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African Jazz


lupe

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Hi, first post here !

During the last years, I have found a lot of pleasure listening to jazz coming from Africa, or in collaboration with african musicians. Here is a list of some of my favourites albums, in no particular order:

1. Djeli Moussa Diawara & Bob Brozman: Ocean Blues

2. Lionel Loueke: Karibou

3. Maurice El Medioni: Cafe Oran

4. Ballake Sissoko & Vincent Segal: Chamber Music

5. Abdullah Ibrahim: Cape Town Songs

6. Kora Jazz Trio: Part I

7. Anouar Brahem : Thimar

8. Jack DeJohnette & Foday Musa Suso: Music from the heart of the masters

9. Mulatu Astetke: NY – Addis – London

10. Hank Jones Meets Cheick Tidiane Seck & The Mandinkas: Sarala

I could go on , but I think you got the point. I'm looking for other records on the same style(s). For those of you who know some of these recordings, what can-you recommend me to hear next ?

Thanks in advance for your ideas !

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Hi BM, thanks for your reply.

I actually checked the African Music thread, which is a great one. I have most of the records recommended there - it helps that I've been living and travelling around Africa for some years now.

What I'm looking for these days - as reflected to my list - is not really african music (traditionnal or modern), but pure jazz records that are directly linked or influenced by african music, played by african musicians. I particularly enjoy collaborations between African and non-African musicians, and we had some amazing ones lately !

I hope my question can contribute to the general discussion. Glad to be here !

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I like this one alot: Roswell Ruud/Toumani Diabate--Malicool. Jazz trombone and kora.

Roland Shannon Jackson--When Colors Play. Not African music per se, but an album of compositions based on the leader's travels in Africa.

Johnny Copeland--Bringing It all Back Home. Texas blues/African music fusion.

Edited by kh1958
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I only know Thimar, from the ones you've listed. These are quite different, jazzier, so I don't know if they quite fit the bill, but these African-themed releases by Henri Texier are quite nice.

Suite Africaine

African Flashback

... and to a somewhat lesser degree, but still wonderful music ...

Mosaic Man

Carnet de Routes

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Winston Mankunku

Yakhal'Inkomo: Yakhal'Inkomo, Dedication, Doodlin', Bessie's Blues. Spring: Spring, Before the Rain and After, Look Up, The Birds, You Don't Know What Love Is.

Mankunku Quartet: Winston "Mankunku" Ngozi: tenor saxophone; Lionel Pillay: piano; Agrippa Magwaza: bass; Early Mabuza: drums. Chris Schilder Quintet: Chris Schilder: piano; Winston "Maknunku" Ngozi: tenor saxophone; Garry Kriel: guitar; Phillip Schilder: bass; Gilbert Matthews: drums.

One of my favorites. A bit of Shepp, some Trane and - listen for it - Tubby Hayes.

post-236-128993101933_thumb.jpg

Edited by BeBop
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Yeah, Mankunku!

Also - anything by Louis Moholo, whilst we're in the Blue Notes/Brotherhood orbit...Spirits Rejoice is a stone classic.

Something like Masekela's 'Home is Where the Music Is'???

Mulatu - check out the new record, 'Steps Ahead'. I didn't record the album, but I'm lucky enough to be part of the band touring the music, and it's wonderful!

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Winston Mankunku

Yakhal'Inkomo: Yakhal'Inkomo, Dedication, Doodlin', Bessie's Blues. Spring: Spring, Before the Rain and After, Look Up, The Birds, You Don't Know What Love Is.

Mankunku Quartet: Winston "Mankunku" Ngozi: tenor saxophone; Lionel Pillay: piano; Agrippa Magwaza: bass; Early Mabuza: drums. Chris Schilder Quintet: Chris Schilder: piano; Winston "Maknunku" Ngozi: tenor saxophone; Garry Kriel: guitar; Phillip Schilder: bass; Gilbert Matthews: drums.

One of my favorites. A bit of Shepp, some Trane and - listen for it - Tubby Hayes.

This is new to me. Thanks.

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Thank you for posting lupe.

I enjoy music such as you describe very much.

Anouar Brahem has a number of other releases on ECM that are good, although Thimar is a standout. I really like his latest- The Astounding Eyes of Rita.

Abdullah Ibrahim also has an extensive catalog of music spanning several decades that should interest you.

