BATSUMI (Matsuli Music MM102)

There's not a lot of South African music reviewed on this website: not that I don't like it or listen to it, but since I started the site in the post-Mbaqanga era there are no discussions of the great albums of Mahlathini & Mahotella Queens or the Soul Brothers that thrilled me in the last century when I was also into Zulu Jive and the older Township Jazz. A slight dilemma I faced when putting together my AFRICAN TOP 50 page in 2004 was to include things I really thought had longevity but also nothing that would be impossible to find (even though many of my selections are now out of print). I went round and round about Mama Cristina by Trio Aka from Angola and Malombo by Philip Tabane and Malombo, both excellent albums, but devilish hard to find (& only on vinyl) 7 years ago. In the end I dropped them for more accessible titles. Tabane is different from most South African jazz in that he uses traditional instruments, and, like Malombo, Batsumi could play ersatz Ellington or create something new. South African jazz musicians reference American jazz, and that makes them audience-friendly, whereas unknown groups who don't claim lineage to Monk, Parker or pre-Bebop styles are more adrift in the great unclassified bins of "World music." Matt Temple of Matsuli music is from South Africa and he is dedicated to the music of the Southern tip of the vast continent. Here he has rescued Batsumi's 1974 album from oblivion and restored it for our ears. It's a fine selection of music: mellow jazz, with soulful sax & flute solos, great classical-tinged piano, rooted in solid bass and traditional drumming. The two long tracks on here, "Lishonile" and "Itumeleng" are spacious suites with a lot of freeform interplay and inspired playing. The shorter tracks are more like tunes that were rehearsed and polished before laying them down, but present a really accomplished group that we need miss out on no longer. (The vinyl LP sold out in less than two months but is available as a FLAC download from Matsuli Music.)

PUTUMAYO PREVENTS SOUTH AFRICA

Some labels [name withheld] get pissed off when I give a proper critique to their recordings and they take me off their list. This is the price of being an honest reviewer. Others take it in stride. Readers tell me I cannot criticize egomaniacs and expect them not to take a huff and write me off. But you wouldn't be reading this if you thought I was just another promosexual* who says everything is groovy in order to get free product and regurgitate flarf about the latest wonder from the Sahara Sands, Cabo Verde, or wherever. We have standards here at Muzikifan. I have given Putumayo a lot of knocks over the years (mostly about their godawful cover art), and praised them when they have scored big-time. Jacob their main A&R man is a good soul. So I got this new Putumayo plays South Africa comp in time for the World Cup and I think it is really weak. It kicks off with the Soul Brothers, who really know how to kick it out, but instead of passing upfield and driving into the penalty box, it goes all limp-wristed and flowery, like Oscar Wilde in a coal mine. OK, you say, so it's mellow ... or jazzy ... but no, it's not, really. Niba van der Spuy's "Beautiful feet" is pathetic! Come on, guys. Where is the sax jive, the kwela, where's mbaqanga? We need Mahlathini -- not Pat Metheny! Where is Malombo? Check out "Phamba Madibe" by Philip Tabane. Look at that great series Earthworks did, The Indestructible Beat of Soweto: what a landmark! South African music has not changed that much since Gallo ruled the roost & Mahlathini & Mahotella Queens tore up the townships. Sure there was a revolution and the blacks took over the government, but you would not know this from the music, apart from the obvious invasion of crappy hip hop influences. South Africa always had more affinity to American jazz anyway. Think of Abdullah Ibrahim, or Hugh Masekela. But with the World Cup on our doorstep we need some excitement... like the Makgona Tshole band! or Zuleliphezulu, found on Soweto Street Music (on Audiotrax), or Jo'Burg City Stars' "Groovin jive." Too dated, you say? Then why do why have Miriam Makeba on here? She was dated then!@ The only time she was interesting was when she moved to Guinée. Who is this Phinda? Mahotella Lite? And you promise us kwela and jive but give us crummy reggae covers like Zoro. Then it ends all pious with Soweto Gospel Choir. Christians: yuk! Why didn't they boil the fershlugginer missionaries like in the movies? Do you think people want M.O.R. music from Africa? What is this ... the rainbow nation? I'd like to buy the world a Coke? How much is the tab for that? Does Coke have any nutritional benefit? Buy a Mahlathini album instead to celebrate the World Cup in South Africa.
[*Credit to Robert of Round World who coined the term "promosexual" to describe Tower Records' reviewer J. Poet back in the day....]

