Ananda Shankar : Snow Flower and Raghupati
taken from his self-titled album on Reprise (1970)

Ananda Shankar : Streets of Calcutta and Dancing Drums
taken from the album “Ananda Shankar and his Music” on EMI (1975)

Ananda Shankar : The Alien
taken from the album “2001” on Shiva Sounds (1984)

As a fan of Indian music, I’m baffled by the apparent lack of recordings made outside the realm of bollywood film scores. It seems as though adventurous musicians in India, the players who sought to stray from traditional or religious music, basically ended up making soundtracks. While the soundtracks themselves were extremely varied in their content and often gave room for wild experimentation, I wonder why these musicians weren’t able to put out albums separate from epic plots and over-the-top melodrama. I imagine that R.D. Burman, Bappi Lahiri, and the Kalyanji-Anandji duo would all have loved to have their own faces put on the covers of their records (or at least have had some album art) rather than always featuring the pictures of the actors from the movies – pretty-faced Bollywood stars who had absolutely nothing to do with the sounds or singing on the album. No matter how cool the cover designs are, it’s still about the movie more than the music. Even now, when I buy CDs from local bollywood vendors, the greatest hits of Kishore Kumar and Lata Mangeshkar show giant pics of today’s Indian movie stars on the cover- and the music is all from the 60’s and 70’s!?!

All this bewildering music industry business only increases the anomoly factor of the one and only Ananda Shankar. The nephew of world renowned sitar ambassador Ravi Shankar, Ananda was more of a rebel soul. After 5 years studying classical sitar in Varanasi, India, he spent a couple years in Los Angeles learning about pop, rock, fusion and funk – even playing alongside Jimi Hendrix at one point. His self-titled debut contains a short manifesto on his revolutionary attitude towards music:

“The combination of the most modern electronic devices with the old traditional Indian instrument, the sitar, shows how in this present age all of us in every corner of the world can find a beautiful medium of getting along together with an open mind, mutual respect and eagerness to learn in any field. I do not want to be linked with the famous Shankars. I am an ordinary representative of the present youth who want peace and harmony in the world through hard work, discipline, love and dedication to one’s work and respect for the past.”

Get your hands on some of his albums to experience this rare melting pot music more fully.

PS- mow much does the intro of “Snow Flower” sound like “Road To Zion” off Damian Marley’s last album? I know it’s not a sample, but a cool connection nonetheless.

PPS- Big shout out to Oleg and Seong aka “FALYNX” who came through the spot to interview me as part of their self-produced/directed documentary about the state of the music industry. In addition to being filmmakers, these cats are making some DOPE and very unclassifiable music of their own. Check out their future funky sounds at www.falynx.com.

“Passport” broadcast from 5.07.07

“Passport” broadcast from 4.30.07

Just a bit of catch up. I haven’t posted any of these in a while, figured it was about time. You’ll find the usual mix of bollywood freakouts, latin descargas, 70’s sambas, eastern european breaks and mystery cuts…

Tracklistings:
artist – “title” – album – (label)

5.07.07
1. Azymuth “Melo Dos Dois Bicudos” Azimuth (Far Out)
2. Sir Victor Uwaifo & His Titibitis “Kpomokpa Nagan Bie” Jackpot (Makossa)
3. Mulatu Astatke “Kasalefkut-Hutu” Mulatu Of Ethiopia (Worthy)
4. Big Jim Sullivan “Tallyman” Sitar Beat (Mercury)
5. Unknown Asian Artist “Unknown” Unknown Album (Mississippi)
6. Pesnyary “Unknown” Mnie Viasnoju Prysnilasia (Melodia)
7. Okay Temiz “Denizalti” Denizalti (Unknown) 7″
8. Los Pasteles Verdes “Te Quiero” Hipocresia (Orfeon)
9. Johnny Zamot and his Latinos “Bantu” The Latin Soul Of… (Decca)
10. Toquinho “Carolina Carol Bela” S/T (Philips)
11. Sarolta Zalatnay “Ne Hidd El” S/T (B-Music/Finder’s Keepers)
12. Laxmikant-Pyarelal “Dil Aur Deewaar” The Bombay Connection: Vol 1. Funk From Bollywood Action Thrillers 1977-1984 (Normal)

