{"id":42086,"date":"2018-12-17T17:12:00","date_gmt":"2018-12-17T16:12:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pan-african-music.com\/the-25-best-reissues-of-2018\/"},"modified":"2021-10-26T17:11:28","modified_gmt":"2021-10-26T15:11:28","slug":"reissues-2018","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pan-african-music.com\/en\/reissues-2018\/","title":{"rendered":"The 25 best reissues of 2018"},"content":{"rendered":"

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The year 2018 was a great year for the reissue of musical treasures from all over the continent. Here are our 25 most loved reissue albums of 2018. This list reflects ‘favourites’ albums that PAM team have selected rather than ‘best ofs’.<\/span><\/h4>\n

In case you didn\u2019t know, the rediscovery of the wonders of our musical past is more than burgeoning. The labels that decided to take this dedicated path have recently been flourishing thanks to the gradual extinction of the CD and the vinyl revival. Indeed, whole sections of the continent\u2019s musical history are surfacing again from the vault. They spread across the world, far from their traditional zone of influence, often confined to a single region. Thus, East Africa \u2013\u00a0from Egypt to Ethiopia, Sudan and Somalia\u00a0\u2013 is particularly well represented in this selection, for the enjoyment of those who love the multiple variations of soul and funk, mixed with rhythms and melodies directly drawn from the rich local traditions. As time relentlessly passes by, the \u201980s have become a vintage decade too, and from South Africa to French districts, we rediscover the artists\u2019 craving for synthesizers and other machines ready for any kind of experiments. Not to mention a few West African classics that have not aged one bit and are literally born again.<\/span><\/p>\n

In this non-exhaustive tour, one can but mention the West Indies, particularly the French region, whose creativity has always proved consistent but has unfortunately not reached the ears of enough listeners until today. This year too, the songs of exile, the protest songs or those that shows the life of the communities of African ancestry on the European territories are given pride of place, thus renewing little by little the threads of a great and essential history the major labels have finally decided to offer their rightful place.<\/span><\/p>\n

Our selection, which has produced much debate between us, is only a picture of our favorites of the year 2018. The ranking below does not refer to a real classification, as the reissues we chose range across countries and eras and, in short, tell such different stories. We may as well tell you right away, all of them should be heard again, before 2019 delivers us new ones.<\/span><\/p>\n

Listen\u00a0the playlist \u201cThe 25 best reissues of 2018\u201d\u00a0on\u00a0Spotify<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Deezer<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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25.\u00a0 Feeling Kr\u00e9yol<\/span><\/h6>\n
Las Pal\u00e9 <\/em><\/span><\/h6>\n
Strut Records<\/span><\/h6>\n

Las Pal\u00e9\u00a0by Feeling Kr\u00e9yol is no doubt \u201980s zouk at its finest.\u00a0Producer Darius Denon explains: \u201cThis was 1988 and bands like Zouk Machine and Kassav were huge. I had met producer Frankie Brumier when I was performing at festivals and parties and he wanted to record a girl group, so we began scouting venues, mainly around the Grande-Terre district in the island\u2019s capital, Pointe-\u00e0-Pitre. I ran auditions and picked out the best three voices \u2013 Fabienne, Le\u00efla and Yolande. One was singing in a choir and none of them had met each other previously.<\/em>\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Recording at a studio in Le Gosier, Denon trained them to sing the songs and spent around six weeks recording the album: \u201cI gave them a couple of compositions that I had planned for my own solo album. I remember that we all got on really well; the sessions were fun.<\/em>\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Listen: Bandcamp<\/a> \/ Spotify<\/a> \/ Apple Music<\/a> \/ Deezer\u00a0<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

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\u00a024. Various Artists\u00a0<\/span><\/h6>\n
Heads Records –\u00a0<\/b><\/em><\/span>South African Disco\u200b-\u200bDub Edits<\/i><\/b><\/span><\/h6>\n
Soundway Records<\/span><\/h6>\n

Started and run by the late\u00a0South African producer and singer Emil Zoghby, Heads label was in activity only between 1982 and 1984. During this period, the label managed to release a handful of records before folding.<\/span><\/p>\n

This new Soundway EP features Starlight\u2019s original track \u201cPicnic<\/a>\u201d (a single whose B-side \u201cPicnicing\u201d, is featured on\u00a0Gumba Fire<\/a><\/em>) and edits\u00a0by New York-based JKriv (Deep & Disco Recordings \/ Razor-N-Tape) and Frankie Francis (Sofrito Sound), whose magic touch on last year\u2019s edit of Steve Monite \u201cOnly You\u201d was one of Soundway\u2019s most popular releases of 2017.<\/span><\/p>\n

