This was an excellent episode.
As a Black native-born Californian,  I’m surprised  I never learned this information in California History or African American History classes. Bravo!!!

A Jazz FM Voices exclusive interview with Grammy winning producer and label owner of World Circuit Records Nick Gold. Tim Garcia speaks with Nick about this seminal recording, how it came about, the magic of the record and what it means 25 years on. There are also contributions from Professor and Musicologist Lucy Duran and pianist and composer Robert Fonseca.

Unless stated all songs are from the 25 Year Buena Vista Social Club featuring some previously unheard material:

Buena Vista Social Club 
De Camino A La Verada
Afro-Cuban All Stars - A Toda Cuba le Gusta
¿Y tú qué has hecho?
Viente Anos
A Tus Pies
Amor de Loca Juventud
El Carretero
Saludo Compay
Chan Chan (Monitor Mix)
Ensayo
La Cleptomana
Dos Gardenias
El Cuarto de Tula
Orgullecida
Vicenta
Candela

www.musicamacondo.com

25 Years of Buena Vista Social Club with Tim Garcia and Nick Gold on Jazz FM

’Assimilation’ is the fourth, and final, single taken from The Brkn Record’s forthcoming debut album, ‘The Architecture of Oppression Part 1’. A groundbreaking concept album from Jake Ferguson of The Heliocentrics. It is a critical journey through the eyes of Black Britons, blending powerful and sobering narratives with psychedelic and soulful symphonies.

It is a track that has an overwhelming potency and power. A visceral tour de force that stops you in your tracks. The music has a Wagnerian manner to it, culminating in a dramatic and emotional intensity, masterfully matched by the evocative lyrics and their delivery. Over a pulsing, ominous beat, spoken word artist, singer and performance poet Dylema breaks down the psychological and social violations entrenched by the pressure placed on Black and Brown people to ‘assimilate’ to so-called English culture. 

Born and raised in Nigeria, Dylema moved to England in 2000 and it is this lived experience that is expressed in the song’s lyrics, "When I came to this country, I had such a strong accent that it was really difficult to blend in. Before I opened my mouth, you had the Black thing, and when I opened my mouth you had the African thing. People were taken aback by that, and so I found myself assimilating and remembering my experience of that assimilation. I felt in order to survive in England I would have to learn how to speak like an English person. Even though I have this accent right now, it is completely fake. It never left me to have an African accent, so amongst my friends and people close to me, I slip back without even noticing. The level of skill I had to have to assimilate into England required so much of me. Even if you’re not born and raised in Africa, there are so many things that Black British people have to do to assimilate without even noticing it. I still feel like I haven’t completely assimilated and I’m ok with that now. That is what inspired me to write Assimilation. I felt someone needed to put a voice to what we actually do to ourselves to be respected or accepted in Britain.”

The Brkn Record - Assimilation (feat. Dylema)

The Brkn Record is a new project led and produced by Jake Ferguson, the co-founder and bass player for the UK’s foundational deep jazz outfit the Heliocentrics. With fellow Heliocentrics co-founder and legendary drummer Malcolm Catto, Ferguson has been a regular collaborator with globally recognised artists including Archie Shepp, Mulatu Astatke, Melvin Van Peebles, Orlando Julius and many others.

The Architecture of Oppression Part 1 represents Ferguson’s debut as a bandleader and orchestrator, and manifests as a committed and soulful response to ongoing and systemic anti-black racism, social oppression and state violence both at home in London and across the globe. Combining poetry, testimony and song with rich and cinematic backdrops, Ferguson has produced a sui generis sound that conjures flavours of Arthur Verocai, Ennio Morricone, classic library productions, Madlib-style deep-jazz beat science, and psychedelic soul. With bandmate Malcolm Catto on drums, Ferguson draws on their long years of collaborative experience in the Heliocentrics to build an album of striking texture and depth. 

But the album does not only reflect Ferguson’s full-spectrum musical prowess, experience and vision. It is equally a manifestation of his longstanding and high-profile work as a frontline activist for racial justice and social equity in London and beyond.

