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Part 1 - Fela Ransome Kuti & Africa 70: Alagbon Close / Why Black Man Dey Suffer
by Chris May
This is the first in a series of articles which will chronicle significant recordings, people and events in the story of Afrobeat, from its inception until the present day. First up, Alagbon Close by Fela Ransome Kuti (as he then was) and Africa 70 (as it then was), the 1974 album which marked ...
Sean Nowell: The Seeker
by Chris May
It would be foolish to describe saxophonist Sean Nowell as a 21st century schizoid tenor man, but two distinct strands characterize the New York-based player's work. On the one hand, Nowell is active in funk and post-fusion styles, with the Kung-Fu Masters and his own MonAtomic groups, among other line-ups. On the other hand, he's a ...
Horace Tapscott: The Dark Tree
by Chris May
The year of writing this review, 2019, is the thirtieth anniversary of the recording of The Dark Tree. It is also the twentieth anniversary of the passing of Horace Tapscott, a forgotten master of politically engaged African American spiritual jazz. The album, which is among Tapscott's finest, is crying out for a 2019 anniversary reissue. STOP ...
Fake Orchestra: Made In China
by Chris May
If you pulled out a map of the western hemisphere, and drew lines tracing the cross-cultural pathways that compose Slovenian band Fake Orchestra's music, the map would end up resembling something an inky spider had been traversing. Its European and Americas areas, in particular, would resemble a complex diagram of highways, arterial routes and secondary roads. ...
Traincha w/ Metropole Orchestra: This Girl's In Love: Burt Bacharach Songbook
by Chris May
You don't need to be Austin Powers to enjoy Burt Bacharach. The composer is a primogeniture descendant of the geniuses who created the great American songbook--the Gershwins, Cole Porter, Hoagy Carmichael, Irving Berlin, and their contemporaries. Usually in the company of lyricist Hal David, Bacharach wrote and arranged some of the most grown-up chart music of ...
Amadou & Mariam: The Magic Couple
by Chris May
Amadou & Mariam The Magic Couple Wrasse Records 2009 For most people outside Mali, and maybe France, Amadou & Mariam came out of nowhere in 2005 with Dimanche a Bamako (Nonesuch). But the duo had released three other, Paris-recorded CDs before their Manu Chao-produced breakthrough, which were themselves ...
John Patitucci Trio: Remembrance
by Chris May
It's true what they say: you can't judge an album by looking at the cover. Contrary to the mood suggested by the title and the monochrome sleeve shot of an autumnal city park, bassist John Patitucci's Remembrance is a warm and perky affair. The album is Patitucci's salute to some departed heroes--saxophonists John Coltrane, Joe Henderson ...
Jonathan Bratoeff & Chris Vatalaro: Chapters
by Chris May
Unexpectedly, a trend has been developing among musicians associated with London's F-IRE collective to revisit the standards repertoire. It's not an area this experimentally inclined body of players usually inhabits, but the results so far--all recorded by duos--make it an engaging diversion. Saxophonist Ingrid Laubrock and pianist Liam Noble were first off the block ...
Yaron Herman Trio: Muse
by Chris May
Muse is Yaron Herman's fourth album and with it the Israeli-born/French-based pianist continues his steady progress towards a mature post-Keith Jarrett, post-Brad Mehldau style and the certainty of world ranking. Still in his late twenties, Herman set out his stall with the piano/drums duo album Takes 2 To Know 1 (Sketch, 2005), which was followed by ...
Keletigui et ses Tambourinis: The Syliphone Years: 1968 - 1976
by Chris May
Keletigui et ses Tambourinis The Syliphone Years: 1968 - 1976 Sterns 2009 In Memoriam: Keletigui Traore: 26 May 1934 - 11 November 2008 The fourth release in the Sterns label's series anthologising Guinea's tradition-rooted “authenticite" bands of the 1960s and 1970s follows close on the death ...
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