Afrobeat 492 Items

LP | 2015 | US | Original (Awesome Tapes From Africa)

Release: 2015 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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An Afrobeat and Worldmusic classic first time on vinyl.

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Ata Kak

Obaa Sima

LP | 2015 | EU | Original (Sterns)

Release: 2015 / US – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves, Electronic & Dance

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A 1994 tape by Ghanaian musician Ata Kak called Obaa Sima is being reissued by Awesome Tapes From Africa.

The release is the culmination of a 13-year story for Awesome Tapes From Africa founder Brian Shimkovitz, who bought a cassette copy of Obaa Sima from a roadside stall in Cape Coast, Ghana, in 2002. The tape was the subject of the first post on his Awesome Tapes From Africa blog in 2006—the blog spawned a full record label in 2011.

Shimkovitz began searching for Ata Kat and says "Google and endless phone calls provided no leads." It was eventually discovered the musician, real name Yaw Atta-Owusu, had recorded Obaa Sima in Toronto before moving back to Ghana in 2006.

The restoration of the tape proved challenging. Only about 50 copies of the original tape were produced, and Atta-Owusu's master DAT had disintegrated, so the second-hand copy purchased by Shimkovitz was used as the source for the reissue.

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Yaaba Funk

My Vote Dey Count

Pat Thomas & Kwashibu Area Band

Release: 2015 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Emerging from London's African drum and dance scene, Yaaba Funk is an extremely dynamic group of musicians. Their sophomore full-length offers an irresistible collection of Afrobeat, Hi-Life and solid African funk grooves!

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2LP+CD | 2015 | EU | Original (Strut)

Kelen Ati Leen / Souleymane

Release: 2015 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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“I’m an afrobeat drummer but Pat Thomas is highlife. That is what he does so well.” -Tony Allen

Coming in June, we are proud to announce the brand new studio album by one of Ghana’s all-time great vocalists, “The Golden Voice Of Africa”, Pat Thomas, in conjunction with the Kwashibu Area Band led by multi-instumentalist Kwame Yeboah (Cat Stevens, Patrice) and saxophonist Ben Abarbanel-Wolff (Ebo Taylor, Poets of Rhythm).

A regular collaborator with Ebo Taylor, Thomas was mainstay of the ‘70s and ‘80s Ghanaian highlife, afrobeat and afro-pop scenes, hitting big with the Ghana Cocoa Board-sponsored Sweet Beans band. Thomas’ new album marks over 50 years making music and reunites him with old friends: Ebo Taylor provides horn arrangements, Tony Allen contributes drums to several tracks, Osei Tutu (Hedzolleh Sounds) plays a memorable trumpet solo and prolific 1970s bassist Ralph Karikari (The Noble Kings) also features. Younger generation stars appearing include bassist Emmanuel Ofori, percussionist “Sunday” Owusu and Pat Thomas’ daughter Nanaaya, an acclaimed vocalist in her own right.

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Orchestra Baobab

7" | 2015 | UK | Original (Mr Bongo)

Release: 2015 / UK – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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LP | 2015 | EU | Original (Blind Faith)

Baba Sissoko

Three Gees

Rim And Kasa / Rim And The Belivers

Release: 2015 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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The 2015 full-length from the highly regarded Malian griot was recorded with a little bit of help from the soulful voices of Djeli Mah Damba Koroba and Djana Sissoko, respectively his mother and his young daughter. They are the voices of the past, the present and the future, living in the twilight zone where the Malian roots blooms into a new sound of hope and happiness. Also involved are Fernando "Bugaloo" Velez (The Dap-kings, Antibalas) on percussion, and the legendary Corey Harris on slide guitar.

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Too Tough / I'm Not Going To Let You Go

2LP | 2015 | EU | Original (BBE Music)

7" | 2015 | UK | Original (No Wahala Sound)

Release: 2015 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Following hot on the heels of our well-received reissue of his first album, Rim Arrives, we now present the two other key records that have made this a cult figure for lovers of both African music and ‘disco’ in its widest sense. Too Tough, a superb three track EP from 1982, on Sum-Sum Records, was credited to Rim and Kasa, whilst he issued the cracking 12” I’m Not Going To Let You Go as Rim And The Believers for Harmony Records the following year.
Too Tough kicks off with Shine The Ladies, an epic Afro-disco jam in call and response format, with the female lead vocals (Ms. Anita Berry) prompting a series of replies from the backing vocalists, setting the scene for a series of exciting solos set against a backdrop of punchy horns and swirling synths; tenor sax, guitar, drums (introduced with chants of ‘Play me some drums!’) and vibes all take a turn before the track fades out, clocking in just short of nine minutes. Next up is Love Me For Real, reminiscent of August Darnell with its girlie vocals and Latin flavour, ending with a mad swirl of synths and Rim’s own vocals. And lastly, I’m A Songwriter is cosmic Afro-reggae, bringing to mind Roy Ayers in his Fela phase, given a mad punk-funk twist … this one has to be heard to be believed!
The mood changes with I’m Not Going To Let You Go, which eschews the female chorus for an altogether mellower, instrumental ride, veering from out-there cosmic synth vibes to loungey jazz piano. It’s original flip, Peace of Mind, raw Afro-boogie track with a male vocal, is also included.
Those of you who had been searching in vain for Rim’s oeuvre for some years now having had it handed to you on a platter (well, two platters, actually), will be pleased to know that there is yet more material from the man Rim Kwaku Obeng to come from us at BBE …watch out for the digital-only release of four previously unreleased cuts from this legend of Afro-disco, taken from a long-lost acetate!

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Afro National

Temedi Oh / Den Kick

Ballake Sissoko & Vincent Segal

Release: 2015 / UK – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Little known outside their native Sierra Leone where they were huge stars in the 1970s, Afro National played a brand of afro-pop that was a fusion of myriad styles, including Congolese music, highlife & Afrobeat and whose sound was characterized by up-tempo melodic guitar playing.

This double A side features two choice cuts from their 1972 debut album, the gloriously infectious and up-beat ‘Temedi Oh’ & ‘Den Kick’ which starts as a gentle rumba before launching into a joyous guitar workout.

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Musique De Nuit

LP | 2015 | EU | Original (No Format)

Fela Soul Purple Vinyl Edition

Release: 2015 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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The Malian kora player and French cellist raised dust with 2011’s Chamber Music, which pulled two seemingly incompatible instruments into a startling, neoclassical fusion. Musique de Nuit maintains the momentum. While there is a formal air to pieces such as Prélude and the title track, improvisation is at the heart of the duo’s interplay – Sissoko’s rooftop in Bamako, not the studio, was the venue for half the recording. The lines between cascading kora and stately cello are wonderfully blurred at times, as the pair take turns to supply rhythm and melody, ranging across Malian mbalax on Super Étoile, Brazilian flavours on Samba Tomora and deep tradition on Diabaro, to which Babani Kone contributes wailing griot vocals. Entrancing stuff. - The Guardian.

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Fela Kuti Vs. De La Soul

LP | 2015 | US (Fela Soul)

31,99 €*

LP | 2015 | EU | Reissue (Glitterbeat)

Release: 2015 / US

Genre: Hip Hop, Organic Grooves, Electronic & Dance

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The classic is back! Limited edition for Record Store Day 2015! Gummy Soul's Amerigo Gazaway mashes up Afrobeat legend Fela Kuti with acapellas from De La Soul to killer effect! A fantasic journey into the "world of afrobeat rhythms, funky horn riffs & classic hip-hop gems". Bonus track added, now on colored vinyl in a full color picture sleeve!

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Bixiga 70

III

Release: 2015 / EU – Reissue

Genre: Organic Grooves

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LP | 2015 | EU | Reissue (Relapse)

Myrkur

27,99 €*

Release: 2015 / EU – Reissue

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Down On Deptford Broadway

Skinny Lister

LP | 2015 | EU | Reissue (Xtra Mile)

32,99 €*

Release: 2015 / EU – Reissue

Genre: Organic Grooves

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LP | 2015 | EU | Original (Al Dente)

The Moonfires

Black Sugar

CD | 2015 | EU | Original (Al Dente)

Release: 2015 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Band Leader Alex Puddu is behind the project the Moonfires. The Album is released on 300 copies limited edition on Alex Puddu's own label Al Dente. The Album Black sugar is written, Arranged and Produced By Alex Puddu Recorded during the summer 2014 in Copenhagen Recorded at Redrum Studio Mixed and Masterd in N.Y.C Astoria Queens Soundworks recording by Kamilo Kratc Album photo by Maiken Kildegaard Artwork by Leo Scherfig

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The Moonfires

Black Sugar

The Sorcerers White Vinyl Edition

Release: 2015 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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The Sorcerers

LP | 2015 | UK | Reissue (ATA)

29,99 €*

LP | 2015 | EU | Reissue (Secret)

Release: 2015 / UK – Reissue

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Reissue of the debuit album from The Sorcerers. Recently championed by Ethio-Jazz legend Mulatu Astatke on his Addis Abbaba radio show, The Sorcerers take influences from Ethiopiques Ethio-jazz as well as the soundtracks to the european horror films of the 60's and 70's and the british library music of the same era & blend them into one cohesive package. Made up of various stalwarts of the vibrant Leeds Jazz/World scene they were originally formed to contribute some tracks to the compilation "Funk, Soul & Afro Rarities: An Introduction To ATA Records" released in 2014 on Here & Now Records. After receiving a favourable response to their contributed tracks and garnering support from the likes of Strut records founder Quinton Scott and Radio 3's Nick Luscombe (Late Junction) they decided to develop their sound further before recording their debut album.

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Dillinger Verses Trinity

Clash

30,99 €*

Release: 2015 / EU – Reissue

Genre: Organic Grooves

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LP | 2015 | Reissue (Topic)

Martin Carthy

Release: 2015 / Reissue

Genre: Organic Grooves

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LP | 2015 | Original (Galileo Music Communication)

Otros Aires

4 Big Man Dancing

29,99 €*

Release: 2015 / Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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12" | 2015 | US | Reissue (Voodoo Funk)

Tony Grey

Time Factor

2LP | 2015 | Original (Teranga Beat)

Release: 2015 / US – Reissue

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Used Vinyl

Medium: VG+, Cover: VG+

Close to Near Mint copy.

