CARLOS LAMARTINE
HISTORIAS DA CASA VELHA (Akwaaba AKW003)

Despite constant net babble about the end of CDs there are still excellent labels finding great music & promoting it, either in traditional formats, or as downloadable MP3s. AKWAABA has opted for the non-material approach: the risk is the product is quite mutable and subject to theft but their noble mission, to actually pay the artists fairly for their songs, is enough to deter even the worst peg-legged parrot-toting pirates -- or should be. Most of us were unaware of the great music being made in Angola because the country was isolated for decades by civil war. I had only heard of Trio AKA, Waldemar Bastos and Bonga until Buda Musique launched their excellent series of compilations. Carlos Lamartine has always been a shadowy figure in this history until very recently. Ricardo Lemvo covers "N'vunda ku muceque" on his latest album (the original can be found on ANGOLA 90s), and the Angola to Brasil mash-up album COMFUSOES 1 included no less than two tracks by Lamartine, remixed by Brasilian DJs (They are included here, in their original form). In the 60s Carlos Lamartine co-founded the Kissuela band with Bonga. After gigging with various top bands in Luanda he became lead singer for Os Aguias Reias (The Royal Eagles) in 1970. During the 70s he often recorded as a solo act, backed by Os Merengues, one of the hot political semba bands of the era. Semba developed independently from Brasilian samba though shares certain rhythms and even a language (Kimbundu) and both have roots in traditional dances from Angola and what is now the Democratic Republic of Congo. Benjamin Lebrave of Akwaaba has put together an essential compilation of twenty tracks by Lamartine, from his golden era. These have been remastered, though the sound on the first few is a bit thin. Nevertheless this is a fantastic collection. A PDF with the download gives an English synopsis of the lyrics; many of the songs are a call to arms (the catchy "Faço-te este apelo, Camarada"), or praise of the MPLA, while some detail proud moments of Angolan history. The rhythms are often carried by the guitar, rather than the percussionist, so skittering lead guitars bop about over the tremelo vamp. You can sample the songs on amazon, but I guarantee you a good time! The ballads are lovely, until you read they are about funerals: "The rooster sang, saying he was bewitched"! "Acorda Lumumba" offers solidarity with the Zairois against the tyrant Mobutu. "Kubonga" sounds familiar, it certainly has a catchy riff and a great outtro. The album ends with another classic "Kimbemba": a mournful ditty with a soprano saxophonist locked in the bathroom, pleading to get out. There is also an interview with Lamartine (who now lives in Brasil) here.

COM FUSOES 1: FROM ANGOLA TO BRAZIL
(Out Here Records B0025Y6S3M)

There's a strong connection between Angola and Brasil and now that the African colony has emerged from its endless civil war, the rich musical culture is coming back to prominence. Bonga is the brand name superstar but 30 years ago Teta Lando, Artur Nunes and Carlos Lamartine were equally big names. Like Cabo Verde, Angola had its own traditions which absorbed fado and other mournful sounds from the Portuguese motherland of the colonists. And of course those high-colonic colonists brought Angolans in chains to Brasil to work their plantations and kept doing it until very late in the 19th century. Some fared better than others. Darwin describes various Brasilian plantations and the plight of their slaves in his gripping Voyage of the Beagle. He believes the slaves are finer people than the Portuguese (good natured and athletic) and will ultimately be the rulers: "I hope the day will come when they will assert their own rights and forget to avenge their wrongs." On 14th June 1832 he went to a concert by a celebrated pianoforte player: "He said Mozart's overtures were too easy. I suppose in the same proportion as the music which he played was too hard for me to enjoy." Com Fusões however is easy to enjoy. There is a pun in the title, both confusion, and "with fusion" are signaled. DJ Dolores rips outta the speakers with her "Merengue Rebetika," an instrumental remix of Paulinho Pinheiro, that is the high point for me, even if it does have a House beat at the core. (The original is on ANGOLA 70s part of the great & sadly out-of-print Buda series of classic Angolan hits; the Avozinho track comes from volume two of ANGOLA 70s.) There's a rap which adds the contemporary bullshit factor to "Cada Cidadão Deve Sentir-se um Soldado" (which I think means every citizen should become a soldier) by Kisangela. You can listen to preview samples on Amazon. I think you'll agree the remixing enhances the originals & gives a fresh perspective on some classic tunes.

