Some Randy Weston Gems

Robin D.G. Kelley is right, Randy Weston's "Zulu" does indeed sound a little like "Manteca," and nothing at all like South African music. As for "Pam's Waltz," which Kelley states is based on the calypso-styled quadrilles of the West Indies, and is quite delightful. Weston's music is so darn heterogeneous, there's always something for someone to love. The product of Jamaican immigration, Garveyism, calypso, folk, African, Caribbean, Latin, North African, and African-American traditions, Weston's music is cosmpolitan and pan-Africanist to an incomparable degree. I highly recommend "Niger Mambo" for a look at how Weston has been influence by highlife as well as Latin music.

Little Niles and Anacaona

It's been a salsa and jazz kind of week. It certainly helps that I am reading Robin D.G. Kelley's excellent Africa Calls, America Answers right now, too. In the book, Kelley explains how "Little Niles" is a North African-inflected composition named for Weston's son, Niles. I never knew that Weston personally knew African-American jazz bassist (and oud player) Ahmed Abdul-Malik (who claimed Sudanese ancestry, but grew up in Brooklyn with Weston). Apparently, Ahmed Abdul-Malik introduced Weston to North African and Middle Eastern scales when they were both young, and later played in Weston's Trio as bassist in the 1950s. Randy Weston's interest in North African music also contributed to the rise of Gnawa music in international music circles (Weston lived in Tangier for years, organized a jazz festival, and recorded with Gnawa musicians), a process described excellently in Aidi's Rebel Music. 

 As for the other song of the day, "Anacaona" is a tribute to a legendary Taino woman, in a salsa-styled song with jazzy ornamentation. Although I will admit I was never a huge Cheo fan until hearing of his demise back in April, I thoroughly enjoyed Afropop's short list of his best songs. One of Puerto Rico's best soneros, Feliciano rivals Ismael Rivera in my book for greatest salsa vocalists. Love the piano solo, too.