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Dieuf-Dieul De Thies

Aw Sa Yone Vol. 2

54,99 €*

Fela Soul 2024 Blue Vinyl Edition

Release: 2015 / Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Used Vinyl

Medium: Near Mint, Cover: Near Mint

Cover with slightly bumped corners

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Fela Kuti Vs. De La Soul

LP | 2015 | US (Fela Soul)

Ali Farka Touré With Ry Cooder

Release: 2015 / US

Genre: Hip Hop, Organic Grooves, Electronic & Dance

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Preorder shipping from 2024-11-22

The classic is back! Gummy Soul's Amerigo Gazaway mashes up Afrobeat legend Fela Kuti with acapellas from De La Soul to killer effect! A fantasic journey into the "world of afrobeat rhythms, funky horn riffs & classic hip-hop gems". Bonus track added, now on colored vinyl in a full color picture sleeve!

Afrobeat legend FELA KUTI mashed with DE LA SOUL acapellas to killer effect! A fantastic journey into the world of afrobeat rhythms, funky horn riffs & classic hip-hop gems". This colored vinyl repress comes on blue colored vinyl for the first time. Includes new "secret" 2024 bonus cut.

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Talking Timbuktu

2LP | 2015 | UK | Reissue (World Circuit)

24,99 €*

Idris Ackamoor & The Pyramids

Release: 2015 / UK – Reissue

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Used Vinyl

Medium: VG, Cover: VG+

Includes original insert.

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Tinoge Ya Ta'a Ba, Part 1 & 2

7" | 2017 | EU | Original (Philophon)

2LP+7" | 2017 | EU | Original (Cree)

Release: 2017 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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2016 was the year for Idris Ackamoor & the Pyramids: their album "We Be All Africans" (produced by Philophon and released on Strut Rec.) vaulted them among the global top acts of the current Spiritual Jazz renaissance. The strengh of the group is its deep connection to Africa: not just that their music is inspired by the spirit of Africa, they actually founded themselves on an extended trip to the Motherland in 1972.

On that trip Idris Ackamoor visited the tiny town Bolgatanga in Northern Ghana to play with local Frafra musicians - an experiance which changed his life. Now, after 45 years, Idris dives once more into the magical music of the Frafra people by teaming up with master musician Guy One, the no. 1 Kologo artist of the vital music scene of Bolgatanga. On "Tinoge Ya Ta'a Ba" Guy One sings about the power of unity - a unity you hear clearly on this Afro-Euro-American cooperation: a driving rhythm, a eulogizing saxophone, a gripping voice and in total a journey into another dimension.

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Lancelot Layne

Blow Way

LP | 2017 | EU | Original (Born Bad)

Release: 2017 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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In 1971 two songs were released in Trinidad & Tobago that represented completely new directions in the musical and lyrical expression of Trinidad's place in the diaspora, Indian on one hand and African on the other. Nanny & Nana by Sundar Popo and “Blow 'Way” by Lancelot Layne were revolutionary and ground breaking and spawned two distinctly new genres in Trinidad & Tobago music – Chutney music in the case of Sundar Popo and Rapso, in Lance's case. Brother Resistance calls Lancelot Layne the father of Rapso music.
During the early 1970s Lance recorded at least a dozen startlingly original songs including “Blow 'Wa”y, “Afro'Dadian”, “Bringing' Off”, “Dat Is Horros” and “Kaiso For Mout' Band”. Each one expanding his talent for musical arrangements and dramatic counterpoint with chorus responses and vocal variation. He enlisted musicians, each exciting and pioneering in their own right, breaking ground in the post 1970 cultural revolution: calypso/jazz pianist, Clive Zanda; composer, guitarist, singer and flautist, Andre Tanker; Mau Mau Drummers including the young Jah Jah Onilu, Mansa Musa Drummers; vocalists, including Ann Marie Innis and Ella Andall.
The result is exciting, confident and musically ground-breaking. Until his death in 1990 he kept commenting and educating T&T'ssociety with songs like Get Off The Radio, Kamboulay, Jambalasie Dance and Strike Squad.
This release is pressed on 180-gram virgin vinyl and contains an additional 45RPM single. Everything is housed in a deluxe gatefold sleeve with 20-page booklet (8.2” x 8.2”) with extensive liner notes by Lancelot's daughter, Niasha Layne-Forde, and Christopher Laird. Cover and booklet artwork were created by famous Scottish painter, Peter Doig, one of the most renowned living figurative painters who settled in Trinidad since 2002.

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Group Doueh & Cheveu

Dakhla Sahara Sessions

18,99 €*

Release: 2017 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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7" | 2017 | EU | Original (Afro7)

Loi Tok Tok Eboma

Chakacha / Mungwana

12,99 €*

LP+CD | 2017 | EU | Original (Schema)

Release: 2017 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Loi Toki Tok band started out as a nondescript musical group. But irrefutably, the band’s star scaled the heights and shone brightly on the early 1970s Kenyan capital, Nairobi’s burgeoning live music circuit. And basking on the top of the pops charts, was vocalist/multi-instrumentalist Leon Kabasela aka Kalle. He also doubled as band’s composer and songwriter – earning credits for among other tracks, this mellow ‘ballad’ aptly titled Mungwana – loosely translated in Swahili, is descriptive of a selfless and conscientious gentleman. Kalle is one of handful surviving remnants of the band, whose lifespan was somewhat short-lived. It lasted barely three years – circa 1971 to mid-1973. Mungwana’s lyrics, sang in Congolese lingala dialect, mirror his roots and musical dream, which lured the youthful artiste during late 1960s to pack bags, and desert the rural fringes of Lubumbashi – then Zaire’s second largest city. On the 45 single flipside is a soulful, funky hit Chakacha – a seemingly timeless afro-soul flavoured cut. Its catchy and hypnotic lyrical refrains, easily grow on the listeners. The vocals of the band’s one-time frontman, singer Kasim Combo, ooze with an unmistakable tinge of late 1960s to early 70s American soul rhythms, propelled onto the global showbiz spotlight by US pop stars Otis Redding, James Brown and Jimi Hendrix. Their popular hits gained massive, almost staple airplay on Kenya’s then sole broadcaster’s twin national radio stations. The fact that this record was pressed on an obscure Athi River label, is perhaps symbolic of Loi Toki Tok’s last band phase – shifting base from Club Arcadia in the heart of Nairobi, to the Small World Club in Athi River – an equally nondescript urban town, tucked away along the Mombasa highway.

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Gino Conte

Nell’Anno Della Luna

10" | 2017 | EU | Original (Schema)

Release: 2017 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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A deep mystery surrounds the movie “Nell’anno della Luna” (In the year of the Moon) and its soundtrack, which was released one year later. A beautiful work that lingers in between swing and melodies, in a fad that was popular a few decades earlier, complemented by some elements of novelty borrowed from beat and rock. The title track, “Alla brasiliana” and “Samba Querida” sound more traditional, while titles like “Afro Swing”, “Underground”, “Beatmania” (all featuring the vocal ensemble I 4+4, led by Nora Orlandi) represent a more adventurous side of this soundtrack.

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The Afro Soul Prophecy

The Devil Made Me Do It

13,99 €*

Daddy’s Groove / Let me Be Your Lover

Release: 2017 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Inspired by the music of Fela Kuti and his Africa 70 project feat. drummer Tony Allenl, “The Devil Made Me Do It” is pure downtempo afro beat in its original version; the first remix here included, the “Invisible Cosmic Echoes”, has a slower pace and is characterized - as the title suggests - by reverberations and space sound, while the “Invisible Astral Wave” is perfect for a DJ remix and has got a slightly accelerated pace, with an emphasis on the percussive / tribal element.

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The Afro Soul Prophecy

7" | 2017 | EU | Original (Schema)

9,99 €*

Red Light District / The Game Of Love

Release: 2017 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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The Afro Soul Prophecy project welcomes the Spring of 2017 with a series of two exclusive 7-inch records, for a total of four fully instrumental new compositions. This second 45rpm of the series consists of the main track “Daddy’s Groove”, a catchy funky song with wah-wah guitars and a long middle sax solo part, paired with the romantic slow-paced “Let Me Be Your Lover”. Once again Alex Puddu has lent his creativity and put his music signature on these tracks, for an exciting and charming result!

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The Afro Soul Prophecy

7" | 2017 | EU | Original (Schema)

9,99 €*

LP | 2017 | US | Original (Awesome Tapes From Africa)

Release: 2017 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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The Afro Soul Prophecy project welcomes the Spring of 2017 with a series of two exclusive 7-inch records, for a total of four fully instrumental new compositions. This first 45rpm consist consists of the main track “Red Light District”, a rare groovy funk effort tinged with catchy brass melodies, backed with the slower, mellow and sensual “The Game of Love” – yes, the title says it all! Once again Alex Puddu has lent his creativity and put his music signature on these tracks, for an exciting and charming result!

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Umoja

707

15,99 €*

Mogoya White Vinyl Edition

Release: 2017 / US – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Originally recorded in the 1980's in South Africa the release is a cosmic blend of disco, soul and pop. Umoja were one of the key figures in a genre which has since become known as 'Bubblegum Music' with the group recording their music during the violent era of apartheid in Africa.

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Oumou Sangare

LP | 2017 | EU | Original (No Format)

Release: 2017 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Fela Ransome-Kuti & The Highlife Rakers

Fela's Special

7" | 2017 | EU | Original (Soundway)

7" | 2017 | US | Original (Cultures Of Soul)

Release: 2017 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Soundway Records presents Fela's Special 7" single, the first recorded tracks from the great Fela Kuti.
This item usually comes with the extensive Highlife On The Move 3xLP compilation, but due to an accidental over-pressing we have a small number of these 45’s for sale individually.
Very limited stock available.

