Review: Sounds like it came out of Lagos in 1971, actually written and recorded in Lyon in 2015: Voilaaa is the brainchild of Bruno Hovart whose long relationship with Favorite goes way back to his days as Patchworks, Mr President and The Dynamics. Recording on a whole host of vintage machines and calling upon local African singers both cuts have a real authentic sense of realness; "Spies Are Watching Me" drives with big horns and swooning strings which isn't dissimilar to the work of The Movers, while the TY Boys-esque "Le Disco Des Capitales" is a heavier, more concentrated slab of floor-minded disco where the groove takes more of a forefront role. Apparently there's a whole album of this cooking... We can't wait to hear it.
Lexy Mella - "On The Air" (Rap mix - Frankie Francis edit - bonus 7") (3:47)
Review: Soundway offer us a new compilation featuring 20 rare tracks from the currently much talked about world of Nigerian pop music; a zeitgeist of their early 1980s club culture. The country's economy was booming at the time and so was its recording industry. Strongly influenced by '70s disco and funk, this new generation were, as the liner notes explain "Eager to sound as American as possible with no hint of the fervour for afro-beat, afro-rock and afrocentric thinking that the 1970s had thrown up". The original albums that many of these singles came from go for exorbitant prices online, so here's a chance to snap up some of the periods finest music, remastered across three 12"s.
Akin Richards & The Executives - "Afrikana Disco" (6:25)
Tee Mac - "Nam Myoho Renge Kyo" (5:40)
Joni Haastrup - "Greetings" (6:14)
Don Bruce & The Angels - "Ocheche (Happy Song)" (5:51)
Benis Cletin - "Get Up & Dance" (5:37)
Colomach - "Enoviyin" (5:02)
Joni Haastrup - "Do The Funkro" (4:04)
Tee Mac - "Living Everyday" (feat Marjorie Barnes) (5:19)
Arakatula - "Mr Been To" (4:01)
Angela Starr - "Disco Dancing" (5:30)
Joni Haastrup - "Wake Up Your Mind" (5:58)
Jimmy Sherry & The Musik Agents - "Nwaeze" (7:00)
Benis Cletin - "Soul Fever" (5:02)
Arakatula - "Wake Up Africa" (3:19)
Review: Another work of Soul Jazz curatorial gold: Nigeria Soul Fever is a detailed gatefold trip into one of Nigeria's richest chapters in music. Heavy trade restrictions allowed them to develop their own style without too much US or European influence and the result is an array of national talent who largely remained legends within their own borders. The range is mesmerizing; the sinewy synth and playground vocal Q&A of Benis Cletin's "Get Up & Dance", the ballroom disco soul of Tee Mac's "Living Everyday", the soulful afrofunk folk of Jimmy Sherry's "Nwaeze", the gut-punching power of Arakatula's album finale "Wake Up Africa". This is a treasure trove of unreleased gems that capture a truly unique time.
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