Showing 71 - 80 of 149
Documenting a documentarian
Life, John Clewley, Published on 14/09/2021
» Alan Lomax, who died in 2002 at the age of 87, wore many hats. In his long life, which spanned much of the 20th century, he worked as a folklorist, archivist, producer, writer, scholar, oral historian and filmmaker. He was also a musician and producer who played a key role in researching and preserving folk traditions, particularly in the US and England (spurring the folk revivals in the 1940s, 1950s and early 1960s in both countries).
The unremovable Scratch
Life, John Clewley, Published on 31/08/2021
» "Hello, Hello, Hello … This is a skeleton from outer space having a party."
Festive farewell
Life, John Clewley, Published on 17/08/2021
» The closing ceremony of the recent Tokyo Olympics was a surprise for many people. The organisers, recognising that many athletes were unable to explore Tokyo due to restrictions, transformed the Olympic stadium into a massive public park. The park featured typical Japanese leisure activities like yoga and rope skipping and a short film that showed the athletes what Japanese festival music and dancing is like, with clips from the Ainu in Hokkaido, Eisa dancing from Okinawa and Gujo Odori from Gifu, which led to live Bon Odori dancing in the stadium, driven by a booming taiko drum.
The passing of a great
Life, John Clewley, Published on 03/08/2021
» Guitarist, singer and Kassav founding member Jacob Desvarieux died last month in Guadeloupe at the age of 65. Kassav, which was founded after he met with brothers George and Pierre Eduard Decimus in 1978, went on to record more than 50 albums, released by the band or by individual members and the band remains hugely popular in the Caribbean.
Return of Doumbia
Life, John Clewley, Published on 20/07/2021
» Over the past half-century, the land-locked West African nation Mali has produced some terrific singers and bands.
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 …
Forging his own path
Life, John Clewley, Published on 22/06/2021
» When Ethiopian music maestro Hailu Mergia toured the US with the Ethio jazz and funk Walias Band in the early 1980s, he had no idea he would become a taxi driver in his adopted country.
Eclectic music to soak in
Life, John Clewley, Published on 08/06/2021
» I once spent several weeks travelling around Southern Italy, camping in Puglia and Calabria.
Can I interest you in South American psychedelics?
Life, John Clewley, Published on 25/05/2021
» The Caribbean is in the spotlight in this week's column, with two new and contrasting albums from different parts of the region featuring.
Riding the clog dancing wave
Life, John Clewley, Published on 11/05/2021
» People have been wearing wooden footwear for centuries.