Best Ever Albums

Re: Get To Know A Top 10: July 2018 Thread - Hayden

Hayden — Wed, 1 Aug 2018 10:01:18 GMT

Author: Hayden

Posted: 08/01/2018 14:01

baystateoftheart wrote:

Sorrow Tears And Blood was not one of my favorites, so this inspired me to do a reappraisal. It's grown on me a lot, and now I think it definitely stands up there with his best work (although my favorite is probably Confusion). While Sorrow Tears And Blood is my favorite of these ten, all the others had a lot to offer too.

Here's how I would rank and rate them (roughly):

Glad you liked the list Baystateofheart. Confusion, Zombie, and Sorrow have all been my favourite Kuti album at one point or another, would never bash anyone for picking Confusion over Sorrow, no worries. Glad you dug Conflict too.

Quote:

I absolutely loved this list, not a bad album on it and some really really good ones. Reminds me that I really need to listen to more non-American/European music.

Glad you liked it Rocky 😄 Suppose you're up next.

Re: Get To Know A Top 10: July 2018 Thread - Hayden

RockyRaccoon — Wed, 1 Aug 2018 09:11:41 GMT

Author: RockyRaccoon

Posted: 08/01/2018 13:11

I absolutely loved this list, not a bad album on it and some really really good ones. Reminds me that I really need to listen to more non-American/European music.

Re: Get To Know A Top 10: July 2018 Thread - Hayden

baystateoftheart — Tue, 31 Jul 2018 22:28:29 GMT

Author: baystateoftheart

Posted: 08/01/2018 02:28

I only had heard two of these albums coming into this month - the William Onyeabor & Fela selections. In my trip through Fela's discography two summers ago, Sorrow Tears And Blood was not one of my favorites, so this inspired me to do a reappraisal. It's grown on me a lot, and now I think it definitely stands up there with his best work (although my favorite is probably Confusion). While Sorrow Tears And Blood is my favorite of these ten, all the others had a lot to offer too.

Here's how I would rank and rate them (roughly):

1. Sorrow Tears And Blood - Fela Kuti & Africa 70 4.5/5
2. Conflict - Ebo Taylor 4/5
3. Kigali Y' Izahabu - The Good Ones 4/5
4. World Psychedelic Classics 5: Who Is William Onyeabor? - William Onyeabor 4/5
5. Batsumi - Batsumi 4/5
6. This Is Marijata - Marijata 3.5/5
7. Simigwa - Gyedu-Blay Ambolley 3.5/5
8. Specialist In All Styles - Orchestra Baobab 3.5/5
9. Drums Of Death - Ashanti Tribe Of Ghana / Ewe Tribe Of Ghana 3.5/5
10. In The Heart Of The Moon - Ali Farka Touré & Toumani Diabaté 3.5/5

Thanks Hayden for submitting this chart! Got to check out a lot of cool records that I otherwise wouldn't have!

Re: Get To Know A Top 10: July 2018 Thread - Hayden

RockyRaccoon — Fri, 13 Jul 2018 09:02:00 GMT

Author: RockyRaccoon

Posted: 07/13/2018 13:02

Hayden wrote:

On first listen, that's probably the best route. It is a comp after all, but I think the tracklisting is a fair order. Give a track or two a listen, give it a break, spin another album on the list, get back to it, etc... It can be an overwhelming.

Hope you like the rest of them :)

Actually I listened to the whole thing haha. I liked it! I've listened to the first three and like them in the exact order you've listed them to be honest

Re: Get To Know A Top 10: July 2018 Thread - Hayden

Hayden — Thu, 12 Jul 2018 16:09:15 GMT

Author: Hayden

Posted: 07/12/2018 20:09

RockyRaccoon wrote:

Working through World Psychedelic Classics and liking it so far

Re: Get To Know A Top 10: July 2018 Thread - Hayden

RockyRaccoon — Thu, 12 Jul 2018 08:55:09 GMT

Author: RockyRaccoon

Posted: 07/12/2018 12:55

So I'll be honest, I haven't listened to a single one of these albums.