TCHEKA
LONJI (Times Square FQT-CD-09)

Light, summery music from Tcheka. Most pleasant. How come suddenly Cabo Verde is producing the best new crop of musicians in Africa (since Mali)? Tcheka comes on the heels of the divas Lura and Sara Tavares, and with his Portuguese lyrics reminds me of Lenine, the brilliant Brasilian singer-songwriter. I was mightily disappointed when Lenine's summer tour was canceled, so this will have to satisfy me for now. In my review of Tcheka's debut album I said it reminded me of Lenine, and sure and begorrah the mighty one graces this outing with his presence. Even when he is just playing triangle, he is all over it! He also plays second guitar and sings backup vocal. The cuica and caxixi percussion also bring Brasil to mind. Other percussive interludes are provided by rain and telephone book! The title track is really lovely: Tcheka's wistful voice balanced against his acoustic guitar and a susurration of Brasilian percussion makes it fresh. Accordion is brought in for "Tuti Santiagu," along with some stirring snare drumming. Trumpet, trombone and a smattering of effects are also brought to bear on the compositions, without being over-produced. However the projector noise on "Primeru bes kin ba cinema (First kiss at the cinema)" is a bit of an irritation.

SARA TAVARES
LIVE at the Florence Gould Theatre on Sunday 21 October, 2007.

The place was packed and after opening with a few gentle tunes, Tavares kicked back her chair and got on her feet, quickly followed by the crowd who were dancing in the aisles. She turned it over to her guitarist for one number and he was outstanding (No wonder: I learned later it was Boy Ge Mendes!). Tavares is Cape Verdean, born in Lisbon, but completely immersed in her roots. Unlike the traditional morna & coladeira sounds of Cesaria Evora, Tavares puts her own sensibility into the music she writes. Some of her songs are in crioulo but when she sings "Bom feeling" the audience knows and gets into the groove to sing along. Not only was the sound mix perfect, everyone, including her drummer/percussionist (Ndu Carlos) and bass player (Gogui Embalo) got to show off their adroitness. Mendes on electric guitar was an added treat. Afterwards IJ dragged us backstage to meet the band, as his his wont. I prefer to leave, assuming the artists have just given their all for an hour or more and want to unwind, not hear accolades from twerps with a poor grasp of Portuguese. I met Yusuf, owner of her label, and he told me proudly that he only signs artists who can put on a great show. With today's studio technology, he said, anyone can create a perfect-sounding album. It just takes ProTools and hours of work. But he checks out potential signings and if they can do it live, he is interested. I think he has a great discovery in Tavares. Check her website for tour dates. Don't miss her.

TCHEKA
NU MONDA (Times Square FQT-CD1804)

Tcheka is a Cape Verdean guitarist and singer with a strong, individual sound. He has Jesus on his side, but we will let that slide for now. After a brief opening ballad he unleashes some bright rhythms to show off his chops on the acoustic guitar. The lad can play. In fact he wrote the opening and closing cuts of the latest Lura album but has now launched his solo career with a dozen of his own compositions. Suddenly we are all expert in traditional rhythms of Cabo Verde, like the batuque for example. Just last month in Berkeley we saw Lura take her pad of folded cloth between her knees and beat on it with her hands. This was the women's response to the ban on drums (by both the Catholic church and the Portuguese colonists) and Tcheka grew up on the island of Santiago hearing his dad, a violinist, playing these rhythms. He has adapted them to modern instruments but we are still held by the ancient feeling, poised on the air like a hawk somewhere between Angola, Brasil and Coimbra. Neither European, African, nor New World in its sensibility but something unique. We can connect Cesaria Evora's morna style to Portuguese fado with a hint of Brasilian medinha, but Tcheka has something palpably different. "Kre ka nha" reminded me of Lenine, the talented Brasilian singer/songwriter. NU MONDA was recorded in Paris so it could be this kid from the islands has a bigger CD collection than we are led to believe. He was born on the eve of independence (1975) but has learned his history. "Rozadi Rezadu" is about the famine of 1947 when even prayers to St Anthony went unanswered: the cattle died and families fled to Angola. Saint Anthony, an impoverished saint who spurned worldly goods and held out for higher things, is big in Portugal and subsequently in their old empire. You can feel Tcheka reaching for higher things in his music. This is a very accomplished album, brilliantly executed.