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The Apostles

Banko Woman

LP | 2017 | US | Original (Musique Plastique)

Release: 2017 / US – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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For over forty years, the Apostles of Aba have stood as the jewel in the crown of the music scene in Eastern Nigeria. Since their formation in 1973, the band has turned out memorable performances in a variety of styles including rock, soul, funk, pop and
reggae. Even today, the Apostles continue to thrill audiences in their hometown of Aba with dazzling shows. Cultures of Soul is proud to present one of the Apostles’ more obscure—yet relentlessly funky recordings in a full-color custom reverse board jacket. Banko
Woman, originally released on the eponymous LP on Love Day Records in 1977. Straddling the world realms of afro-funk and disco, the track has long been a coveted dance floor filler amongst DJs, and for the first time is available for a wider audience. On the B-side is “Faith, Luck & Music,” also from the original Banko Woman album.

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Pedro (Peter Mekwunye)

One Kind Of Love

16,79 €* 27,99 € -40%

The Invasive Dance Beat Of Cameroon 1976-1984

Release: 2017 / US – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Peter Mekwunye, who had moved from Nigeria to the United States, self-released 'One Kind Of Love' as a small run cassette in 1993 under the moniker Pedro. His songs were influenced by traditional Nigerian music, as well as the popular tunes he heard on the radio while growing up, f.i. by Fela Kuti and William Onyeabor. Now 'One Kind Of Love' is available on vinyl for the first time ever.

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Pop Makossa

2LP | 2017 | EU | Original (Analog Africa)

34,99 €*

Harmonies DJ Friendly Edition

Release: 2017 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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An explosive
compilation highlighting the era when funk and disco sounds
began to infiltrate Cameroon's Makossa style. The beat that
holds everything together originate's from the Sawa people's
rhythms. When these rhythms collided with merengue, high-life,
Congolese rumba, and, later, funk and disco, modern Makossa was
born. Makossa, the beat that long before football, managed to
unify the whole of Cameroon. Some of the greatest Makossa hits
incorporated the electrifying guitars and tight grooves of
funk, while others were laced with cosmic synth flourishes.
However, most of this music's vibe came down to the bass, and
'Pop Makossa' demonstrates why many Cameroonian bass players
are among the most revered in the world.

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Lord Echo

2LP | 2017 | EU | Original (Soundway)

2LP | 2017 | Original (World Circuit)

Release: 2017 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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DJ friendly 2xLP version, cut loud for your pleasure!

Harmonies is the new long player from underground super-producer Lord Echo. Hotly anticipated for the last few years by his growing entourage of fans, many were frustrated by his descent into obscurity in the industrial backwaters of New Zealand where he lived alone and went completely insane trying to complete the record. But those frustrations are finally at an end, and the wait was worth it - for fans at least.The new album solidifies his already distinctive mutations of reggae and rock steady with disco, African soul, techno and spiritual jazz. In other words, the Lord has returned from the wilderness with a bounty for his followers. Eat of the bread of life and enjoy access to his crazy World of Sound.

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Ruben Gonzalez

Introducing…

37,99 €*

Release: 2017 / Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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LP | 2017 | CH | Original (Les Disques Bongo Joe)

Damily

Very Aomby

Sound Species & Ache Meyi

Release: 2017 / CH – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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New, furiously exhilarating Tsapiky music from the south-west of Madagascar, beside the Mozambique Channel.
A rough, electric, rural take on the classic Congolese, Kenyan and Mozambican urban dancefloor styles of the 60s and 70s — hyper-fast interplay between pumping bass and clattering drums, overlaid with cranked-up high-life guitar — nourished with the musical traditions of local villages, especially in the singing and other passages of acoustic respite.
Ace.

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2LP | 2017 | EU | Original (Manana)

Release: 2017 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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LP | 2017 | EU | Original (Hot Casa)

King Bucknor Jr

African Woman

LP | 2017 | US | Original (Comb & Razor Sound)

Release: 2017 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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A fantastic afro-beat album from a Fela Anikulapo Kuti disciple and Kalakuta Republic member. A sublime spiritual and political session recorded in 1979 at the Emi studio in Lagos (Nigeria). Arranged and self-produced, this second Kingsley Bucknor‘s album, hopelessly obscure and impossible to find ranks alongside the best afro-beat album in history!
At the age of 19, King Bucknor Jr, also known as the Black Isaiah of Africa, released his second album backed by a 16 band members called “The Afrodisk” and 10 background singers .
Two long and hypnotic grooves with all the afro -beat ingredients, fluid and complex drums patterns, strong horns, female voices on chorus, strong lyrics, beautiful keys and horns solos .
Essential for all the afro collectors and music lovers.

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Shango Dance Band

LP | 2017 | EU | Original (Soundway)

Release: 2017 / US – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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In the early years of Fela Kuti's career, well before he would define the genre of afrobeat, and leave an indelible mark on the musical landscape, he was a struggling trumpet player, seeking to redefine the sound of his current group, the art-jazz ensemble Fela Ransome-Kuti Quintet. As he moved his group towards the then-popular genre of highlife in 1963, he lost his bassist in the move towards commercial success, but gained the company of Ojo Okeji, who had a sterling reputation both as a bassist and
percussionist in groups like Lagos Cool Cats, Rex Williams' Nigerian Artistes, and Western Toppers Highlife Band, a favorite of Kuti's. Okeji impressed Kuti with his deft jazziness on the bass, so he was in on the spot, and the Fela Ransome-Kuti Quintet became Koola Lobitos. It was Okeji that introduced Kuti to the famed percussionist Tony Allen, (Who would subsequently join Kuti into his greatest years as an artist) as well as conguero Abayomi "Easy" Adio. During his time in Koola Lobitos, Okeji not only contributed deeply melodic, and adeptly rhythmic baselines, but brought his own influence from emerging US soul artists like James Brown & The Famous Flames and Wilson Pickett, heavily pushing Koola Lobitos towards a more soulful direction. This push was often resisted by Kuti, who frequently clashed with Okeji. 1968 proved to be a turning point for the group, as the Nigerian Civil War broke out, and many starving musicians turned to the military for work. Okeji and Adio would leave for the army, while Kuti and Allen kept Koola Lobitos going, where it evolved through different names and iterations and grew into the worldwide afrobeat force that made Kuti an icon during the 70s and 80s. But as Kuti and Allen rose to global recognition, Okeji and Adio would form a new band within the ranks of the 6th Infantry Brigade of the Nigerian Army. Their emblazoned blue jackets earned them the nickname "The Blues”, but Okeji preferred the name “Shango” after the Yoruba thunder god. Shango took the fundamentals of Kuti's famous afrobeat and brought new layers of guitar and horn arrangements, while often invoking supernatural aesthetics, and maintaining a love for the US soul artists that influenced Okeji so much. Because Shango was an army band however, their records were not readily available to anyone outside of the military so their music, including their eponymous 1974 LP, remained relatively unknown even amongst the people of Nigeria. Decades later Comb & Razor is thrilled to present this long-lost Nigerian gem for the first time to a world-wide audience.

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The Movers

Kansas City

15,99 €* 19,99 € -20%

On Se Pousse Yoruba Soul Remixes

Release: 2017 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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An extremely rare and in-demand record from the disco-funk group has been unearthed and restored. The Movers enjoyed huge success in the 1970s, releasing album after album of ground-breaking sounds, including fusions of South African marabi jazz, funk, disco and jive. The line up of the band shifted throughout its existence - however this particular album produced by David Thekwane features musicians Jabu Sibumbe, L Rhikoti, Lloyd Lelosa and Sankie Chounyane.

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Vaudou Game

12" | 2017 | EU | Original (Hot Casa)

16,99 €*

Afro Latin Vintage Orchestra

Release: 2017 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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A 12inch single from the incredible French Afro Funk band including remixes by the one and only Osunlade under the collective name of Yoruba Soul!
Since their first acclaimed album Apiafo and its irresistible single “Pas contente”, these Lyon (France) natives never turned down the heat over 160 stages across Europe, Africa, Canada, Japan... Peter Solo has displayed his amulets, voodoo chants and charisma around the globe. When it came time for them to harness their Afro Soul sound for the second time, they turned their attention once again to their analog strengths. On the road Peter Solo and Osunlade met and could share their musical visions. It was obvious that this two will share their spiritual music experiences.
Kidayu is the name of the second opus which means “sharing”: it’s exactly what those versions of “On se pousse” are about: a true futuristic Hi-life, a great meeting of two ardent defenders of the Afro Soul sounds ! Limited press, mastered by Carvery.

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Morpheus

LP | 2017 | EU | Original (Officehome)

15,99 €*

Issue No. 1 - Benga Music (A Signature Genre From Kenya)

Release: 2017 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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After two hip-hop albums (Got To Get Down in 2016 and Impact in 2017), the unpredictable Afro Latin Vintage Orchestra comes back to its fundamentals with a new instrumental album: MORPHEUS which repositions the band in the spirit of their previous spatial, almost cosmic albums Last Odyssey (2012) and Pulsion (2015), both released on Ubiquity Records and acclaimed by spiritual and fusion jazz lovers, library music fans, as well as rare grooves diggers (ALVO’s first 4 vinyl albums now being out of stock).
Each new ALVO new release is a millesimal which evolved and learned from its predecessors. Masta Conga, who’s still leading the herd, has for main purpose to explore the musical space-time, gaining ground on never before revealed tracks, followed by his now faithful team of atypical and farseeing musicians.
Compared to Miles Davis and his On The Corner by Wax Poetics, the band dives again in this “realm of psychedelia and beyond”, in particular with the contribution of Indian musicians. Twirling around violins, superimposed patchy keyboards and effects, just as if their conductor wasn’t already sufficiently influenced by Pierre Boulez and others such as Hiroshi Murakami…
The result is however more uncluttered and loaded with multiple vibes than its predecessor Pulsion, which already carried the ceremonial characteristics of cult movie soundtracks. Tracks “Moksha”, “Air” and “Morpheus” are the perfect demonstration, and far beyond their names. Simple grooves, lunar, but terribly efficient, emphasized by a mix that puts focus on these fiddly contributions of ethnic instruments, on percussions and horns on a drip of delay, reverbs and other space-echoes.
On the other side, the very rhythmic “Descarga Uno”, “Descarga Dos” and “Super Dopamine” show that the Parisian crew hasn’t lost its good habit to look around latin, ternary, and syncopated rhythms, in the ALVO only style!
A new millésime, a Grand Cru maybe, but for sure to taste and appreciate in all weathers including space ones.

