Donnerstag, 31. Mai 2018

VA - Yelé Brazil

Though not quite as expansive as "The Rough Guide to the Music of Brazil" or the four-CD "Brasil: A Century of Song" boxed set, this 16-track compilation provides a wonderful introduction to the vibrant musical cultural of Brazil, where music is an integral entity that permeates nearly every aspect of daily life.

Ara Ketu, who presents three tracks here, is representative of how seamlessly African musical traditions were integrated into the Brazilian sound, with complex syncopated percussion worked into an accessible pop sound that combines elements of African soukous and Brazilian samba. Paralamas, a Rio-based group who contributes two songs here, craftily combines Brazilian rhythms with the visceral energy of Two-Tone ska, the end result sounding a bit like a South American version of General Public. With a number of other standout tracks from diverse artists like samba/reggae fusionists Banda Reflexu and traditional drummer Dorival Caymmi, "Yele Brazil" makes a fine starting point for your Brazilian music immersion.   



Tracklist:

       1. Yele Congo - Ara Ketu
2. Coche Viejo - Paralamas
3. Venha Me Amar - Sarajane
4. Kizomba, Festa Da Raca - Banda Reflexu's
5. Emabla Eu - Clementina & Clara Nunes
6. Volte Para O Seu Lar - Marisa Monte
7. Felicidade - Ara Kefu
8. Epilogo - Geronimo
9. Jogo De Angola - Clara Nunes
10. Segura Este Samba - Umbada
11. De Onde Eu Vim - Geronimo
12. Negro Laranja - Banda Reflexu's
13. Alagados - Paralamas
14. Canto De Nana - Dorival Caymmi
15. Toque E. Seducao - Ara Kefu
16. Canto Da Cor - Banda Reflexu's
  
VA - Yelé Brazil
(256 kbps, cover art included)      

Dienstag, 29. Mai 2018

B. B. Seaton - Gun Court Dub Vol. 2

"Gun Court Dub Vol. 2" is a great late seventies dub set produced by B. B. Seaton and mixed by Errol Brown at Treasure Isle.Studio. It features Sly Dunbar & the Revolutionaires, The Conscious Minds Band & Skin Flesh & Bones.

Harris Lloyd "B.B." Seaton (born 3 September 1944), also known as "Bibby", is a Jamaican reggae singer and record producer who was a member of The Gaylads, The Astronauts, Conscious Minds, and The Messengers (along with Ken Boothe, Lloyd Charmers and Busty Brown), and who has had a long solo career dating back to 1960.

Seaton was the first reggae artist to be signed by Virgin Records, leading to the creation of the Front Line label. He became based in the United Kingdom in the mid-1970s where he became active as a producer, his productions including the Gun Court Dub series of dub albums.

Tracklist:

Side One:
1. Laughing Dub
2. One Little Dub
3. Jah Dub
4. Dub Of Quality
5. Hold On To Your Dub
6. Careless Dub

Side Two:
1. Dubbing In The Rain
2. Daddy's Dub
3. Mamma Dub
4. Hop Skip & Jump
5. Revolution Dub
6. Dub For Us All

B. B. Seaton - Gun Court Dub Vol. 2
(320 kbps, cover art included)

Montag, 28. Mai 2018

Mikey Dread - Jungle Signal (1982)

Mikey Dread, known as "The Dread at the Controls", was one of the most influential performers and innovators in reggae music.

As well as being a reggae artist and producer with international recognition, he may best be known as the pioneer of reggae broadcasting worldwide beginning in his hometown of Port Antonio, Jamaica as selector/DJ for his sound systems, Safari and Sounds of Music, he graduated from Jamaica's College of Arts, Science and Technology before taking his landmark job at the Jamaica Broadcasting Corporation (JBC) radio and television network in 1976. It was here he developed his "Dread At The Controls" label and trademark.

His production expertise has helped launched many artists, from Earl 16, Edi Fitzroy, Rod Taylor, Sugar Minott, Junior Murvin and the Roots Radics Band to the Clash.

Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, Mikeys résumé grew to enviable proportions. In addition to his work with The Clash, he recorded with UB40 and helped produce the well-received "Deep Roots" documentary on Jamaican music for Channel Four TV in the United Kingdom.

On February 21st, 2007 Mikey Dread has been invited to perform and to give an interview at the “Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame,” in Cleveland, Ohio.

On March 15, 2008 he lost a battle to a brain tumor. Despite his death his legacy will continue.