Listen:\u00a0Bandcamp<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Spotify<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Apple Music\u00a0<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

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23.\u00a0Orchestre Abass<\/span><\/h6>\n
De Bassari Togo<\/em><\/span><\/h6>\n
Analog Africa<\/span><\/h6>\n

In 1972, Orchestre Abass released two incredible singles on Polydor. These records \u2013 featuring Samarin Banza, Haka Dunia and other afrofunk masterpieces \u2013 were powerful enough to knock any music head out, but it wasn\u2019t until the discovery of some unreleased material by the band that the seeds for this project were planted.<\/span><\/p>\n

Analog Africa\u2019s boss explains: \u201cIt all happened in 2008 in Ghana. I was going through some tapes that had previously been the property of PolyGram one of the major record companies based in West Africa. In the late \u201980s political instability and curfews had paralysed the music industry,\u00a0and forcef Polygram to close their Ghanaian subsidiaries and leave all of their recordings behind. These recordings had been packed in boxes and left\u00a0forgotten in an Accra warehouse for three decades until I came along. To my surprise all of the tapes looked unharmed and I was particularly relieved to hear that the Orchestre Abass tape was in an excellent state of condition. I began fiddling around with the idea of releasing an album of the band and that plan got an additional boost with le \u2018coup de grace\u2019 which had landed in the form of an ultra rare tune called Honam discovered in Sotoboua, a small northern Togolese town in the middle of nowhere. That find completed this selection.<\/em>\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Listen:\u00a0Bandcamp<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Spotify<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Apple Music<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Deezer<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

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22.\u00a0Various Artists<\/span><\/span><\/h6>\n
Soul of a Nation 2: Jazz is the Teacher, Funk is the Preacher:\u00a0<\/span>Afro-Centric Jazz, Street Funk and the Roots of Rap in the Black Power Era 1969-75<\/span><\/em><\/span><\/h6>\n
Soul Jazz Records<\/span><\/h6>\n

Soul Jazz Records\u2019 new release Soul of A Nation: Jazz is the Teacher, Funk is the Preacher<\/em>\u00a0is a powerful new collection of radical jazz, street funk and proto-rap made in the era of Black Power (1969-75).<\/span><\/p>\n

This album features a number of important and ground-breaking African-American artists \u2013 The Art Ensemble of Chicago, Don Cherry, Funkadelic, Gil Scott-Heron and more \u2013 alongside a host of lesser-known artists all of whom in the early 1970s were exploring new Afrocentric poly-rhythmical styles of music \u2013 radical jazz, street funk and proto-rap \u2013 while at the same time exploring the Black Power and civil-rights inspired notions of self-definition, self-respect and self-empowerment in their own lives.<\/span><\/p>\n

Listen:\u00a0\u00a0Apple Music<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Spotify<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

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21.\u00a0Various Artists<\/strong><\/span><\/h6>\n
Gumba Fire:\u00a0<\/strong>Bubblegum\u00a0Soul & Synth-Boogie in 1980s South Africa<\/em><\/span><\/h6>\n
Soundway Records<\/em><\/span><\/h6>\n

Bubblegum music was born in 1980s Black South Africa, from the ashes of disco. It was a \u201cusually stripped-down and lo-fi with a predominance of synths, keyboards and drum-machines and overlaid with the kind of deeply soulful trademark vocals and harmonies that South African music is famous for,<\/em>\u201d shares Soundway.<\/p>\n

Gumba Fire: Bubblegum Soul & Synth Boogie In 1980s South Africa<\/em>\u00a0highlights the country\u2019s musical movements between \u201cthe \u201970s where American-influenced jazz, funk and soul mixed with local Mbaqanga sounds; and the \u201990s when kwaito and house music ruled the dancefloors of urban South Africa.<\/em>\u201d\u00a0The name gumba fire means \u201ca hot party\u201d, and comes from the phrase \u201cgumba gumba<\/em>\u201d, a term for the old spacegram radios that broadcast music into South Africa\u2019s townships and villages.<\/p>\n

Listen:\u00a0Bandcamp<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Spotify<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Apple Music<\/a><\/p>\n

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20.\u00a0Ernesto Chahoud<\/span><\/h6>\n
Taitu:\u00a0Soul-fuelled Stompers from 1970s Ethiopia<\/em><\/span><\/h6>\n
BBE Records<\/strong><\/span><\/h6>\n