4.30.07
1. Sarolta Zalatnay “Rogos Uton” S/T (B-Music/Finder’s Keepers)
2. Troubadours “No Name Bar” Many Moods of the Famous Calypso Troubadours (Strakers)
3. Sergio Mendes & Brazil 77 “Promise Of A Fisherman” Primal Roots (A & M)
4. Raphy Leavitt “Amor Y Paz” Mi Barrio (Borinquen)
5. Coke “Te Amo Mas” S/T (Sound Triangle)
6. Ananda Shankar “The Alien” 2001 (Shiva Sounds)
7. Aref “Excited” The Best Songs Of The Year In Farsi (Ahang Rooz)
8. Salah Ragab & The Cairo Jazz Band “Oriental Mood” Egyptian Jazz (Art Yard)
9. Exile One “Don’t Bite The Hand” Greatest Hits (Barclay)
10. Moussa Doumbia “Yeye Mousso” Assalam Aleikoum Africa Vol. II (Antilles)
11. Banda Black Rio “Gafieira Universal” S/T (Universal Sound)
12. Franco & Orchestre T.P. O.K. Jazz “Tangawusi” Vol. 6 (Disco Stock Makossa)

This Friday Captain’s Crate links up with international blog superstar O-Dub (Soul-Sides, anyone?) to deliver greater Los Angeles into a soulful summer. Come down to the ever hip-i-fying Culver City, to get your dose of soul, funk, R&B, latin and other delectible rareities.

Boogaloo
Friday, May 11
The Mandrake
2592 S. La Cienaga Blvd. (b/t Venice and Washington)
Culver City/Los Angeles
9:30pm – 1am

O-Dub will be featuring tasty new joints from his soon-to-be-released Soul-Sides: Vol. 2. And Murphy (me) will be doing mixtape giveaways. It’s sure to be a good time for all.

And, now, a miscellaneous 7″ soul smattering. Enjoy.

Dusty Springfield: Haunted
Taken from the 7″ on Atlantic

The Incredibles: I Found Another Love
Taken from the 7″ on Audio Arts!

The Brothers Of Soul: Hurry, Don’t Linger
Taken from the 7″ on Boo

Senor Soul : Make The Funk Jump and The Mouse
taken from the album “It’s Your Thing” on Doube Shot (1969)

Larry Young : Turn Off The Lights
taken from the album “Larry Young’s Fuel” on Arista (1975)

Gloster Williams and The King James Version : There’s Not A Friend
taken from the album “Together” on Gospel Roots (1977)

People are always asking me how I find out about all this music. I usually tell them the short and simple truth: I spend a lot of time looking. The thing is, no matter how many flea markets I scour, record stores I plunder, and e-bay auctions I dominate, I wouldn’t really be hip to a lot of my favorite finds if it weren’t for the help and guidance of local dealers. Not too long ago I was determined only to buy from the bargain bins. I loved the cheap price of records almost as much as I loved the music. But my stingy ways were shattered when I first started to hang with the big dog dealer cats who make a living off providing amazing tunes to fiending freaks like myself.

Sitting in a living room with 12″ stacks to the cieling, the dealer casually pulls something from a nearby pile. You might not even be talking about music yet, just blah-blahing about the weather when the needle drops. Immediate anticipatory silence makes space for the crisp crackle at the top ot the record. And then… school’s in session. Sounds that comprise your dreams are revealed, the mysterious puzzle pieces that fit just about perfectly into the void of your ever-longing curiosity come into physical form between your fingertips as you flip the record cover over and over again- equally mystified by the genius of the album art and the unknown personell listing on the back. You’ve just been hit by a veritable vinyl bomb, and now you want to take it home. Problem is, the record costs more that your monthly rent. Doh!

