2008 - week 6, from 9 February

[Charlie]

Seq - Artist - Song Title - Album - Country - Label - Cat no

1 - Soha - C'est Bien Mieux Comme CA - D'Ici et D'ailleurs - France - Virgin - 099950 318124

2 - D.J.Dolores - Cala Cala [feat Isaar] - I Real - Brazil - Ziriguiboom - ZIR 31

3 - Toni Iordache - Omul bun are noroc [feat Gabi Lunca] - Sounds from a Bygone Age, 4 - Romania - Asphalt Tango - CD-ATR01307

4 - Nancy Ajram - Ya Salam (Oh How Nice) - Best of Nancy Ajram, Vol 2 - Lebanon - -

5 - Lydia Mendoza - Mal Hombre - American Roots - USA - Palm Pictures - PALM CD 2075-2

6 - Justin Adams & Juldeh Camara - Njatigi - Soul Science - UK/Gambia - Wayward - WAYWARD704

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Two songs from brand new albums, two from recent favourites, and two blasts from the past.


Soha

Soha joins the line of impressive female singers from France that in the past five years has included Carla Bruni (whose creative abilities should not be tarnished by her dubious choice of real-life lovers), Camille (new album is imminent), Olivia Ruiz and Mayra Andrade. From the sound of her music, I would never have guessed that Soha’s mother in Nubian; her voice sometimes reminds me of Madeleine Peyroux, and it hardly needs a crystal ball to predict that she will become one of the biggest new stars in France this year.


D.J.Dolores; Isaar

This is the third album from D.J.Dolores, the always interesting music producer from Pernambuco in the north east of Brazil, and probably his best so far. He has a knack for applying an urban sophistication to rural singers, instruments, rhythms and melodies without diminishing their impact. The promising young singer Isaar is featured on several tracks.


Toni Iordache; Gabi Lunca

The most famous cimbalom player in Romania during the 1960s, Toni Iordache is the fourth Romanian artist to be featured in the series Sounds from a Bygone Age, and his album has been highly praised by contributors to the forum at www.soundoftheworld.com. I confess to being more impressed by two others in the series, by Romica Puceanu (Vol 2) and Dona Dumitru Siminica (Vol 3), but do like this song featuring vocalist Gabi Lunca.


Nancy Ajram

Among all the current pop singers in the Middle East, the Lebanese singer Nancy Ajram usually manages to avoid surrendering to the clichés of modern dance music productions. Every now and then her voice is affected by the flange sound of an automatic tuner, omnipresent on the region’s pop records (and heard throughout the world on ‘Believe’ by Cher), but mostly her records are impressively distinctive, with local instruments and vocal groups giving them an authentic flavour.


Lydia Mendoza

The recent death of the Texan singer Lydia Mendoza is marked by playing her most famous song, ‘Mal Hombre’, recorded in 1936, when she was one of the most famous singers both sides of the border with Mexico.


Dawson Miller, Juldeh Camara & Justin Adams

Finally, another song from the impressive album by British guitarist Justin Adams and the Gambian musician, Juldeh Camara.

[Con Murphy]

This is the third album from D.J.Dolores, the always interesting music producer from Pernambuco in the north east of Brazil, and probably his best so far. He has a knack for applying an urban sophistication to rural singers, instruments, rhythms and melodies without diminishing their impact. The promising young singer Isaar is featured on several tracks.

I must admit DJ Dolores has pretty much passed me by up to now but this album sounds like a real cracker - did Isaar appear on his previous releases?

[howard male]

Con wrote -

I must admit DJ Dolores has pretty much passed me by up to now but this album sounds like a real cracker - did Isaar appear on his previous releases?

Yes indeed - in fact she's actually on this one less than she's on the other two - but all three albums are excellent though this new one is perhaps the best produced/arranged.

I also strongly recommend seeing his band live as you'll find out this is not as much of a studio-bound project as you might think - if his performance at the Jazz Cafe about 3 years ago is anything to go by.

This time he's at Cargo on the 27th of this month.

[Dominic]

I also strongly recommend seeing his band live as you'll find out this is not as much of a studio-bound project as you might think - if his performance at the Jazz Cafe about 3 years ago is anything to go by.

This time he's at Cargo on the 27th of this month.

Haven't heard the new CD yet, but I agree about the live band. See you down the front ;-)

[Charlie]

email from:

1. Dave Concannon, Ashford, Kent, UK

Hi Mr. Gillett

I have been forced to listen to R4 and world service all night long due to my wife's insomnia. More and more over the last 6 months or so i have found myself waking up at exactly 03:30 GMT early on Monday mornings.

Now I cannot say I like everything you play and I am not particularly music minded (50 by age), although I am partial to African a capella style music.

However the first track this monday am by SOHA C'est bien mieux comme ca really did it for me. I managed to track a used copy of the album down on amazon and eagerly await it.

I really don't mind being kept awake 24/7 for some of the gems on your show !

Cheers

Dave Concannon