AMAMPONDO
AFRICAN CLASSICS (Sheer SLCD148)

This CD came out in 2008 and I just found it while cleaning up & moving my CDs. Established in Cape Town in 1978, the group plays folk music of Southern Africa. Originally focussing on their own Xhosa roots, the group expanded to included pan-African, Brazilian and Cuban rhythms in their sound. This compilation is drawn from their early 21st century work for the MELT label. Airto Moreira and Changuito drop in to jam on some of the tracks. They try out various traditional African instruments and even add in some modern ones like brass wind instruments and accordion. It's sort of what the Art Ensemble of Chicago was trying to be in their "out" moments. Too bad the two groups never got together. On the other hand it's great Amampondo got to jam with Changuito because there's a great African groove underlaying the master timbalero & it fits perfectly. Some of the xylophone tracks remind me a bit of Hukwe Zawose's outfit. The mouth bow reminds me of the Kalahari bushmen, there's vocals reminiscent of Xhosa & Zulu jive, so there's a lot of diversity and it's sequenced like a little safari into the savannah and back to the townships of Cape Town.

LESOTHO CALLING
LESIBA & SEKHANKULA MUSIC (Sharp Wood SWP 033)

When I first put this on I was taken aback -- I thought it was an Art Ensemble of Chicago album, then I remembered where those cats were coming from. This is real bush music, as in Burning Bush, Lick a Bush, Fermez la Bush, all of that. If you were in the bush in Lesotho and heard this instrument, the Lesiba, you might think it was a big insect getting ready to pounce. Lesotho is a kingdom in the highlands of South Africa. The intrepid Michael Baird went in the footsteps of Hugh Tracey to find out if anyone still played this instrument which is a woodwind with an unique organic sound, suggesting ancient culture. It is a metre long with a feather mouthpiece and a vibrating string, like a jew's harp, attached. The sound is buzzing, polyphonic, wonderful. The second instrument on here is the sekhankula which is a musical bow played by young boys who herd sheep. But it doesn't sound like any other African lyre: in fact it sometimes sounds like a brass instrument! The musicians compose topical songs about their lives. There's a squeezebox to round out the selection, but the lesiba is the striking sound on here. After editing and recreating the legacy of Hugh Tracey for us, Michael Beard has taken the logical step of continuing the legacy. HUGH TRACEY LIVES! This is a phenomenally good album. I imagine Steve Reich, Philip Glass and Kronos will be all over in a year or so, but before they spoil it and it turns trite and trendy on us, check out some pure African roots music.

GOLDEN AFRIQUE VOL 3
(Network 495115)

I recently purged my Southern African LP shelves and weeded out stuff I no longer care about. So that I wouldn't have seller's remorse I ended up listening to everything and burned a few CD compilations of favourites. I kept the Earthworks compilations, a few gems of Soweto Jive, Mahotella Queens & Soul Brothers. Now here is what the intrepid ears at Network consider worth preserving from that vast trove of musical riches. Gallo began recording in South Africa almost 80 years ago, so it's no surprise the album starts with the well known "Mbube" (aka "the Lion sleeps," aka "Wimoweh") recorded in 1939. I am pleased they remembered Donald Kachamba from Malawi & his pennywhistle group. Sipho Mabuse's "Jive Soweto," a catchy dance number from 1981, was an international hit. There was a brief time (after Paul Simon's GRACELAND) when South African pop started to make it as far as California and we were fortunate to see Sipho, West Nkosi, Ladysmith BM, and of course Mahlathini and Mahotella Queens in concert. I have already waxed lyrical about the Makgona Tshole Band but it's still amazing to hear them: so light and fleet-fingered. There's no Spokes Mashiyane or Dollar Brand, but they have been anthologized before. I suppose they had to include Miriam Makeba: it's the weakest track on here, just a bad R&B jam, but at least it ain't "Malaika." The Cannibals, up next, are the surprise entry, and turn in a pleasant mbaqanga groove, followed by another choice cut from the Soul Brothers. Letha Mbulu and Hugh Masakela are also gratuitous inclusions, like the programmers are running out of ideas. So we move to the second disc.