Specialist in All Styles was great, really liked that one. Working through World Psychedelic Classics and liking it so far. I'm interested to dig into the rest of this list (also I apologize for not being as active in this as I thought I'd be. Life's been ridiculously busy, but I intend on working back through other people's lists)

Re: Get To Know A Top 10: July Thread - Hayden

Hayden — Thu, 12 Jul 2018 04:54:53 GMT

Author: Hayden

Posted: 07/12/2018 08:54

PurpleHazel wrote:

Specialist In All Styles - Wonderful album! Guest appearances by Ibrahim Ferrer and Youssou D'our reflect the balance of Senegalese and Cuban music on the record. The lead vocalist is great, has a somewhat eastern sound like Malian singers, which makes sense, since Senegal and Mali are neighbors -- wish he was featured more! (A lot of group vocals.) The guitarist's excellent too, playing both more traditional highlife and wah-wah guitar that makes me think of early Funkadelic just a smidge. Sax player's really good too, incorporating more eastern scales in his playing than most African saxophonists. Really glad Hayden got me to listen to this.

Kigali Y' Izahabu - This sounds like a Folkways field recording from the 50s, but it's from 2010. A little like really raw rural blues or (American) folk, but in African -- the vocals have some of the warmth of Mississippi John Hurt. What's not to like? A couple of guitar strings are out of tune -- since it's not Western music, I momentarily thought it was deliberate, to produce microtones. It ain't, but that just adds to the charm. Amazing that field-recording music this raw appeared a decade into the 21st century.

Probably should have mentioned D'our and Ferrer's contributions to that album... woops. Only album I didn't write anything up for. I think they were in on the creative process for the entire project, but only actually appear on one track though.

Should also mention the group released (20+?-ish) albums before Specialist In All Styles, they were pretty established around this time. The album's also a twist on their traditional wolof style... they don't have anything else with a similar vibe in their catalogue (unfortunately).

Still needs a proper vinyl release 🙁

And yeah, if Kigali Y' Izahabu was released 50 years ago, not only would I believe you, but there's a sliiiight chance I would think differently of it. I love how it's recent. When I did my 'around the world' project it came into light how many countries the world really hasn't discovered musically (Rwanda being one of them, I think there's only 50~ official releases from the entire country), yet these sort of groups are around kickin' it, never on wax. I don't think The Good Ones will ever have a follow-up, but I think it really goes to show how much there is to appreciate in local roots. Always give good buskers a chance 😁

Quote:

Also my jazz teacher as I was a wee lad (during 9/11), took a whole week talking about/listening to middle eastern music (as to prove the point, well I don't have to spell it out, you get it)... and kept on referencing the two best ways to understand/appreciate and then love another culture is through food, and then the music.

I love how you've done that here Hayden.

Your jazz teacher is right! 😁

My Smörgåsbord chart is more integrated into this idea, but I'd love to have foods attached to every album on this chart. My geographical-based charts are all named after food, I think it's important.

Ideally, I think the best way to experience a culture is to go to a local concert in some language you don't understand and afterwards seek out somebody who has a grandmother who knows how to cook and ask if you can come over for dinner. Good food and good music bring people together, no matter language barriers. I also recommend purchasing the tastiest looking food off the side of the street you can find.

Re: Get To Know A Top 10: July 2018 Thread - Hayden

RoundTheBend — Thu, 12 Jul 2018 01:01:20 GMT

Author: RoundTheBend

Posted: 07/12/2018 05:01

I got curious... https://bullandcleaver.com/blogs/bilton...beef-jerky

Also my jazz teacher as I was a wee lad (during 9/11), took a whole week talking about/listening to middle eastern music (as to prove the point, well I don't have to spell it out, you get it)... and kept on referencing the two best ways to understand/appreciate and then love another culture is through food, and then the music.

I love how you've done that here Hayden.

Re: Get To Know A Top 10: July 2018 Thread - Hayden

RoundTheBend — Thu, 12 Jul 2018 00:57:33 GMT

Author: RoundTheBend

Posted: 07/12/2018 04:57

Tilly wrote:

...the gift that keeps on giving. Wait! That's herpes. Nevermind. Scratch that...

🤣

Also, agreed, like Jimmy, this is a great source of great music, I'm sure.

Hoping to get to it soon.

Re: Get To Know A Top 10: July Thread - Hayden

PurpleHazel — Wed, 11 Jul 2018 03:58:41 GMT

Author: PurpleHazel

Posted: 07/11/2018 07:58

Specialist In All Styles - Wonderful album! Guest appearances by Ibrahim Ferrer and Youssou D'our reflect the balance of Senegalese and Cuban music on the record. The lead vocalist is great, has a somewhat eastern sound like Malian singers, which makes sense, since Senegal and Mali are neighbors -- wish he was featured more! (A lot of group vocals.) The guitarist's excellent too, playing both more traditional highlife and wah-wah guitar that makes me think of early Funkadelic just a smidge. Sax player's really good too, incorporating more eastern scales in his playing than most African saxophonists. Really glad Hayden got me to listen to this.