Ernesto Chahoud\u2019s Taitu<\/em>\u00a0represents the sound of the dancefloors of 1970s Addis Ababa.\u00a0Among the musical gems featured are 7\u201ds by some of the heavyweights of the scene including the godfather of ethio-jazz\u00a0Mulatu Astatke\u00a0and\u00a0Alemayehu Eshete, the vocalist dubbed \u201cThe Ethiopian Elvis\u201d, alongside tracks by more obscure artists such as\u00a0Merawi Yohannis\u00a0and\u00a0Birkineh Wurga. Listen to the excerpts below.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor <\/em>Taitu, Chahoud has selected 24 of his essential Ethio-Soul 7\u201ds, that never leave his DJ box, and together they capture this opportune moment in Ethiopian music history that saw bands experiment with an armful of influences: gliding through R&B, rock & roll, jazz, funk, soul and boogaloo. What came out was a distinctly Ethiopian interpretation: pentatonic scales, horn-driven melodies and soul-shattering vocals sung in Amharic.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n

Listen:\u00a0Bandcamp<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Spotify\u00a0<\/a>\/\u00a0Apple Music<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Deezer<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

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19. Various Artists <\/span><\/h6>\n
African Scream Contest 2<\/em><\/span><\/h6>\n
Analog Africa<\/span><\/h6>\n

Ten years ago, Analog Africa released the first\u00a0African Scream Contest<\/em>, \u201ca record that took you into its own space with the same electrifying sureness as any favourite blues or soul or funk or punk sampler you might care to mention.<\/em>\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Beninese\u00a0musician\u00a0Lokonon Andr\u00e9 \u2013 who\u00a0was\u00a0trained by the Russian secret services \u2013tracked down the artists himself for this compilation. His goal was to \u201chighlight the tension between encroaching authoritarian politics and fearless expressions of personal creative freedom which is the back-story of so much great African music of the \u201960s and \u201970s.<\/em>\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0Listen:\u00a0Bandcamp<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Spotify<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Apple Music<\/a><\/p>\n

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18.\u00a0Shams Dinn<\/span><\/span><\/h6>\n
\u0634\u0645\u0633 \u062f\u064a\u0646<\/em><\/span><\/h6>\n
Smiling C<\/span><\/h6>\n

For their first-ever reissue, Smiling C connected with the Arabic rapper Shams Dinn to release a compilation of his best songs, including the hit \u201cHedi Bled Noum\u201d. The compilation covers his entire career\u00a0featuring songs made between 1985-1990 \u2013 most of\u00a0them went unreleased at the time. One of the few Moroccan rappers to ever be recorded on vinyl back in the \u201980s, Shams Dinn was a pioneer of Arabic flow.\u00a0He started his career because he wanted to be a positive\u00a0model for the Arabic immigrants living in France. He earned his status by participating in freestyle competitions, and performing in small clubs around Europe.<\/p>\n

His career came to a turning point when he was asked by a major label to record a full LP. Unfortunately, the label decided they didn’t want to promote Arabic music \u2013 largely because of the Gulf War \u2013 and asked Shams to translate the Arabic to French. Shams Dinn wouldn’t stand for that, and he was dropped from the label. The following years he started working at a school, teaching kids how to rap and express themselves through words.<\/p>\n

Listen:\u00a0Bandcamp<\/a><\/p>\n

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17. Various Artists<\/strong><\/span><\/h6>\n
Antilles M\u00e9chant Bateau<\/em>\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/h6>\n
Born Bad Records<\/span><\/h6>\n

\u201cAntilles M\u00e9chant Bateau\u201d is a low-tempo number with a bolero feel, indeed a pure blues,\u00a0with a\u00a0great saxophone solo. What else would you expect to set the tone for this selection, in which biguine regains its original colors, in the darkness of the gwo ka drums? This 45rpm by Andr\u00e9 Mahy, released under the Aux Ondes sublabel, was recorded in the 1960s at C\u00e9lini\u2019s, one of Guadeloupe\u2019s two main houses. Through its drum rolls and harrowing chant, it recalled how, long before the mid-1960s, the Antilles\u2019 history was being written in an ocean of teardrops \u2013 namely the Black Atlantic, as Martinician philosopher and poet Edouard Glissant\u00a0rightly put it in the\u00a0poetry book\u00a0L\u2019Archipel des Grands Chaos<\/em>.<\/p>\n

There is no doubt about it: blues and ka fought the same battle \u2013 centuries of oppression and negation, before finding the path to a possible redemption. Between them, the same language \u2013 the language of the Creole spirits, flooded in the great ocean. This is what this selection is about, and its good, inborn sense of humor shouldn’t hide the implicit commentaries. There, jazz instills an emancipating energy from established formats, giving these songs a musicality that rhymes with spirituality. From infernal cadences borrowing from the \u201clatin\u201d rhythms of neighboring islands, to biguines with percussion-spiced tempos, to more laid-back \u2013\u00a0yet dark \u2013 ballads, this compilation takes us back to the early hours of a movement of rebirth, synonymous with recognition. A rejuvenation in which all the musics from the Black Atlantic diaspora naturally intertwine. Like a wave of sounds, of sense and blood, reminding us that an original culture emerged from the holds of these \u201cwicked boats\u201d \u2013 \u201cm\u00e9chants bateaux\u201d \u2013<\/em>, the trace of which remains starkly persistent in 2018.<\/p>\n

