Wild Weekend Vol. 49

Sunday already? High time for Wild Weekend #49. Let´s see, what do we have here... Well, Tomatito salutes his uncle in Andalusian style, while Tom Russell spends some precious time in the last bar on earth. Meanwhile in the female vocals department, we´ve got a Helen, a Tracyanne and even a Bezunesh. Cool, no? In any case, be sure to have a wild one, y´all.

First we move to sunny Spain to meet up with Tomatito, the virtuoso longhaired gitano who succeeded Paco de Lucía as the principal guitar sidekick of legendary singer Camarón. The little tomato´s Barrio Negro (´91) was a nuevo flamenco album that received high praise almost everywhere, but when I bought it recently it proved just a little too light for my personal taste alas. However, this ode to his uncle Miguel is a timeless gem. Back in the States, let´s zoom in on Chicago, where we encounter a fairly young combo called Disappears. Their brand new longplayer Guider fuses the feedback and fuzz of the Mary Chain with the angst of early Joy Division, adding a whiff of kraut- and postrock à la fellow windy city dwellers Tortoise into the mix to speed things up a bit. Dark stuff this.

Tomatito - A Mi Tio "El Nino Miguel" MP3

Disappears - Halo MP3

Ethiopia´s on our radar once again now, with a groovy song from volume 13 in the truly amazing Ethiopiques series. Presenting Bezunesh Bekele, a lady with a very special voice indeed. And all that shiny brass in the background isn´t too shabby, either. There´s more excellent - and rare - Bezunesh stuff available on the interwebs of course: do pay a visit to the interesting Freedomblues blog for instance. Happy hunting. More female vocals up next, with the charming Helen Love from Wales and her cool tribute to ole Joey Ramone. "All you got to do is call me, there´s a girl who loves you on the other side of the world..." Pop bliss, dearies.

Bezunesh Bekele - Atrakegn MP3

Helen Love - Joey Ramoney MP3

Was playing the iPod in the car the other day when an old Tom Russell song came up. Had almost forgotten just how fine Out In California actually is, kinda like a Carver short story set to music. "I´m sitting here drinking in the last bar on earth..." When you´ve got a first line like that, nothing can go wrong I guess. And we´ll leave you for now with a ramshackle but fun tune from last year a pal of mine just brought to my attention. Gospel Music is a side project of Owen Holmes of the Black Kids, giving him the chance to sing duettes with all kinds of pretty-voiced dudettes. And in the case of Automobile, which gets plenty bonus points just for the use of a melodica, the lucky lady in question just happens to be Camera Obscura´s Tracyanne Campbell. "Take me to the forest, to the mountains, to the bay..."

Tom Russell - Out In California MP3

Gospel Music - Automobile MP3

Smiling And Singing With Tears In His Eyes

This sad news just in: Charlie Louvin died today, at the respectable age of 83. With Ira, who passed away back in ´65, he formed the finest brother team in the history of country music. Miss him.

The Louvin Brothers - The Angels Rejoiced Last Night MP3

The Louvin Brothers - Are You Afraid To Die MP3

Talk Talk

"Whatever you do, people will talk, whatever you say, people will talk..." Geraldo Pino doesn´t care, he lets them talk all they want. Get ready, organ! Steaming afrobeat from Sierra Leone.

Geraldo Pino & The Heartbeats - Let Them Talk MP3

Wild Weekend Vol. 48

Sit back, relax, and tune in to Wild Weekend, edition 48. Lotsa old stuff this week, as usual in lotsa different genres. Afro-funk, fifties country, live flamenco... Plus: a Robert Wyatt beauty sung in Spanish. Have a wild one, amigos.

Let´s make a funky start with the Mebusas and their infectuous afro ode to one Mr. Bull Dog. Which means juicy saxes, brother James vocals, and wild wah wah guitars in overdrive from the psychedelic seventies in Nigeria. You can find it on an exemplary double disc set called The World Ends on the mighty Soundway label. Taking the tempo down a notch now with a fine fine brother-in-law country duo from days long gone: Johnnie Wright and Jack Anglin. Their Poison Love stems from 1951, and managed to reach 4th place in the country charts that year. "Your poison love has stained the life blood in my heart and soul, dear..."

The Mebusas - Mr. Bull Dog MP3

Johnnie & Jack - Poison Love MP3

Last November saw a long expected flamenco release: a crystal clear registration of El Camarón De La Isla´s last ever concert of January ´92 in the auditorium of San Juan Evangelista College in Madrid. The legendary gypsy vocalist was already in bad health at the time, but his performances, accompanied by Tomatito on guitar, could still be breathtaking. Camarón would die the following June, his funeral attracting more than 100.000 people. More musica in the Spanish language up now, in the form of Robert Wyatt´s majestic rendition of Víctor Jara´s bittersweet ode to Amanda and her Manuel. "La vida es eterna en cinco minutos..."