Kigali Y' Izahabu - This sounds like a Folkways field recording from the 50s, but it's from 2010. A little like really raw rural blues or (American) folk, but in African -- the vocals have some of the warmth of Mississippi John Hurt. What's not to like? A couple of guitar strings are out of tune -- since it's not Western music, I momentarily thought it was deliberate, to produce microtones. It ain't, but that just adds to the charm. Amazing that field-recording music this raw appeared a decade into the 21st century.

Re: Get To Know A Top 10: July 2018 Thread - Hayden

Repo — Fri, 6 Jul 2018 22:12:23 GMT

Author: Repo

Posted: 07/07/2018 02:12

You're like the gift that keeps on giving. Wait! That's herpes. Nevermind. Scratch that.

Will totally check these out at my Tilly pace. Thanks for the great write-ups, Hayden!!! 😁

Re: Get To Know A Top 10: July 2018 Thread - Hayden

Hayden — Fri, 6 Jul 2018 13:50:04 GMT

Author: Hayden

Posted: 07/06/2018 17:50

Tilly wrote:

ok. It's not in your top ten or anything but I recently stole this...

Haitian Folk Songs by Lolita Cuevas & Frantz Casseus

...from one of your charts & am absolutely loving it. Beautiful stuff. :D

That'd probably be my 50's chart 😁 been working on that recently... spent Feb-March this year really digging into 50's obscurities. Hoping to continue with that soon. I just uncovered a whole slew of early Caribbean recordings and 7"'s from the late 30's to mid-50's and I'm really looking forward to giving them a spin sometime soon.

Glad you dig it, I find most Haitian albums/recordings from the 50's are quite good, but that's a stand-out. Frantz Casseus was a fantastic guitarist, if you ever get the chance to listen his solo album released the same year, it's really enjoyable. These are also worth a solid listen (albeit, completely different styles):

Voices Of Haiti by Maya Deren

(You probably know who Maya Deren is, but just wanna clarify she recorded this, not performed it. She and Teiji Ito were really inspired by the music scene there.)

Haitian Piano by Fabre Duroseau

One or two keys are out of tune, but it's phenomenally atmospheric.

And I should probably add this comp to the database... it's half Emy de Pradines (who was quite prominent in 50's Haiti), half Michele Dejean Group (who I literally know nothing else about, or even if they're Haitian). If you can find any complete albums by Pradines, give them a spin.

& Ensemble Aux Calebasses de Nemours Jean-Baptiste ‎– Meringue!

Ensemble Aux Calebasses have a solo 10" from 1955 that I've been trying to find for a while, unsuccessful... but this is also def worth a spin, and super easy to find.

Honestly, bless Folkways Records. They have plenty of historical/culturally significant music, most of which are also great albums, particularly within their Latin American selection. I think all of those (maybe not Maya's??) are on that label.

Re: Get To Know A Top 10: July 2018 Thread - Hayden

Repo — Fri, 6 Jul 2018 10:52:59 GMT

Author: Repo

Posted: 07/06/2018 14:52

ok. It's not in your top ten or anything but I recently stole this...

Haitian Folk Songs by Lolita Cuevas & Frantz Casseus

...from one of your charts & am absolutely loving it. Beautiful stuff. 😁

Re: Get To Know A Top 10: July 2018 Thread - Hayden

Hayden — Wed, 4 Jul 2018 18:23:18 GMT

Author: Hayden

Posted: 07/04/2018 22:23

Tap wrote:

I've been bad with keeping up with these threads but I'll try to dig in, I think the timing wasn't so good for the last ones for me and I want to go back to them later, but this seems like the right time for some of these right now.

Awesome 😁 Hope you enjoy them Tilly. Also, def check out Jimmy's folk chart in full. Great stuff.

Quote:

So, I've already heard 6, but I need to listen to the other 4.