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FLEE

LP | 2017 | EU | Original (FLEE)

34,99 €*

LP | 2017 | UK | Original (Africa Seven)

Release: 2017 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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6 rare and almost forgotten benga tracks from Kenya including edits by Nik Weston, Jaakko Eino Kalevi and Africaine 808!

Inculding a 16 page printed silkscreen magazine!

FLEE is a collective of dedicated afro-diggers, driven by the enthusiasm to find and preserve semi-forgotten genres. For their first release they focused on an old Kenyan music genre called “Benga”. The record will be completed by a printed silkscreen magazine retracing the history of the genre, which will feature original archive pictures, great authors from the region, such as Emmanuel Mwenda, as well as the writer and singer of the eclectic Kenyan Band, Yellow Light Machine, Ondiso Madete. This vinyl compiles six rare and for some unreleased benga tracks, edited by contemporary artists (Nik Weston aka Mukat, Jaakko Eino Kalevi and Africaine 808), with the aim of approaching this genre with an innovative perspective, transcending simple nostalgia.

Only 200 copies of this first issue!

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Sorry Bamba

Du Mali

Inye Deluxe Vinyl Edition

Release: 2017 / UK – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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One of the most pivotal figures in the history of Malian music is Sorry Bamba. His work spans five decades and his music bridges the gap between Mali's cultural traditions and new the music which arose from the musical cross overs which occurred in Mali's post-Colonial period. Bamba was born in 1938 in Mopti. This is dissected by both the Niger and Bani rivers and known for its rich cultural diversity. Bamba's father was a distinguished veteran of Emperor Samory Toure's military and a nobleman in Malian society; however, this meant young Sorry was forbidden to make music, as under the nation's caste system, music was an art form reserved for the Griots.

At the age of 10, Sorry's parents died and in traumatic times that followed the young teen found solace in music. He first taught himself to play am African six-holed flute. As he progressed he began to absorbed the rich tapestry of music of his surroundings; traditional Malian music, highlife from Ghana, local accordion master Toumani Toure, European singers and musicians. In 1957 Sorry formed his first band, Group Goumbe, named after a popular Ivory Coast dance style. In 1960 Mali gained independence from France, Bamba and his group benefited from a new openness toward local music on the state-run radio network Radio Mali. Sorry then went on to form two award-winning, further collectives Bani Jazz and later the Kanaga Orchestra. They fused Latin jazz, Western R&B, Psychedelic and funk, and traditional Malian styles made them a favourite in Mali and beyond.

In 1977 Sorry produced his second LP for the Paris based Sonafric group. Long out of print Africa Seven is pleased to be re-issuing the LP. The re-issue benefits from extensive restoration and re-mastering to a spectral analysis level, bringing and polishing long lost and distorted sounds.

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Itadi

LP | 2017 | EU | Original (Hot Casa)

Africa Is The Future Black Vinyl Edition

Release: 2017 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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This deluxe LP contains also two unreleased tracks, interview, and photos and was fully licensed with his family. Afro funk and Political Soul from Togo. Recorded in the beginning of the 80's and self-produced by Itadi in 1983 , this obscure album contained deep soul and controversial rare grooves backed by the 5 band members called the “Afro Funk Band de Lomé”. Itadi's music is unique, in his second album, he kept the same recipe: a mixture of soul, reggae, hi-life and Funk, with heavy lyrics which sounds like slogans and caused him big trouble after its release. He was obliged to escape the country to USA. A real definition of a revolutionary musician. Remastered by Frank Merritt at Carvery Studio.

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Kologbo

LP | 2017 | EU | Original (Paris DJs)

LP | 2017 | EU | Original (Awesome Tapes From Africa)

Release: 2017 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Limited black vinyl edition of 250 copies only!

Guitar legend Oghene Kologbo was born in Warri, Nigeria in 1957. His father was the well-known highlife musician Joe King Kologbo. When Kologbo was a teenager, he began performing with the revolutionary Afrobeat master Fela Kuti. Kologbo went on to record more than 50 sides with Africa 70. He played the hypnotic tenor guitar lines, but often recorded bass and rhythm guitar too. Kologbo was Fela's personal assistant and "tape recorder". That is, it was his job to remember the melodies Fela would sing to him late at night, then teach them to the band at rehearsal the next day. In 1978, after a show at the Berlin Jazz Festival, Kologbo left the band (along with Tony Allen and a few others) and stayed in Berlin.

In the 1980s and 1990s, Kologbo worked with the legendary but short-lived Roots Anabo. He also toured and recorded with King Sunny Ade, Tony Allen, and Brenda Fosse, among others. In 2005, Kologbo began working with the Afrobeat Academy, Berlin's heaviest afrobeat ensemble — which later on morphed into Ebo Taylor's and then Pat Thomas' backing bands — and released together in 2007 the album "Remember Fela Kuti". In 2008 he moved to France to join Tony Allen's on tenor guitar. After nearly a year playing and teaching Afrobeat in Brazil, Kologbo came back to France to work on his new record, "Africa is the Future", produced by Loik Dury and Grant Phabao from the Paris DJs label/mediae.

"Africa Is The Future" is a true collective effort, with many guests gathering forces on the project: Tony Allen, playing drums on 5 tracks out of 8 (Nigeria/France), singer Pat Thomas (Ghana), deejay Joseph Cotton (Jamaica), singer Ayo (Nigeria/Germany), horn players from the Afrobeat Academy (Germany) or from Les Frères Smith (France), members of Antibalas (USA), Newen Afrobeat (Chile), etc. This is afrobeat from the 21st century at its purest, blending the originators and the descendants together!

This limited edition vinyl comes in a beautiful gatefold cover.

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Professor Rhythm

Bafana Bafana

Release: 2017 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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First time on vinyl.
Key producer of early South African house music and kwaito Professor Rhythm is
the production moniker of South African music man Thami Mdluli. Throughout the
1980's, Mdluli was member of chart-topping groups Taboo and CJB, playing
bubblegum pop to stadiums. Mdluli became an in-demand producer for influential
artists (like Sox and Sensations, among many others) and in-house producer for
important record companies like Eric Frisch and Tusk. During the early '80s, Mdluli
projects usually featured an instrumental dance track. These hot instrumentals
became rather popular. Fans demanded to hear more of these backing tracks
without vocals, he says, so Mdluli began to make solo instrumental albums in 1985
as Professor Rhythm. He got the name before the recordings began, from fans, and
positive momentum from audiences and other musicians drove him to invest
himself in a full-on solo project. It was the era just before the end of apartheid and
house music hadn't taken over yet. There wasn't instrumental electronic music yet
in South Afric a. As the '80s came to a close, that was about to change. Professor
Rhythm productions mirror the evolution of dance music in South Africa. They
grew out of the bubblegum mold - which itself stems from band's channeling
influences like Kool & the Gang and the Commodores - into something based on
music for the club. His early instrumental recordings First Time Around and
Professor 3 mostly distilled R&B, mbaqanga and bubblegum grooves into vocal-less
pieces for the dance floor. Musically, these were a success and commercially the
albums all went gold. There were countless bubblegum albums flooding the
marketplace, with nearly disposable vocalists backed by mostly similar-sounding
rhythm tracks. Most of the lyrical content was light and apolitical. But the
keyboards used formed the musical basis for what would come next. By the time
Professor 4 and this recording Bafana Bafana - the name references South Africa's
national soccer team - were released in the mid-1990s, k waito had fully emerged.
Access to instruments and freedom of expression helped its rise in influence
among youth. According to Mdluli, "Once Mandela was released from prison and
people felt more free to express themselves and move around town, kwaito was
becoming the thing." Lyrically, kwaito championed the local township lingo while
adapting "international music," house music, into the local context. "International
Music," as house music and early kwaito were interchangeably known, in many
ways reflects the sounds coming from America. But South Africans made it their
own. Today, the largest part of the music industry is occupied by house music and
its relatives.

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LP | 2017 | EU | Original (Aziza)

Murder By Contract

21,99 €*

Release: 2017 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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his LP explores the vast archives of African popular music, leading to an explosive selection of cuts that blend genres s.a. soul, jerk, psych, beat, garage and more. All cuts are reissued here for the first time.

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The Original Sound Of Burkina Faso

2LP | 2017 | EU | Original (Mr Bongo)

Baba Commandant & The Mandingo Band

Release: 2017 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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‘The Original Sound of Burkina Faso’ follows the hugely successful ‘The Original Sound of Mali’ compilation released in March this year, also on Mr Bongo. Here we have a collection of songs that pay tribute to a truly golden age of music; touching on folk, funk, blues, highlife, disco, psyche, latin, rock and soul.
Burkina Faso may be one of the least well-known parts of West Africa but it has a deep history and musical pedigree. A few years before President Thomas Sankara changed his country’s name from Upper Volta to its current one, a new sound emerged to soundtrack a cultural revolution.
Featuring music by Abdoulaye Cissé, Amadou Balaké, Pierre Sandwidi & Super Volta, Tidiani Coulibaly & Dafra Star, Bozambo, Youssouf Diarra and more. Including a booklet with extensive liner notes and photography.
Compiled by David ‘Mr Bongo’ Buttle and Florent Mazzoleni.

