[The Magnificent Goldberg]

CONCHA BUIKA

I’m listening to Concha Buika, for the first time, on the “Breath of life” website. The lady started off recording House music, and there are a couple of great tracks here. Then we have a track from her jazz album, “My one and only love”, beautifully sung accompanied only by piano – nowhere to hide. And I’m thinking, “this woman can bloody well SING!!!”

Then on comes the first track from her album, “Mi Nina Lola”. Good God! She could have had either of two successful careers as a House or Jazz singer. But she gave it up to do something NEW! And something WONDERFUL!

I’m sitting here in front of the computer, screwing around on my chair like Monk used to when he was really feeling the groove. And I’m listening to her singing “New Afro Spanish collective”, and yelling, and crying with joy! This is REALLY the STUFF! Such exultant music! Some kind of combination of Flamenco, Jazz, Hip Hop. Track after track comes on and each is different, each has this new thing, each is like a six inch nail driven lovingly through my forehead!

I’m gasping for a ciggie, but can’t move away from the computer!

At my age, this is BETTER than sex!

Get a LISTEN to this lady! This beautiful lady, I might add.

http://www.kalamu.com/bol/wp-content/content/images/concha%20buika%20lola%20cover.jpg

http://www.kalamu.com/bol/

These tracks will only be there until Saturday evening, so don't mess around.

MG

This post has been edited by The Magnificent Goldberg: 23 September 2007 - 03:59 AM

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

Well, there are fifteen complete tracks up on the Bol website and I've just finished listening to them. And I HAD to order three of her albums, didn't I?

http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/I/51l34GzBDUL._SS500_.jpg
http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/I/51KPJW6ZZXL._SS500_.jpg
Most of the tracks on the site come from these two albums
http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/I/61-Dx1MUTnL._SS500_.jpg
This is her jazz album, apparently the first one she recorded, but didn't release at the time. All, apparently, duets with piano.

Come on Amazon.uk, hurry up and deliver!

MG

[JSngry]

From the BOL commentary:

Quote

Progress. Collective. Multi-cultural. That’s the way the black world is moving. Has to move. We are too diverse to otherwise be able to stick together. Concha Buika is pointing the way forward. Embracing cultural elements foreign to her birth on the one hand while on the other hand remaining true to the culture in which she was reared, all the while affirming her African identify.

That’s our future, y’all. Either we will forward together, embracing each other, or we will fall apart. This is beautiful music reflecting the beauty of our diversity. Ole!

From the rapidly-appraoching-vernarable-stausu ;) -Mister MG:

Quote

THIS is what Jim''s been talking about!!!!!

I'm listening to the clips as we speak, and, wow...what a voice, what a spirit. And, quiet as it's kept, the "dance underground" has more than a few voices/spirits (and producers too - Joe Claussell for one can bring it all together in a way that'll stop you in your tracks until you start dancing in them, and we all are at least becoming aware of Louie Vega) that can really deliver a song in a way that transcends "genre" & does nothing less than puts y0ou smack dab in the middle of "everywhere, all the time", the sense that for once (or finally, depending on where you've come from), it's all coming together, finally, THANK GOD.

And here's a little bit of "cosmic irony" for you - I ordered the final issue of Straight No Chaser magazine (they're ceasing publication & "collector" that I am, I wanted a copy of the final issue). It came yesterday, and I was just looking at it about 30 miutes ago, having just awoken for the day & doing what we all do iimmediately upon rising :g Thumbing through it for the first time, I saw either an ad for or a short article about Concha Buika and got the vibe from the picture that this woman had a strong spirit. So I was sgoing to investigate further during and after coffee. So I sit down, get on here to the O-Board, and what's the second thing I see?

This thread.

With a link.

And you say there is no God. :g :g :g :g :g

[JSngry]

And one more thing, sort of a "philosophical" joint...

It's very "uncomfortable" living in the present as it moves towards the future. A lot of stuff goes on & is over before it starts, and you like it for a quick minute and then ou don't and then something else comes along and the same thing happens over and over, lather rinse repeat, and after a while you just get tired from all that mess, and jeez, don't it feel good to sink into the comfort of the time-tested tried-and-true stood-the-test-of-time CLASSICS?