LURA IN CONCERT
Wheeler Auditorium, UC BERKELEY 20 April 2007

One of Cabo Verde's main exports seems to be music. I am always a bit skeptical about the publicity surrounding the latest diva from the islands. Cesaria Evora had her moment and, while there may be a craving to replace her, she is still successfully replicating herself, like Sade with a cigar. Lura has put out a second album M'BEM DI FORA, and her label graciously forwarded a copy to me, but frankly, after a spin, I put it in the reject pile. Now I am a bit chagrined, feeling I didn't give it a fair shake. I mean, I get to audition a lot of music, not all of it good. If it doesn't grab me on one or two tastes I generally dump it like a wine-taster spitting out an expensive Chardonnay because he was expecting Prosecco. So, last week IJ called and asked me if I wanted to go to a concert as his plus one. It was a Friday night and he had a pair of tickets to hear Lura at UC Berkeley. A free ticket and a nice venue only a 5-minute walk from my pad, how could I say no? Blame the aftermath of 9/11, but we don't get much good music touring in the USA. If you follow what UC Berkeley is bringing to town, it's always the same few acts lumped under the World Music sobriquet. (Planet Drum with Mickey Hart, Mariza, Hugh Masakela, Angelique Kidjo, Peru Negro, Sweet Honey in the Rock, Arlo Guthrie [sic] -- that's their idea of world music?!) They had booked Lura into Wheeler Auditorium: a smaller venue than Zellerbach though not dancer friendly like Pauley Ballroom (where I saw Iggy Pop back in the 70s). From the first notes you knew her band was going to be good. The musical director is Toy Viera, also the arranger for Cesaria Evora. Edevaldo Figueiredo was thwocking a 5-string bass, Aurelio Santos was deftly making complex runs on an acoustic guitar, while two percussionists pushed the tempo. Kau Paris on drums had a light touch, using his brushes a lot, while Jair Pina slapped a brace of congas. There was also a violinist, Guillaume Singer, with a lilting touch. Lura walked out in a simple figure-hugging black dress: she has a large head and small body, but is attractive and charismatic. She electrified the audience, even those middle-aged drudges who had finished the work week and were expecting some soothing ballads. She covered a wide range of traditional Cabo Verdean music, including funana, which uses a scraper and metal bar, and other up-tempo stuff, removed from the mournful morna associated with Evora. The audience loved it when she played a batuque -- a rhythm associated with women who slap a pile of laundry. But then she got into some butt-shaking that had the guys craning their necks to see her flashing thighs. I gave up wiggling my ears to understand the patois lyrics and enjoyed the spectacle instead. There were moments of jazz, hints of Brasil (particularly in some of her vocal inflections) and lots of rootsy percussion. Often the whole band abandoned their instruments to get into a percussion groove. They had the audience on their feet, cheering. Afterwards IJ & I discussed the perennial problem of live performers who can really deliver the goods but are hamstrung by producers who have a concept and therefore go for a consistent sound and the album ends up being sonic oatmeal. According to IJ most of the material was drawn from her 2005 debut album DI KORPU KU ALMA, which I will look out for. If Lura can capture her live sound on record she will undoubtedly become a major international star and we can look forward to her bright presence in future tours.

