Wake Up Call - 6/27

Years ago, I was browsing in J&R' Record World, an emporium down by NYC's City Hall which has since extended to cover most of the block it's on and now includes computers, office supplies, appliances, electronic gear and who knows what else. Back then, it was basically records. They had great stock and decent prices, and the manager's music selections were tasty. That day they were playing a kind of music I hadn't heard before, and which grabbed me so completely that I bought the album on the spot. It was Induku Zethu, by Zulu musicians Ladysmith Black Mambazo, whom Paul Simon later made famous in the USA on his Graceland recording (and who also appear on this week's selection and today's work CD, Do It Acappella). This album was my introduction to contemporary African music in general, and I've been a fan ever since. My favorite genres include Algerian rai, Congolese soukous, Malian music for the kora, the acoustic guitarists of Madagascar, and the South African township/mbaqanga style.

I first heard that last type of music on this week's wake-up set, The Indestructible Beat of Soweto (which is now volume 1 of a series). This is a compilation of South African urban pop from the 80's, call-and-response style songs with a rolling, bouncing beat coming off an up-front bass line, the kind of music you can't sit still and listen to – you've just got to get up and move, usually with a big smile on your face, which makes it perfect wake-up music. I've set the opening track to a piece featuring the growling, gritty voice of Mahlathini, who sounds like I feel until the music gets me going.