Alongside Malcom Catto, contributors to the album are drawn from the intersecting worlds of community activism, cultural education, politics and music, and include singer and political activist Jermain Jackman, Zara MacFarlane; Chicagoan activist, poet and singer Ugochi Nwaogwugwu; Lee Jasper, longstanding worker for racial justice and former advisor on equalities to the Mayor of London; acclaimed performance poet Dylema; Hackney community leader Janette Collins MBE and Leroy Logan MBE, founder and former chair of the Black Police Association, and the subject of Steve McQueen’s Small Axe episode ‘Red, White and Blue’.

The Architecture of Oppression Part 1 is a singular and urgent chronicle of the black British experience, an upful expression of Pan-African creative unity and community solidarity, and a militant and unbending missive from the frontline in the great tradition of The Impressions’ This Is My Country, Irreversible Entanglements Who Sent You?, Max Roach’s We Insist - Freedom Now Suite, or Linton Kwesi Johnson’s Bass Culture.

A broken record repeats itself, and never plays through – the music is interrupted or trapped in a cycle by damage to the grooves. But The Brkn Record is a work of healing and protection, and a chance to let the full story be heard – all the way to the end, no skips.

The Brkn Record - Hackney Ain’t Innocent (feat. Yolanda Lear)

Tony Allen is among the greatest drummers of the past century. His sudden death at 79 in April, 2020, was a shock felt around the world. In addition to his seminal work with the king of Afrobeat Fela Kuti, Allen had a prolific solo career and performed and recorded with artists from Angelique Kidjo, Ray Lema, Ernest Ranglin and Oumou Sangare to Damon Albarn, Brian Eno and Jeff Mills. In this program we salute a towering career in global music, with insights from Michael Veal, co-author of Allen’s autobiography. Produced by Banning Eyre.

Remembering Tony Allen

Bonbon vodou, the new label signature, asked Franck Descollonges (the label boss) to mix for the opening of their album release party at Café de la danse (Paris).

A mix of chanson française, music from La reunion and else where

W/ Danyel Waro, Roger Raspail, Mulatu, Getatchew Mekurya, Piers Faccini, Brigitte Fontaine & Areski, Les Pythons de la fournaise, Alain Peters, Michou, René Lacaille (the Boss!!), souleance…

Bonbon Vodou opening @Café de la Danse (by Franck Descollonges)

On "No Oud"  Israel’s most influential digging duo, Radio Trip, strip down the classic “Neimat Pop Oud”,  itself a fusion of funk and rock with traditional Mediterranean styles by 70s pioneers Lehakat Tzliley Ha'oud, into a deadly pairing of bass and cavernous drums. 

Radio Trip wrote the book for generations of record collectors and hip hop producers to follow when it comes to digging and sampling obscure Israeli and Yemenite funk and psychedelic grooves. In turn they influenced the next generation of musicians who as a result looked further back into their own musical heritage, at least as much as the usual American and British influences.

"No Oud" is the flipside to “Oud Two", another take on “Neimat Pop Oud”, by Mediterranean psychedelic surf band,  Les Dynamites, on the 13h edition on Batov Records’ essential Middle Eastern Groove 45s series. 

Released on April 3rd on vinyl and digital, “Oud Two” and “No Oud” are destined to inspire aspiring belly dancers, break dancers and any curious music lovers interested in diving into the seductive grooves of Israel’s ancient cities.