There's a whole new area to explore with the fresh folkloric sounds of Zimbabwean mbira music. Then the flanger and horn chorus and the big hollow Shed Studios sound signals the arrival of the Four Brothers and continuity as the finger-picking guitar style relates to the mbira patterns. It's a rather light touch on Zimbabwe, Mtukudzi rather than Mapfumo and the usual suspects, Devera Ngwena & Jairos Jiri Kwela Band, with their "Take Cover" (which has been anthologized before) standing out. Then we lurch to Zambia with Dolly Rathbane doing a New Orleans blues. The Network take on South Africa is excellent, spanning as it does the earlier styles which can be found on compilations such as TOWNSHIP JAZZ 'N' JIVE (Music Club50041) and the Earthworks INDESTRUCTIBLE BEAT OF SOWETO compilations which create a broad picture of the scene. But it's a little compressed: Tanzanian has to share a disc with Zambia and both deserve broader treatment. Tanzania has been well-served by previous compilers. For the record the best are VIVA ZIMBABWE! (Carthage CGLP4411, New York 1984), MAUNGIRA ZIMBABWE (Teal Records TEL2008 1985), ZIMBABWE FRONTLINE (Earthworks/Virgin 1988), AFRICAN SUNSET (CSA Records CSLP5000, London 1988), and two albums on Discafrique: TAKE COVER: ZIMBABWE HITS (AFRI LP01) & GOODBYE SANDRA (AFRI LP05 1988). In addition, of course, there's the incredible Hugh Tracey archives which have given us that great Bulawayo jazz recently unearthed, as well as the ZAMBUSH series on Sharp Wood. And, if you can find them, there's John Storm Roberts' compilations on Original Music: AFRICAN ACOUSTIC FROM THE COPPERBELT (OMA112) and on CD: THE TANZANIA SOUND (OMCD018) and AFRICAN ACOUSTIC: SOUNDS EASTERN AND SOUTHERN (OMCD001 1988, drawn from the Hugh Tracey archives). To dog the fled horse a little further, Zambia was well-served by Mondeca records (I still see those in the used bins) and compilations on WOMAD and Earthworks, but those are doubtless out of print now.

This set (particularly the first disc) is a well-sequenced, exemplary compendium, worthy to stand alongside its two Francophone predecessors. I am wondering what's next: East Africa in the form of Kenya and Tanzanian dancebands, or perhaps Taraab, or maybe a jump to Lusophone connections? There's thousands of miles of bush and bad road to go but certainly some great tunes to get us there.

CHANTS ET RHYTHMS DU MALAWI
(Playasound PS 65140 1994)

In summer 1995 the Malawians staged "Artists for a Better Life" to educate villagers about the degradation of the environment and other problems of overpopulation. Of the forty artists who performed, some of the bands were captured on this vital CD that proves there is still a native African pop music bubbling under, untainted by drum machines. The percussion is often as simple as handclaps and bells on the ankles. Kasambwe Brothers, Kwatcha Troupe, and the Makazi Band have the lion's share of the cuts, but the whole is well balanced, lively and a return to a more rural sound.

DONALD KACHAMBA ET SON ENSEMBLE
CONCERT KWELA (Le Chant du Monde LDX 274 972 CM 212 1994)

Light, but uplifting set from an acoustic quartet recorded in the strife-free South African country of Malawi. The penny whistle melodies will sound familiar to fans of Soweto pop, but here they are sometimes transposed to clarinet which adds a fuller, woodier tone. The concert also features jive, two-step and rumba melodies. Five-string guitar or banjo and wash-tub skiffle-style bass provide the backing, with percussion coming from what sounds like peas rattled in a tin can. Occasional jazzy solos by the clarinetist (including a version of "In the Mood") and nicely dissonant harmony singing keep it lively and prevent the mellowness slipping into stupor.

JAZZIN' & JIVIN' (M.E.L.T. 2000)

I've been lamenting the dearth of good music from South Africa for some time and now I'm cheered by JAZZIN' & JIVIN' that shows what jazz musicians are up to down by the Cape of Good Hope. Pops Muhammad is here, doing an "Mbira Jive," along with some other artists who are new to me. Moses Talwa Molelekwa has a nice touch on the piano, hoving between Abdullah Ibrahim and Monty Alexander, with a solid drum and bass groove reeking of reggae on "Down Rockey Street." Zulu Jive meets funk on Barungwa's "Abongcono." The guitar reminds me of Philip Tabane at first but then it expands into a large sound with organ, electric guitar, and studio effects. Sipho Gumede is much sparer on "African Wedding" using just drums and voice. "Scamtho" by Vusi Khumalo kicks off like Average White Band and keeps rocking. In contrast, the mouth-organ and guitar intro to "Amagoduka (Migrant Workers)" by Zim Ngqawana is pure Zulu jive. There's even mouth percussion. One track show a different approach and that is Gathering Forces' "Space Time," featuring Darius Brubeck and Deepak Ram. The latter adds Indian flute. The arrangement is a little too Weather Report for my taste but it doesn't spoil the album. More Western jazz influence can be heard on Spector M. Ngwazi and N. Shezi's "Ngiyabonga Themba," which leans more to ECM than Ellington. The final cut, "Song for Doc," shows the blending of Zulu drums and vocals with Western jazz in a mellow melding.