Here´s "Jungle Signal" with the following tracks:

Tracklist:
A1 Signal One
A2 Jungle Signal
A3 Signal Three/Dub
A4 Rainbow Jungle
B1 Star Chaser & Jungle Gym
B2 Jungle Juice
B3 Dub Jungle
B4 Theme Signal (Jungle Theme)

Mikey Dread - Jungle Signal
(320 kbps, cover art included)

B. B. Seaton - Revolutionary Dub (1976)

B. B. Seaton is a singer with a soulful voice, a qualified musician, producer and one of the most prolific song writers in the history of Jamaican music. He had his first big hit in Jamaica when teaming up with Delano Stewart and Maurice Roberts to form "The Gaylads”.
Tracklist:

Tribal Dub
Riot In Soweto
March Back To Africa
Havana (Fidel's) Dub
Forward To The Battle Dub
Revolutionary Dub
Emporor's Theme
Nationalist Dub
Dread In Johannesburg
Liberation Dub

(192 kbps, cover art included)

Samstag, 26. Mai 2018

Justin Hinds & The Dominoes - Corner Stone (Treasure Isle)


Throughout a crucial period that bore witness to the emergence of ska and its later mutations into rocksteady and finally reggae, Justin Hinds was among the most successful recording artists on the Jamaican music scene, his sweet tenor spotlighted on hundreds of Duke Reid-produced singles between 1963 and 1972.

Born on May 7, 1942 in the St. Ann's area, Hinds' greatest music was later created in the company of his backing vocalists the Dominoes, a duo comprising Dennis Sinclair and Junior Dixon. They first recorded at Reid's Treasure Isle studios in late 1963, a debut session that yielded the hit "Carry Go Bring Come" in just one take.

Between 1964 and 1966, Hinds was Reid's most popular artist, and during this period alone he recorded some 70 singles backed by session aces Tommy McCook and the Supersonics; among his biggest ska hits were "King Samuel," "Jump Out of the Frying Pan," "The Ark" and "Rub Up Push Up."

Around 1966, Hinds made the transformation to rocksteady, and the hits kept coming. Over the next several years, he released smash after smash, including "The Higher the Monkey Climbs," "No Good Rudy," "On a Saturday Night," "Here I Stand," and "Save a Bread." He and Reid parted company in 1972, with the latter dying three years later; Hinds then began working with producer Jack Ruby, a collaboration which resulted in the 1976 LP "Jezebel". Two years later, he also teamed with producer Sonia Pottinger for a series of singles including "Rig-Ma-Roe Game" and "Wipe Your Weeping Eyes." After 1984's "Travel with Love", however, the reclusive Hinds essentially went into retirement, leaving Jamaica only rarely.

He did return to recording, albeit sporadically, with a final studio effort in 1992, "Know Jah Better", and then a decade later with a live album "Let's Rock Live". Another concert album, 2003's "Live at the Grassroots", featured Hinds backed by roots revivalists John Brown's Body.

Justin Hinds succumbed to cancer two years later, passing away quietly at his Jamaican home on March 16, 2005.

Tracklist:

Carry Go Bring Come
Rub Up Push Up
Corner Stone
Here I Stand
Over The River
The Higher The Monkey Climbs
Teach The Youth
Hey Mama
Fight Too Much
Sinners
If It's Love You Need
Mighty Redeemer
Boderation
Save A Bread
On A Saturday Night
Say Me Say
Once A Man
Carry Go Bring Come Version 2

Justin Hinds - Corner Stone (Treasure Isle)
(192 kbps, front cover included)

Dienstag, 22. Mai 2018

Mahalia Jackson - Newport 1958

General critical consensus holds Mahalia Jackson as the greatest gospel singer ever to live; a major crossover success whose popularity extended across racial divides, she was gospel's first superstar, and even decades after her death remains, for many listeners, a defining symbol of the music's transcendent power. With her singularly expressive contralto, Jackson continues to inspire the generations of vocalists who follow in her wake; among the first spiritual performers to introduce elements of blues into her music, she infused gospel with a sensuality and freedom it had never before experienced, and her artistry rewrote the rules forever.

"Newport 1958"  is a wonderful album with recordings of the Newport Jazz Festival 1958.

Jackson was at the peak of her career, and she gave a stunning performance at this show, lifting such songs as "He's Got the Whole World In His Hands," "Lord's Prayer," "Evening Prayer," "I'm on My Way," "Walk over God's Heaven" and "His Eye is on the Sparrow" to glorious heights. It's not only one of the great live gospel albums, it's simply one of the great gospel albums.

Mahalia Jackson - Newport 1958
(256 kbps, cover art included)

Nina Simone - Folksy Nina (1964)

Like the 1963 LP "Nina Simone at Carnegie Hall", this was recorded at Carnegie Hall on May 12, 1963, but duplicates little of the material found on that prior album. It isn't just unworthy leftovers, but a strong set in its own right, concentrating on material that could be seen as traditional or folk in orientation.