El Camarón De La Isla - Nunca Llueve Como Truena (live San Juan Evangelista ´92) MP3

Robert Wyatt - Te Recuerdo Amanda MP3

Got an interesting take on ye olde House Of The Rising Sun for you now, featuring one Gil Bateman on vocals and tons of fuzz for free. From ´65, so way ahead of its time I guess. Turn it up and see if you agree. And we´ll call it quits with sister Wynona Carr, who´s not a big fan of the American penal system apparently. "That night in October, nineteen fifty three, how could he be in Frisco, he was home with me..." Yeah, right. Stay free and have a wild one.

Gil Bateman – My Daddy Walked in Darkness MP3

Wynona Carr - Please Mr. Jailer MP3

Colour Me Blue

How blue can you get? Presenting a bluer than blue, hand picked six pack. B.B. plays his Lucille live at the Regal, British punkpoppers MC4 reach for the sky, and Lloyd Charmers mourns racial injustice, Jamaican style. Bobby Bland proves once more he was up there with the true soul greats, while the Wooden Shjips go Krautrock, and sixties Japrockers the Jaguars simply feel blue... Like what you hear? Then buy a featured album or two.

B.B. King - How Blue Can You Get MP3

Mega City Four - Clear Blue Sky MP3

Lloyd Charmers - Darker Than Blue MP3

Bobby "Blue" Bland - Little Boy Blue MP3

Wooden Shjips - Blue Sky Bends MP3

The Jaguars - Blue Feeling MP3

On Her Own

Remember that Lebanese mountain singer Brian Eno & David Byrne sampled twice on their rightly famed My Life In The Bush Of Ghosts collaboration? Ever wondered what she would sound like on her own? Here´s your chance. Ladies and gentlemen, all the way from Beirut, please give a warm welcome to... Dunya Yunis.

Dunya Yunis - Abu Zeluf MP3

And in case your memory needs refreshing, this is the groove monster featuring Yunis (and not Yusin, as she´s often called erroneously) that gave her amazing voice some well-deserved exposure in the West.

Brian Eno & David Byrne - Regiment MP3

Wild Weekend Vol. 47

Sunday already? High time for Wild Weekend #47. In which we discover the amazing Uke Of Phillips, hear Dagmar Krause swoon beneath an Acnalbasac Noom, while Phil Ochs pays homage to a legend of the silver screen. Have a wild one.

You´d probably expect different by looking at the song´s title only, but closer listening reveals that Ada Richards doesn´t need no drink nor toke at all. No sir, Ada´s drunk and real high in the spirit of the Lord... The result? A wild wild gospel soul song. Find it on Good God: Born Again Funk, a groovy compilation on the Numero Group label, and repent forthwith. We move on with an act I heard about via the inspiring Big Rock Candy Mountain blog: Uke Of Phillips. Lo-fi folk with a fiddle and a mind of its own. Can´t stop whistling along. If you dig it as much as I do, you can order all kinds of Uke stuff at their Turned Word records. I just did.

Ada Richards - I´m Drunk And Real High MP3

Uke Of Phillips - History Lightning Bug MP3

A couple of Wild Weekends ago we played you a fine duet between Kevin Coyne and Dagmar Krause from their Babble album, and now it´s time for Hamburg born Krause´s first band, seventies artrockers Slapp Happy. "He lurks behind his paper in the shadow of a mosque..." Jazzy vibe or what? Next stop: Zambia. Which is said to have had a flowering psych rock scene in the early seventies, when bands like Witch and Amanaz ruled the roost. The latter goes far out here, with a fuzz-laden lament that somehow reminds me more of Japrock than of something recorded on the African continent.

Slapp Happy - Casablanca Moon MP3

Amanaz - Making The Scene MP3

Last week´s edition already featured a track from the Shifting Sands: 20 Treasures From The Heyday of Underground Folk compilation, but because I like it so much, here´s one more. I´ve seen Mark Fry described as a second rate Donovan, but the pastoral Song For Wilde proves there´s definitely much more to the man. And we´ll go out with another folkie: the one and only Phil Ochs, who subtitled his Greatest Hits album from 1970 - which wasn´t really a greatest hits album at all of course - ´50 Phil Ochs Fans Can't Be Wrong´. Listen to his heartfelt and heartbreaking ode to James Dean and you just may become number 51.

Mark Fry - Song For Wilde MP3

Phil Ochs - Jim Dean Of Indiana MP3

Memphis Train A-Comin´

And Rufus and Bobby are both waiting at the station. Here´s hoping their sweethearts are safely aboard.