Listen:\u00a0Bandcamp<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Spotify\u00a0<\/a>\/\u00a0Apple Music<\/a><\/p>\n

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16.\u00a0Les Maxel’s<\/span><\/h6>\n
Le Retour de Toto<\/em><\/span><\/h6>\n
Atangana Records<\/span><\/h6>\n

Originally out in 1976, \u00ab Le Retour de Toto \u00bb on Disques Debs International is a brilliant dancefloor killer, magnifying the crossworld between zouk and latino music, biguine and calypso. You can hear from the promeminent hi-hat all the energy of the dance moves you could improvise on that kind of joint. With a lot of break, wonderful horns and backing vocals, \u00ab Le Retour de Toto \u00bb will\u00a0entertain\u00a0any\u00a0summer dancefloor and\u00a0airwaves for some\u00a0time…<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Deni Shain says : \u201cWhen we discovered this gem with my friend Likkle Ben, over a night of digging, it\u2019s mainly the keyboard break that drove us nuts ! We were already hearing the edit that we\u2019d make for our gigs… It didn\u2019t take long for me to contact the family of Henry Debs, introducing Atangana\u2019s project. They loved it, and at that time I went to studio with my friend Papa Stomp to start remixing it… I love how we added step by step the addparts, giving respect to the original tape…<\/em>\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Listen:\u00a0Bandcamp<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Spotify<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Apple Music<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Deezer<\/a><\/p>\n

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15.\u00a0Asnakech Worku<\/span><\/h6>\n
Asnakech<\/em><\/span><\/h6>\n
Awesome Tapes From Africa<\/span><\/h6>\n

Awesome Tapes From Africa<\/a>\u00a0r<\/span>eissued\u00a0Asnakech,\u00a0<\/em>a famous album from musician, dancer and actress\u00a0Asnakech Worku.\u00a0This recording is a nearly-forgotten artifact of the remarkable icon\u2019s singular legacy, remastered and available outside Ethiopia for the first time.<\/p>\n

From her beginnings as Ethiopia\u2019s first theater actress in 1952, to her acclaimed film appearances, and to her days as a club owner-turned-master musician, Asnakech\u2019s inimitable confidence and charm made her a household name. She earned endless accolades across the artistic spectrum.<\/p>\n

Listen:\u00a0Bandcamp<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Spotify<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Apple Music<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Deezer<\/a><\/p>\n

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14.\u00a0Ali Hassan Kuban<\/span><\/h6>\n
From Nubia to Cairo<\/em><\/span><\/h6>\n
Piranha Records<\/span><\/h6>\n

From a self-taught musician exploring his Nubian people\u2019s musical roots to a professional, successfully leading his various bands into new, vibrant, international pop territory \u2013 Ali Hassan Kuban became an international star when his music finally went global in the 1980s.<\/p>\n

When\u00a0exactly\u00a0were\u00a0Ali Hassan Kuban\u2019s<\/a>\u00a0legen<\/span>dary recordings made \u2013 released internationally by Piranha only in 1988 \u2013, nobody knows any more. What we do know, however, is that the recordings had taken place at Delta Sound S.A. in Cairo \u2013 with the orchestra\u2019s entire line-up circled around the only working microphone at hand. The tracks had been travelling in the Arab world on two audio-cassettes afterwards and accompanied his rise from a local superstar to a musical innovator of new, vibrant, international pop.<\/p>\n

From Nubia to Cairo<\/em>\u00a0is the first milestone in urban Nubian pop. The record will be available in glorious audiophile format – remastered from analogue tapes with listening standards refined to the contemporary levels. The first batch of Ali\u2019s long-legendary Nubian originals, seductively praised in touching lyrics his native Nubia and Egypt, their people, in particular, their women, and life. Life in general.<\/p>\n

Listen:\u00a0Bandcamp<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Spotify<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Apple Music<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Deezer<\/a><\/p>\n

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13.\u00a0Kamal Keila<\/span><\/h6>\n
Muslims And Christians<\/em><\/span><\/h6>\n
Habibi Funk<\/strong><\/span><\/h6>\n

Berlin based label Habibi Funk\u00a0is launching a new series\u00a0covering the Sudanese jazz scene. The first record is Kamal Keila\u2019s\u00a0Muslims And Christians.\u00a0<\/em>When label\u2019s boss Jannis St\u00fcrtz started to prepare his trip and\u00a0learn about the musical scene of the nation\u2019s capital in the 1970s, Kamal Keila was a name that came up here and there, coined \u201cSudan’s James Brown\u201d or \u201cFela Kuti of Sudan\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