It's not exactly strictly folk music, in repertoire or arrangement (which includes piano, guitar, bass, and drums, though not every tune has all of the instruments); "Twelfth of Never" (which had also appeared on the Carnegie Hall LP) certainly isn't folk music. However, there was also an uptempo piano blues, Leadbelly's "Silver City Bound"; covers of the Israeli "Erets Zavat Chalav" and "Vanetihu" which served as further proof that Simone's eclecticism knew no bounds; and the stark, moody, spiritually shaded ballads at which she excelled ("When I Was a Young Girl," "Hush Little Baby"). "Lass of the Low Country" is as exquisitely sad-yet-beautiful as it gets.

Tracklist
A1Silver City Bound5:08
A2When I Was A Young Girl5:57
A3Erets Zavat Chalav4:25
A4Lass Of The Low Country6:15
B1The Young Night5:25
B2Twelfth Of Never3:33
B3Vanetihu2:27
B4You Can Sing A Rainbow / Hush Little Baby7:11

Nina Simone - Folksy Nina (1964)
(320 kbps, cover art included)
             

Samstag, 19. Mai 2018

The Chambers Brothers - Feelin´ The Blues (1970)

Like their West Coast contemporaries Sly and the Family Stone, the Chambers Brothers shattered racial and musical divides to forge an incendiary fusion of funk, gospel, blues, and psychedelia which reached its apex with the perennial 1968 song "Time Has Come Today."
Musical siblings George Chambers (bass/vocals), Willie Chambers (guitar/vocals), Lester Chambers (harmonica/vocals), and Joe Chambers (guitar/vocals) were raised on rural gospel in their native Mississippi before switching over to folk and then soulful blues and R&B-fueled rock. The Chambers Brothers' recordings issued by the Los Angeles-based Vault label were nearly four years old when "Feelin' the Blues" hit the streets in 1970. The band's style had changed quite drastically from old-school blues, soul, and pop to the longer psychedelic jams heard on their international hit "Time Has Come Today." Although the mixture of live and studio selections gives the collection an odds-and-sods vibe, several of the performances are among the best of the Vault Records-era material.

Somewhat contrasting with the album's title, the Chambers actually cover a wide spectrum of music on "Feelin' the Blues". Their roots can be heard throughout the flawless interpretation of the sacred standards "Just a Closer Walk with Thee" and the excellent "Travel on My Way." Similarly, the midtempo reading of Ray Charles' "I Got a Woman" offers the Chambers an opportunity to subtly return to their gospel origins with call-and-response backing harmonies. The proceedings are far from being pious, however, as the quartet harmonizes the chorus of "Too Fat Polka" during one of the instrumental breaks. Perhaps wishing to remove some of the sting from the real storyline, the reworking of "House of the Rising Sun" - according to the spoken introduction - is told from the point of view of the receptionist (huh?) at the infamous bordello. Had the Chambers Brothers decided on a more straightforward translation, the song could easily have been one of the album's best. Other tunes worth spinning include a version of Bobby Parker's "Blues Get Off My Shoulder" - in a longer form than on 1968's "The Chambers Brothers Shout!" - and the comparatively brief but effective update of the jazzy "Undecided."

Tracklist:
A1Girls, We Love You
A2I Got A Woman
A3House Of The Rising Sun
B1Don't Lose Your Cool
B2Just A Closer Walk With Thee
B3Blues Get Off My Shoulder
B4Travel On My Way
B5Undecided

The Chambers Brothers - Feelin´ The Blues (1970)
(320 kbps, cover art included)

Freitag, 18. Mai 2018

Mississippi John Hurt - 1928 Sessions


John Smith Hurt, better known as Mississippi John Hurt (July 3, 1893 or March 8, 1892 — November 2, 1966) was an American country blues singer and guitarist.
Raised in Avalon, Mississippi, Hurt taught himself how to play the guitar around age nine. Singing to a melodious finger-picked accompaniment, he began to play local dances and parties while working as a sharecropper. He first recorded for Okeh Records in 1928, but these recordings were commercial failures. Hurt then drifted out of the recording scene and continued to work as a farmer. Tom Hoskins, a blues enthusiast, located Hurt in 1963 and convinced him to relocate to Washington, D.C. where he was recorded by the Library of Congress in 1964. This helped further the American folk music revival, which had led to the rediscovery of many other bluesmen of Hurt's era. Hurt entered the university and coffeehouse concert circuit with other Delta blues musicians brought out of retirement. As well as playing concerts, he recorded several albums for Vanguard Records.

This album features the 13 original 1928 recordings of Hurt. Justifiably legendary, with gentle grace and power on these understated vocal and fingerpicking masterpieces. These are the ones to hear, although all Hurt is worth listening to.     