Dig the drumming story, always cool to hear. I come from a family of drummers... always got a chance to play a couple cool new percussion instruments when I was younger. I did studio drums twice (successfully), but I'm unquestionably untalented when it comes to them 😨

Ebo Taylor and The Pelikans is another great pick, but yeah, def prefer Conflict. I think his self-titled is usually considered his best, but I even prefer it to that. And, like I said, his latest is without a doubt worth a listen. Really bombastic. Think the only album I've heard by him that I'd say people skip is Twer Nyame, and even that's alright. He's pretty consistent.

In The Heart Of The Moon would probably be my go-to rec out of the remaining four (this chart is ranked vaguely... but with purpose). If I was to give anybody in the world 50 albums that they 'need to listen to', it'd be on it for sure.

Kigali Y' Izahabu is best played at night, on a beach, or perhaps just out and about with headphones. It's def not a car/indoor sort of album. Something to immerse yourself in, really envision yourself there.

Specialist In All Styles is a really well crafted album, well mixed, well recorded, thought-out, etc... they have a few other albums, but this one really stands out as their best. It isn't experiment, but it's got a little bit of spice, and is practically flawless. Think they peaked around that time.

And Batsumi's dope. Give it a spin just as you would any other jazz album. A reminder what the genre can be with a few different flavours. It usually edges around my 95-100 mark on my overall chart. Like keeping it on there.

Hope you like them 😄

Re: Get To Know A Top 10: July 2018 Thread - Hayden

Tha1ChiefRocka — Tue, 3 Jul 2018 11:47:01 GMT

Author: Tha1ChiefRocka

Posted: 07/03/2018 15:47

So, I've already heard 6, but I need to listen to the other 4.

Quick thoughts on the ones I've heard.

William Onyeabor- After this album came out, I put "Atomic Bomb as my alarm song for about 6 months.

Drums of Death- Last year at college, on a day when a bunch of clubs and local businesses were trying to recruit in our courtyard, an African guy from a Presbyterian church was playing a Talking drum. There was another big drum there as well that was vacant. Out of sheer curiosity, and because I always wanted to play with one, I inquired if I could give it a try. He gave me the talking drum and went over to the bigger drum, and told me to play something. I was bit nervous as I had only ever seen them used, but I had never actually used one. Anyways, I am a drummer, so I was able to kind of get a feel for it, and I think we messed around for about 10 minutes. It was really fun. Basically, this album is the shit.

Gydeu-Blay Ambolley & Marijata - Both of these albums could have been played on American radio in the 1970s radio and been successful. Especially Marijata. They rock.

Fela Kuti- ... He's the best and this is one of his best.

Ebo Taylor- Is an instant shot of happiness anytime I listen to him. I like that Ebo Taylor and The Pelikans album as well. This one is probably better though.

Re: Get To Know A Top 10: July 2018 Thread - Hayden

Tap — Tue, 3 Jul 2018 05:12:35 GMT

Author: Tap

Posted: 07/03/2018 09:12

I've been bad with keeping up with these threads but I'll try to dig in, I think the timing wasn't so good for the last ones for me and I want to go back to them later, but this seems like the right time for some of these right now.

Re: Get To Know A Top 10: July 2018 Thread - Hayden

Hayden — Sun, 1 Jul 2018 04:47:24 GMT

Author: Hayden

Posted: 07/01/2018 08:47

I'll go through each one with more detail eventually. We got 6 countries on the board, 10 different artists, all with a somewhat different style. Hope you guys appreciate the nuances.

If you dive into my 11-20 selection, you won't be disappointed either. Uganda, Mozambique, Cameroon, Burundi, and The Gambia all enter the mix all the way on page two. More jazz, more drumming, stellar highlife, especially my #20.

Re: Get To Know A Top 10: July 2018 Thread - Hayden

Hayden — Sun, 1 Jul 2018 03:28:52 GMT

Author: Hayden

Posted: 07/01/2018 07:28

AH. Dope.

So, here's a breakdown:

Biltong & Mandazis by Hayden

This is biltong:

Look at that. Beautiful.

And these are mandazis:

And they're kinda like pizza-pop-style doughnuts. Also beautiful.

Here are the streaming links to the albums in my top 10:

Specialist In All Styles by Orchestra Baobab

Afro-cuban jazz, 50min. Senegal. Awesome.

World Psychedelic Classics 5: Who Is William Onyeabor? by William Onyeabor

Often the sole album I break my no compilations rule for, this is ESSENTIAL. Not for my chart, but rather life. This is the Spotify stream, which doesn't include the final 5 tracks on the album, but I recommend seeking them out. It's just amazing track after amazing track and it's beautiful. Thank you for not becoming a Russian cinematographer Onyeabor.