According to the label, \u201csome of the songs were already written in the 1970s and have been part of Keila\u2019s sets ever since, with only small changes for contemporary references in the lyrics and musically sometimes adopting to \u2018new\u2019 sounds here and there.<\/em>\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

They add, \u201cBoth sessions stand as a testament to how he stuck to a sound aesthetic from decades ago, while incorporating current events into his lyrics.<\/em>\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Listen:\u00a0Bandcamp<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Spotify<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Apple Music<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Deezer<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

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12. Sun Ra & His Arkestra<\/span><\/h6>\n
Astro Black<\/em><\/span><\/h6>\n

After years of self-released albums on his own Saturn label, Sun Ra signed with ABC’s Impulse jazz imprint in 1972. A reissue series of his earlier hard-to-find Saturn LPs was undertaken, along with a few new projects. The first premiere, Astro Black<\/em>, was recorded and released in 1973 in the now-obsolete quadraphonic format (though it was playable on stereo phonographs). The undertaking signaled a noble campaign on the part of Impulse producer Ed Michel to mainstream Sun Ra and broaden his audience, without any sacrifice of his artistic integrity.<\/p>\n

Astro Black<\/em> was a\u00a0come back to an almost accessible work, away (yet not completely) from the anti-jazz experimentations of the late 1960s, and towards synthesizers-driven space jams. The Arkestra’s horn skronk was still prominent, but on side one of\u00a0Astro Black<\/em> it was largely anchored by the propulsive rhythm section of returning bassist Ronnie Boykins and drummer Tommy Hunter (along with a battalion of African percussions). With Sun Ra perched behind his Minimoog, this is very much a 1970s album. But as any listener will attest, it’s also very much a Sun Ra album.<\/span><\/p>\n

Listen:\u00a0Bandcamp<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Spotify\u00a0<\/a>\/\u00a0Apple Music\u00a0<\/a>\/\u00a0Deezer<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

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11. Various Artists<\/span><\/h6>\n
Disques Debs International, Vol.1: An\u00a0Island Story: Biguine, Afro Latin & Musique Antillaise 1960-1972<\/span><\/em><\/h6>\n
Strut<\/span><\/h6>\n

Created by\u00a0the late Henri Debs during the late \u201950s, Disques Debs was a label and a studio that released\u00a0over 300 7\u201d singles and 200 LPs, covering styles varying from early biguine and bolero to zouk and reggae. It\u00a0played a pivotal role in bringing the creole music of Guadeloupe and Martinique to a wider international audience.<\/p>\n

An\u00a0Island Story: Biguine, Afro Latin & Musique Antillaise 1960-1972\u00a0<\/em>is the first volume of this series. It\u2019s focused on the first decade\u00a0of the label\u2019s existence and takes in big band orchestras, home-grown stars, touring bands and a new generation that would emerge at the end of the \u201960s. Early releases were recorded in the back of Henri\u2019s shop in Pointe-\u00e0-Pitre, from his own sextet playing percussive biguines to young saxophonist Edouard Benoit, leader of Les Maxels and regular arranger for Debs bands. Other artists ranged from big bands like Orchestre Esperanza and Orchestre Caribbean Jazz to poet and radio personality Casimir \u201cCaso\u201d L\u00e9tang and\u00a0local traditional\u00a0gwo ka artist Sydney Leremon. Debs also capitalised on recording foreign touring artists visiting Guadeloupe during the early \u201960s including Haitian trumpeter Raymond Cicault and Trinidadian bandleader Cyril Diaz.<\/p>\n

Listen:\u00a0Bandcamp<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Spotify<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Apple Music<\/a><\/p>\n

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10.\u00a0The Scorpions & Saif Abu Bakr<\/b><\/span><\/h6>\n
Jazz, Jazz, Jazz<\/em><\/b><\/span><\/h6>\n
Habibi Funk<\/span><\/h6>\n

Released in 1980,\u00a0Scorpions & Saif Abu Bakr\u2019s\u00a0Jazz, Jazz, Jazz\u00a0<\/em>was offered\u00a0a new release in November thanks to Habibi Funk. Jazz Jazz Jazz<\/em> is described by Habibi Funk founder Jannis Stuertz as ranging from \u201cinstrumental tracks awaking memories of 1970s crime thriller soundtracks to more Sudanese-rooted tracks, a lot of them modernised versions of traditional tribal rhythms and even an excursion into soukouss.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n

