NEW RELEASE – KASSIDAT: Raw 45s from Morocco

HAJI MAJI — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 16:17:34 +0000

I’m happy to announce the release of KASSIDAT: Raw 45s from Morocco, an LP project I put together for Dust-to-Digital. Hypnotic and trance-inducing grooves from what I call the “Golden Age” of the Moroccan record industry, the period beginning in 1956 when Morocco gained its independence, until the 1970s. It was a time when many locally-owned record labels flourished, thanks, in part, to the inexpensive 45 rpm format. Most of these companies were based in Casablanca, but they released hundreds of 45s of authentic, hardcore folk music from all over Morocco. KASSIDAT is the third in a series of Dust-to-Digital LPs that explore similar locally-controlled record scenes around the world during the 1950s and 1960s. The first two in the series was LUK THUNG: Classic & Obscure Recordings from the Thai Countryside, followed by Chris Menist’s QAT, COFFEE & QAMBUS: Raw 45s from Yemen.
I designed this one and wrote the notes with a lot of help from Ayyoub Ajmi (www.settatbladi.org) and Tim Abdellah Fuson (moroccantapestash.blogspot.com). Be sure to check out their excellent web stuff for deeper diving. The recordings were mastered by Michael Graves (www.osirisstudio.com). Thanks to Dust-to-Digital for continuing to support these projects.

LP AVAILABLE HERE

Digital Download Here

CHEIKHATES (MOROCCO)

HAJI MAJI — Fri, 08 Mar 2013 21:45:44 +0000

As promised, here’s another great 78 from Morocco. Al-aita is the music of the urban and rural poor and is found generally in central Morocco. This recording is typical of the style, driven by raspy fiddle played upright on the knee, drums such as ta’rija and darbuka, and the call and response of the Cheikhates, the female singers that front the group. As with female performers elsewhere in North Africa, such as the cheikhat of Algerian rai, the cheikhates in Morocco suffer shame and are regarded as outcasts due to their transgression of social and religious roles. This record was released on Philips around 1950.

GUNBRI (MOROCCO)

HAJI MAJI — Fri, 01 Mar 2013 23:26:40 +0000

I’ll soon be posting some news about a forthcoming LP project I put together for Dust-to-Digital called “Kassidat: Raw 45s from Morocco.” In the meantime, to prime the pump and grease the wheels, I figured I’d do a post or two of Moroccan 78s. Morocco has an interesting diversity of folk music styles, most of which tend toward trance-inducing, hypnotic grooves. There’s the rwais (itinerant musical troupes from the Marrakech area), the female led ‘aita troupes of the central region, the Sufi village ensembles, the music of the Gnawa, Chaabi, and more. The gunbri is a lute that comes in several forms and is used in several of these genres throughout Morocco. The Gnawa are well-known for their large bass gunbri, while the rwais use a smaller, more banjo-like gunbri, sometimes called lotar. A third variety is used in central Morocco and the Rif mountains. It has a distinctive pear-shaped body, and is carved from a single block of wood. It’s often paired with the bendir, as in this recording, by the famous comedic duo of Kachbal and Zaroual. Moroccan music was widely recorded during the early 20th century, but this type of gunbri seems to have been rarely recorded during the 78 rpm era. It wasn’t until local record companies began to prosper after the country gained independence, in 1956, that many 45s of this type were released. In fact, Orikaphone was one of the first of these local Moroccan labels and this record was released on 45, as well as the 78 shown here.

BAĞLAMA (TURKEY)

HAJI MAJI — Sun, 27 Jan 2013 23:07:01 +0000

Turkey is well-known for its classical art music developed during the Ottoman Empire. It’s impossible to deny the genius of classical musicians like Tanbûrî Cemil Bey, but I’ve always gravitated toward folk music. In Anatolia, the most popular folk instrument is certainly the bağlama, sometimes called saz (and not to be confused with the tiny Greek baglamas). The bağlama belongs to a family of string instruments used throughout the region; Syria, Kurdistan, Persia, and elsewhere. The instrument comes in many sizes, from the small cura to the enormous divan sazi. The instrument has seven strings, dived into 3 courses, the two highest courses have 2 strings, while the lowest course has 3. The tuning varies depending on the mode of the song, with the open strings acting as drones to emphasize the different characteristics of the mode.
Mucip Arciman was a folk musician from central Anatolia who became popular in the 1940s and ’50s.

