Koo Nimo Highlife Roots Revival (Riverboat Records/World Music Network, 2012) Koo Nimo (born Daniel Amponsah in the Ashanti region of Ghana in 1934) could have…
Highlife High
Author: Tom Orr
Tom Orr is a California-based writer whose talent and mental stability are of an equally questionable nature. His hobbies include ignoring trends, striking dramatic poses in front of his ever-tolerant wife and watching helplessly as his kids surpass him in all desirable traits.
More Than Just the Importance of Featuring Ernest
Avila Avila Featuring Earnest Ranglin (Avila Street Records, 2012) The band backing longtime Jamaican guitar great Ernest Ranglin on this release was originally set to…
That Dang Kang
Eyvind Kang The Narrow Garden (Ipecac Recordings, 2012) The name being entirely new to me, I didn’t even know if Eyvind Kang is a he…
Have it Norway
A Report from the Førde Festival by Tom Orr, July 5-8, 2012 “I’m here for a musical event, ” I had to keep reminding myself.…
Greene Scene
Brad Hammonds Group Greene Street (self-released, 2012) Here was a CD cover looked intriguing and inviting. A quartet of guys- an acoustic guitarist, a cellist,…
Bridging the Gap
Ebo Taylor Appia Kwa Bridge (Strut O89CD, 2012) Ghanaian highlife veteran Ebo Taylor has had a long career and this very satisfying new release shows…
Heading in a Sephardic Direction
Ljuba Davis Ladino Ensemble East and West (self-released, 2012) When the Sephardim, the Jews of Spain, were expelled from their homeland following the reconquista of…
New Congo Classics
Modogo & Sam Black Bazar (Lusafrica 562982, 2012) The idea of bringing Congolese rumba back to its roots isn’t a new one, but it’s one…
Chad to the Bone
Mounira Mitchala Chili Houritki (Lusafrica 562662, 2011) Chad, a landlocked Saharan nation plagued by drought, political tensions and ethnic divisiveness, is hardly the most well…
Loads of Latin
Bang Data – La Sopa (Rockolito Music, 2012) Bayonics – Mission Statement (Bayonics, 2012) Congo Sanchez – Vol. 1 (ESL Music, 2012) Brownout – Oozy…