Pop Oud #2 / No Oud

Exclusive Premiere: Radio Trip "No Oud" (Forthcoming on Batov Records)

Much has been made of Mexico's rich Spanish and indigenous heritage, but until recently, there's been little talk of Mexico's so-called "Third Root": Africa. Africans came to Mexico with the Spanish as soldiers and slaves - so many that by 1810, the black population of Mexico was equal to that of the United States. Today, African heritage persists throughout Mexico, yet for a variety of reasons, black history has long been silenced. In this Hip Deep episode, we use music to explore that history as we take a road-trip across the country in search of sonic traces of Afro-Mexico. We visit the state of Veracruz to learn the history of the Afro-Mexican son jarocho sound, made famous by Ritchie Valens' 1958 hit cover of La Bamba, a traditional jarocho tune. Then, we visit the Costa Chica of Guerrero, where Afro-Mexican communities are fighting for government recognition to help preserve faltering musical traditions. And we'll stop by the golden-age halls of Mexico City, where the Afro-Cuban danzón thrives far from it's ancestral home in Havana. Along the way, we hear from top scholars in the field such as Ben Vinson III and Alejandro Madrid, as well as Afro-Mexican music stars past and present, from Los Cojolites to Las Cafeteras. ¡Que padre! Produced by Marlon Bishop.

APWW #658
Originally aired in 2013

La Bamba - The Afro-Mexican Story

The Singles Club

Premiere: Matt Wilde - Pivot

** PRESENTING THE FIRST OFFICIAL REISSUE PROJECT FROM MUSIC IS MY SANCTUARY ***

Born out of an era of occupied squats and DIY artist spaces, the Geneva-based “total art” collective had to cross an ocean to start finding an audience.

For us, the love affair with Black Citron’s music started when we first came in contact with two of their tracks appearing on a very obscure Montreal-based compilation titled ‘L’Album Blanc Vol. 2″.

Their music was experimental and groovy. Minimal and free. Organic and electronic. A sound which you’d have a hard time defining accurately without naming tons of different other genres and bands. One thing was for sure, it sounded cutting edge even by today’s standards.

As we started digging and investigating into the story of these two tracks we soon found out that they actually didn’t originate from our home city of Montreal, but were by a group from Switzerland who recorded them here in the late 80’s in the legendary Foufounes Electriques venue.

Black Citron were a collective of artists that had core members but also had others that would appear based on the project. Musicians, Designers, Photographers. The lead singer Evelyne Schumacher mentions the label “art total” as the best definition overall of the philosophy.

We fell in love with Black Citron, their music, story and artistic approach so much that we embarked on a project to create an anthology of all their work. An archival project we are happy to announce will get an official reissue on vinyl in full collaboration with the collective from Switzerland.

As a first taste of their music, here is “Revolution Rap” released in 1986 on a 7″ private press record under the Clinik alias. An incredible slice of experimental rap / post-punk / minimal drum machines. This track somehow gained an audience in Montreal and open up some doors for the band to travel to Canada and start the cross-Atlantic collaboration.

Although the recorded history Black Citron’s music only spans four years, they made some of most daring and revolutionary songs of that era. It has been a really incredible pleasure for us to dive deep in their catalog to gather their tracks which are spread out on vinyl and cassettes.

As a second preview, a taste of the upcoming reissue project, let’s jump forward to the last record Black Citron released officially, in 1990. Feast your ears on “Les Nouveaux Bisons.

We are in the final stages of gathering tracks, photos, prints in full collaboration with the band. We are beyond excited to bring all of this stunning music together on the definitive retrospective of Black Citron’s music.

More news very soon.

Clinik - Révolution Rap (1986)

Mawimbi | 31.03.23

A mix of afro-futuristic sounds by the Zoukous sound system made in March 2016 in Finland. Includes a worldly selection of stuff with drum machines, synths and guitars and some without.

Illustration by Arsi Keva.

Welcome to Zoukous pt. 2 (mix by Fredrik Lavik & Galactic Mace)

Afropop Worldwide is an internationally syndicated weekly radio series, online guide to African and world music, and an international music archive, that has introduced American listeners to the music cultures of Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean since 1988. Our radio program is hosted by Georges Collinet from Cameroon, the radio series is distributed by Public Radio International to 110 stations in the U.S., via XM satellite radio, in Africa via and Europe via Radio Multikulti. 

La Bamba - The Afro-Mexican Story

Afropop Worldwide

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