20 From 2012 (CD)

HAJI MAJI — Thu, 13 Dec 2012 00:12:14 +0000

2012 was a good year. I posted 20 sides here on ShellacHead, pretty much a whole CD worth of material. Jon Ward and I played some good stuff on the Gramophoney Baloney podcast back in September. I also completed two projects for the Dust-to-Digital label, both should be out in the first quarter of 2013 (more on those soon).
As 2012 draws to a close, I thought it might be fun to put together a selection of some of the records I’ve collected this year that have not been reissued on cd, as far as I know. So here it is, “20 from 2012,” a good old-fashioned mix tape type thing. Download the zipped archive (mp3s and a PDF), burn to cd, print the insert and stick it in one of those old jewel cases you’ve got lying around!

I’ve decided to offer this on a “pay what you want” basis. You can choose to buy me a virtual beer or have it for free…it’s up to you.

Download:
ShellacHead: 20 from 2012

1. Leyenda India, Davila y Rodriguez PUERTO RICO
2. Koulou Liladi, Cheikh Benoubia ALGERIA
3. Mandolin & Harmonium Ghat, J.D. Marshal & H. Don Vincent INDIA
4. Das Pintele Yid, Yenkowitz & Goldberg NEW YORK
5. Lala Satane, Mabulukwe Anzima SOUTH AFRICA
6. Tsifte Telli, Dimitrios “Salonikos” Semsis GREECE
7. Seberu Beru, M. Legwara Kadipela SOUTH AFRICA
8. Mabaad Ghachia, Cheikha Nejma Elouahrania ALGERIA
9. Not Me , Denzil Laing Trio JAMAICA
10. Tico Tico No Fuba, Sivuca BRAZIL
11. Unidentified Iraqi Test Pressing, IRAQ
12. Parachinka Kolo, Sava Jeremic SERBIA
13. Keghetzig Erevan, E. Saaruni ARMENIA
14. Ndamulombu, F. Gwenzi MOZAMBIQUE/ZIMBABWE
15. Mal Ghusnil Dhahab, Mohamed Faris Alkhalifa BAHRAIN
16. Lalla Aicha, Raisette Embarka MOROCCO
17. Rakkosa Kiz, Inst. Group UZBEKISTAN
18. La Pimienta, Tobias Plicet PANAMA
19. Jamadal Bardas Aladat, Abdullah Jan PAKISTAN
20. Cumbia Campesina, Los Corraleros De Majagual COLOMBIA

TABALA WOLOF (SENEGAL)

HAJI MAJI — Tue, 04 Dec 2012 18:50:50 +0000

This post is riffing off the latest from the legendary Excavated Shellac. As JW points out, “There were certain regions in Sub-Saharan Africa where local music was barely recorded - if at all – by commercial companies or ethnographers, until at least after World War II.” But records from these “barely recorded” places have a way of popping up, and his fantastic track Haalpulaar’en people of Senegal and Mauritania is a perfect example. Here’s a companion record, of sorts.
The vast majority of the populations of Mauritania and Senegal are Sunni Muslims. In the 19th century, several Islamic Sufi orders became prominent. Of these, the Khadria (Qadiriyyah) brotherhood is not only the oldest in West Africa, but likely the oldest Sufi order in the world, founded in the 12th century. The Khadria are one of the two main Sufi brotherhoods in Mauritania, and one of several orders in Senegal. The Sufism of the region also incorporates animistic elements from pre-Islamic religions along with the search for an ecstatic experience, often through music or prayer.
This track features a type of ritual drumming and chanting called Tabala Wolof, performed at night on a set of large kettle drums (tabala) with a chorus of singer/chanters. This is the 3rd part of the poem “Inal Mourada” (“Nostalgia of the Prophet”) composed by the famous Cheikh Saad Bouh (1848-1917). The poem is spread over at least four record sides, maybe more.
Unfortunately, I’ve been unable to locate any information about the Studio Chaouy label, which, according to the label, was located in Senegal’s capitol, Dakar.