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Wasso

12" | 2017 | EU | Original (Mawimbi)

The Source (Special Edition)

Release: 2017 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Interviews from Kenya about an “Economic Partnership Agreement” (EPA) mark the core of ten compositions by Sven Kacirek and Daniel Mburu Muhuni. They have spoken to dozens of people who might be affected by the planned free trade agreement between the EU and the African Pacific Countries. While EPA is being negotiated mainly outside of the limelight of international attention, this album of musical oral histories is an approach to shed a critical light onto the complex circumstances and inhumane side effects of global trade.
The spoken words are the vocals of the tracks. The artists have left the rhythm and tonality of the voices untouched, and the statements have simply been collaged into subthemes. Subsequently, Kacirek and Muhuni have dubbed the voices with their instruments: mallets, piano, percussion, synthesizer, and many more. The result is nothing less than a mesmerizing stream of consciousness. It sometimes reminds of sound collages by The Books, of Steve Reich’s “Different Trains” or of Jan Jelinek’s repetitive soundscapes. “Economic Partnership Agreement” can be listened to as an audio play or musical documentary as a whole while individual tracks such as “The Weather Has Changed So Much” stand out as single hits. Sven Kacirek has played and collaborated with Shabaka Hutchings, John McEntire, Nils Frahm, Sofia Jernberg and Stefan Schneider among others. He has travelled to Kenya many times, always on the quest for musical inspiration and collaborations. The most famous result are his “Kenya Sessions” (Pingipung 2011) as well as “Mukunguni” and “Rang’ala” (Honest Jons 2013/14). Daniel Mburu Muhuni is a percussionist from Nairobi who took part in the BLNRB project conducted by the Teichmann Brothers in 2012.
With this new album, the two artists focus on an intercultural exchange which aims at more than beautiful music: Unveiling voices about global trade from a Kenyan perspective. Five music videos will be published ahead of the release date
in which the interviewed guests are featured. This album shall be available for free on Bandcamp. Additionally, a limited vinyl LP edition of 200 hand numbered copies will be released. It comes in a luxurious gatefold cover with a 30 page booklet with all lyrics and more information on the EPA process and the people involved in this record.

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Ali Farka Toure

2LP | 2017 | EU | Original (World Circuit)

Heavenly Sweetness presents

Release: 2017 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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The third international release by the legendary Malian singer and guitarist is many fan’s favourite. ‘The Source’ established Ali Farka Touré on the international stage and paved the way for his legendary collaboration with Ry Cooder on the GRAMMY award winning album ‘Talking Timbuktu’.
Available for the first time on vinyl, the album has been re-mixed from the original master tapes and includes a previously unreleased track from the same sessions. The album is presented in a gatefold sleeve containing double 180g vinyl and large format 28 page booklet with lyrics.
‘The Source’ features Farka Touré’s first recordings with his home town band Group Asco, with vocalist Afel Bocoum and percussionists Hamma Sankare (calabash)
and Oumar Touré (congas). Touré’s trademark acoustic and electric guitar (as well his njarka violin) playing are highlighted on some of his best loved and most sophisticated compositions.
The father of the desert blues unleashes a set of driving small group performances, intimate love songs, mesmerising guitar solos and two unique duets with the great American bluesman Taj Mahal.

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2007-2017 – 10 Years Of Transcendent Music

2LP | 2017 | EU | Original (Heavenly Sweetness)

Release: 2017 / EU – Original

Genre: Hip Hop, Organic Grooves

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Limited edition vinyl!

Transcendent : “Surpassing the ordinary; exceptional”
2007 - 2017 : Heavenly Sweetness is turning 10 years old!
They are celebrating with 3 birthday parties, and 2 compilations! One is a best of the label’s production, and the 2nd one is made of exclusive tracks, composed for this occasion.
This compilation is a very subjective best of the label’s production, from each album or single we had the chance to produce, with great artists.
A journey through 10 years of music, a great introduction to the label’s universe, but even the experts will discover unknown tracks.
Including well known artists such as Guts, Blundetto, Sly Johnson, Anthony Joseph, but also more confidential artists: Robert Aaron, Jacaranda Muse, Patchworks (and his tribute to Gil Scott-Heron) and many others!

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Welcome To Zamrock Volume 2

2LP | 2017 | US | Reissue (Now-Again)

35,99 €*

Havana Meets Kingston Part 2

Release: 2017 / US – Reissue

Genre: Organic Grooves

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By the mid-1970s, the Southern African nation known as the Republic of Zambia had fallen on hard times. Though the country’s first president Kenneth Kaunda had thrown off the yoke of British colonialism, the new federation found itself under his self-imposed, autocratic rule. Conflict loomed on all sides of this landlocked nation. Kaunda protected Zambia from war, but his country descended into isolation and poverty. This is the environment in which the ’70s rock revolution that has come to be known as Zamrock flourished. Fuzz guitars were commonplace, as were driving rhythms as influenced by James Brown’s funk as Jimi Hendrix’s rock predominated. Musical themes, mainly sung in the country’s constitutional language, English, were often bleak. In present day Zambia, Zamrock markers were few. Only a small number of the original Zamrock godfathers that remained in the country survived through the late ’90s. Aids decimated this country, and uncontrollable inflation forced the Zambian rockers that could afford to flee into something resembling exile. This was not a likely scene to survive - but it did. Welcome To Zamrock!, presented in two volumes, is an overview of its most beloved ensembles, and a trace of its arc from its ascension, to its fall, to its resurgence.

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Mista Savona Pres. V.A.

2LP | 2017 | EU | Reissue (Baco)

39,99 €*

Release: 2017 / EU – Reissue

Genre: Organic Grooves

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The Rough Guide To The Music Of West Africa

LP | 2017 | UK | Original (World Music Network)

17,99 €*

Release: 2017 / UK – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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LP | 2017 | US | Reissue (New West)

Secret Sisters

You Don't Own Me Anymore

27,99 €*

Release: 2017 / US – Reissue

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Republicafrobeat.Mujeres

LP | 2017 | Original

Release: 2017 / Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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LP | 2017 | US | Original (Glass Mountain)

Tori Sparks

La Huerta

Release: 2017 / US – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Sélection Des Musiques Traditionnelles d’Afrique

Luca Garino

Tape | 2017 | IT | Original (Details Sound)

Release: 2017 / IT – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves, Rock & Indie

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Used Vinyl

Medium: VG, Cover: VG+

LP | 2017 | EU | Original (Sunday Best)

Ben Ottewell

A Man Apart

Release: 2017 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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LP | 2017 | BE | Reissue (Crammed Discs)

Zazou, Bikaye and CY1

Noir Et Blanc

17,99 €*

Release: 2017 / BE – Reissue

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Used Vinyl

Medium: VG+, Cover: VG+

2LP | 2017 | EU | Original (Network)

Desert Blues

27,99 €*

Release: 2017 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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The Original Sound Of Mali

2LP | 2017 | UK | Original (Mr Bongo)

Harpoonist & The Axe Murderer

Release: 2017 / UK – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves, Rock & Indie

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Used Vinyl

Medium: Near Mint, Cover: Near Mint

Still in shrink, but opened, with hype sticker

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Apocalipstick

LP | 2017 | EU | Original (Tonic)

Release: 2017 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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LP | 2018 | EU | Original (No Format)

Toto Bona Lokua

Bondeko

Release: 2018 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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War Room / Into The Thick

Black Market Brass

7" | 2018 | US | Original (Colemine)

LP | 2018 | EU | Original (Heavenly Sweetness)

Release: 2018 / US – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Hailing from Minneapolis, MN, Black Market Brass is a 10-piece group performing their own brand of originally composed Afrobeat/Afrofunk music, as well as completing authentic renditions of the classic 1970's West African sound. Taking their cues from the godfathers, the band draws on complex polyrhythmic percussion, driving bass lines, dizzying guitar interplay, rolling keyboards, and room-commanding brass. The result? An eclectic blend of cool deep funk and driving Afrobeat grooves that will lure you to the dance floor and never let you leave.

"War Room" and "The Thick" represent the group's continuing evolving sound. Tracked with Leroi Conroy at Colemine Records HQ in Loveland, OH, these tunes simply burn!

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Edmony Krater

An Ka Sonjé

16,99 €*

Release: 2018 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Following the reissue of his cult album “Ti jan pou vélo”, Heavenly Sweetness decided to continue the collaboration with Edmony Krater and record a new album! The first one in 30 years! As an avant-gardist percussionist, singer and trumpet player, Edmony Krater has always worked to develop and promote the Gwoka music of Guadeloupe and to feed it with different influences, from Jazz to Reggae.

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Gumba Fire: Bubblegum Soul & Synth Boogie In 1980s South Africa

3LP | 2018 | EU | Original (Soundway)

24,99 €*

LP | 2018 | US | Original (Awesome Tapes From Africa)

Release: 2018 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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In 1980s black South Africa a local form of pop music evolved as the disco boom died down and slowly mutated. It was often ubiquitously described as Bubblegum - usually stripped-down and lo-fi with a predominance of synths, keyboards and drum-machines and overlaid with the kind of deeply soulful trademark vocals and harmonies that South African music is famous for.
Compilers Miles Cleret (Soundway) and DJ Okapi (Afrosynth Records) present a selection of 18 rare, handpicked 1980s cuts that highlight the period that nestles in between the ‘70s (where American-influenced jazz, funk and soul bumped shoulders with local Mbaqanga) and the ‘90s when Kwaito and eventually house-music ruled the dancefloors of urban South Africa.
Alongside French-Caribbean Zouk this kind of music has slowly been making its way into the DJ sets of many of the most open minded selectors around the world. This compilation is in many ways a sister release to the hugely popular compilation of Nigerian boogie and disco that Soundway released in late 2016 : “Doing it In Lagos: Boogie, Pop & Disco in 1980s Nigeria”.
The album takes its name from the band Ashiko’s track of the same name Gumba Fire that features on the compilation. The term is derived from gumba gumba, the term given to the booming speakers of the old spacegram radios that
broadcast music into South Africa’s townships and villages. The phrase later evolved into Gumba Fire to refer to a hot party. Put this record on and feel the heat!