Lucky for you, the dealer man knows your limits, or learns them quickly from your astounded reaction; pulling next a piece that is a bit more realistic for a young blood like yourself. A couple light scuffs, a bit of water damage to the cover, maybe a split seam or two, and now this rare gem of a record is within reach even to a broke-ass joker such as yourself. Fine by me. The upshot of course, is that with cordial relations, these dealers might feel generous enough to throw in a copy of, say, Gloster Williams and The King James Version, for good measure- just ’cause you seem like a nice dude.

Today’s funkiness comes from records that I heard and aquired, for reasonable rates mind you (can’t complain with free), from my local dealers. The Senor Soul (there’s supposed to be an “en-yay” not an “n”) album sounds like a fusion between The Meters and War, filled with California sunshine, tight drum breaks and a little bit of latin seasoning. The title track is a solid funky cover of the Isley’s tune. If you see this one, snag it. The Gloster Williams lp is one of those super-indy gospel records that used disco and soul to bring the teachings of the bible to the dancefloor. Sounds a bit like Madlib noodling on the keys at the beginning of “There’s Not A Firend”. And “Turn Off The Lights” from Larry Young is everything funky about foreplay. Vocals from Laura “Tequila” Logan make the mood right.

Many thanks to my dealers for the teachings and for keeping me strung out on the high grade goodness.

Mongo & Justo : Cumbia Tipica
taken from the album “Ubane” on Vaya (1976)

El Combo Candela : El Carbonero
taken from the mixtape “La Musica” by DJ Dusk (200?) originally ???

Lito Barrientos Y Su Orquesta : Cumbia En Do Menor
taken from the compilation “Colombia!” on Soundway (2007)

Lita Nelson : Navidad Negra
taken from the compilation “Cumbias” on RCA (196?) originally ???

Unknown Artist : Unknown Cumbia
taken from a CDR given to me by a random dood

*UPDATE* The previously unknown cumbia has been confirmed as “El Macho” by Lisandro Meza. Thanks to DJ Cheif Boima for the I.D. – so change your empeefree tags folks.

It’s been just a bit over a week since I heard the unbelievable news about my friend Monica. I didn’t really know her as well as I know most of my friends, (couldn’t even tell you her last name) but the strength of our connection was based on good music and dancing, things that we both care about deeply. She has been a regular to my weekly Latin night in Williamsburg for well over a year now. Every single Thursday night around 1AM I could expect to see this fiesty, five-foot jumping bean, shaking up the dancefloor in a flurry of tatoos and dreads. I’m not sure if Monica was Colombian, but it was clear that Cumbia was something she loved above all else. With a style all her own, she regularly magnified the energy of the small, tightly packed crowd into something epic and trancendental. She was hit by a car while riding her motorcycle home early on a sunday morning- after a night of music and dancing no doubt. It was a hit and run. Monica is now shaking her dreads at a party waaay bigger than my little Thursday night sweatbox sessions. I will continue to think about her every week when I drop jams like these that always brought her up to the DJ booth with a beaming smile on her face.

I also included one of my favorite tracks from a mixtape by the late, great DJ Dusk who was also hit and killed by a drunk driver just over a year ago now. I saw/heard him spin as part of the world-renowned Root Down party on a few occaisions, both in L.A. and here in NYC. His unique mixture of funk, hip hop, and obscure latin bombs (including many unknown Cumbia joints) hit me like a musical meteor and I am not ashamed in the least to admit that I jacked a handful of songs directly from his sets. He definitely makes my top ten list of most influential DJs of all time, and I hope to one day put out La Musica Vol. II to pay my respects properly.

As for this Colombia! comp. Little needs to be said about DJ Miles Cleret and the folks at Soundway records over in the UK. In the 3 years since dropping their first Ghanian funk compilation, they’ve firmly established their reputation as some of the headiest diggers in the game.

Finally, since I had such a good reaction with the unknown music titles last time round, I’m making another go at it. Some appreciative dood at the same aforementioned Thursday night gig came up and handed me a blank CDR without saying a word. There’s quite a few great tracks on it, some of which I recognized, but this one is a mystery to me. Any help would be appreciated.