Check out the two albums on CD by Mombasa- African Rhythm & Blues, and Mombasa 2. This band has some other releases, not yet released on CD, that I would love to hear.

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Thanks so much for your suggestions. I know I am definitely in the right place.

Many of them are familiar to me. I have enjoyed Chris McGregor, especially the "Brotherhood of Breath"; somehow, I have always linked it with the fusion category, for example, Soft Machine's "Third". The similarities in style are quite impressive. Jazzjet, jostber, Alexander Hawkins, I am sure you already have it, otherwise check it out!

Riverrat, I have indeed other records from Abdullah Ibrahim and Anouar Brahem. Apart from Thimar, other Brahem's favourites are Astrakan Café and Conte d'Inroyable Amour. Thanks also for you suggestion on Mombasa; I have only listen a couple of songs in compilations and it's time I look for their albums. The same goes with Henri Texier, suggested by papsrus.

kh1958, Malicool is already with me, but I have not heard of the other two. I will try Johnny Copeland, who is already a familiar name to me.

The completely new stuff for me are Winston Mankunku (he seems to be popular among members) and Dudu Pukwana, I'm going to try them. Compilations can also be very useful and enjoyable.

JohnS, I'm not originally from DRC, but I've been living here for the last two years.

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Check out Djeli Moussa Diawara's (then spelled as Jali Musa Jawara) classic debut 1982 album, "Yasimika". Not really jazz (although it has a lot of improvisation), and IMHO much stronger than everything he has recorded afterwards. Excellently recorded as well. The CD has been OOP for many years, but it is expected to be re-released soon. You can listen to the complete album on Diawara's website: http://www.djelimous...982-remasterise

Edited by Д.Д.
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Thanks so much for your suggestions. I know I am definitely in the right place.

Good suggestions, all of them! (At least all of what I know, but that's most of what has been mentioned.)

Many of them are familiar to me. I have enjoyed Chris McGregor, especially the "Brotherhood of Breath"; somehow, I have always linked it with the fusion category, for example, Soft Machine's "Third". The similarities in style are quite impressive. Jazzjet, jostber, Alexander Hawkins, I am sure you already have it, otherwise check it out!

Check out some of the live stuff... several releases out on Cuneiform - the first one to get might be "Eclipse at Dawn", from the 1971 Berlin Jazz Days. Feza was absent that night... but the band's on fire, and the late Harry Beckett plays some mighty fine solos!

Big YES also for the suggestion of Hugh Masekela's "Home Is Where the Music Is". Burning stuff from Dudu Pukwana!

And Moholo has been mentioned, so have McGregor and Dudu and Feza... THE BLUE NOTES!

The 5CD Box on Ogun is some of the finest ZA jazz you'll ever hear!

There's also a disc on Proper with some more early stuff ("Township Bop").

Harry Miller, too... his Ogun 3CD set is long gone, alas. Some great stuff there, mainly the Isipingo, but also the solo album! One Miller disc easy to find and very much worth having is also on Cuneiform, Which Way Now.

More Miller can be found on a disc by Reel Recordings (which I still need to get - they have some other interesting things on offer).

As for Abdullah Ibrahim... I suggest the small groups with Carlos Ward (Zimbabwe or South Africa, both on Enja), the large ensemble albums "African Marketplace" (Elektra) and the earlier "African Space Programme" (Enja).

And of course any or all of the KAZ/Camden reissues of his African recordings from the 70s. Brilliant music there!

We've had some threads dedicated to Ibrahim, Kippie Moeketsi and ZA jazz in general, a search will turn them up, I think (if general searches don't help, search for Moeketsi or Coetzee or any others of the guys and you'll find them).

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Check out Djeli Moussa Diawara's (then spelled as Jali Musa Jawara) classic debut 1982 album, "Yasimika". Not really jazz (although it has a lot of improvisation), and IMHO much stronger than everything he has recorded afterwards. Excellently recorded as well. The CD has been OOP for many years, but it is expected to be re-released soon. You can listen to the complete album on Diawara's website: http://www.djelimous...982-remasterise

where have you been!!!

:excited:

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Thanks so much for your suggestions. I know I am definitely in the right place.

Good suggestions, all of them! (At least all of what I know, but that's most of what has been mentioned.)

