|
||||
[Home] [Elijah Wald Bio] [Robert Johnson] [Narcocorrido] [Dave Van Ronk] [Josh White] [Hitchhiking] These are home-made CDs of African music which unfortunately is otherwise unavailable. For more information, visit the main African music page or the Congolese CDs page. I also have various other CDs available, such as a collection of work by the Bahamian Blind Blake and three blues anthologies: Ida Cox, Leroy Carr, and Pop Blues. |
||||
GEORGE MUKABI: KENYAN GUITAR MASTER George Mukabi was probably the finest Kenyan fingerstyle player of the 1950s. His playing is somewhat similar to that of the Congolese greats, but with a distinct local flavor. According to John Low's"History of Kenyan Guitar Music: 1945-1980" (African Music, 1982, 6(2), 17-36), Mukabi was of the Kissa people, and apparently created what became the popular "sukuti" of "Kakamega" guitar style in the early 1950s. He had heard records of the "Nyasa" Malawian bands and set out to play similar music in a fingerpicking style. His playing was massively popular and influential, affecting urban players like John Mwale (several of whose recordings fill out this CD). These recordings are from cassettes that were still available in Nairobi in 1990, essentially as "golden oldies" packages. The recording quality is generally quite good, and the music is superb. It is bizarre that none of Mukabi's material has been released outside Kenya, as he is one of the greatest of the African acoustic players. No one who loves intricate fingerpicking should be unaware of his work. There is a swing and humor to his singing, and an inventiveness to his accompaniments that makes him well worth an entire album. To buy this CD, go here. 1. Kweli Ndugu |
||||
This CD combines two extremely varied cassettes of Kikuyu
music sold in Nairobi in 1990. The music ranges from the wonderful Jimmie
Rodgers yodeling of Sammy Ngako (the only performer I could identify
by name) to a cappella choruses and accordion numbers. Many of the songs
show a clear debt to American country and western, in one case even
including a fiddle intro. Others are obviously based on traditional
local rhythms, and still others reflect combinations of these styles
and even a hint of Harry Belafonte-style calypso. There is both fingerstyle
and flatpicked guitar, and while none of the performers are astounding
virtuosos, there is a startling variety of approaches to the instrument.
As for the accordion, it sometimes suggests a relationship to zydeco,
though that is clearly a matter of shared roots rather than direct interaction.
The a cappella pieces sound quite traditional, and include two by a
wonderful female singer with responses by a backing chorus. There are
also two electric numbers, including one that uses the tune of the old
English children's song "The Fox Went Out on a Chilly Night."
All in all, while the sound is sometimes muddy, it is well worth it
for the startling mix of music. Much like American "hillbilly"
or country music, this collection reflects a rural population that loved
its traditional styles but also sought to blend them with the new sounds
arriving on the phonograph and radion, and the breadth of styles reflects
the broad tastes of the Kikuyu audience of the time. To buy this CD,
go here. |
||||
|
||||
|
||||
|