Jazz, Jazz, Jazz<\/em>\u00a0includes full liner notes by Stuertz, as well as the band’s history and an interview with the group.<\/p>\n

Listen:\u00a0Bandcamp<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Spotify<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Apple Music<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Deezer<\/a><\/p>\n

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\u00a09. Zamaan Ya Sukkar<\/span><\/h6>\n
Exotic Love Songs and Instrumentals from the Egyptian 60’s<\/em><\/span><\/h6>\n
Radio Markito<\/span><\/h6>\n

Zamaan Ya Sukkar<\/u>\u00a0is a rich musical portrait from the time when Cairo was the vibrant cultural heart of the Middle East and the grandeur of the leading orchestras was incomparable. Unearthed latin and jazz-tinged tracks will let your mind drift off to the glamorous nightlife of \u201960s Cairo. Meet some forgotten souls of the Egyptian music scene and cinema world. Sensual voices and Bollywood-like orchestra sounds inflame the senses of the body with an intangible exotic twist!<\/p>\n

All music was remastered from original 45rpms produced by Sono Cairo. Features\u00a0Salim El Baroudi,\u00a0Sayed Salamah,\u00a0Abd Al Fattah Mansi,\u00a0Soad Mohamed,\u00a0Al Thourathy Al Mareh,\u00a0Taha Al-Ugayl,\u00a0Mohamed Fawzy, and\u00a0Magda Ali.<\/p>\n

Listen:\u00a0Bandcamp<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Spotify<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Apple Music<\/a><\/p>\n

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8. Ali Farka Tour\u00e9<\/strong><\/span><\/h6>\n
The Source<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/h6>\n
World Circuit<\/strong><\/span><\/h6>\n

Ali Farka Tour\u00e9 was a true original. An exceptional musician, he transposed the traditional music of his native north Mali and single-handedly brought the style known as desert blues to an international audience.<\/span><\/p>\n

This album,\u00a0The Source<\/em>, is a wonderful collection of songs from his repertoire and takes the listener through an absolute garden of musical fragrances, all nurtured by the deep, rich soil of the history of the African peoples. All of this is then filtered through the genius of one of the world’s premiere musicians.<\/span><\/p>\n

Listen:\u00a0Bandcamp<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Spotify<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Apple Music<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Deezer<\/a><\/p>\n

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7. Jess Sah Bi & Peter One<\/span><\/h6>\n
Our Garden Needs Its Flowers<\/em><\/span><\/h6>\n
Awesome Tapes From Africa<\/span><\/h6>\n

In the 1980s, Abidjan\u2019s Jess Sah Bi & Peter One became one of the most popular musical acts in not just the Ivory Coast\u00a0(C\u00f4te d’Ivoire), but also broader West Africa, eventually performing with a full band to stadium-sized audiences at home and throughout Benin, Burkina Faso and Togo.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Country music and folk-rock weren\u2019t very popular with the general public. But interest was bubbling up within the growing student population, who connected with the protest sentiments expressed by many English and American artists of the era and loved the sound as well. \u201cIt\u2019s very nice music, with very nice harmonies, and it\u2019s different from what you hear every day,<\/em>\u201d Peter says. \u201cThe language was a big barrier though. You had to learn English to understand the songs, and the students were the ones learning English.<\/em>\u201d Having access to education along with their awareness of social and political inequality and injustice made students the perfect audience for folk music in Ivory Coast.<\/p>\n

After Our Garden Needs Its Flowers<\/em>\u2019s release, Jess and Peter\u2019s profile lifted rapidly, leading to those stadium performances across West Africa. Jess and Peter\u2019s run lasted until the early 1990s, capped off with the BBC using their song \u201cAfrican Chant\u201d as theme music for the day Nelson Mandela was released from prison.<\/p>\n

Listen:\u00a0Bandcamp<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Spotify\u00a0<\/a>\/\u00a0Apple Music<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Deezer<\/a><\/p>\n

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6. Abu Obaida Hassan & His Tambour<\/b><\/span><\/h6>\n
The Shaigiya Sound of Sudan<\/i><\/b><\/span><\/h6>\n
Ostinato Records<\/span><\/h6>\n

Brought to you by the Grammy-nominated team behind last year\u2019s Sweet As Broken Dates<\/em>, the first global release of Shaigiya music is just the beginning of Ostinato\u2019s immersion into Sudan.<\/p>\n