For further listening and reading:
An amazing post by Matthew Lavoie on the variety Sengalese Sufi cassettes: http://blogs.voanews.com/african-music-treasures/2008/09/23/sufi-sounds-volume-two/

And a contemporary recording from Village Pulse I have yet to hear: http://www.villagepulse.com/tabala.html

KARLOV’S ACCORDION (BULGARIA)

HAJI MAJI — Thu, 29 Nov 2012 20:03:30 +0000

Typical Bulgarian folk instruments like the kaval, gadulka, and gajda were joined by the accordion in the early 20th century. Karlov, born in 1924 in Sofia to a Bulgarian-Roma family, came to be considered the father of Bulgarian accordion style. It was probably helpful that his own father, Karlo Aliev (check him out on Excavated Shellac), was a highly-regarded musician and director of Krenjaska, an ensemble that gained fame playing on Radio Sofia in the 1930s. Boris took over as director of the group when his father died in 1944 and soon became a celebrated musician. His true love was for folk music, and he applied his amazing technique and musicianship to styles from many different regions, although his roots were in western Bulgaria. Here he plays a dance tune in 11/8 from northern Bulgaria called “Gankino Horo.” The label Radioprom was formed by the nationalizing of small local labels in the late 1940s and eventually changed into the Balkanton label.
Boris Karlov died in 1964.

ARKANSAS BILL GREEN (TEXAS)

HAJI MAJI — Thu, 28 Jun 2012 18:21:09 +0000

“They have down in Arkansas what they call the Bill Green, and that’s a square dance.
All the partners to their places, straighten up their faces for a Bill Green.”

I’ve been listening to old time country 78s (“Hillbilly”) for nearly 20 years, but I have bothered to collect only a few because so many of the recordings have been reissued on cd. This has always been a favorite record of mine, and as far as I know, it has never been reissued. Unfortunately, it’s not in great condition and I’m always on the lookout for a cleaner copy, but this is the only one I’ve ever seen! Recorded 83 years and 2 days ago in Dallas, on June 26, 1929. I think it’s the finest example of American old-time jaw harp playing on 78. I have no idea who Barnyard Steve really was, but I love how you can hear him imitating the dance rhythm of old-time fiddle bowing by using his breathing, rather than the striking of the harp’s tongue (or “twanger” as some old timers call it). He even calls out square dance figures with the harp still clearly set against his teeth. It’s a shame that Barnyard Steve only made this single record. However, the flip side is a fantastic series of barnyard animal impressions, some of which are almost chilling.

**UPDATE**

I was contacted by Mr. Steve Austin, Barnyard Steve’s grandson, who provided me with the following details. Steve Edward Austin was born in Riddleville, Texas on May 29, 1890. He performed on the Orpheum Vaudeville circuit as Barnyard Steve, other times as Uncle Hiram and his Animals. Later, he became a regular performer on WFAA-AM in Dallas. He also toured high schools as a ventriloquist and even supplied animal voices for Walt Disney. According to his grandson, Barnyard Steve played no instruments other than the jaw harp, and was not, to his knowledge, a real square dance caller.
He died in Dallas, Texas on May 12, 1955.

Thanks to Steve Austin for supplying these details and photograph! In honor of this new information I’m adding the B-side to this post.

TAR (ARMENIA)

HAJI MAJI — Sat, 23 Jun 2012 17:51:42 +0000

Tar is the Persian word for “string”, and is the root of many instrument names (guitar, sitar, dotar, etc.) The instrument called tar is used widely throughout Iran, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Afghanistan. It seems to have originated in the region of southwestern Azerbaijan and eastern Armenia. Considered the “sultan of instruments” by Persians, it holds a prime position in radif, Persian classical music. During the 19th Century, a variation of the Persian tar was developed in Azerbaijan with a slightly different shape and additional strings.

George Shah-Baronian was an Iranian of Armenian origin. During the 1920s, he recorded in New York for the Pharos and Sohag labels. At some point, he seems to have relocated to Los Angeles where he performed and recorded this record at the famous “Radio Recorders” studio in Hollywood, where many greats recorded, including Elvis. If anyone can fill in the details on Shah Baronian please leave a comment (paging Ian Nagoski!).

Unfortunately, this record has a small chip at the edge, so we miss the introduction to this otherwise excellent tar solo.

ABOUL HASSAN KHAN (PERSIA)

HAJI MAJI — Fri, 15 Jun 2012 17:30:15 +0000

Abul Hasan Khan (aka Abolhasan Eqbal Azar) was one of the great Persian singers of the 78 era. He was an Azeri, born in 1871 (some say 1866) in the village of Alvand, outside of Qazvin in the northwest of Iran, not far from the borders of Azerbaijan, Armenia, Turkey and Iraq. As a child, he moved to Qazvin where he studied music with the famed Haji Mulla Karim. He performed in major cities around the country and in 1914 made his first record for the Monarch label. This recording, made with the newly invented electrical recording gear, was recorded in 1929 in Tehran by Frank Rennie and released the following year. Abul Hasan Khan was still performing when he died at the age of 100.