Behold The Son Of Paul

Today we have another one of the CDs I acquired when I visited The Jazzhole in Lagos back in June. This one comes courtesy of Mr Paulson Kalu, ably abetted by His Stars 25.

Exactly what CD it is isn't completely clear. On the cover it says that it is his greatest hits but the CD itself says it's "Uche Chukwu Mee", the name of an album he released back in 1973. Nine of the 14 tracks on the CD are from that album but a couple are missing so it is very nearly, but not quite, the original LP plus bonus tracks. 

If you are not familiar with Mr Kalu and his work I can do no better than to share a few quotes from the citation from the Centre for Memories - "a repository of the history and culture of Ndị Ìgbò" - on the occasion of his 80th birthday last December:

"Born in Akanu‑Ohafia, Abia State, Paulson Kalu was raised amidst the rich heritage of his people. From early days, he showed a passion for music; joining the Martin Brothers Dance Band in Port Harcourt, where he first learned the rhythms that would shape his musical journey.

He continued with Erasmus Jenewari’s Globe Kings Band as a vocalist. In 1970, he entered the band of legendary highlife master Stephen Osita Osadebe, a period of mentorship which helped him refine a distinct musical personality rooted in Ìgbò cultural values and philosophical lyricism.

Not long after, Kalu founded his own group based in Onitsha. Through this band, he released songs that resonated deeply with those seeking comfort, identity, and hope. For decades, his music has helped soothe hearts, revive cultural pride, and remind his listeners of the enduring power of Ìgbò melody and philosophy".

And you can't say fairer than that.  

"Ogbogho" _ Paulson Kalu & His Stars 25

"Ji Ehele" - Paulson Kalu & His Stars 25

Pun Fun 8: The Theme

It is August Bank Holiday Monday here in the UK, a sign that the long school holidays are coming to an end. Having given all you punsters the summer off it is time for you to shake the sand from your shoes and get back to work. The theme for Pun Fun 8 is:

DIPS AND SAUCES

The idea for this theme came for me while I was enjoying an excellent lunch by the beach in Chalkida in Greece back in July and found myself trying to think of a song title about taramasalata. I didn't come up with anything, but this was the view from my table so I perhaps wasn't fully focused on the task. I am sure you lot can succeed where I failed.

If you are feeling a bit rusty after a fun, sun, no pun summer, this list of sauces on Wikipedia may help to oil your mental gears. If not you might perhaps try some of the BBC's delicious dips.  

All entries should be sent to leggies27@hotmail.co.uk by Sunday 6 September. Voting opens next Monday.

But the holidays aren't quite over yet folks, not until Las Ketchup pack up the Palm Beach beach bar for the season. Until then, keep it saucy like a Donald McGill postcard.

Dub Trickiness

If any of you made it all the way through my long and boring ramblings about the music of Uruguay earlier in the week you would have read this paragraph near the end:

"I was originally going to include a different track by Pasajeros del Malaysia Airlines and local dub dudes DubTricomas in the MAR slot today but in the end I ruled it out on a technicality. Fear not, however, it will be making a delayed appearance here on Friday along with other dub dudery". 

I am a man of my long and boring rambling word, so here is that track. It comes from an enjoyable album released in 2021 called "PMA Meets DubTricomas (Dubber Sounds)". Both of the principals hail from the city of Montevideo. So far, so Uruguayan.

The catch is that the stand-out track consists of the vocals from I Roy's "Everybody Bawling" with the dubbed up Pasajeros skanking away in the background. The late Mr Roy Thomas Reid was definitely from Jamaica so I did not feel I could justifiably include the track in a post about the music of Uruguay. But you are getting it now.

And that is not all folks. The mysterious DubTricomas has also teamed up with the Pirata Boing Band from Finland - he appears to specialise in collaborations with bands with silly names - and on his own has made a whole album of Kraftwerk dubs. I have added one from each.

"I Roy Scorches PMA Inna Beatle Stylee" - Pasajeros del Malaysia Airlines & DubTricomas

"Sin Dubear" - Pirata Boing Band & DubTricomas

"Dub Modelo" - DubTricomas

I can't find any videos of the mysterious DubTricomas on YouTube but all the others are present and accounted for (although I had to cheat a bit to be able to include I Roy). Any fans of The Clash who've been hanging around here since Monday may well recognise the song the Pasajeros are covering.

Ernie's El Dorado Pt 22 - Uruguay

We're nearly done now folks. Part 22 of 23 and we've arrived in Uruguay. There will be dancing in the streets of Fray Bentos tonight.

Back in the mid 1960s when the meat processing industry there was still thriving and not just a UNESCO protected memory no group was more likely to get the locals dancing than Los Shakers. They may have been a tiny bit influenced by the Beatles as this album cover and the title track of their 1966 English language LP  demonstrate.

In 1965 the ruling National Council of Government decreed that the Uruguayan Beatles would only be permitted to exist if there was also a Uruguayan Rolling Stones. The job was given to Los Mockers, who had a decent go at it judging by this track from their 1966 debut album. Some listings give the Spanish title "Que Vida" even though it is performed in English. 

As was the case across Latin America, psychedelia came along a few years later and with it a greater willingness on the part of bands to incorporate local influences in their sound. One example is La Logia Sarabanda who seem to have released just one album and one single in 1973. Never mind the width, feel the quality.

