Unknown Fela: I Go Shout Plenty!

Here's another Fela rarity for your musical enjoyment: The Afrodisia disc I Go Shout Plenty!! (DWAPS 2251), released in 1986 but apparently recorded earlier. Like Perambulator, featured in my last post, I made this available to Uchenna Ikonne's With Comb and Razor blog a couple of years ago, and as it is no longer online, I'm making it available again.

According to Toshiya Endo, Side A ("I Go Shout Plenty") was recorded in 1977 as DWAPS 2038 but never released (the B Side was to be "Frustration of my Lady" or "Frustration," which later became the B Side of Perambulator).

Side B, "Why Black Man Dey Suffer," was also recorded in 1977 as the A Side of DWAPS 2036 (Side B was to be a song titled "Male," which I don't believe has ever been made public), but also not released. This is a different version of the tune of the same name that was released as African Songs AS001 (and recently reissued on CD) in 1971 (that version features Ginger Baker).

No personnel listed, but I wouldn't be surprised if Lester Bowie played on these tunes also. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if these tracks were recorded in the same set of sessions as "Perambulator" and "Frustration." These aren't really primo Fela tunes, and he is said not to have approved their release. I suspect that in 1986, however, shortly after the Black President was let out of prison, Afrodisia Records thought it could make a few Naira off of the attendant publicity and put them out.

Fela Anikulapo-Kuti & Afrika '70 - I Go Shout Plenty

Fela Anikulapo-Kuti & Afrika '70 - Why Black Man Dey Suffer

You can download I Go Shout Plenty!!! as a zipped file here. In my next post I'll be discussing Ginger Baker's LP Stratavarious, recorded with Fela in the early '70s.

Unknown Fela: Perambulator

By way of Undercover Black Man I learn that Knitting Factory Records intends to remaster and reissue the "entire catalog" of Nigeria's late Afrobeat King Fela Anikulapo-Kuti in the next 18 months.

I'm wondering what the difference is between this project and the extensive Fela reissue that saw the light of day about 10 years ago. Not that I'm complaining, of course, but I can think of several Fela pressings that are not among the "entire catalog" of 45 recordings listed for reissue on the Knitting Factory website. A few years ago, before Likembe got started, I made these available to Uchenna Ikonne to post on his With Comb and Razor blog, and as these are no longer online, it seemed like a good idea to put them out there again.

Perambulator (Lagos International Records LIR 6) was released in 1983, following a rather fallow period in Fela's career, and just before the jailing on trumped-up charges that would bring him back to the world's attention. "Perambulator," the song, was apparently recorded a number of years earlier. Toshiya Endo writes in his Fela discography that it was the B side of the French issue of Shuffering and Shmiling (Barclay 829 710-1) in 1978 while "Frustration" was recorded as "Frustration of My Lady" in 1977 as the B side of an Afrodisia LP that was never released.

If you look closely at the credits on the back of Perambulator you'll see Lester Bowie credited as a "guest artist" (I think that's his trumpet solo about 6 minutes into "Frustration"). Bowie lived with Fela in Lagos for three months in 1977. A co-founder of the Art Ensemble of Chicago, he was also married for a time to Fontella Bass, who did the awesome 1965 R&B hit "Rescue Me." So contrary to the record cover and label, I don't think Perambulator is a "true" Egypt '80 record, as it was recorded several years earlier, when Fela's band was still called Afrika '70. The record was not included in the "official" Fela CD reissue of the late '90s, although it did come out combined with Original Sufferhead (Lagos International Records 2, 1981) on a CD in Japan in 1998, a pressing that is no longer available.

As to why Perambulator is not considered part of Fela's "official" canon, I suspect it was an unauthorized release. While it may be sub rosa it is certainly not sub-standard. "Frustration" in particular is a killer track. Enjoy!

Fela Anikulapo-Kuti & Afrika '70 - Perambulator

Fela Anikulapo-Kuti & Afrika '70 - Frustration

You can download Perambulator as a zipped file here. In my next two posts I'll discuss two more "unknown" Fela releases.