Rufus Thomas - The Memphis Train MP3

Bobby Hebb - Night Train To Memphis MP3

Colour Me Red

"I´m a plumb fool ´bout Ida Red..." One more eclectic, hand picked six pack for your to chew on. Bob Wills swings Western with his Playboys, New York´s Marbles take the powerpop route, while former Japan frontman David Sylvian weaves a red dreamscape. Henry Thomas whistles the blues, my fave Aussies the Triffids deal in horses, and Canadian punks the Diodes cover Paul Simon by way of the Cyrkle. Like what you hear? Buy the featured albums for further exploration. Can´t be beat.

Bob Wills & His Texas Playboys - Ida Red MP3

Marbles - Red Lights MP3

David Sylvian - Red Guitar MP3

Henry Thomas - Red River Blues MP3

The Triffids - Red Pony MP3

The Diodes - Red Rubber Ball MP3

Pablo Say So

Two prime examples of Augustus Pablo working his magic. The melodica king transforms a pair of already mighty fine roots reggae tunes, respectively by Paul Whiteman and Bongo Pat, into the ethereal stuff of legend that is King Tubbys Meets Rockers Uptown from 1976. Finest dub album ever, hands down.

Paul Whiteman - Say So MP3

Augustus Pablo - Corner Crew Dub MP3

Bongo Pat - Young Generation MP3

Augustus Pablo - Young Generation Dub MP3

Wild Weekend Vol. 46

A warm welcome to the first edition of Wild Weekend in the year 2011. What´s cooking, doc? Got some rather obscure stuff for you this week, with nyabinghi drums and sitars no less. But there´s also a sizzling Ike Turner party hit featuring Lonnie ´The Cat´, and a steaming jazz duel between two undisputed sax greats. What more could you possibly want? Check ´em all out and for chrissakes... have a wild one.

But first there´s Lightnin´ Hopkins, wishing you all a very happy new year. Lightnin´ (1912-1982) was one of the most amazing blues guitarists to ever walk the earth. Could play acoustic and electric equally well. Mean singer, too. His recordings for Alladin, Modern, Herald and Folkways are all essential listening. Dig in. Going to play you some prime jazz now, from one of the best Sonny Rollins albums around: Tenor Madness (´56). Here´s the title track, with none other than John Coltrane sitting in. A blowing session to blow your mind.

Lightnin´ Hopkins - Happy New Year MP3

Sonny Rollins Quartet - Tenor Madness MP3

Anyone remember the Band Of Outsiders? Probably not, as these mid-eighties New Yorkers never made much of an impact anywhere. But as the beautiful Dutch Girl Concern shows, they could have been contenders. I´ve got their No Reflection compilation, well worth it if you can find it somewhere. Makes you wonder: where are they now? Write in, you guys. Meanwhile, we continue with the rootsy nyabinghi sounds of legendary Jamaican percussionist Bongo Herman. Which makes for a wickedly relaxed rasta instrumental.

Band Of Outsiders - Dutch Girl Concern MP3

Bongo Herman & Eric ´Bingy Bunny´ Lamont - African Breakfast MP3

"But you´re so high..." Way before Tina and super stardom, Ike Turner was a pioneering bandleader who paved the way for rock ´n´ roll with his tireless Kings Of Rhythm. One of the funniest early fifties projects he had a hand in was the fun novelty stomper I Ain´t Drunk by one Lonnie ´The Cat´. All together now people: "I ain´t drunk... I´m just drinking..." And we´ve come to the end of this Wild Weekend already with a psychedelic folk trip by Moonkyte. Groovy sitars drone way out! Find it on an remarkable compilation called Shifting Sands: 20 Treasures From The Heyday of Underground Folk.

Lonnie ´The Cat´ - I Ain´t Drunk MP3

Moonkyte - Way Out Hermit MP3

Un Poquito De Agua

Just got back from a winter break in lovely Andalucia. Spent some time in the heartland of flamenco music: Cádiz, Jerez De La Frontera and Sevilla. And since I was so close, I just had to pay my respects at the impressive gravesite of legendary gypsy singer El Camarón De La Isla (1950-1992) in the tiny village of San Fernando. Oh, and a feliz año nuevo, y´all...

El Camarón De La Isla - Dame Un Poquito De Agua MP3

El Camarón De La Isla - En La Provincia De Cádiz MP3

Antonio Núñez "Chocolate" - No Llamarme A La Puerta MP3

Elu De Jerez - Por Mi Libertad MP3

Juana La Del Pipa y Manuel Morao - Como Un Caballo Sin Freno MP3

Tomasa La Macanita - Por El Hablar De La Gente MP3