Four years in 1977 later we got the first sighting of Mariana Ingold, a composer, instrumentalist and singer who has championed and produced recordings of the music of the indigenous people of Uruguay alongside her own music. I would recommend the 1999 compilation album "Fue Ayer" as a good place to start. Its where I found this track, originally released in 1994 on the album "Candombe En El Tiempo" which Mariana made with Osvaldo Fattoruso. Both are among a number of her albums available on Bandcamp on a 'name your own price' basis.

Martin Buscaglia is another polymath and frenetic collaborator. His range of styles is much broader than Mariana's, who I don't think has yet gone through a disco phase, and perhaps the closest point of comparison would be Brazilian tropicalia. Today's selection is from his 2006 album "El Evangelio Según mi Jardinero", but remix enthusiasts may also want to check out the reworkings by Boogie Corporation.

One of the better known Uruguayan artists in international hipster circles in recent years is Juan Wauters. Juan left Uruguay for NYC with his family in 2002 when he was 17, formed a band called The Beets and then started his solo career. Juan only returned to Uruguay to perform for the first time in 2017 but since doing so has very much reconnected with his roots, writing more often in Spanish and recording with fellow musicians from Uruguay and other parts of Latin America. This track is from his 2021 album "Real Life Situations".

Our penultimate selection brings us bang up to date with Pasajeros del Malaysia Airlines, presumably alluding to the mysterious disappearance of Flight 370 in 2014. They describe their style as "finest Trojanism, hardcore punx heart" and there is a fair amount of skanking involved, including on this single from last year.

I was originally going to include a different track by Los Pasajeros and local dub dudes DubTricomas in the MAR slot today but in the end I ruled it out on a technicality. Fear not, however, it will be making a delayed appearance here on Friday along with other dub dudery. 

Instead you are getting something from a brand new compilation on the fine Argentinian label FM Del Rock Musick Arg. The album was issued in early August with the self-explanatory title "Reggae Riddim Compilado Vol 4 - Uruguay". I have chosen the contribution from Kinga Roots, a performer so bouncy and boisterous that local reggae promoters have been told their licences may be withdrawn if they fail to tie their Kinga Roots down.  

"Break It All" - Los Shakers

"What A Life" - Los Mockers

"Cajon De Castanas" - La Logia Sarabanda

"Despeinando El Plata" - Mariana Ingold

"Cerebro, Orgasmo, Envidia & Sofía" - Martin Buscaglia

"Carmina Pensa" - Juan Wauters

"Anti Yuta" - Pasajeros del Malaysia Airlines

"Entrando En Accion" - Kinga Roots

RIP Dolly

Park Life

I am lucky enough to live a short walking distance from Victoria Park (Vicky to her friends) in London's historic and fashionable East End. Its been a blessing having it on the doorstep, especially during Covid but in normal times too.

Vicky Park is a bit busy at the moment because we are slap bang in the middle of the annual All Points East festival - six days of music spread across two weekends attracting crowds of 40 - 50,000 each day. 

All Points East has been running since 2018 and I went to some of the earlier ones when they had something for everyone on the bill, but in recent years the organisers have targeted a younger audience. I have not heard of most of the acts, even some of the headliners, and I would be surprised if any of the many festival goers I have seen over the last few days were over 30. That's not a complaint - its good to see the kids of today enjoying live music - its just not for me.

No doubt they will be talking about the time Jorja Smith and Twenty One Pilots played Vicky Park for years to come, but personally I think the most significant festival ever held there remains the one in April 1978 when Rock Against Racism and the Anti-Nazi League organised a march from Trafalgar Square to the park for a 'Carnival Against The Nazis'.

I wasn't there - my excuse is I was living in South Africa at the time and the 277 doesn't run that far - but by all accounts it was an amazing day. In the current climate we could do with a repeat, but reading the bio of the man behind AEG Presents, the organisers of All Points East, my guess is it probably isn't on their to do list.

The official line-up at the 'Carnival Against The Nazis' was The Clash (with a guest appearance by Jimmy Pursey), Tom Robinson Band, Steel Pulse, X-Ray Spex and my close personal friend Patrik Fitzgerald. We've featured X-Ray Spex a couple of times recently - here and here - and if you are patient you will see the Clash and Jimmy in the video. But first here are the other three acts with some of their hits from 1978.

"Better Decide Which Side You're On" - Tom Robinson Band

"Klu Klux Klan" - Steel Pulse

"Irrelevant Battles" - Patrik Fitzgerald

From Start To Finish

On Monday we were in Ghana. On Wednesday we were in Germany. And we are finishing this week's musical travels in the world famous reggae hotspot of Plymouth.

Being partly of Cornish extraction it pains me to say anything nice about Devon but I can't deny the excellence of Alpha & Omega - or Christine Woodbridge and John Sprosen to their friends and families. They have been making top quality records for over 35 years now, by themselves and in collaboration with the likes of Jah Shaka.

"Almighty Jah" was a 1992 collaboration with Dub Judah, so obviously I have chosen two of the only three tracks that feature other vocalists. Apologies to Mr Judah. Tanernishka is Tracey Jarrett, who would later shorten her pseudonym to Nishka and become a regular guest. About The Exile, who contributes a then topical track about the Rodney King trial, I can tell you nothing at all. 

"Only In Yourself" - Alpha & Omega (featuring Tanernishka)

"California v. Powell" - Alpha & Omega (featuring The Exile)

Other Alphas and Omegas are also available, from Bristol and Budapest respectively. No disrespect intended to either but A & O show that this is definitely a case of the whole being stronger than the parts.