An interview with Grand Union's Tony Haynes

Ahead of their gig at the Rich Mix on Saturday 31st October, vinspired volunteer Errol had a chat with Grand Union founder Tony Haynes ...

25 years later, Grand Union’s legacy still lives on. How as a group do you try to stay relevant?

“The things we talk about are universal. In a sense, growing and progressing in our own way. The other thing is always introducing new musicians so there are several generations now – the oldest musician is a steel pan player who is now in his seventies, but the youngest regular professionals are about 19 or 20. About three years ago, in order to make sure there was a legacy, a strong tradition of young musicians coming through, we set up the youth orchestra of East London so the principles can be passed on to them. We now have a whole range of people coming in from around 10 years old who have the potential to be very good. Obviously, you have to learn how to present music to a younger audience, and the best way is to listen to them.”

How has Grand Union Youth Orchestra’s introduction in 2007 changed your music’s target audience and/or age range of listeners?

“What’s strange is that we have always appealed enormously to younger people who are very impressed by what they hear, because it is very unusual. As the time passes, there seems to be less exposure to live, acoustic music making, so they are amazed by the combinations of musical instruments that they’ve never heard or certainly may not have seen before. The difficulty is getting them along as audiences because what we do is not seen as ‘fashionable’ music, in the sense that it’s not like rap or hip-hop – it instead continues an old tradition of acoustic music-making. So, to go back to your other question, I would say it is relevant but the difficulty is trying to convince people that it is relevant. We do a lot of workshops with young people, especially in schools, and I think having the younger musicians beginning to take part in the team is very helpful in the process because they relate to their own generation and at the same time, are part of Grand Union. It’s almost as if they are ambassadors.”

Prior to your Rich Mix performance, Grand Union is hosting a workshop for young kids and their families. How important do you reckon it is that world music is included in education?

“I think it is very, very important. But on the other hand, it is acknowledged on the music curriculum and people do study world music. The problem is that the establishment is very conservative and very few real African, Caribbean, South American, Indian or Chinese musicians are there to deliver and demonstrate their music. So, whilst it is a good idea that world music should be taught and explored, there is little effort to allow the authentic musicians to actually work with children and young people.”

How else does Grand Union try to target a young audience?

“Participation is an extension of the workshop. Most of the workshops we do are done with a view to engaging people in the performance. A few months ago, we did one of our big shows at the Hackney Empire where there were 150 or more young performers from across East London involved in that. It’s getting them involved and actually playing not just doing normal workshops and teaching them that way. The other thing is trying to find ways of reaching them through social networking sites, such as the MySpace. One of the things we’re doing now is bringing together a lot of the young people, who work with or for us, not just musicians but filmmakers and so on, to specifically establish a youth angle towards what Grand Union does.”

An interview with Grand Union's Tony Haynes

Ahead of their gig at the Rich Mix on Saturday 31st October, vinspired volunteer Errol had a chat with Grand Union founder Tony Haynes ...

25 years later, Grand Union’s legacy still lives on. How as a group do you try to stay relevant?

“The things we talk about are universal. In a sense, growing and progressing in our own way. The other thing is always introducing new musicians so there are several generations now – the oldest musician is a steel pan player who is now in his seventies, but the youngest regular professionals are about 19 or 20. About three years ago, in order to make sure there was a legacy, a strong tradition of young musicians coming through, we set up the youth orchestra of East London so the principles can be passed on to them. We now have a whole range of people coming in from around 10 years old who have the potential to be very good. Obviously, you have to learn how to present music to a younger audience, and the best way is to listen to them.”

How has Grand Union Youth Orchestra’s introduction in 2007 changed your music’s target audience and/or age range of listeners?