Disco, highlife, 90-ish min. Nigeria. Can be digested in small doses if need be.

Kigali Y' Izahabu by The Good Ones

Raw. Really raw. Not cooked. Raw. Recorded on a porch. In an afternoon. The bass guitar is a regular guitar missing two strings. The album is in Kinyarwanda, but that let that scare you. Just enjoy the vibes.

Folk. 40-ish min I think. Rwanda.

Drums Of Death by Ashanti Tribe Of Ghana / Ewe Tribe Of Ghana

Two tribal armies going to war. 50 min. Ghana.

In The Heart Of The Moon by Ali Farka Touré & Toumani Diabaté

This is so good guys. It's so good. Ali Farka Toure. Toumani Diabete. Together. Rocking. Flawless. Recording in a hotel. Without rehearsals. It's that real groove. It's got the groove guys. Perfect for summer.

Blues, songhai. 55min. Mali.

Conflict by Ebo Taylor

LEGEND right here. Still kicking it. Released a stellar album this year. Conflict (Nkru!) is stupidly enjoyable. Just give it a spin. Doesn't hurt. Quite soft. Uhuru Yenzu is also a contributed artist.

Highlife. 30 min. Ghana.

Batsumi by Batsumi

Made under the heigh of Apartheid. Keep that in mind. It's political. It's punk. It's exciting. It's jazz like you've never heard it before.

Afro-jazz. 40 min. South Africa.

This Is Marijata by Marijata

The easiest album on this list to digest, it's a short one. Clocking in at 25 minutes, think of it as a new Kanye release. No fat. Only meat. Sorta album you wanna have on your record shelf.

Highlife, afrobeat. 25 min. Ghana.

Sorrow Tears And Blood by Fela Kuti & Africa 70

It's Fela Kuti. It's Fela Kuti guys. And, it's quite quickly become my favourite release by him. The government killed his mother. And he came back with this.

It's short guys. Easy-peasy. Give it a spin. Really let it get under your skin. Maybe imagine it being played live.

Afrobeat. 28 min. Nigeria.

Simigwa by Gyedu-Blay Ambolley

#10???? Already. Oof. Anyway, super solid debut album from Gyedu-Blay Ambolley. I play it probably once every two months or so. It's short, it's solid, it's a blast. Gyedu-Blay Ambolley's still kicking it too. Possibly one of the best gateways into the genre.

Highlife, funk. 30 min. Ghana.

And more to come later! 😁 Hope you guys like digging.

Re: Get To Know A Top 10: July 2018 Thread - Hayden

baystateoftheart — Sat, 30 Jun 2018 21:23:05 GMT

Author: baystateoftheart

Posted: 07/01/2018 01:23

All should be available on streaming services with the exception of #4. Here it is:

Link

Get To Know A Top 10: July 2018 Thread - Hayden

baystateoftheart — Sat, 30 Jun 2018 20:36:32 GMT

Author: baystateoftheart

Posted: 07/01/2018 00:36

By one vote, Hayden has won the fourth poll. Here are the ten albums up for discussion during the month of July:

1. Specialist In All Styles - Orchestra Baobab
2. World Psychedelic Classics 5: Who Is William Onyeabor? - William Onyeabor
3. Kigali Y' Izahabu - The Good Ones
4. Drums Of Death - Ashanti Tribe Of Ghana / Ewe Tribe Of Ghana
5. In The Heart Of The Moon - Ali Farka Touré & Toumani Diabaté
6. Conflict - Ebo Taylor
7. Batsumi - Batsumi
8. This Is Marijata - Marijata
9. Sorrow Tears And Blood - Fela Kuti & Africa 70
10. Simigwa - Gyedu-Blay Ambolley

Again, you can listen to as many of these as you have time and energy for - no pressure to get to know all ten well. This discussion also doesn't have to take place in order, because different people will be listening to them at different times.

Drop your musings, analysis, etc. here as the inspiration hits you. And where possible, interact with what other people have been saying for a more interesting discussion.

Last but not least, here are the past threads if you want to go back and listen to / talk about stuff you missed.

April thread (Luigii): https://www.besteveralbums.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=20004
May thread (Tilly): https://www.besteveralbums.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=20126
June thread (Jimmy Dread): https://www.besteveralbums.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=20249