VARIOUS ARTISTS
JIVE NATION (THE INDESTRUCTIBLE BEAT OF SOWETO VOLUME 5) (Earthworks STEW34CD 1995)

The hits literally keep coming on this fine compilation of pounding jive music from South Africa where pennywhistle street music meets rock and roll. Not content to replicate the winning formula of the earlier volumes in this series, compiler Trevor Herman has dug out some great obscure talent like the Tiyimeleni Young Sisters and Makhubela & Nkhohlwani Girls who add eerie vocal harmonies to the solid, wind-up-your-waist rhythms.

Of course there's the familiar bubbling dance groove of Mahotella Queens laid over the gutbucket stomp of Makgona Tsohle (the hardest working band in show business), the squirreling, squelchy organ of the Soul Brothers, and the sweet strains of Abafana Benkokhelo. By now Herman knows exactly when to hold his fire and when to throw the knock-out punch. Even if you have the other volumes and think you have this scene covered, you'll be surprised at the freshness of this set. Your neighbours will hate you for it.

KAMPI MOTO AND GEORGE PHIRI
ACHA MASIMANGO (Sheer Sound SSCD 060)

It's hard to find good new releases from South Africa unless you go to the source. From Sheer Sound comes more groundbreaking stuff that shows how alive the music scene is in South Africa. Among their latest crop, ACHA MASIMANGO by Kampi Moto and George Phiri grabbed me immediately. Neither musician is originally from South Africa: Moto was born in Congo and cut his teeth musically in Zambia where he had a hit in the seventies. Phiri was born in Malawi and has lived in Zimbabwe and South Africa where he continued to develop his guitar style. The pair have fused two of their traditional musics: Mashasha is a ballad tempo used to accompany slow-moving dances from Congo (helpful in relieving stress!) and Manganje is a popular Malawian dance used during festivities and ceremonies. The fusion results in a laid-back groove that has lots of rhythmically effective interplay in the background. There's sax and synth but the predominant sound is acoustic guitar and percussion and the whole presents a very mellow slice of the evolving music of South Africa.

BEST OF MAHLATHINI & MAHOTELLA QUEENS (Earthworks/Stern's)

In South Africa, the gut-bucket, kicking sound of the Makgona Tsohle Band is still, after 25 years, the fiercest thing to come out of Africa, and one of the strongest traditions that resisted the Zairean influence. Though it enjoyed brief popularity with the spurt of enthusiasm from Paul Simon's patronage, this sound has not gone away and only gets better with age (unlike Simon). Far from a blip on the world beat dance floors, Mbaqanga is a tsunami of sound that won't quit and shows no mercy. BEST OF MAHLATHINI & MAHOTELLA QUEENS is a superb collection drawn from their last four albums, bottom-heavy bass and drums (by the aforementioned M.T. band) provide a real dance workout.

When I first saw them perform a few years ago I felt like a teenager at Shea stadium experiencing the Beatles for the first time: I was hysterical! If you already have their albums, or want more, try the INDESTRUCTIBLE BEAT OF SOWETO VOLUME 4, another gem in one of the most consistently great anthology series in popular African music, with Kwela, Zulu jive, pennywhistle and accordion tracks.