Many of them are familiar to me. I have enjoyed Chris McGregor, especially the "Brotherhood of Breath"; somehow, I have always linked it with the fusion category, for example, Soft Machine's "Third". The similarities in style are quite impressive. Jazzjet, jostber, Alexander Hawkins, I am sure you already have it, otherwise check it out!

Check out some of the live stuff... several releases out on Cuneiform - the first one to get might be "Eclipse at Dawn", from the 1971 Berlin Jazz Days. Feza was absent that night... but the band's on fire, and the late Harry Beckett plays some mighty fine solos!

Big YES also for the suggestion of Hugh Masekela's "Home Is Where the Music Is". Burning stuff from Dudu Pukwana!

And Moholo has been mentioned, so have McGregor and Dudu and Feza... THE BLUE NOTES!

The 5CD Box on Ogun is some of the finest ZA jazz you'll ever hear!

There's also a disc on Proper with some more early stuff ("Township Bop").

Harry Miller, too... his Ogun 3CD set is long gone, alas. Some great stuff there, mainly the Isipingo, but also the solo album! One Miller disc easy to find and very much worth having is also on Cuneiform, Which Way Now.

More Miller can be found on a disc by Reel Recordings (which I still need to get - they have some other interesting things on offer).

As for Abdullah Ibrahim... I suggest the small groups with Carlos Ward (Zimbabwe or South Africa, both on Enja), the large ensemble albums "African Marketplace" (Elektra) and the earlier "African Space Programme" (Enja).

And of course any or all of the KAZ/Camden reissues of his African recordings from the 70s. Brilliant music there!

We've had some threads dedicated to Ibrahim, Kippie Moeketsi and ZA jazz in general, a search will turn them up, I think (if general searches don't help, search for Moeketsi or Coetzee or any others of the guys and you'll find them).

Thanks so much for this suggestions. I now have a good list of ZA jazz albums to discover or re-discover.

Coming back to a couple of records on my initial post, I was wandering if there are specific suggestions for jazz coming from the northern part of Africa / Southern Mediterranean.

As I said, I enjoy very much many of Anouar Brahem's albums at the ECM, as well as some of Rabih Abou-Khalil, for example "Blue Camel". On a similar note, Gilad Atzmon & The Orient House Ensemble have given us some great albums during the last years. Maurice El Medioni is of a different style, and apart from "Cafe Oran", I loved his collaboration with Roberto Rodriguez in "Descarga oriental - The New York Sessions".

Other artists I have discovered are Kudsi Erguner ("Islam Blues"), The Chehade Brothers ("A Bridge Over The Mediterranean"), Taksim Trio ("Taksim Trio") and Toufic Faroukh ("Drab Zeen").

Thanks in advance for any ideas on this.

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I'll post about it nearer the time, but we recorded a live London Jazz Festival gig with Louis Moholo's band on Friday night for broadcast on the BBC...Louis was on spectacular form, so I hope it'll be a good show. He also gave an often extremely moving interview before the show, which was also recorded - it'll be fascinating listening for anyone with even the most passing interest in any of this scene...

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For North African/Mediteranian try Trio Ifriqiya, one of my albums of the last couple of years.

But dont get me started on Groove a la Turk! Because like african music, Turkish, can be a serious danger to the wallet!

Thanks for this suggestion, Tony. I think there is only one album of them ("Petite Planete"), so I will definitely try it.

Yes, I also mentioned a couple of Turkish artists (Kudsi Erguner, Taksim Trio), since they match the general style of the North African / Mediterranean jazz. One other fabulous record of collaboration between artists of countries of this area is "Kanza" of Abdel Salameh and Naziha Azzouz. It's less jazzy and more traditional, but very beautiful nevertheless.

Any other suggestions are really welcomed !!!

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Good morning Lupe!

since you already have Tacksim Trio, you are already aware of the fine Doublemoon label-plenty of great stuff there, try the sax player Ilhan Ersahin for starters.

The founders of the Doublemoon label -the positif organisation-were founded to bring Sun Ra to Istanbul, where they got permission for the Archestra to parade down Istanbuls main street the Istikal Caddesi! They also maintain the cities best jazz-and other musics-performance place, Babylon.

I will unearth some more ideas during the next few days

Try also the very fine Telvin trio on the Kalan label.

Edited by Tony Pusey
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