SARA TAVARES
BALANCÊ (Times Square TSQCD9054)

Sara Tavares is a super-talented songwriter, singer and guitarist. She sounds Brasilian with that deft samba touch, but is the child of second-generation Cape Verdean immigrants in Portugal. She won TV talent shows when she was 16, covering gospel and soul songs, but has been working on her African roots for the past five years and has come up with her third album, a successful blend of various musical styles. It's beautifully produced and recorded with subtle instrumentation. Overall it may put you to sleep, but I found it so well articulated I could actually follow the Portuguese lyrics, which are included (with English translation) in the booklet. On scrutiny it turns out she sings in a mixture of crioulo, Portuguese and English -- a patois spoken by expats in Lisbon. It's an intriguing album because Tavares overdubs light percussion herself, so you know she has a clear sense of what she wants it to sound like. The other musicians, on acoustic guitar, drums, accordion, keep things from getting too languid. The final cut "De Nua" features guest vocalist Ana Moura: there is only simple drumming backing this (played by Ms Tavares), the most African-sounding piece, and it demonstrates that she really can do it, unadorned. Balancê is currently the most-downloaded album on iTunes' Portuguese site. I recommend you check out the title track and, if that appeals to you, go for more.

VOZ DE CABO VERDE
LIVE (Lusafrica 362902)

AFRICA NEGRA
PANELA (Sonovox 11 340-21995)

If, like me, you'll buy a CD for one outstanding track you may have LuakaBop's TELLING STORIES TO THE SEA because of the presence of Africa Negra and their song about being bitten by a dog. There is another Lusophone compilation called INDEPENDENCIA that has another track by this band, "Alice," and a third cut appears on PALOP AFRICA! Another instance of "must have the CD for that one song." With some effort, you can get their albums from a Portuguese distributor, Bem Vindo (their website is not always working). Africa Negra have half a dozen CDs out (ANINHA, CARAMBOLA, LOJOMATO) recorded in Lisbon. João Seria is the leader and chief singer and the band's career seems to have thrived in the 1970s and 80s. Their songs are hits from Angola to Coimbra. Their groove is uniquely theirs, but the queasy organ and mechanical-sounding drums remind me of Sweet Micky, the one-man band from Haiti. Folks either love this or hate it. The title cut to PANELA sounds harsh because of a brittle organ settling, and the guitars on my favourite track, "Mulatta," seem atonal because the effects pedals are turned up. Nevertheless, it is a distinctive sound and, to me, extremely catchy.

AFRICA NEGRA
ANGELICA (Sonovis Portugal)

This conjunto are from São Tome e Principe, islands in the Gulf of Guinea, and they are chief exponents of Santomense music. João Seria is the singer; the guitarist is influenced equally by soukous and highlife which makes for a tasty blend. Their music is also popular in Colombia, as a bit of Googling turns up a fan site there, with music samples. The bass and drums lean to the Antillean side, showing where zouk and Congolese rumba meet.

Formed in the late 70s, Africa Negra put out half a dozen albums, recorded in Lisbon, that are beloved in the Portuguese-speaking world. Each has something to recommend it. ANGELICA includes the song about the dog biting you, and the title track and opener, "São Tome," are equally as good. "Cimoda" is an attempt at funk, but more Nigerian funk than American, I'd venture. Their music seems to suspend time, in a danceable groove. The trance is woven by guitar lines treated through flanger and echo as the bass and drums keep up a distinctive 144-bpm bomp (not on all the tracks). If you love Sam Mangwana's African All Stars from the 80s, Eddy Gustav's production work, or Ryco Jazz, you will want to track down these discs.

BONGA
KAXEXE (Lusafrica TSQ-CD9037 )

Either I'm in a very good mood (sitting in the garden on a sunny day, sewing), or Bonga just got a lot better. His new album is so consistently good I may have to go back and listen to his other records. He is backed by a small versatile combo, Semba Master, that uses accordeon sparingly and cavaquinho on three tracks. This gives the album a more Brasilian feeling -- which means my expectations from it are lower! The title cut "Kaxexe" reminds me of Dida Banda Feminina. The songs are well balanced between ballads and up-tempo jaunts. His whiskey-smoked voice occasionally sounds so tired it makes you want to snooze too. For dozing on a sunny afternoon, it's perfect.