Tracklist
1Ain't No Tellin'2:55
2Stack O' Lee Blues2:57
3Candy Man Blues2:46
4Spike Driver Blues3:15
5Avalon Blues3:03
6Louis Collins2:59
7Frankie3:21
8Big Leg Blues2:51
9Nobody's Dirty Business2:53
10Got The Blues Can't Be Satisfied2:51
11Blessed Be The Name2:47
12Blue Harvest Blues2:53
13Praying On The Old Camp Ground2:36

Mississippi John Hurt‎– 1928 Sessions                                          
(cover art included)

Donnerstag, 17. Mai 2018

Amandla! The mix-cd.

Some years ago the dj collective "Zero G Sound" made a wonderful mix-cd called "Amandla!". They built a nice and groovy mix of different kind of african music styles.

Here´s the tracklist of this mix:

01-Intro
02-Orchestra Baobab - Boulamine
03-Super Eagles - Aliou Gori-Mami
04-Abdel Gadir Salim All-Stars - Alhagi
05-Alemayehn Eshete - Eskegizew Bertchi
06-Clint Eph Sebastian - Jane
07-Jimmy Solanke - Eja Ka Jo
08-Fela Kuti - Highlife Time
09-Orchestre de la Paillote - Kandia Blues
10-Ze Manel - Na Kaminho Di Luta
11-Ernest Ranglin - Ala Walee
12-Ogyatanaa Band - Disco Africa
13-Oscar Sulley - Buhom Mashie
14-Thomas Mapfumo - Hondo
15-Tiken Jah Fakoly - Francafrique
16-Daara-J - Number One
17-X-Plastaz - Msimu Kwa Msimu
18-Reggie Rockstone - Eye Mo De Anaa
19-Felal Kuti - Shakara
20-Baba Maal & Taj Mahal - Trouble Sleep.mp3

For your listening pleasure you can download the mix (mp3, 192 kbps, ca. 108 MB, cover art included, please burn it without gaps between the tracks!):

Zero G Soundsystem - Amadla!
(192 kbps, front & back cover included)

Mittwoch, 16. Mai 2018

Sun Ra - The Futuristic Sounds Of Sun Ra (1961)

Sun Ra's only release for the Savoy label is a gem. Recorded in October of 1961, this is probably the first recording the Arkestra made after arriving in New York. As such, you're dealing with a smallish Arkestra (seven main instrumentalists, joined by vocalist Ricky Murray on "China Gate") that's still playing the boppish, highly arranged music characteristic of the Chicago years (1954-1961).

Ra sticks to acoustic piano for the entire session, but various percussion instruments are dispersed throughout the band, giving a slightly exotic flavor to some of the tunes. John Gilmore plays bass clarinet on a couple tunes (as well as some great tenor solos), and Marshall Allen's flute playing is excellent, as always.

This album was produced by Tom Wilson, who also produced the first Sun Ra LP, "Jazz by Sun Ra" (1956) for the Transition label, later reissued by Delmark as "Sun Song" (Wilson later went on to sign the Mothers of Invention to Verve and "electrified" Bob Dylan). With the exception of "The Beginning," all the tunes are very accessible. This is one to play for the mistaken folks who think the Arkestra did nothing but make noise. Excellent.

Tracklist:

A1 Bassism
A2 Of Wounds And Something Else
A3 What's That
A4 Where Is Tomorrow
A5 The Beginning
A6 China Gates
Vocals – Ricky Murray

B1 New Day
B2 Tapestry From An Asteroid
B3 Jet Flight
B4 Looking Outward
B5 Space Jazz Reverie

Sun Ra - The Futuristic Sounds Of Sun Ra (1961)
(256 kbps, cover art included)

Otto Reutter - Es geht vorwärts - Chansons und Couplets (1922 - 1930)

A coupletist (kupletist) is a poet, singer, or actor who specializes in couplets - wittily ambiguous, political, or satirical songs, usually in cabaret settings, usually with refrains, generally used as a transition between two cabaret numbers.

With sarcasm and humor, coupletists take on political dignitaries, the prevailing zeitgeist and lifestyle, in short, "all of the world's madness." Friedrich Wolf called the couplet "the direct involvement of the audience in the game."




Tracklist:

1 Es Geht Vorwärts 3:00
2 Der Überzieher 3:10
3 Karussell 3:23
4 Wir Fang'n Noch Mal Von Vorne An 3:39
5 Das Ist So Einfach, Und Man Denkt Nicht Dran 3:19
6 Aus! 2:47
7 Gründ'n Wir 'Ne G.M.B.H. 3:27
8 Der Blusenkauf 2:43
9 Alles Weg'n De Leut' 2:50
10 Berlin Ist Ja So Groß 3:13
11 Nehm'n Sie 'N Alten 2:38
12 Gräme Dich Nicht 2:54
13 Mir Hab'n Se Als Geheilt Entlassen-Vortrag Eines Idioten 2:26
14 Loblied Auf Die Frauen Von Heute 2:54
15 Phantasie Ist Jederzeit Schöner Als Die Wirklichkeit 3:14
16 Einmal Im Jahr 2:20
17 Mein Theaterrepertoire 3:15
18 Und Dadurch Gleicht Sich Alles Wieder Aus 3:34
19 Ist Doch Schön-So Bequem 3:30
20 Ich Habe Zuviel Angst Vor Meiner Frau 3:52
21 Ich Kann Das Tempo Nicht Vertragen 4:00
22 Sei Modern 3:26
23 Der Gewissenhafte Maurer 2:48