Abu Obaida Hassan and the wonders of his five-string tambour remained largely a mystery. In the early 2000s, a prominent Sudanese newspaper declared him dead. Internet forums confirmed his passing. Many in Khartoum, Sudan\u2019s capital, said he had indeed deceased. But rumors that he was still alive persisted.\u00a0What was always certain is Abu Obaida Hassan\u2019s mercurial talent. His command of a modified tambour, backed by a chorus and two drummers, unleashed swirling melodies\u00a0alongside complex Nubian rhythms and hypnotic Sudanese call and response. His bands\u00a0lineup constantly changed, but he remained at the helm, playing for sold out shows in cities across the country and capturing the dancefloors and youth of 1970s and \u201980s Sudan.\u00a0<\/span>
\nAbu Obaida Hassan, his music and the musical traditions of the Shaigiya remain alive and kicking. A culmination of a seven-year journey \u2014 from first hearing Abu Obaida\u2019s distinct sound, found only in Sudan, to finding the man \u2014 has produced the first global release of Shaigiya music and is the first chapter of Ostinato\u2019s immersion into Sudan, with a full compilation of the lavish musical history of one the most diverse countries in Africa due later this year.<\/p>\n

Listen:\u00a0Bandcamp<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Spotify\u00a0<\/a>\/\u00a0Apple Music<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Deezer<\/a><\/p>\n

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5.\u00a0Roc\u00e9<\/span><\/h6>\n
Par les damn\u00e9.e.s de la terre<\/em><\/span><\/h6>\n
Hors Cadre<\/span><\/h6>\n

There are two kinds of compilation: either a collection of tracks that do not relate to each other, or a selection of songs that document a musical scene or an era, with a strong link between them (often the most compelling compilations).\u00a0Par les Damn\u00e9.e.s de la terre<\/i>\u00a0totally falls into the second category: the compilation is as much a pleasure for the ears, as it offers a\u00a0reflection<\/span>\u00a0about mankind history.<\/span><\/p>\n

After several years of tireless research and investigation, the esteemed French rapper Roc\u00e9 honors the Francophone \u201cpolitically-committed<\/span>\u201d music, a true patrimonial memory of the various social and post-colonial\/decolonial struggles. Roc\u00e9 recently explained in an interview he gave to PAM: \u201cI tried to be ambitious. It was more than a basic compilation, with \u2018classic\u2019 tracks and front covers, but they really are pieces of our history, that had to be told. Hence the need to be helped by historians. I discovered the song \u2018<\/i>Dansons avec les travailleurs immigr\u00e9s\u2019<\/i><\/span>\u00a0(\u2018Let’s dance with migrant workers\u2019) via the Fontanet law which reduced the rights of the migrant workers. The track \u2018Versailles\u2019 (a city in the suburbs of Paris) was recorded because an Algerian man, Mohamed Diab, was killed in Versailles’ police station. This story had never been told. I knew about it when I first heard the song. Every song is mesmerizing, because they are all \u2018possessed\u2019! The tracklisting and the artists are truly \u2018inhabited\u2019<\/i>.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

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4. Hunee<\/b><\/span><\/h6>\n
Hunchin\u2019 All Night<\/b><\/em><\/span><\/h6>\n
Rush Hour Music<\/span><\/h6>\n

Known for his eclectic performances, Hunee got a strong reputation\u00a0while driving\u00a0magical times in club and festival all around the world. If you\u00a0haven’t experienced it yet, his new compilation is a good start.\u00a0In addition to great house tracks from Larry Heard or Blak Beat Nik,\u00a0Hunchin\u2019 All Night<\/em><\/a>\u00a0receives a lot of very danceable African hits \u2013 from highlife to afrobeat \u2013\u00a0performed by legends such as Pat Thomas or Don Laka.<\/span><\/p>\n

Hunee, aka Hun Choi, is a Korean Berliner who has been drawn in music since a very young age. After working in record stores and studying musicology he resided in Amsterdam, where he released his debut album Hunch Music<\/em>. As a DJ he has always followed \u201ca hunch\u201d, which gave him wings to communicate the music he loves with crowds all over the world.<\/span><\/p>\n

Listen:\u00a0Bandcamp<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Spotify\u00a0<\/a>\/\u00a0Apple Music<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Deezer<\/a><\/p>\n

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3. Stella Chiweshe<\/span><\/h6>\n
Kasahwa: Early Singles<\/em><\/span><\/h6>\n
Glitterbeat Records<\/span><\/h6>\n

\u201cI am a rebel,<\/em>\u201d admits 70-year-old Stella Chiweshe, smiling. Her album, Kasahwa: Early Singles<\/em>\u00a0offers a fascinating introduction to the world of Mbira, the term not only referring to the instrument \u2013 consisting of 22 to 28 metal keys mounted on a wooden body \u2013 but also to a musical genre, and on a much wider level, to an entire culture and deeply spiritual lifestyle, very much at the core of the young Zimbabwean nation. Mbira is an ancient mystical music which has been played for over a thousand years by the Shona people, a group which forms the vast majority of the country’s population. Mbira pervades all aspects of Shona culture, both sacred and secular. Its most important function is as a \u201ctelephone to the spirits of people, water, trees, stones and birds,<\/em>\u201d\u00a0used to contact both deceased ancestors and tribal guardians, at all-night ceremonies. Kasahwa<\/em>\u00a0is a collection of impossible-to-find early 7\u201ds, eight cuts spanning the period from 1974 to 1983 and representing Mbira in its purest form. None of these songs had been released outside of Africa so far.<\/p>\n

