aryan settlement set up by Nietzche's sister in the 1880s.

We will make a couple of brief nods to Paraguay's cultural mix today. But compared to most other stops on the tour I've not been able to find out much information about many of the acts that we are featuring in the post, and there is also a bias towards more recent music as that comprises the bulk of what is on Bandcamp. So rather than attempting to construct my usual compelling narrative to accompany the music we are just going to whack through them alphabetically.

Which is why we are kicking off with some Paraguayan prog. The band is called Agharta, this track is on a demo recorded in 2015 and there has been no sign of them on social media since 2018. That's all I've got.

Next, El Brujo y Sus Cromaticos, a "tropical noise" band from Asuncion. This track is on a 2020 compilation from the Música Okápe label and they have two more on Spotify where you can join their 12 monthly listeners. I quite like their Arabian and jazz influenced take on cumbia music.

I have just spotted that the line-ups of both bands include a Marcelo Fonseca. Is he the same person or are they ten a penny in Paraguay? Who knows.

My favourite act of those we are featuring today is Jodi, two brothers of German descent who studied under Stockhausen and who made all sorts of weird and occasionally wonderful noises in the 1970s in a homemade studio in their parent's basement. 

None of these recordings were released outside Paraguay and Argentina at the time, many of them were never released at all until 2016 when the Guerssen label started putting out a series of releases. This track comes from "Pops De Vanguardia", originally released in 1971, but all the albums are worth a listen.

As with El Brujo, you can thank the Música Okápe label for our next selection. Las Hijas De La Alquimia released an EP titled "Ánga Mestiza" (Mestizo Soul) in 2022  According to the sisters: "We chose the name because the soul is our primary source of inspiration when composing, and "mestiza" (mixed) because of our Guarani heritage—because we are from everywhere and part of the whole". So now you know.

Los 3 Sudamericanos were a sort of Paraguayan Peter, Paul & Mary who formed in 1959 and who enjoyed a lot of success internationally after relocating to Spain in the mid 1960s. This track comes from a 1969 EP released on the magnificently but misleadingly named Belter label.

From the Paraguayan PP&M we move to a sound that can perhaps best be described as Joe Meek does polka. Los Electrónicos Disonantes were apparently very popular domestically in the 1960s and 1970s. And why wouldn't they be? This track appears to be a medley of Guarani folk tunes and comes from their album "Un Domingo En Buenos Aires". 

Bringing us much more up to date is Sandy Pylos. No, not the ancient seat of King Nestor that features in Homer's work but the Paraguayan artist of the same name (although I could tell you a good deal more about the ancient seat of King Nestor than I can about her). Her real name is Ana Belén, she is now based in Portland Oregon, and this was the lead single from her 2023 album "Notas de Voz".

We end, as all things must, with some MAR. This skanking little number is provided by Tempranos and appears on their self-titled album from 2014. All the blurb tells us is that they play rocksteady and reggae but you could probably work that out for yourself.

"Sombranos" - Agharta

"Cumbia Babilónica" - El Brujo y Sus Cromaticos

"Reflexiones Heladas" - Jodi

"Calma la Ansiedad" - Las Hijas De La Alquimia

"Corazón Contento" - Los 3 Sudamericanos

"Seleccion De Guaranias En Ritmo De Shake" - Los Electrónicos Disonantes 

"La Modelo de Mis Fantasias" - Sandy Pylos

"El Regreso Sel Luison" - Tempranos

Pun Fun 6: The Contenders

Voting is now open for Pun Fun 6. 

You were challenged to insert a reference to herbs or spices into a popular song title, and you have come up with a veritable potpourri of puns. Thanks to everyone who submitted an entry.

Unfortunately the anonymous commentator who suggested "Cumin Feel The Noize" never got in touch to submit that as an official entry, so you can't vote for it. But there are plenty more ace aromatic puns to choose from. Will it be a herb or a spice that carries off the crown? Will the chive, dill, mace and bay leaf votes get split letting other contenders surge past? That's all down to you lot.

Voting is open to all readers not just those who entered. Let me know your top five in order of preference. I'll award 7 points for every first choice, 5 for second and then 3, 2 and 1 for the rest.

You can either submit your votes in the comments section below or by email to leggies27@hotmail.co.uk if you would rather preserve the sanctity of the ballot. 

The deadline is next Sunday (31 May). We will announce the results a week today. 

Here are the contenders, listed alphabetically by artist. 

1. Stand Down Marjoram - The Beat
2. Chive Talking - The Bee Gees
3. Turmeric! Turmeric! Turmeric! (To Everything There Is A Seasoning) - The Byrds
4. Bay Leaf Christina - Chicory Tip
5. What A Fool Bay Leaves - The Doobie Brothers
6. Sexy Chives - Dr Hook
7. Oregano Flow – Enya
8. The Bitterest Dill (I Ever Had To Swallow) - The Jam
9. Love Dill Tear Us Apart – Joy Division
10. Saffron And On - Longpigs
11. Parsley Dutchie - Musical Youth
12. Don't Kala Namak in Anger - Oasis
13. Rose Of Cinnamon – Poco
14. The First Time Ever I Saw Your Mace – Roberta Flack
15. Thyme Is On My Side - The Rolling Stones
16. It Mustard Been Love - Roxette
17. Thank You (Falettinme Be Mace Elf Agin) - Sly & the Family Stone
18. William It Was Really Nutmeg - The Smiths

If you want to sing along with the missing hit mentioned above now's your chance.