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Hailu Mergia

Lala Belu

Release: 2018 / US – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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12" | 2018 | EU | Original (Secousse)

Jule Henri Malaki

Makiyaj / Tes Idees

12,99 €*

Moton Records Inc Presents

Release: 2018 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Following the success of the Retro-Zouk mixtapes series (4 volumes / 15k plays on Soundcloud), Secousse Radio proudly presents its first official vinyl reissue of a long lost Zouk banger.
Originally released in 1993-1994, those two tracks have been road-tested in various clubs and parties for months and the feedback is clear: it’s dancefloor devastation business.
Their author is Jules Henri Malaki, an established and self-produced artist from Guadeloupe, a French overseas island in the Southern Caribbean Sea.
As the popularity of Zouk music keeps growing every day in Europe, America and Asia, just whisper the name “Makiyaj” to any of the best DJs from the current tropical diggers scene and watch their eyes scintillate… This secret weapon shall not remain secret very long.

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Morning Shunt

12" | 2018 | EU | Original (Moton)

13,99 €*

2LP | 2018 | US | Reissue (Thrill Jockey)

Release: 2018 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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The next MOTON release comprises of three tracks carefully selected by Love Vinyl's Jake Holloway.
Jake co-owns the second hand department in the store with The Mighty Zaf. He also is a graphic designer working for one of the world's most prestigious labels Barely Breaking Even/BBE Jake DJs in around London with regular sets at Brilliant Corners, Spiritland, Servant Jazz Quarters and will be playing at The Southern Soul Festival this summer in Montenegro.
When label bosses Dave Jarvis and Diesel asked Jake to choose the tracks for the release he soon got to work and come up with these three under the radar gems...
"Morning Shunt" is a ferocious Afro/Disco/Reggae uptempo dancefloor bomb, hailing from London this fantastic genre crossing tune was ripe for an edit.
"Jaques Theme" is another off-radar Carib-Disco banger which will appeal to both the Disco and Balearic heads.
"The Bandit" with it's tuff breaks and Spanish guitar will also appeal to the Balearic fraternity as well as the B-Boys.
So three tracks, all of which fall into differing genres making this a very different and varied sounding release!

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Sidi Toure

Toubalbero

33,99 €*

Release: 2018 / US – Reissue

Genre: Organic Grooves

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LP | 2018 | EU | Original (Hot Casa)

Deke Tom Dollard

Na You

23,74 €* 24,99 € -5%

LP | 2018 | EU | Original (World Circuit)

Release: 2018 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Mindblowing Afro-Soul music from Ivory Coast served up by Deke Tom Dollard, an obscure artist who only recorded two albums in 1979 and 1981 but who created an original funky fusion with Bété langage. A Selection of four amazing tracks recorded in Abidjan on two different records label called War Records and As Records.
The music here is a mixture of Funk with heavy basslines, traditional percussions, funky guitar riffs, nice horns section and lyrics in Beté. The song “Demonde” is inspired by harmonies of the famous “Dance to the Drummer Beat” by Herman Kelly.
Those two rare records were found by Afrobrazilero (aka Djamel Hammadi) and never appeared on the vinyl market. It's almost impossible to have infos about this singer and composer neither the musicians involved in the recording sessions. Most of the traces of the recording session were lost by the labels we licensed the tracks with.
Unique, pressed on a deluxe vinyl, remastered by The Carvery, this very Funky album is a must have for all the Afro Funk lovers!

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Orchestra Baobab

Tribute To Ndiouga Dieng

Release: 2018 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Lee Dodou & The Polyversal Souls

Basa Basa

7" | 2018 | EU | Original (Philophon)

12" | 2018 | EU | Original (Soundway)

Release: 2018 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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As the lead singer of George Darko's legendary Burger-Highlife hit-band, Lee Dodou became the number one voice of 80's Highlife. Born in Kumasi, the epicenter of Ghanaian Highlife, he came to Berlin in the late 70's - by then the uprising epicenter of Burger-Highlife - to work as a back-up-singer for Pat Thomas. After joining and leaving Georg Darko and running his own band "Kantata", he stopped releasing music in the early 90's. Now, Philophon is proud to present new recordings of his soulful genius to the world of 2018.
Basa Basa is a song in the classic "concert party" style, as it was played in the glorious 60's. After a firey horn introduction Lee takes over in that funny and entertaining manner typical for "concert party" music. Buzz Duncker joins Lee's phrases with some gentle clarinet. Highlife at its best!
Sahara Akwantuo is anything but a classic: it's the start of a kind of philophonic Highlife, labeled as Kraut-Life. Ghanaian love of life meets German romantic melancholy. Happy rhythms meet mysterious synth landscapes. Eternal summertime and mangos are meeting a wet winter world and roast apples. Kraut-Life at its best!

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The Mauskovic Dance Band

Down In The Basement

16,99 €*

LP | 2018 | EU | Original (Mr Bongo)

Release: 2018 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Soundway Records presents the debut EP from The Mauskovic Dance Band – a heady, tropical blend of cumbia, Afro-Caribbean rhythms and space disco, resulting in a vibrant hypnotic groove destined for bustling dancefloors.
The Mauskovic Dance Band is the brainchild of the Amsterdam-based producer and musician, Nicola Mauskovic. A seasoned drummer, he finds himself constantly in demand – as part of Turkish psychedelic outfit Altin Gün, a recent tour with the revival of Zambian legends W.I.T.C.H., and a worldwide tour with psych-pop artist Jacco Gardner, with whom he then went on to form the dance-oriented duo Bruxas (released on Dekmantel). Throughout this hectic schedule Nic still found time to begin studio experiments that would eventually lead to several 7” singles, released on Swiss label Bongo Joe Records in 2017 under the name “The Mauskovic Dance Band”.
Following this, he tapped long-time collaborators Donnie Mauskovic (vocals, keys, effects), Em Nix Mauskovic (guitar, synth, percussion), and Mano Mauskovic (bass) to make the jump from record to stage. Soon they caught the ear of fabled underground Cumbia producer Juan Hundred, who left his home on a Caribbean island to join the band on drums.
With each band member of varying heritage, the group draws inspiration from diverse genres: primarily Afro-Colombian styles such as champeta, palenque, cumbia and the picó soundsystem culture, as well as the Afro-Disco and No-Wave scenes in their current base of Amsterdam. The city’s hotbed of underground producers has also brought an electronic edge to the band, with vintage drum machines and synthesisers effortlessly melding with Afro-Latin rhythms and slick guitar riffs to create a contemporary sound rich with cultural influence.
Having toured extensively through Europe in 2017 as a staple of festival stages and clubs, The Mauskovic Dance Band continues to build exciting momentum – with appearances at Eurosonic Noorderslag 2018 and an extensive tour of the Netherlands coinciding with the launch of the EP.

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Ebo Taylor

Yen Ara

7" | 2018 | EU | Original (Philophon)

Release: 2018 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Ghanaian music legend Ebo Taylor returns with perhaps his finest album to date. But don't take our word for it. That’s coming straight from the man himself. And he should know after more than 60 years in the business. The 81-year-old composer, arranger, guitarist and vocalist has been a key figure in the evolving afro-funk sound since the Seventies, working with the likes of Apagya Show Band, CK Mann and Pat Thomas. Famously, he rubbed shoulders with Fela Kuti while studying in London in the Sixties, before going on to lead the Ghana Black Star Band (featuring Osei and Sol Amarfio from Osibisa) and later the Uhuru Dance Band back in Ghana. Like Fela, he is always pushing forward, constantly reconceptualising his sound and
attuning it for a new generation. Part teacher, part messenger. Listen to Yen Ara and you will not only hear the high-energy afrobeat, sweet highlife, jazz and konkoma influences that he’s famous for. There is also a disco pulse and hard-hitting percussive edge to the tracks, which were produced by Justin Adams (Tinariwen, Rachid Taha, Robert Plant) and recorded in the live room at Electric Monkey Studio in Amsterdam. An Ebo Taylor for these times, you might say.
His group, the Saltpond City Band, are all handpicked local musicians featuring two of his sons. An appropriate line-up on an album whose titles means “we”. And they are on fine form, ripping through tracks such as ‘Krumandey’ (a surefire party starter) and ‘Mind Your Own Business’ (a simple message delivered over a frenetic drum rhythm). Elsewhere, ‘Aboa Kyirbin’ will please fans of tough afrobeat grooves, while Taylor could well be inciting a riot at his next gig with ‘Mumudey Mumudey’, We hear him calling for ‘preshaaah’ and leading us into a call and response as the trumpet takes us higher. And the lift of those horns on ‘Ankoma'm’ evokes some of his finest work such as ‘Love & Death’ and ‘Come Along’, the latter recorded
with the Pelikans and featured on a recent Mr Bongo reissue. This album fizzes and pops with life but the best way to experience Taylor, as always, is live. Catch him on tour in Europe from March 2018.

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Jimi Tenor

Quantum Connection

10,19 €* 11,99 € -15%

Release: 2018 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Named after the tenor saxophone, actually, Jimi Tenor is not just Jimi Tenor - he's as well Jimi Keys, Jimi Flute, Jimi Vox and Jimi Composer. Yeah, he is, as a multi-instrumentalist and music master in general, all of this! But wait: Active since the mid-80's he's also Jimi Legend. And if you overlook his whole oeuvre then finally you will find out that on top of all of this he's Jimi Genius.
Quantum Connection is Jimi's contribution to the recent Kraut-Life craze of the Berlin underground. Kraut-Life is the brand-new hybrid of Ghanaian Highlife and German - here extended to Northern Europe, as Finnish kitchen is also kraut-based - romantic melancholy. A heavy and driving Highlife beat (yeah, it's not Afro-Beat), screaming psychedelic sound-fragments and a sung desire for a subatomic love affair makes the song another undoubted original by Jimi.
My Mind Will Travel (Teen Party Edit) is a heavily danceable edit of the epic eight minutes version of that piece, which you can hear on Jimi's upcoming full-length album Order Of Nothingness, released on Philophon this May. For Jimi, the physical world seems to be limited: but he is confident that his mind can dive deeply and boarder less in the mystery of our micro- and macro-cosmo.