“What’s strange is that we have always appealed enormously to younger people who are very impressed by what they hear, because it is very unusual. As the time passes, there seems to be less exposure to live, acoustic music making, so they are amazed by the combinations of musical instruments that they’ve never heard or certainly may not have seen before. The difficulty is getting them along as audiences because what we do is not seen as ‘fashionable’ music, in the sense that it’s not like rap or hip-hop – it instead continues an old tradition of acoustic music-making. So, to go back to your other question, I would say it is relevant but the difficulty is trying to convince people that it is relevant. We do a lot of workshops with young people, especially in schools, and I think having the younger musicians beginning to take part in the team is very helpful in the process because they relate to their own generation and at the same time, are part of Grand Union. It’s almost as if they are ambassadors.”

Prior to your Rich Mix performance, Grand Union is hosting a workshop for young kids and their families. How important do you reckon it is that world music is included in education?

“I think it is very, very important. But on the other hand, it is acknowledged on the music curriculum and people do study world music. The problem is that the establishment is very conservative and very few real African, Caribbean, South American, Indian or Chinese musicians are there to deliver and demonstrate their music. So, whilst it is a good idea that world music should be taught and explored, there is little effort to allow the authentic musicians to actually work with children and young people.”

How else does Grand Union try to target a young audience?

“Participation is an extension of the workshop. Most of the workshops we do are done with a view to engaging people in the performance. A few months ago, we did one of our big shows at the Hackney Empire where there were 150 or more young performers from across East London involved in that. It’s getting them involved and actually playing not just doing normal workshops and teaching them that way. The other thing is trying to find ways of reaching them through social networking sites, such as the MySpace. One of the things we’re doing now is bringing together a lot of the young people, who work with or for us, not just musicians but filmmakers and so on, to specifically establish a youth angle towards what Grand Union does.”

Off the Beaten Track

For all I know, recordings like Simon Sene's Magal (Afrique Dioundioung/KSF) could be as common as dirt in Senegal, so the title of this post may not be completely accurate. Still, the first time it came my way ten years ago, I knew that something set it apart from the general Wolof/Peul axis of modern Senegalese music.

Now, from his My Space Profile, I learn that Mr. Sene is a Serer, the third-largest ethnicity in Senegal (see map below), a people that still retain animistic beliefs, although some members in recent years have converted to Islam or Christianity. As a singer of traditional music at weddings and christenings, he was discovered by Moussa Bopp of Radio Kaolack and encouraged to record. At first his family resisted, objecting that the songs were meant only for the griot caste, but he recorded his first hit, "Ndakaru," in 1993. His first cassette, Magal, with its sparse yet striking arrangements for keyboards and percussion, was released in 1997. With two further releases, Jamm Cassamance in 2001 and Yaye in 2006, Simon Sene has clearly taken his place in the pantheon of modern masters of Senegal music. Enjoy!

Simon Sene - Roi des Arenes

Simon Sene - Magal

Simon Sene - Greve

Simon Sene - O Young

Simon Sene - Fexwe

Simon Sene - A Cang

Simon Sene - Maayaay

Simon Sene - Hommage a Mbissane

You can also download this album as a zipped file here. In the future I will be offering this option for the convenience of Likembe reader/listeners, and I will also try to make it available in older posts as well. As the zipped files use "free" file-hosting services (as opposed to the individual tracks, which I pay to have hosted) I can't assure that they will always be available. Let me know how it works out.

Party for Malawi, 21st November, Bristol, UK

Party For Malawi, 21st November, Basement 45, Bristol, UK

A veritable feast of musical entertainment brought to you from the famous Lake of Stars Festival crew and Bristol's own party people The Blast. The night will feature two rooms of music and a mash up of styles to keep you on your toes. With headliners Nihal and Ross Allen fresh back from the vinspired Lake of Stars Festival this is gong to be very special indeed. See yo there.x

Party for Malawi, 21st November, Bristol, UK

Party For Malawi, 21st November, Basement 45, Bristol, UK

A veritable feast of musical entertainment brought to you from the famous Lake of Stars Festival crew and Bristol's own party people The Blast. The night will feature two rooms of music and a mash up of styles to keep you on your toes. With headliners Nihal and Ross Allen fresh back from the vinspired Lake of Stars Festival this is gong to be very special indeed. See yo there.x