Wee Willie Walker If Nothing Ever Changes (Little Village Foundation, 2015) Do-overs are a rare thing in life. Likewise, we might sit and politely listen…
View More Soul of the SoulmanAuthor: TJ Nelson
Beyond the Steel Pan Stereotype
Rudy Smith What Pan Did for Me (Caprice Records, 2015) Steel pans. Evoke musical images of a slick band of dressed in brightly colored shirts…
View More Beyond the Steel Pan StereotypeGnawa Musician Mahmoud Guinia Has Died
Gnawa sintir musician and pioneer Mahmoud Guinia passed away Sunday, August 2nd after a prolonged illness. Mr. Guinia was 64. Considered the Godfather of Gnawan…
View More Gnawa Musician Mahmoud Guinia Has DiedGlobal Friendly Daby Toure
Daby Toure Amonafi (Cumbancha, 2015) Set for release on September 18th on the Cumbancha label, Amonafi is Mauritanian born and Senegal raised Daby Toure’s sweet,…
View More Global Friendly Daby ToureAn Intricate Classical-Folk Machine
Spiro Welcome Joy Welcome Sorrow (Real World, 2015) Sometimes there is just no practical description for some of the recordings that cross my desk. Sometimes…
View More An Intricate Classical-Folk MachineLavish World of Middle Eastern Flavors
Niyaz Fourth Light (Six Degrees Records, 2015) Dipping into a dense world filled with the strains of oud, santur and rabab, labyrinthine rhythms, delicious electronica…
View More Lavish World of Middle Eastern FlavorsSheer Skill and Pure Passion
Mr. Sun The People Need Light (Compass Records, 2015) It’s always been my belief that the best recordings out there are the ones where the…
View More Sheer Skill and Pure PassionCelebrated blues and soul singer Mighty Sam McClain Dies at 72
American blues and soul singer Mighty Sam McClain died on June 16, 2015. The 72 year-old Grammy nominated artist suffered a stroke and passed…
View More Celebrated blues and soul singer Mighty Sam McClain Dies at 72Interview with Kora Maestro Seckou Keita
Seckou Keita, from southern Senegal, is one of the most prominent Kora players of his generation. His heritage on his father’s side is the…
View More Interview with Kora Maestro Seckou KeitaSharply Fresh and Cleverly Savvy SES
SES Tronzar Os Valos (Folmusica, 2015) Hailing from Galicia’s emerging music scene, the Spanish singer, songwriter and kick ass rocker SES, not to be confused…
View More Sharply Fresh and Cleverly Savvy SES