FERRO GAITA
REI DI FUNANA (Harmonia 02305-2 Melodie)

Ferro Gaita, the names of the two instruments used in Funana, is also the name of a roots band from Cabo Verde. Their new album REI DI FUNANA is a rocking, jam-kicking party to go. I have to admit I've never gone for the torpid Cesaria Evora sound much, so I'm glad to recommend something from Cabo Verde that has a lot of life to it. The closest thing I can think of is bachata from Dominican Republic. There's a relentless two-step thud to the bass and by the second cut a layering effect like dub hits the sound and things start to swirl giddily out of control. Track four has a repeat of the same rastafarian reverb effect, but this time it starts to loop like pygmy polyphony and creates a hypnotic outro. Intense, varied, and big fun: check it out.

VARIOUS ARTISTS
PALOP AFRICA! (Earthworks STEW46CD)

I wasn't aware of the African music connection when I visited Portugal a decade ago. The Brazilian influence was everywhere and in an odd reversal of countries which are full of peoples from their former colonies, the goal of everyone I met in Portugal was to get out and move to Brazil. Everything stopped at 7 p.m. when the Brazilian soap operas came on television. While I did know about Portugal's colonial past I was ignorant of the African music scene in Lisbon that revolves around musicians from the five former African colonies in Africa (that were established over 500 years ago). This release from Stern's/Earthworks documents this scene: PALOP AFRICA! features bands that originated in Guinea-Bissau, Angola, Cape Verde, São Tome, and Mozambique. Among them is Africa Negra, a personal favourite as their music makes a nice conjunction somewhere between soukous and Nigerian highlife with a warbly flanged rhythm guitar. They appeared on two previous compilations: 1975-95 INDEPENDENCIA and AFROPEA 3: TELLING STORIES TO THE SEA, and have a new release on the Sons D'Afrique label called QUE COLO DE ANZU. All this despite the fact that it's virtually impossible to get guitar strings on the island of São Tome. The Angolans have a musical style called Semba which is akin to Brazilian Samba, and there's a fine example of it here from Paulo Flores, one of that country's biggest stars. There's a strong South African influence on the music of G. Mario Ntimana, the self-styled King of Marrabenta. Don Kikas from Angola has worked with zouk musicians in Paris and is the hottest thing in Kizomba as that French Caribbean sound has caught on there big time. In addition to the Brazilian influence you can smell the salt air of the sea shanties underlining the accordion (gaita) parts to "Cabra Preta" by Sema Lopi. They are a rootsy funana band using a ferro (metal rod) as percussion and add a balance to the slicker sounds of this compelling compilation.

VARIOUS ARTISTS
MUSIC FROM SAO NICOLAU (Popular African Music)

The latest Cabo Verdean sound is a twenty-year-old recording, MUSIC FROM SAO NICOLAU put out by Popular African Music in conjunction with the University of Mainz Institute for African Studies. São Nicolau is one of the minor islands in the Cabo Verdean archipelago and remains relatively isolated from the rest of Africa. The music there thrives in its own world without too much outside influence but still, in the two decades since this album was recorded, zouk, rock and reggae have overtaken the youth and many of the older forms documented here are no longer being played. The cavaquinho player of the Da Cruz ensemble is already working some reggae chops behind the gypsy-like violin on track 16, "Regui." The music is very lyrical with mellow acoustic guitar duos and trios. The songs are mostly slow and tend to be mournful. There is a version of "Sodade (Nostalgia)" that will be familiar to fans of Cesaria Evora that combines samba and coladeira. Larger ensembles add violin and cavaquinho. One carnaval march, "Estrela Azul" ([wherever you go you're sure to find a] Blue Star) could be right out of the streets of Rio. There are two poignant songs of a young laundress, accompanied by her washboard; a nightwatchman who improvises verses with his strangely tuned 10-string guitar that put me in mind of Barbecue Bob for a moment. The CD ends with three short yells to scare away birds from the grain fields.

