Did you mean: africa
Showing 1-9 of 9 results
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It came from the swamp
Life, John Clewley, Published on 04/04/2017
» New Orleans, as the crucible of jazz, has a unique musical heritage. The Big Easy, as the port city is often called, has always been a melting pot of cultures. Here Spanish and French colonists mixed with French Acadians, Irish workers, other Europeans and Native Americans to produce a musical culture that has been a seminal element in the development of popular American music.
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A woman in a man's world
Life, John Clewley, Published on 19/07/2022
» US R&B legend Big Mama Thornton is one of the forgotten "originators", to use Dr John's term for Professor Longhair, of rock'n'roll. The late Alabama native, who died almost exactly 38 years ago on July 25, 1984, recorded the first version of Leiber and Stoller's Hound Dog in 1952. After the record was released in 1953, it reached the top spot on Billboard's Rhythm & Blues Records Chart and sold 2 million copies. It was her biggest hit, but it paled in comparison to young Elvis Presley's version, which sold more than 10 million copies and helped propel Presley to global fame.
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The ballad of Junior Parker
Life, John Clewley, Published on 06/07/2021
» Train I ride sixteen coaches long, Train I ride sixteen coaches long, Well, that long black train carries my baby home …
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Ry Cooder returns to gospel roots
Life, John Clewley, Published on 16/10/2018
» American guitarist Ry Cooder released his first studio album for six years recently. The Prodigal Son (Fantasy Recordings, USA) has put aside his more politically engaged music -- as heard on a series of albums, Chavez Ravine (2005), My Name Is Buddy (2007), Pull Up Some Dust And Sit Down (2011) and Election Special (2012) and returned to a more-gospel oriented sound that he created on his early albums.
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Rediscovering a Malian gem
Life, John Clewley, Published on 28/11/2017
» When Mali gained independence from French colonial rule in 1960, guitarist/songwriter Boubacar Traore became one of the first musical stars of Mali's independence. Under the presidency of Modibo Keita, Traore regularly appeared on radio broadcasts becoming one of the symbols of the country's independence.
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Hail! Hail! Rock'n'Roll!
Life, John Clewley, Published on 21/03/2017
» The headlines in the media have been dominated by politics for what seems like an age but suddenly changed a couple of days ago when the sad news that the "King of Rock'n'Roll" Chuck Berry had died at his Missouri home. He was 90 years old and, supported by some of his children, had just recorded his first studio album for 38 years; the album, simply called Chuck will be released later this year.
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Filipinos and all that jazz
Life, John Clewley, Published on 26/05/2015
» There's a famous photograph of HM the King playing jazz with a band of enthusiastic musicians. It is from 1963 when His Majesty held regular jam sessions with locally-based and visiting musicians. Perhaps the most famous jazz photo is the one that features Benny Goodman, the clarinet-playing American bandleader, but in the 1963 photo, His Majesty is playing with two Filipino jazz musicians: Angel Pena on upright bass and Bert del Rosario on piano.
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Haiti – Caribbean roots music
Life, John Clewley, Published on 23/02/2016
» The island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean archipelago has a colourful and rich musical history. There are two countries on the island -- Haiti and the Dominican Republic -- the former has its compass, mini jazz and twoubadou popular musical genres, while the latter boasts merengue.
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Boogie down one last time
Life, John Clewley, Published on 13/01/2015
» Johnny Otis was one of the pioneers of R&B, a key but often neglected figure in the development of rock'n'roll. Otis passed away, aged 90, at his home in California in 2012, after a lifetime in show business as a performer and band leader, composer, arranger, producer, disc jockey, nightclub owner, talent scout, political activist and cartoonist. He had over 20 R&B and pop hits between 1948-60 and was responsible for the discovery of Etta James, Hank Ballard, Jackie Wilson and Little Esther Jones, among others.
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