Otto Reutter - Es geht vorwärts - Chansons und Couplets (1922 - 1930)
(320 kbps, cover art included)

Dienstag, 15. Mai 2018

Autonomie - Materialien gegen die Fabrikgesellschaft

The journal "Autonomie" ("Autonomy") was established in 1975. It emerged from the agitational newspaper "Wir Wollen Alles" ("We Want it All"), which was published by the Operaist-oriented groups ‘Arbeitersache’ (‘Workers’ Cause’) in Munich, ‘Revolutionärer Kampf’ (‘Revolutionary Struggle’) in Frankfurt and ‘Proletarische Front’ (‘The Proletarian Front’) in Hamburg. Two political lines soon developed within the editorial board. On the one hand, there was the ‘first-person politics’ proposed by those in Frankfurt. On the other hand, the Hamburg group in particular insisted on a ‘working-class standpoint’: for this group, relating to the subjectivity of the ‘class’ and building a social-revolutionary organisation should take priority over policies related to the individual. In 1979, the Frankfurt group issued the last journal (No. 14) of the old version of Autonomie. Between 1979 and 1985 the Hamburg group published Autonomie: Neue Folge (Autonomy: The New Edition). It is now available here online for the first time. In fact, issue No. 12 of the old version of the journal was conceived in Hamburg and thus has been included in this digitised edition. This issue was devoted to the subject of regionalism. Alongside this theme, there was an article on ‘the moral economy’, which took up the British New Left’s writing on social history.

The Hamburg editorial board was made up of a core of former members from the ‘Proletarische Front’ organisation. This core was expanded by a number of people who joined in connection with a campaign for a suspended sentence for Karl Heinz Roth, a member of the board.1 During the first two years, Roth carried out an important and integrative role on the editorial board. Smaller editorial teams – in which external authors also played a part – were formed for each individual issue. All articles were regularly discussed by the main editorial board, which was supported by a salaried senior editor. The board’s offices were located in Hamburg-Altona. In 1982, several members left the editorial board in connection with the ‘Position Paper’ published in issue No. 10.

Apart from issue No. 1, the magazine was self-produced and financed by donations from the editorial staff. The journal’s circulation was three thousand – four thousand for some issues. The majority of its readers came from the protest movements of the 1970s and were predominantly from North Germany. But there were also some readers from around several university cities in South Germany, as well as from Berlin. Reading circles occasionally sprung up and the editorial board organised a series of events centred on the journal – for example in the context of the prisoners’ and anti-nuclear movements.

Autonomie: Neue Folge aimed, on the one hand, to develop an expanded concept of structural violence which referred to the interweaving of technological violence into every-day life. On the other hand, the journal sought to work out a new, social-revolutionary understanding of internationalism and anti-imperialism. Behind these aims stood the political concept of placing in a broader historical context, and strategically expanding, the various partial movements active in the wake of the ‘anti-authoritarian’ revolts of 1968, which mainly agitated in selective and situational ways.

Autonomie: Neue Folge began in May 1979 with an issue on the Iranian Revolution. With regard to the People’s Mujahedin and the theoretician Ali Schariati, the issue attempted to explore the potential of ‘Iranian mass autonomy’ – as a non-Bolshevik path to social revolution. This subject was revisited in issues No. 6 (on the Iran-Iraq War, 1980) and No. 8 (on the People’s Mujahedin, 1981). As is well known, the Iranian Revolution ended in a counterrevolution of the reactionary Ayatollahs, in civil war and terror. Back then the editorial board could not anticipate that the Iranian Revolution was possibly but the first episode in a revolutionary epoch, which would flow into the Arab rebellions. The interest in the ‘Middle and Near East’ lapsed.