VARIOUS ARTISTS
SOUL OF ANGOLA (Lusafrica 362392)

Angola was in the news in February 2002 with the reported death of Jonas Savimbi who fought the power longer than anyone could remember. A buddy of Reagan (Kissinger gave him $24 million) and assorted African tyrants, Savimbi turned the civil war into his personal crusade for 40 years and killed & maimed innocent peasants along the way (funded by Yanqui dollars). For the full account of the absurdity of this war (At one point Cuban mercenaries were defending Shell oil rigs from the South-African-backed UNITA forces) read Ryszard Kapuscinski's ANOTHER DAY OF LIFE (Penguin). It's sad but true that strife makes a country's music compelling, gives it an edge and urgency that complacency destroys. There is an inherent mournfulness to African Lusophone music. Perhaps the appeal of Cesaria Evora stems from that sense of loss and longing in her voice. In the 1960s, the fascist government banned carnaval, then in a reversal, established Voz de Angola radio in 1968 to promote indigenous cultural programming. SOUL OF ANGOLA is a two disc set chronicling the years 1965-75. The sequencing gives each artist a couple or more cuts. In these recordings the instrumentation is always simple, the effects limited to whatever toys the guitarist has picked up. Local rhythms the semba and rebita are augmented by the usual influences: merengue and Afro-Cubism from the Caribbean, Samba from Brasil, Congolese rumba (Tony de Fumo). The musicians cover Kinshasa's Dr Nico (Oscar Neves' "N'zambi") & Ghanaian highlife, showing the wide influences of those styles, and there's a hint of kwela, but there is an originality that is part of the Portuguese musical diaspora: a manic sea-shantiness in minor keys akin to Cabo Verdean and Sao Tomean music. This double CD sent me spinning the Buda Musique series (ANGOLA 60s, ANGOLA 70s) that came out on five discs in 1999. There is a little duplication of one or two crucial tracks: Avozinho's "Mama Mama Divua Dimae," Os Kiezos' "Princess Rita," Arturo Nunes' "Tia," but there's plenty of grade A stuff to keep you coming back for more. Don't worry that Bonga is absent, there are fresh discoveries waiting to be made like Tony Von and Luis Visconde. After the era covered by these discs, artists like Trio Aka and Matadidi brought the soukous feel to their country's music, but there's a distinct Angolan sound audible in the sixties and seventies, and THE SOUL OF ANGOLA recovers it beautifully.

VARIOUS ARTISTS
TELLING STORIES TO THE SEA (Warner Bros/Luaka Bop 45669-2 1995)

After a couple of successful sorties to Brazil, David Byrne and his lackeys have now ransacked the archives of Lusophone music from Africa to produce Adventures in Afropea 3: Afro-Portugal. The scattered cultures of Africa that share Portuguese as a language include Angola and the dozen tiny islands of São Tomé, Principé and Cape Verde, from whence come the sultry song-stylings of the immensely popular Césaria Evora. Evora is represented in two great tracks including the acoustic "Sodade" which calls to mind Brasilian samba. But the unknown artists here are equally impressive. Tulipa Negra provides an anthemic speedy merengue; "Vizinha ka bale (My neighbour's no good)" by Jacinta Sanches has all the raw energy of early Zouk; and a song about being bitten by a dog by Africa Negra from São Tomé adding a wonderfully wobbly tremelo guitar solo that unleashes the endorphin rush of an all-night dance party.

ZÈ MANEL
MARRON DI MAR (Cobiana)

Zè Manel is a singer from Guinea-Bissau, formerly with Super Mama Djombo. MARRON DI MAR is his polyglot CD on the Cobiana label, recorded in Oakland, California. He starts out with a plea in English for unity, "Afrika Unite," which is rather laid-back for the urgency of the message. His delivery is reminiscent of Bob Marley, though the music is more Monty Alexander piano-bar jazz than Wailing Wailers. But this is a mellow album: it doesn't strike out into new territory but the familiarity is pleasant. If you buy albums for one or two good tracks, this has a couple of really nice songs on it: "Na kaminho di luta" ("On the path of struggle" in Portuguese patois) has a superb acoustic guitar by Samba N'go and moody sax backing by Norbert Stachel.

See also SUPER MAMA DJOMBO DISCOGRAPHY linked at left.