Listen:\u00a0Bandcamp<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Spotify\u00a0<\/a>\/\u00a0Apple Music<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Deezer<\/a><\/p>\n

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2. Dur Dur of Somalia<\/span><\/h6>\n
Vol.1, Vol.2 (Analog Africa N\u00b027)<\/em><\/span><\/h6>\n
Analog Africa<\/span><\/h6>\n

The secrets to Dur-Dur’s rapid success is inextricably linked to the vision of Isse Dahir, the founder and keyboard player of the band. Isse’s plan was to locate some of the most forward-thinking musicians of Mogadishu’s buzzing scene and lure them into Dur-Dur. Ujeeri, the band’s mercurial bass player was recruited from Somali Jazz and extraordinary drummer Handal had previously played in Bakaka Band. These two formed the backbone of Dur-Dur and would become one of Somalia’s most extraordinary rhythm sections.
\nOn their first two albums, Volume 1<\/em> and Volume 2<\/em>, three different singers traded lead-vocal duties back and forth. Shimaali, formerly of Bakaka Band, handled the Daantho songs, a Somalian rhythm from the northern part of the country that bears a striking resemblance to reggae; Sahra Dawo, a young female singer,\u00a0was\u00a0recruited from Somalia’s national orchestra, the Waaberi Band. Their third singer, the legendary Baastow, whose nickname came from the Italian word \u201cpasta\u201d due to the spaghetti-like shape of his body, had also been a vocalist with the Waaberi Band, and had been brought into Dur-Dur due to his deep knowledge of traditional Somali music \u2013 and particularly saar, a type of music intended to summon the spirits during religious rituals. These traditional elements of Dur-Dur’s repertoire sometimes put them at odds with the manager of the Jubba Hotel who once told Baastow: \u201cI am not going to risk having Italian tourists possessed by Somali spirits. Stick to disco and reggae.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n

Listen:\u00a0Bandcamp<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Spotify\u00a0<\/a>\/\u00a0Apple Music<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Deezer<\/a><\/p>\n

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1. Oneness of Juju<\/span><\/h6>\n
African Rhythms<\/em><\/span><\/h6>\n
Strut\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/h6>\n

Based around saxophonist\u00a0James Plunky Branch,\u00a0Oneness of Juju\u00a0was the second incarnation of the Afrocentric creative jazz group\u00a0Juju\u00a0that recorded two albums for the Strata East label in the early \u201970s. Along with new members and new instruments, including the introduction of a drum kit to the African and Afro-Cuban percussion section, a new name was adopted to reflect the direction of the group. While\u00a0Juju\u00a0was often compared to\u00a0Pharoah Sanders\u00a0and was being active in the loft jazz scene in New York,\u00a0Oneness of Juju\u00a0incorporated more mainstream\u00a0R&B elements and introduced vocals to the new group sound as well. The sound of this incarnation, more akin to\u00a0the Ohio Players\u00a0and\u00a0Kool & The Gang\u00a0at this point, was documented on two recordings: 1975\u2019s\u00a0African Rhythms<\/em>\u00a0and\u00a0Space Jungle Luv<\/em>\u00a0in 1976. An ever-evolving project, smooth jazz and hip-hop were incorporated in the \u201980s and the group continued as\u00a0Plunky & Oneness.<\/p>\n

Listen:\u00a0Bandcamp<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Spotify\u00a0<\/a>\/\u00a0Apple Music<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0Deezer<\/a><\/p>\n

Click\u00a0here<\/a>\u00a0to find out more of our favourites from this year.<\/span><\/h3>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The year 2018 was a great year for the reissue of musical treasures from all over the continent. Here are our 25 most loved reissue albums of 2018. This list reflects ‘favourites’ albums that PAM […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":19402,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[9400],"tags":[],"location":[],"yst_prominent_words":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pan-african-music.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42086"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pan-african-music.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pan-african-music.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pan-african-music.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pan-african-music.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=42086"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/pan-african-music.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/42086\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pan-african-music.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19402"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pan-african-music.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=42086"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pan-african-music.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=42086"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pan-african-music.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=42086"},{"taxonomy":"location","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pan-african-music.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/location?post=42086"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pan-african-music.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=42086"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}