The theme of social-revolutionary anti-imperialism carried over into issue No. 10 (‘Anti-Imperialism in the 1980s’, 1982) in which concepts drawn from the US Operaist left were further developed and the primacy of the social was contrasted with the classical theory of imperialism. The topic further found expression in the article ‘Genocide against Social Revolution’ in the final issue, No. 14 (1985). Not until many years later was this concept explicitly back-referenced to the Russian Revolution, which was always implicit within the approach in the mid-1980s.2

In the thematic issues No. 2 through No. 7, there was an attempt to enter into an exchange with single-issue movements and currents, as well as to ‘set out markers’ for the reconstruction of an overarching social-revolutionary agenda. The ‘workers’ standpoint’ was projected onto a new social subject – the ‘factory society’ became an explanatory model for the entirety of the social terrain. This began with the issue on prisons (No. 2, ‘The New Prisons’, 1979) which presented materials on the prisoners’ movement and recent developments in the detention systems. This topic was complemented in 1980 by a special issue on preventive detention. This theme was followed by that of urban planning in issue No. 3 (‘The Second Destruction of Germany’, 1980) which reached from the 19th century architectural utopias to the house occupations of the 1980s, and the issue on the anti-nuclear movement (No.4/5, ‘Resistance Against Nuclear Factories. The Nuclear State’, 1980) which alongside references to the movement against nuclear power included a polemic against the institutionalisation of politics by the Greens. The issues dedicated to medicine, such as special issue No. 2 (‘Medicine and National Socialism’, 1980) and No. 7 (‘Healthcare Reform, Rape, Forced Sterilisation, Sick Leave’, 1981) were to provide historical and contemporary material for the debates in the ‘health movement’ in the context of the ‘health conferences’ held in Berlin and Hamburg. This topic was taken up again later in the journal Beiträge zur nationalsozialistischen Gesundheits- und Sozialpolitik (Contributions to National Socialist Health and Social Policy).

It was not until the Fiat issue (No. 9, ‘Factories and the New Class Composition’, 1982) that Autonomie: Neue Folge chimed in with the point of departure of the 1970s, as expressed in the subtitle ‘Materials against Factory Society’. The ‘Arbeitersache’ group had related to the workers at BMW with an anti-Taylorist, anti-Fordist programme. ‘Revolutionärer Kampf’ had done the same with the Opel workers, and ‘Proletarische Front’ had focused on the ports, shipyards and the Volkswagen workers in Hannover. The experiences of this wave of struggle, which had culminated in the 1973 Ford strike, were now to be recalled in order to arrive at a new analysis of the reality of class in West Germany, of the exploitation of labour and of the regional labour markets. However, this systematic approach failed to materialise. Instead there was a separate issue (No. 12, ‘The Italian Model: Revolutionary Movements at an End?’, 1983) in which the topic of Italy was broached once more. The matters of labour markets and technology were differently dealt with in issues No. 11 and No. 13 under the common title of ‘Imperialism in the Metropolises’ (No. 11, ‘The Compulsion to Work. New Poverty, 1982) and issue No. 13 (‘The Assault of Technology’, 1983). In parallel with the quasi post-Operaist focus on the metropolitan class and global mass poverty, since issue No. 3 a debate had emerged regarding subjectivity and technological violence, which found its way into various issues. The reference point for this was a book published in 1981 entitled Leben als Sabotage (Life as Sabotage).3

Since 1982 there had been difficult disagreements on the editorial board. Issues No. 13 and No. 14 were only published by smaller editorial sub-groups who continued to work together informally. Some members of the editorial board no longer believed that it was possible to reconstruct social-revolutionary processes in the global north from a metropolitan standpoint and therefore focused more on the social-historical paradigm of mass poverty and anti-imperialist struggles. This implied different ideas of organisation. The divergent points of view no longer led to fruitful discussions, but rather to the dissolution of the editorial board. Appearing after a two-year break with a new design, the final issue (No. 14, ‘Class History – Social Revolution?’) was published in 1985. It contained three separate essays: a historical study of mass poverty and the right of existence; a contribution to reproductive labour (catching up somewhat, since a feminist position had not been able to prevail in the editorial board until then) and a portrayal of the Bretton Woods system as a weapon against the social revolution.
  1. Cf. Ein ganz gewöhnlicher Mordprozess, Berlin 1978
  2. http://www.materialien.org/worldwide/russia/Hartmann_Russ_Revol.pdf; http://www.materialien1917.org
  3. Detlef Hartmann, Leben als Sabotage. Zur Krise der technologischen Gewalt, Tübingen 1981
You find a complete archive of the Autonomie journal via this link.

Samstag, 12. Mai 2018

Jacob Miller - Tenement Yard

Jacob Miller's debut solo album gives one a vivid idea of Miller's standing back in 1978.
The album features classics like "Tenement Yard", "Tired fe Lick Weed in a Bush," and the seminal "Forward Jah Jah Children."

"Roman Soldiers of Babylon" is on a par with these classics, while "Dread, Dread" is nearly of the same caliber.

Yet this is Jacob Miller we're talking about, so there's also lighter material, including the singer's fabulous 1976 Song Festival entry "All Night Til Daylight," the sparkling "Suzie Wong," a chirpy cover of War's smash "Why Can't We Be Friends," and a phenomenal cultural take on Otis Redding's masterpiece "(Sittin' on The) Dock of the Bay."

