Showing 51-60 of 101 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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Three is the magic number
Life, John Clewley, Published on 30/01/2018
» This week World Beat considers three stringed instruments from Africa: the valiha from Madagascar, kora from West Africa and oud from North Africa (which may have originated in what was Persia). All these instruments are plucked and 10 years ago, a bright spark in the music business thought it would be a good idea to bring together three master pluckers of these three instruments to see what music they might create. The result was the 3MA project release back in 2008.
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Irresistibly funky
Life, John Clewley, Published on 14/11/2017
» Colombia's Disco Fuentes label is probably one of the most well-known record companies in South America. From the 1960s, the label pumped out funky cumbias, porro and such irresistible salsa that Cubans often said that they felt at home in Colombia; if I spin a Colombian track when I am manning the DJ decks, a dancer will come up and ask me which Cuban band I'm playing.
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The true king of rock 'n' roll
Life, John Clewley, Published on 31/10/2017
» "They call, they call me the Fat Man cause I weigh two hundred pounds. All the girls they love me, Cause I know my way around. I was standing, standing on the corner Of Rampart and Canal, Watching those Creole gals …"
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The roots of Chicha – Peru's jungle beat
Life, John Clewley, Published on 19/09/2017
» Ever since Paul Simon used the Peruvian orchestral tune El Condor Pasa in his song of the same name, the image of Andean music is one of locals playing panpipes, dressed in traditional costumes. Think also of soprano Yma Sumac and her exotica music from the 1950s.
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The grooves of Cameroon
Life, John Clewley, Published on 01/08/2017
» When it comes to popular African music from Central Africa, the DR Congo is most often considered as the most important in the region for developing many of the dance crazes that swept the continent and made waves on international stages; think of Congolese rhumba or any of the dances that followed, from soukous to ndambolo. But what about some of the other countries in the region?
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Ike Turner – rock and roll pioneer
Life, John Clewley, Published on 17/01/2017
» Many people regard the single Rocket 88, released by Jackie Brenston and His Delta Cats in 1951, as the first "rock 'n' roll" record. The seven-inch single was produced by Sun Records in Memphis and leased to the Chess label, a label known for its hard-driving rhythm 'n' blues, and is cited for its sound, lyrical content, walking bassline and distorted guitar.
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South to Louisiana – R&B on the Bayou
Life, John Clewley, Published on 15/09/2015
» Several fun-packed R'n'B compilations have sashayed their way onto the World Beat desk recently, led by a wonderful set of forgotten gems, Rhythm 'n' Bluesin' By The Bayou -- Mad Dogs, Sweet Daddies & Pretty Babies, and a superb collection of early hits by Memphis-born pianist and singer Roscoe Gordon. Both albums are on the Ace label.
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Sounds from Soweto
Life, John Clewley, Published on 08/03/2016
» I first saw the all-singing, all-dancing Mahotella Queens back in the late 1980s, when they were on their epic tour of Europe, Asia, and the Americas, with their incomparable backing band, Makgona Tsohle, and leader singer, Simon "Mahlathini" Nkabinde. After years of having their movements restricted in their own country, they found themselves celebrated all over the world for their irresistible mbaqanga music, a genre they helped create in South Africa's "townships" in the 1960s.
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New releases for June
Life, John Clewley, Published on 23/06/2015
» Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba continue to dominate the top spot on this month's European Broadcast union Top 10 World Music chart. The Malian, who has brought the ngoni or Malian lute, to global fame, is on a hectic summer touring schedule that sees the band play in European and US festivals. Catch him if you can but if you can't get his new album Ba Power.
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