Farid from Colombia just sent me an amazing album: African System Orchestra’s 1981 RAS release, Canon Kpa Kum.

Correct me if I’m wrong, but as far as I can tell African System Orchestra is an Igbo Nigerian group who were playing at around the same time as groups like the Imo Brothers International and the Peacocks.

Editor’s note: turns out I was wrong: Ndongo Pecos and presumably the rest of African System Orchestra are apparently Cameroonian, living in Nigeria when this album was recorded.

But these tracks certainly don’t sound like your average 70s Nigerian highlife. I guess by 1981 much of Nigeria was in the throws of Afrobeat and disco, which must have rubbed-off on the Igbo highlife bands too.

Does anyone have any more music like this? I’m refering specifically to late 70s, early 80s Igbo music with a bit of an afrofunk-disco drive to it?

Great party music. Thanks, Farid.

African System Orchestra – Canon Kpa Kum
African System Orchestra – African System No. 1

I managed to miss Benn loxo du taccu’s 3rd birthday on September 25th. 383 posts, 2 moves and 1900 comments later and it’s still going strong.. with the occasional pause in our regularly scheduled programming! So happy birthday, Benn loxo, and thank you everyone for continuing to listen, read and contribute.

Sorry I’ve been away for so long. I’ll spare you the details about rugby, fashion and la rentrée and head straight to the music. Today we’ll have a special, extended post to thank you for you patience.

My friends Marta and Yves came to stay at my place last week. Yves is an Mbo Cameroonian from the northern part of the country. His wife, Marta, was a good friend while I was living in Senegal.

We had the chance to swap some music on their last night after eating a mean Ndolé near my place. This morning I put together a mix for Benn loxo of some of my favourites. If you’re into classic Cameroonian makossa, you’re in for a treat.

With any luck I’ll be back tomorrow.. I have a backlog of about 500 new tracks to work through!

ps- that’s an unrelated photo by my favourite photographer of African musical youth, Malick Sidibe.

Toto Guillaume – Dibena
Lapiro – No mek erreur
Sam Fan Thomas – Poma
Ben D – Sengi Bobe
Charlotte Mbango – Konkai makossa
Prince Eyango – You must calculer
Cella Stella – Na mea longue
Sallé John – Paï o Yabassi
Ebanda Manfred – Na baby na ma
Prince Nico Mbarga – Aki Special
Eboa Lotin – Elimb’a Dikalo
Les Quatre Etoiles – Enfant bamileke

Gentle, Cameroonian jazz to ease you into your Monday.

I don’t think I ever mentioned this, but I saw a great little Herminia concert a couple weeks back. She was even smaller and older-looking than I imagined, but her voice filled the room.

The venue was the Mam’Bia, a good Cap Verdian restaurant near Strasbourg St-Denis in Paris. It’s small so only about 50 of us were at the show.. your typically random mix of “world music” people: old, young, strange, seemingly normal.

The woman I’ll post today, Cameroonian Anne-Marie Nzié, is a bit like Herminia in that her voice is still as powerful as ever at the age of 67. I don’t know much about her except that her one and only wide-release, Beza Ba Dzo, is a great listen. It features the likes of Manu Dibango, Brice Wassy and others.

The most interesting part of her biography is when she had to spend a long time in hospital after falling from a mango tree in the mid-1960s. It was there, in her hospital bed, that she was introduced to Hawaiian music by her brother. After finally leaving hospital the two started performing together, him on Hawaiian guitar, Nzié providing the vocals. That’s an original start to a career if I’ve ever heard one.

Anne-Marie Nzié – Sarah

This weekend a good friend from university stopped by Paris for a night. Big flashbacks from life in Halifax, Nova Scotia, as we talked about old college people and places.

Some musical memories: that bluegrass band, The Hurtin’ Unit, practicing in my basement. (They now live on, at least in part, in Zurich, Switzerland.) Watching Buck 65 rap in ice cream parlours (that doubled as an NFB film screening room) before he got big. Sneaking onto a parked train to beatbox with Choclair’s entourage (while dressed as a ninja). Letting Becky gently rock my soul (before splitting a bottle of Jack or, even better, some Carlo Rossi). Seeing Adam discreetly hold it down on his double bass (at the now defunct Hell, right beside my favourite local brewery). Feeling (and witnessing) the hurt of Tyler’s lady love through his music (as we crack jokes about his high profile in the Buddhist Mafia).

Hence today’s musical pairing:

Tyler Messick is an old friend from college who should soon be releasing a new album with the Museum Pieces. Today’s track comes off his first album, Grain Sales of 1840, featuring the aforementioned Becky and Adam.

Muntu Valdo is a French-Cameroonian singer/songwriter who’d fit right in on stage with a bunch of these Halifax throwbacks.

Muntu Valdo – Leta
Tyler Messick – Little Love Too

The 2006 Wagram compilation that reminded me to re-listen to Thione Seck yesterday, Radio Afrique, is a great compilation for anyone wanting a contemporary, mainly West African mix. I was going to post a track by Cherif Mbaw anyway today.. but instead I’ll focus a bit on this compilation. Definitely worth a buy.

Isn’t Majojo a cool song? I heard this at a couple friends’ houses while in Dakar. It’s the kind of tune that perks up some music-aware heads at dinner parties. Makes me want to lay into an organ.. there’s something so sexy about the wurlitzer-esque sound.

Cherif Mbaw’s 2005 release, Demain, is good all-round. That track Kollère is what first made me give it a listen last year. The Sally Nyolo track on Radio Afrique, Tilma, is also a great make-Monday-easier tune.

Nyolo is from Cameroon which is where my friend Marta is getting married at the end of the year. Congrats again, Marta.. I’ll try my best to make it down!

Cherif Mbaw – Majojo
Sally Nyolo – Tilma