This album still remains a fabulous introduction to Miller's oeuvre that beautifully showcases Miller's heavier and lighter sides, and for its time it was a revelation.
.
                           
Tracklist
Dreada Dread2:55
Money2:28
Tenament Yard2:35
Suzie Wong2:31
Every Day With You Girl2:15
Dock Of The Bay3:05
Tired Fe Lick Weed In A Bush2:59
Truth Has Come Again2:50
All Night Till Daylight3:15
Forward Jah Jah Children3:13
Why Can't We Be Friends3:30
Roman Soldiers Of Babylon

(192 kbps)

Cedric Myton & Congo - Image Of Africa (1979)


The Congos are a reggae vocal group from Jamaica which formed as the duo "Ashanti" Roy Johnson (tenor) (b. Roydel Johnson, 1947, Hanover, Jamaica) and Cedric Myton (falsetto) (b. 1947, Saint Catherine Parish, Jamaica), later becoming a trio with the addition of Watty Burnett (baritone) (b.early 1950s, Port Antonio, Jamaica) and have been active on and off from the mid-1970s until the present day. They are best known for their "Heart of the Congos" album, recorded with Lee "Scratch" Perry.

"Image Of Africa" by the Congos is seldom heard, but it has great songs, great singing and great playing. The sound is more polished-up and accessible than what you hear on the album "Heart of the Congos", which gets such good press. Still, you'll enjoy a solid roots sound with Cedric Myton's high vocal leading the way. The songs are complex, the musicianship is awesome and it's heavy with grooves


Tracklist:

Only Jah Know
Mister Biggs
Food For The Rainy Day
Sweetest Name
He Is The King
Music Maker
Musical Iration
Stay Alive
Stay Alive Dub

Cedric Myton & Congo - Image Of Africa (1979)
(320 kbps, cover art included)

Sun Ra - Space Is The Place (1973)

"Space Is the Place" provides an excellent introduction to Sun Ra's vast and free-form jazz catalog. It is a wonderful 1972 recording with the 'definitive' version of the title track, and some very nice shorter pieces too.

Typical of many Sun Ra recordings, the program is varied; earthbound songs, like the swing number "Images" and Egyptian exotica piece "Discipline," fit right in with more space-age cuts, like the tumultuous "Sea of Sounds" and the humorous "Rocket Number Nine." Sun Ra fuses many of these styles on the sprawling title cut, as interlocking harmonies, African percussion, manic synthesizer lines, and joyous ensemble blowing all jell into some sort of church revival of the cosmos.

Throughout the recording, Sun Ra displays his typically wide-ranging talents on space organ and piano, reed players John Gilmore and Marshall Allen contribute incisive and intense solos, and June Tyson masterfully leads the Space Ethnic Voices on dreamy vocal flights. This is a fine recording and a must for Sun Ra fans. 

It is impossible, given the breadth and depth of Ra's work, as well as the fact that most of the albums which he recorded are out-of-print and owned only by a select few collectors, to attempt to trace Ra's career with any thoroughness in less than a hundred pages or so. You find some overview to Sun Ra's life and music on http://www.furious.com/perfect/sunra.html and an interview with John F. Szwed about his superb Sun Ra biography "Space Is The Place" on http://www.furious.com/Perfect/sunra2.html.

Tracklist:

A Space Is The Place
Baritone Saxophone – Danny Thompson* Bass – Pat Patrick Bass Clarinet – Eloe Omoe Organ [Space] – Sun Ra Vocals [Space Ethnic] – Akh Tal Ebah, Cheryl Banks, John Gilmore, Judith Holton, June Tyson, Ruth Wright
21:14
B1 Images
Bass – Pat Patrick Piano – Sun Ra Tenor Saxophone – John Gilmore Trumpet – Akh Tal Ebah, Lamont McClamb
6:15
B2 Discipline 33
Flute – Danny Davis, Danny Thompson*, Eloe Omoe, Marshall Allen Organ [Space] – Sun Ra Tenor Saxophone – John Gilmore Trumpet – Lamont McClamb
4:50
B3 Sea Of Sound
Alto Saxophone – Danny Davis, Marshall Allen Baritone Saxophone – Pat Patrick Drums – Lex Humphries Flugelhorn [Fugelhorn] – Akh Tal Ebah Organ [Space] – Sun Ra Percussion – Russell Branch, Stanley Morgan Tenor Saxophone – John Gilmore Trumpet – Lamont McClamb
7:42
B4 Rocket Number Nine
Bass Clarinet – Eloe Omoe Organ [Space] – Sun Ra Vocals [Space Ethnic] – Cheryl Banks, Danny Thompson*, John Gilmore, Judith Holton, June Tyson, Pat Patrick, Ruth Wright
2:50


Sun Ra - Space Is The Place (1973)
(256 kbps, front cover included)

Alton Ellis - Sunday Coming (1970, Studio One)

Alton Ellis is one of the best Jamaican vocalists to have emerged during the ska and rocksteady periods in the '60s. His singing prowess remained intact through the reggae, dancehall, and ragga years as well, proving that his uniquely soulful delivery and impeccable phrasing could transcend reggae's many changes.