Well yeah, it sure does. The only thing is this - the past doesn't move. It is what it is and it has done what it's going to do. And if we, as living cretures inhabiting the contemporary portion of the time space continuum take that as our primary m.o. instead of as a role/study/enlightenment model, well... what's the point of being alive, really?

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

JSngry, on Sep 23 2007, 11:25 AM, said:

Thumbing through it for the first time, I saw either an ad for or a short article about Concha Buika and got the vibe from the picture that this woman had a strong spirit.

I think, if I'd seen the cover of her new album, "Mi nina Lola" without hving heard anything of her, I'd still have wanted to buy it straight off. You DO get a vibe off that photo.

I guess, speaking Spanish, you're getting even more out of this than me, Jim. It seemed to me that there was a fair amount of politics/social/ethical issues in her songs - in a sense another connection to Africa. Am I right about that?

MG

[JSngry]

I don't really speak Spanish. I've picked up some useful words and phrases over the years (once spent about a year in a house band in a club here in DFW where nobody spoke English...). I can pick up on a few key words to get the general gist of a song, but if I want to know exactly what's being said, I need to sit down w/a dictionary and possibly a transcript, and work it out like that.

Haven't really focused in on the lyrics here, just getting kinda goosebumpy over the voice itself, the life, the energy, the spirit in it. Mighty strong stuff just on those terms!

[JSngry]

Just reviewed the copy of SNC, and it was an ad that I saw. I guess her new album is being distributed in the UK by Warners, so she might be getting some backing that might make a difference.

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

JSngry, on Sep 23 2007, 01:03 PM, said:

Just reviewed the copy of SNC, and it was an ad that I saw. I guess her new album is being distributed in the UK by Warners, so she might be getting some backing that might make a difference.

Well, bol say that the single of "Mi nina Lola" is a big hit in Spain, so I guess WB are hoping it'll take off across Europe. Sometimes these things do that.

(Actually, I thought that was the weakest song of the whole bunch, though weakest is highly relative. Still very good.)

MG

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

JSngry, on Sep 23 2007, 01:02 PM, said:

Haven't really focused in on the lyrics here, just getting kinda goosebumpy over the voice itself, the life, the energy, the spirit in it. Mighty strong stuff just on those terms!

Yes, good enough for me on those terms.

MG

[ep1str0phy]

A quick scan of this thread convinced me to listen to some of Concha's stuff, and, well--I like what I hear.

In a more abstract sense, I appreciate it when board folks initiate discussion about "discoveries" like this, because many folks would otherwise miss the boat (myself included)... :tup

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

Very surprised last night that Kalamu sent me a download of a track Concha had made with the Trubie Trio; from the Louie Vega album "Lust, art and soul".

Looks like something else to get. "Mo' money! Mo' money!", as Fred Wesley said.

MG

[JSngry]

The Magnificent Goldberg, on Sep 24 2007, 02:22 AM, said:

Very surprised last night that Kalamu sent me a download of a track Concha had made with the Trubie Trio; from the Louie Vega album "Lust, art and soul".

Oh shit, I have that collection!

http://www.dustygroove.com/images/products/z/zzlustartsoulapersona_101b.jpg

That's a good cut from a nice set.

Is hould start paying more attention to names with this stuff. Right now, I'm more into just hearing/listening first, and maybe then later finding about names. Pretty much the opposite of how I've appraoched music in the past, but dammit, I just got tired of being such a stats geek all the time, ya' know?

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

This one turned up this morning

http://ec1.images-amazon.com/images/I/51KPJW6ZZXL._SS500_.jpg

and I've just finished listening to it.

Ecstasy!!!!!

Oh my!

MG

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

Good grief, I forgot to have lunch!

MG

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

I've just come across this video of Concha singing her hit "Mi Nina Lola" live, with just a piano accompaniment. Even better like this than on the album.

It's the tenth one down in the right hand column.

http://www.jesusquin...ndex.php?id=216

MG

[The Magnificent Goldberg]

Thanks to the help of Agustin, I've established that Concha Buika has another album coming out in Spain on 6 May!!!!! :wub:

http://www.buika.net/img/inicio2.jpg

Now all I have to do is find somewhere to buy it! It's not on any Amazon yet.

MG