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Yoruba! Songs & Rhythms For The Yoruba Gods In Nigeria

2LP | 2018 | UK | Original (Soul Jazz)

24,64 €* 28,99 € -15%

12" | 2018 | EU | Original (Atangana)

Release: 2018 / UK – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves, Rock & Indie

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Soul Jazz Records’ latest album ‘Yoruba! Songs and Rhythms for the Yoruba Gods in Nigeria’ is newly recorded in Lagos, Nigeria. The album is co-produced by Soul Jazz Records label head Stuart Baker and Laolu Akins (founding member of the legendary 1970s Nigerian Afro-Funk/Rock group Blo). Yoruba! features an array of local master drummers led by Olatunji Samson Sotimirin and singers (featuring the lead vocals of Janet Olufanmilayo Abe) performing heavyweight Afro-rhythms, with talking drums, Bata and Dundun drums and a mass of percussion in these deep spiritual and sacred songs used to honour and worship the traditional and ancient Yoruba gods in Nigeria, West Africa.
The enormous impact of Yoruba and West African music and culture is worldwide – from the first Afro-centric explorations of African-American jazz musicians in the 1950s such as Art Blakey, Randy Weston and Dizzy Gillespie, the explosion of Nu Yorican Latin music in New York City starting in the 1960s – Mambo, Boogaloo, Latin funk and soul - through to the sacred and powerful Afro-derived music of the religions of Santería in Cuba, Candomblé in Brazil and Voodoo in Haiti, which all came into existence on account of the Atlantic slave trade which began over 400 years ago. On a wider scale West African music remains the primary root of all African-American musical forms – from New Orleans jazz to Bronx rap, gospel, soul and more.
This album features songs honouring the Nigerian gods of the Yoruba traditional religion – Yemoja, Obatala, Ogun, Sango and others – as well as a selection of instrumental cuts focussing on the Bata and Dundun drums. The album comes complete with extensive text and photography included in the 40-page outsize booklet/gatefold double vinyl + inners showing the influence of Yoruba culture throughout the world and the social and historical context for the music contained here.

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Fedia Laguerre

Divizion

Psycheground / Polymeri (Afro-Utopia Version)

Release: 2018 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Founded in 2018 by DJ and producer Deni-Shain – the man behind acclaimed compilations Space Echo and Pop Makossa -, Atangana Records is the logical follow-up to more than 20 years of travels, constantly on the lookout for new artists and music around the world. As a “tropicalist globetrotter”, in this new project Deni-Shain, in partnership with Thomas Vicente, co-owner of the French restaurant “Le Verre Volé”, aims to dig, reproduce & transmit cross-cultural music, usually unreachable and/or less known by the public.
The goal is simple: share the love of music and to rediscover the pleasure of voicings, percussions and sadly forgotten harmonies, whether you find yourself in a jam packed club or the intimacy of your home.
Atangana’s first releases will be looking at the Caribbean’s Islands, especially into Haiti with the reissue – highly expected by various diggers – of the acclaimed single « Divizion » by singer Fedia Laguerre. Originally released in 1981, this first 12" comes with a remix by Voilaaa and an instrumental cut exclusively based on the additional work by the French afro-collective.

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Calibro 35

7" | 2018 | EU | Original (Records Kicks)

Fathili & The Yahoos / The Wings

Release: 2018 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Limited edition 45 vinyl black (500 copies worldwide)!
Only one copy per customer!
Calibro 35's new single "Psycheground" flipped by the unreleased “Polymeri (Afro-Utopia Version”) on limited edition 45 vinyl.
“Psycheground” is the new single from the Italian cinematic funk cult combo Calibro 35 available on a super limited 45 vinyl and digital download on May 04. Taken from their heavily acclaimed new album “Decade”, “Psycheground” is an afro-funk stormer that sounds like Tony Allen involved in writing a score for a vintage Hollywood production. The new single is flipped by an alternative and hypnotic afro/tropical version of “Polymeri”. Don't sleep on it, all Calibro 35's previous 45s went sold out in a few days.
Calibro 35 enjoys a worldwide reputation as one of the coolest independent band around. They have been sampled by Dr. Dre on his Compton album, Jay-Z Love Child & Damon Albarn, they shared stages with the likes of Roy Ayers, Sun Ra Arkestra, Sharon Jones, Thundercat, Headhunters and as unique musicians they've collaborated with, amongst others PJ Harvey, Mike Patton, John Parish and Stewart Copeland and Nic Cester (The Jet). Described by Rolling Stone magazine's as the most fascinating, retro-maniac and genuine thing, that happened to Italy in the last years, Calibro 35 now count on a number of aficionados worldwide which includes VIP's fans such as Dj Food (Ninja Tune), Mr Scruff and Huey Morgan (Fun Lovin' Criminals) among others.

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Mabala Part 1 / Gone With The Sun

7" | 2018 | EU | Original (Mr Bongo)

LP | 2018 | EU | Original (Afrosynth)

Release: 2018 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Fathili & The Yahoos came from Kenya. Soulful but raw, mid-tempo afro-funk. Licensed from Melodica music stores courtesy of our great friend Abdul Karim. The Wings were a Nigerian band. 'Gone With the Sun' featured on their 1974 album 'Kissing You So Hard' and fuses bluesy disco, funk and soul moods with quirky synths and effects!

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Ntombi Ndaba & Survival

Tomorrow

12" | 2018 | EU | Original (Alma Negra)

Release: 2018 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Incl. her in demand tune "Tomorrow" . Six-track anthology of South African singer Ntombi Ndaba, featuring 2 songs from 3 of her solo albums, Mina Ngiljaji (1988), Mama Nature (1989) and Why Me (1991).
Ntombi Ndaba first rose to fame in 1985 with Ntombi & Survival, becoming one of the most popular singers of the bubblegum era. After setting up the independent label Anneko with her producer A.T. ‘Rubber’ Khoza in 1988, she went solo. Following Khoza’s death in the early 1990s, Ndaba never recorded again.

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James Stewart

Cotounou EP

Grant Phabao Afrofunk Arkestra

Release: 2018 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Alma Negra Records are proud to present James Stewart, resident DJ and co-promoter of monthly night “Black Atlantic Club” at Le Sucre in Lyon, with his Cotonou EP

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LP | 2018 | EU | Original (Paris DJs)

LP | 2018 | US | Original (Now-Again)

Release: 2018 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Limited edition of 250 copies only!
Only one copy per customer!
Access to groovy, funkin', rockin', psychedelic, revolutionary (etc.) African music as we've grown to like it at Paris DJs was not for everyone before the internet age. For Paris DJs co-founder Loik, it began in the early 80s when he met with a former Fela Kuti horn player, who introduced him to Afrobeat. When Loik arrived at Radio Nova in 1986 (he was radio programmer there between 1987 and 1997), he then discovered marvels of African Music (other than Fela), through the radio's vast record collection, which soon led to the word-famous "La Sono Mondiale" concept.
At the same time, Grant Phabao, in his late teens, discovered Congolese music through friends from Zaire. He gets access to Afrobeat in the mid-90s with a Fela Kuti CD gathering the "Zombie" and "He Miss Road" albums, which long-time friend Djouls brought back from his diggin' sessions in Paris. Many friends ripped and burned that CD, for sure. Then the legendary Daktaris album happened on Desco Records in 1998, followed by the beginning of the Antibalas, the Comet Records & Strut Records compilations in 2000, and soon after Soundway Records… the rest is history but that's roughly how African Music started for us at Paris DJs.
At this point we met online with Calumbinho on the Soulseek P2P network. Such a mind-bending experience… The man was sharing hundreds of full albums, all sorted by country, and had music from every corner of 1960s/70s/80s Africa! We asked for advice, he listed 50 records to begin with! All those records, digital files, influences & experience gathered together gave birth in 2006 to a series of mixes on the Paris DJs podcast, "African Mashed Potato Popcorn", blending old and new African music from all over the world. It was an instant smash, DJs from all over the world reaching out asking us to keep on focusing on this amazing music coming from Africa (or inspired by music from Africa).
Around that time, the Paris DJs crew met with musicians from Antibalas (Martín Perna, Duke Amayo / USA), and from the Poets Of Rhythm/Karl Hector bands (Ben Abarbanel-Wolff, Jan Whitefield / Germany). They had all played with Fela Kuti's guitar player Oghene Kologbo by then. The German guys had even started a band with him, the Afrobeat Academy, releasing an album together in 2007. Little did we know that from this point on, Kologbo and African music would grow to become a very important part of our lives.
We started collaborating with Samy Ben Redjeb from Analog Africa, Miles Cleret from Soundway or Quantic from Tru Thoughts, among many others very influential record collectors, for some exclusive mixes of rare afro/latin music on the Paris DJs podcast. In 2009 we co-organized the first Ebo Taylor show in Europe, with German musicians from the Afrobeat Academy/Whitefield Brothers/Jimi Tenor crew backing him along with Kologbo. Soon we helped open the Superfly Record Store and got our hands (and ears) on many rare, original African Records. Loik started recording Kologbo's second solo album "Africa Is The Future" (featuring Tony Allen and Pat Thomas!), Grant Phabao was producing his first afrofunk tunes, and all this new music was damn funky…
Phabao went on a trip to Benin and Ghana, where he ended up hooking up with Ben Abarbanel-Wolff, who was recording with Ebo Taylor and Pat Thomas there. After a two-year period during which Grant Phabao and Djouls partnered with famous Irish-born, Paris-based producer Doctor L, and released with Cameroonian artist Franck Biyong no less than 16 digital albums and conceptual compilations, the Paris DJs label was born in 2012, with the addition of poster artist Ben Hito to the gang.
Five compilations in the "Tropical Grooves & Afrofunk International" series were released, with artists from all over the world, featuring the first tracks from the Grant Phabao Afrofunk Arkestra project, with Grant Phabao at the controls and many guests from the now global African music scene adding their own, original touch. Most of those were compiled in the "Massive Hits From the Grant Phabao Factory" LP in 2015.
It was a long read, many years of learning and sharing back, but we wanted to tell how African music slowly but surely infiltrated its way into Paris DJs' daily life, which led to the Kologbo LP being released at the end of 2017, and to this Grant Phabao Afrofunk LP to be released june 2018, featuring 20 guests among which Tony Allen, Oghene Kologbo, Sandra Nkaké, RacecaR, members of Antibalas, The Breakestra, Brownout, Fela Kuti's Egypt 80, Jungle Fire, Les Frères Smith, Ebo Taylor's Afrobeat Academy, Osemako… coming from Paris, Berlin, Lagos, Washington, Austin or Los Angeles!