Cinco De Mayo is just around the corner, use it as an excuse to turn these tracks into a house-party or a back yard BBQ and dance for the dead.

Sa-Ra Creative Partners: Hollywood, Starwarz and Nasty You
Taken from the forthcoming album Set-Ups And Justifications, coming soon…

It kinda snuck up on me. Like, Luke, the hopelessly uncool kid in my sophmore class who went away to Europe for the summer and came back in September as Luc, with tight pants, a penchant for cloves and a certain bohemian je ne sais quoi. I always knew who he was, I just never expected him to, like, get hip.

And now this: L.A. has returned from an extended hiatus (school let out in 1962), and all of a sudden there’s a Downtown, a (moderately) functional Metro rail line, and a music boon that begs the question–just like I asked all those years ago of Luc in his black and white striped shirt and angular sunglasses–“Where did this all come from?”

If you’re to believe Sa-Ra, an extraterrestrial trio with terrestrial ties to the City of Angels, it came from another planet.

Since their first single dropped more than two years ago, heads have been following closely the uncanny path that Sa-Ra has traveled. They burst onto scene like a left coast Funkadelic with a brazen Hollywood attitude and a Dilla-esque drum kit: all squelching synthesizers, sultry vocals and bottom-end fatness. With a relatively scant few individual releases (two singles), and a handful of notable remixes and one-off appearances (Medeski Martin & Wood, Daedelus), by early last year, the producer triumvirate had generated enough excitement to sign with a guy named Kanye West, on his G.O.O.D. Music label, and had released their first 12″ as a revamped hype group with a cleaner hip hop sound.

And the hype? Justified. But fans (myself included) began to worry that Kanye was exerting a stifling, if well-intentioned, force on the genre-busting trio. What happened to galactic vocal manipulations, the gritty disco stomp? The problem for a group like Sa-Ra, who early on positioned themselves as an other-worldly sound machine bent on defying proper classification, may be living up to the standard they set for themselves.

With their first full-length release looming on the near horizon, they’ve found a middle ground of sorts. Neither as purely novel as their earliest stuff (maybe it’s just ’cause more folks are doing the synth-hiphop- neo-Prince funk now…), nor as reductive as their first G.O.O.D single, they’ve managed to successfully forge a continuation of their sound while ostensibly leaving room for more growth down the road.

I mean, that was their problem from the outset, right? Too much too soon. Well, now they seem a little self-conscious of their own might, and have dipped back into their old bag of tricks (vocoder, multi-layered vocals, dirty synth stabs) to produce a work that is entirely dope, if not transportative.

The real growth for them here, is that their sound has begun to feel uniquely L.A.–and I mean that in a good way. There’s some of that DFA urban sleeze going on, but tempered with a uniquely unpretentious Roger Troutman, Cali flavor. The result is laid-back, bass heavy driving music that makes for a great late-night soundtrack on a wide So-Cal freeway.

So the record may not be perfect. And Sa-Ra is human. But I’ve never been so proud to be an Angeleno.

UPDATE! UPDATE! UPDATE!
Okay. So I really missed the boat on this one. The songs posted above are all from an advance promo EP that I received several months ago. I kept meaning to post it, but procrastinated and procrastinated and procrastinated so that by the time I actually got around to it (aka. yesterday)… the full length LP, The Hollywood Recordings had already dropped! Stymied!

There’s bad and good news about this.

The Bad News is that the LP is a bit of a disappointment. They’ve recycled several of their now years-old early singles and sprinkled them in amidst a diverse but ultimately unimpressive display of the Sa-Ra product. (That they put Capone N’ Noreaga on one of the tracks is a real head-scratcher…) And a lot of it feels like filler. There are certainly some notable moments: Bilal (god bless the return of the Gifted One!) steps up to deliver niceness, and a collabo with Erykah Badu and Georgia Anne Muldrow is a sultry success. But on the whole, The Hollywood Recordings leaves something to be desired.

The Good News is that none of the songs I’ve posted above appear on the album. Read: Exclusive. So wrap your ears around that. Suckas!