VARIOUS ARTISTS
BRINGING IT DOWN/SOUTH AFRICAN SAX JIVE (Trojan TWLP002)

Having bankrupted fans with his obsessive repackaging of the gems of ska and rocksteady, Trojan's Steve Barrow now turns his sharp eye to Soweto with four albums of township music of the 60s and 70s leased from Gallo, the pioneer South African recording company. One entitled simply TOWNSHIP is a sampler of the different styles, which showcases wicked fiddle playing and establishes the shuffling James-Brown style guitar as a basic thread in this music; the other two focus on Spokes Mashiyane's Kwela or pennywhistle music and accordion jive. I opted for the raw urgency of the sax jive album. Mbaqanga is stomping music that sticks to the soles of your feet; anyone who saw Mahlathini and the Mahotella Queens on tour in 1989 has blisters to corroborate that. Their band, the Makgona Tshole Band are the link to these historic recordings. It's odd that Gallo hasn't cashed in on the Zulu fever started by Paul Simon's first hearing a tape by Marks Mankwane, but when you realize they paid the musicians no royalties and only a couple of dollars per session you figure they don't understand where the South African gold is really buried. No musicians are listed or even perhaps known, only the producer is credited. Two of the terse titles in English are particularly telling: "Permit," and "Gig 74." Instrumental music is considered safe under apartheid because there is no likelihood of lyrics having hidden political meanings and creating problems for the record companies. Like other upbeat music recorded under oppressive regimes, there is a manic intent, a deadly seriousness behind the joyousness that lifts this music out of the ordinary.

SHEERSOUND PRESENTS THE AFRICAN CONNECTION PART II (Sheer Sound)

Jazz is alive and thriving in South Africa. From the Sheer Sound label comes a batch of new releases showcasing music that superficially sounds like its North American counterpart. Start with the sampler SHEERSOUND PRESENTS THE AFRICAN CONNECTION PART II and you might want to check out individual albums by some of the artists on here like pianist Paul Hanmer, guitarist Errol Dyers or singer Gloria Bosman, who collaborates on her first solo album with both Hanmer and saxophonist McCoy Mrubata.

After four mellow jazz tracks, Mrubata's "Phosa Ngasemva" is the first clearly South African piece, recalling the work of Chris McGregor or Dollar Brand (Abdullah Ibrahim)'s longtime collaborator Basil Coetzee. A big ensemble branches off to solos and I'm a sucker for a good trombone rant. It goes beyond Zulu Jive into pan-African jazz. The versatile Mrubata toured the US with Hugh Masakela in 1993 (that was a memorable tour) and backed Lucky Dube on his album TRINITY.

Errol Dyers is an acoustic guitarist from Cape Town. Though predominantly South African jazz, his music shows touches of gospel and Latin music. Paul Hanmer, who gets two cuts on the sampler, also has a solo album from Sheer Sounds called PLAYOLA. Again Abdullah Ibrahim is invoked in his piano playing, but you could do a lot worse (indeed Keith Jarrett built a whole career out of one memorable Dollar Brand riff). As a classically trained pianist, Hanmer writes out the music for his accompanists and uses a classical lineup including violins, viola, cello, marimba, cor anglais and clarinet.

As the sampler album progresses the more familiar South African drum patterns and parallel sax lines emerge. Bheki Khosa's "Ngoshanaphi" is a Soweto classic and the vocals give it away even before the band kicks in. But Gito Baloi throws you off with "Tiamo," a salsa jam in Portuguese that features steel pan as a lead instrument! Baloi is from Mozambique and has toured with Mzwake Mbuli, the great dissident poet, and also collaborated with Kenyans, Zaireans, Ivorians and even Frenchmen. This atypical track smokes.

My favorite cut is the acoustic track for percussion and xylophones, "Luvuoyo" with vocals by Heshu Beshu from their forthcoming album.

SUTHUKAZI AROSI
UBUNTU (Sheer Sound SSCD067)

A more familiar South African sound can be heard on Suthukazi Arosi's UBUNTU. She's backed by guitar, bass, accordion, sax and drums. There's zulu and jazz influences (Stimela and Abdullah Ibrahim come to mind as well as Malombo and Makgona Tshole band) and a touch of good old R&B, soul and funk. All in all this is a good blend of traditional and modern sounds.

ZIM NGQAWANA
ZIMPHONIC SUITES (Sheer Sound SSCD072)

I put on Zim Ngqawana's ZIMPHONIC SUITES while listening to some older jazz and it worked perfectly. Forget for a moment it's a new issue from Southern Africa, it has a lot in common with classic American jazz of the 70s. I hear Roland Kirk, Pharoah Sanders, even Leon Thomas in this. The obvious parallel is to the early work of Abdullah Ibrahim with Carlos Ward. Zim is a horn player (saxes and flutes) working with a piano, bass and drums. It's a consistent album and sets a mellow mood. Of all African musics, South African has been most closely parallel to gospel and jazz traditions of North America, ZIMPHONIC SUITES is well-sustained, ballad-like and beautiful.