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Mike Nyoni & Born Free

My Own Thing

56,99 €*

LP | 2018 | EU | Original (Mr Bongo)

Release: 2018 / US – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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The latest release in Now-Again’s deluxe Reserve Edition series: the first ever anthology of Zamrock musician Mike Nyoni’s funky, psych-rock and folkloric 1970s recordings, plus bonus tracks on DL card for WAV files.
Zambian guitarist and singer/songwriter Mike Nyoni’s music is Zamrock only because he came of age during the country’s rock revolution. His preferred wah-wah to fuzz guitar, James Brown to Jimi Hendrix. His 70s recordings – often politically charged, and ranging from despondent to exuberant – are amongst the funkiest on the African continent. He was also one of the only Zamrock musicians to see his music contemporaneously issued in Europe. This anthology collates works from his three 70s LPs – his first, with the Born Free band, and his two solo albums Kawalala and I Can’t Understand You – and presents a singular Zambian musician on par with celebrated artists Rikki Ililonga, Keith Mlevhu and Paul Ngozi. The package also features an extensive, photo-filled booklet contains an overview of the Zamrock scene and Nyoni’s story. Includes a download card to WAV files, including bonus tracks.

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Tunde Mabadu

Viva Disco

12" | 2018 | EU | Original (!K7)

Release: 2018 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Official Mr Bongo reissue of the ultra-rare Nigerian disco-boogie, ‘Viva Disco’, album from 1980. Originally released on the Afrodisia label, this one is unknown to even the most knowledgable collectors out there.
Tunde Mabadu recorded two albums in the 70’s – ‘Viva Disco’ and ‘Bisu’ as Tunde Mabadu & His Sunrise. Perfect examples of golden-era Nigerian disco & boogie, that still hold their own today.
Licensed from Tunde Mabadu and PMG.

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Red Axes

Trips #1: In Africa

12,99 €*

3LP | 2018 | EU | Original (Analog Africa)

Release: 2018 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Red Axes are very excited to present the first part of their new project called: “Trips", a multi media venture combining music, film and travelling across the globe in pursuit of extra ordinary collaborations. Niv Arzi and Dori Sadovnik are seeking to discover new grounds and sounds, and to record local musicians, indigenous instruments and present workshops for youth music schools. In March of 2017, the Israeli duo touched down in Africa for the first time, and set up camp in both Ethiopia and Ivory Coast, yielding In Africa, a triple header EP which features three slices of contemporary body music, with both East and West African musical motifs. The project will always present a musical release, on vinyl and digital, that was created on the trip, accompanied with a documentary, showing the whole journey.

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Dur-Dur Band

Dur Dur of Somalia

36,99 €*

LP | 2018 | EU | Original (Glitterbeat)

Release: 2018 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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Analog Africa are proud to present the 27th release of their Analog Africa Series. A fantastic, hypnotic and funky compilation from the Dur-Dur Band of Somalia that comes out on a Triple LP.

When Analog Africa founder Samy Ben Redjeb arrived in Mogadishu in November of 2016, he was informed by his host that he would have to be accompanied at all times by an armed escort while in the country. The next morning, a neighbour and former security guard put on a military uniform, borrowed an AK-47 from somewhere and escorted him to Via Roma, an historical street in the heart of Hamar-Weyne, the city’s oldest district. Although previous Analog Africa releases have demonstrated a willingness to go more than the extra air-mile to track down the stories behind the music, the trip to Mogadishu was a musical journey of a different kind. It was the culmination of an odyssey that had started many years earlier.

In 2007 John Beadle, a Milwaukee-based musicologist and owner of the much loved Likembe blog, uploaded a cassette he had been handed twenty years earlier by a Somalian student. The post was titled ‘Mystery Somali Funk’ and it was, in Samy’s own words, “some of the deepest funk ever recorded.” The cassette seemed to credit these dense, sonorous tunes to the legendary Iftin Band. But initial contact with Iftin’s lead singer suggested that the ‘mystery funk’ may have actually been the work of their chief rival, Dur-Dur, a young band from the 80s.

Back then, Mogadishu had been a very different place. On the bustling Via Roma, people from all corners of society would gather at the Bar Novecento and Cafe Cappucino, watch movies at the famous Supercinema, and eat at the numerous pasta hang-outs or the traditional restaurants that served Bariis Maraq, a somali Beef Stew mixed with delicious spiced rice. The same street was also home to Iftinphone and Shankarphone, two of the city’s best known music shop. Located opposite each other, they were the centre of Somalia’s burgeoning cassette distribution network. Both shops, run by members of the legendary Iftin Band, would become first-hand witnesses to the meteoric rise of Dur- Dur, a rise that climaxed in April of 1987 with the release of Volume 2, their second album.

The first single ‘Diinleya’ had taken Somalian airwaves by storm in a way rarely seen before or since. The next single, ‘Dab,’ had an even greater impact, and the two hits had turned them into the hottest band in town. In addition to their main gig as house band at the legendary Jubba Hotel, Dur-Dur had also been asked to perform the music for the play “Jascyl Laba Ruux Mid Ha Too Rido” (May one of us fall in love) at Mogadishu’s national theatre. The play was so successful that the management had been forced to extend the run by a month, throwing the theatre’s already packed schedule into complete disarray, and each night, as soon as the play had finished, Dur-Dur had to pack their instruments into a Volkswagen T1 tour bus that would shuttle them across town in time for their hotel performance.

The secrets to Dur-Dur’s rapid success is inextricably linked to the vision of Isse Dahir, founder and keyboard player of the band. Isse´s plan was to locate some of the most forward-thinking musicians of Mogadishu´s buzzing scene and lure them into Dur-Dur. Ujeeri, the band’s mercurial bass player was recruited from Somali Jazz and drummer extraordinaire Handal previously played in Bakaka Band. These two formed the backbone of Dur-Dur and would become one of Somalia’s most extraordinary rhythm sections.

Isse also added his two younger brothers to the line-up: Abukar Dahir Qassin was brought in to play lead guitar, and Ahmed Dahir Qassin was hired as a permanent sound engineer, a first in Somalia and one of the reasons that Dur-Dur became known as the best-sounding band in the country.

On their first two albums, Volume 1 and Volume 2, three different singers traded lead-vocal duties back and forth. Shimaali, formerly of Bakaka Band, handled the Daantho songs, a Somalian rhythm from the northern part of the country that bears a striking resemblance to reggae, Sahra Dawo, a young female singer, had been recruited from Somalia’s national orchestra, the Waaberi Band. Their third singer, the legendary Baastow, whose nickname came from the italian word ‘pasta’ due to the spaghetti-like shape of his body, had also been a vocalist with the Waaberi Band, and had been brought into Dur-Dur due to his deep knowledge of traditional Somali music, particularly Saar, a type of music intended to summon the spirits during religious rituals. These traditional elements of Dur-Dur’s repertoire sometimes put them at odds with the manager of the Jubba Hotel who once told Baastow “I am not going to risk having Italian tourists possessed by Somali spirits. Stick to disco and reggae.”

Yet from the very beginning, Dur-Dur’s doctrine was the fusion of traditional Somali music with whatever rhythms would make people dance: Funk, Reggae, Soul, Disco and New Wave were mixed effortlessly with Banaadiri beats, Daantho and spiritual Saar music. The concoction was explosive and when they stormed the Mogadishu music scene in 1986 with their very first hit single, ‘Yabaal,’ featuring vocals from Sahra Dawo, it was clear that a new meteorite had crash-landed in Somalia. As Abdulahi Ahmed, author of Somali Folk Dances explains: “Yabaal is a traditional song, but the way it was played and recorded was like nothing else we had heard before, it was new to us.” ‘Yabaal’ was one of the songs that resurfaced on the Likembe blog, and it became the symbolic starting point of this project.

It initially seemed that Dur-Dur’s music had only been preserved as a series of murky tape dubs and YouTube videos, but after Samy arrived in Mogadishu he eventually got to the heart of Mogadishu’s tape-copying network – an analogue forerunner of the internet file-sharing that helped to keep the flame of this music alive through the darkest days of Somalia’s civil strife – and ended up finding some of the band’s fabled master tapes, long thought to have disappeared.

This triple LP / double CD reissue of the band’s first two albums – the first installment in a three-part series dedicated to Dur-Dur Band – represents the first fruit of Analog Africa’s long labours to bring this extraordinary music to the wider world. Remastered from the best available audio sources, these songs have never sounded better. Some thirty years after they first made such a splash in the Mogadishu scene, they have been freed from the wobble and tape-hiss of second and third generation cassette dubs, to reveal a glorious mix of polychromatic organs, nightclub-ready rhythms and hauntingly soulful vocals.

In addition to two previously unreleased tracks, the music is accompanied by extensive liner notes, featuring interviews with original band members, documenting a forgotten chapter of Somalia’s cultural history. Before the upheaval in the 1990s that turned Somalia into a war-zone, Mogadishu, the white pearl of the Indian Ocean, had been one of the jewels of eastern Africa, a modern paradise of culture and commerce. In the music of the Dur-Dur band – now widely available outside of Somalia – we can still catch a fleeting glimpse of that golden age.
Listen & Enjoy!

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Stella Chiweshe

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Release: 2018 / EU – Original

Genre: Organic Grooves

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LP | 2018 | EU | Original (Hot Casa)

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