Recording with his preferred producer Clement Dodd, Ellis cut "Sunday Coming" around 1969-1970 at Dodd's legendary Brentford Road studio. Most likely backed by the producer's Sound Dimension band (featuring the great Jackie Mittoo as arranger and organist), Ellis offers up a typical set of originals and choice covers from the day's charts. On the handful of tracks Ellis co-wrote with Dodd, breezy medium-tempo cuts like "It's True" and "The Picture Was You" particularly stand out; the buoyant soul-based rocksteady beats, occasional jazz chords, and sweet harmonies all seem to be part of a musical setting in which Ellis thrived.

The point is substantiated by great Ellis performances on similarly disposed covers like the Guess Who's "These Eyes," Blood, Sweat & Tears' "You Make Me So Very Happy," and the Junior Walker hit "What Does It Take (To Win Your Love)." Ellis also shows some musical flexibility with his funky James Brown-inspired jam "Alton's Groove" and the fine roots reggae track "Reason in the Sky"; he even proves his contemporary relevance on two impressive tracks from 1994, including the updated rocksteady cut "Joy in the Morning" and a digitally enhanced number entitled "The Winner." This disc is one of Ellis' best and comes highly recommended to newcomers and reggae enthusiasts alike.

Alton Ellis - Sunday Coming
(320 kbps, front cover included)

Donnerstag, 10. Mai 2018

Otto Reutter - Gräme dich nicht - Akustische Aufnahmen 1909 - 1919

Otto Reutter (born Otto Pfützenreuter: April 24, 1870 in Gardelegen, Germany – March 3, 1931 in Düsseldorf, Germany) was a German comedian, coupletist, and singer.

Born into a poor Catholic family, Reutter attended the Catholic school in Gardelegen and was then trained as a salesman's assistant. After completing his apprenticeship, he moved to Berlin and became active in theater and as a comedian. Afterwards he moved to Karlsruhe and became part of a troupe of tavern singers and comedians there.
In 1895, he first appeared as a "salon humorist", probably in Bern, Switzerland. The following year he had his breakthrough.

Particularly notable about Reutter was his ability to deliver original, amusing lyrics in a singsong manner, his persona full of irony and wit. After a successful appearance in the "Wintergarten Variety" of the Berlin Central Hotel, Reutter was hailed as a celebrity, and was considered in the following decades as one of the leading artists of the stage in Germany.

In the 1920s, Reutter wrote many of the songs for which he is still well known today, songs that have been sung by many well-known German artists. He wrote over a thousand Couplets, a German form of amusing cabaret song.

Overstressed and having suffered some personal setbacks, Reutter intended to retire as a millionaire in 1919, after a successful thirty-year career. He had invested his fortune in his house (known as Waldschnibbe) in Gardelegen, as well as in war bonds. As World War I came to an end and the German inflation struck, Reutter lost a good portion of this fortune and thus had to continue to support himself by delivering his songs on various small stages.
Hence, starting around 1919, his "mature work" began to appear: songs that were especially characterized by humor and melancholy, the wisdom of life, and a kind of weary sass and bite.
His songs didn't just foresee societal changes, but also presented their listeners with comfort in times that required great sacrifice. His songs tended to follow the taste of the times, as well as current events.

Sick and exhausted, Otto Reutter died during a guest appearance in Düsseldorf in 1931, and was buried in Gardelegen.

Tracklist:
01.  Das find´ ich reizend von der Frau
02. Wie die kleinen Kinder
03. Das ist mir ganz egal
04. Ja, die Natur, die lässt sich nichts befehlen
05. Nun g´rade nicht!
06. Aber keiner fängt an!
07. Nicht so laut!
08. Des Bürgermeisters Töchterlein
09. Wissen Sie, was der mir geantwort´t hat?
10. In dem Moment
11. Vergänglichkeit
12. Das gefährliche Alter
13. Dann merkst du gleich, der Mann ist aus Berlin!
14. Gräme dich icht!
15. Die Lorelei
16. Na, nu tun Sie man nicht so!
17. Kolossal!
18. Dei Liebesgabenkiste
19. Sei gescheit!
20. Laß´ sie hungern!

Otto Reutter - Gräme dich nicht - Akustische Aufnahmen 1909 - 1919
(256 kbps, cover art included)