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Dig this way records is proud to present its first official reissue: a marvelous Nigerian disco boogie album by Peter Abdul - Get Down With Me. Impossible to find on the original EMI press is now finally back into the market for everybody to enjoy it and make the hips move! Originally released in 1984 it’s an outstanding experimentation of Nigerian disco boogie - heavily influenced by western artists – played by talented musician that follows with their monster cosmic sounds the tiny and strong voice of Peter Abdul in his only officially released LP. The luck of this work came from the collaboration with Nkono Teles at keyboards ; Sole at bass guitar; Ganiyu Bello , Emmanuel Akoko Jr. and Tolu Gayas as backup vocalists – arranged and produced by Odion Iruoje and assisted by some good engineers like Bayo Aro, Monday Oki and Edward Jatto. All together they created this insane disco- boogie LP. For the 2018 reissue, the audio was carefully restored by Colin Young - Liner notes that come with a interview and some unseen and raw original pictures of Peter Abdul back in the days- these photos are printed separately on tick quality paper insert (from a small studio of Milano called Legno). As Peter Abdul said: “Music to me it's a pure natural instinct, a natural gift which i grew to love so much” - I was lucky and pleased to collaborate with great artists like Nkono Teles, a Cameroon born multi-instrumentalist and producer based in Nigeria; Ganiyu Bello, who came for a visit from London and joined me as a backup vocalist along with Emmanuel Akoko Jr.; and Tolu Gay – the woman vocalist and romantic flavor on “Baby I Love You”. Some great musicians played on the tracks, interested in making music with a talented teenager with a tiny voice – but one that sang to the beat and with a good sense of tonality. It was like a great adventure, and from that symbiosis, “Get Down With Me” was born. And fun: people started calling me the Michael Jackson of Nigeria at live shows, especially at the University of Ibadan, the Alfa Club and others. So many pretty girls wanting to win my heart. -
Heavy South African cut, unearthed by Dene from LCT, All about the massive title track ''Got My Magic Working''... Phat bassline, machinegun claps dipped in acid! The origins of Amajika is a tale of two worlds colliding at the perfect moment and begin in KwaMushu Township outside Durban. Here would be where a young Tu Nokwe would set up a school to help teach other aspiring youngsters like herself in music, dance and acting. This would become known as the Amajika Youth and Children’s Art Project and would be run from the Nokwe home, a common hangout for artists at the time. Some boast 2000+ pupils going through this program while others claim it wasn’t more than a backyard dance group, but for the lucky group of kids that were members in the mid 80s it would be their chance at stardom. It was during these years that a young aspiring playwright and musician Mbongeni Ngema had come across Tu and her group of gifted youngsters at the Nokwe family home. Although he was touring extensively at the time with the plays Woza Albert and Asinamali, the latter which eventually ended up on broadway, he would spend any time off from the tour with Tu and her dance troop. After being inspired by the American group New Edition, Mbongeni envisioned Amajika as the South African answer and decided to bankroll a studio session. The session would take place in a private studio in Durban.The release of the first single would follow very shortly. The lead track, Tomati-So is a fun swinging groove over some basic programmed drums. The song is dedicated to Tu Nokwe sings of her unique style and kind heart. On his next tour Mbongeni would take the remaining masters with him to the US and had the track remixed. Although it never materialized in a release States side he did return with the remixed tape and release it in South Africa the following year. Much like Tomato So the song was an ode and would be dedicated to the man who was making all their dreams come true. Got My Magic Working sings of going overseas and being a star on Broadway and TV and the man who is making it all happen. All these true predictions are sung on top of a groovy acid bass by a clearly matured troop of artists. During these years of working with Amajika, Mbongeni became very impressed with the exceeding talent of one of the members and decided to cast her in his upcoming musical Sarafina. The other children also wanted to be a part of the Broadway show but not everyone would get a role. This would be the end of Amajika as the next years would be dedicated to creating success on the musical stage. The growing kids that formed Amajika became young adults and pursued their own careers after the fact. Tu Nokwe would leave the country to return years later as the wife of Shaka Zulu on the big screen. To this day she is still very active both on stage and screen while Mbongeni is still writing and adding to the South African Musical Theatre catalog. Fast forward 30 years from the original release to a smokey club where ESA hears Got My Magic Working played by Rush Hours Store’s own Bonnefooi. Instantly he inquires about the track from his homeland and feels it a perfect addition the repertoire of the Afro Synth band he is quietly cooking up. The band’s instrumental take ended up as the B side on a mysterious and limited white label released by Rush Hour in early 2020 but quickly sold out. Here you have compiled the two title tracks from original Amajika singles along with the instrumental version by ESA’s Afro Synth Band for The complete Amajika experience, past to present. -
The follow up to the highly acclaimed reissue of the first volume, Ethiopian Hit Parade. The track layout is identical to the original record released in 1972. "After releasing around fifty 45 rpm singles and his first 33 rpm album (Ethiopian Modern Instrumental Hits AELP 10, re-released by Heavenly Sweetness HS092VL), Amha Esthèté set about compiling his best 45s on a series of now legendary albums (the originals are impossible to find) in 1972. The first four volumes of Ethiopian Hit Parade were released in September and October 1972, with the fifth volume appearing in January 1973. You are the proud owner of Volume 2. It is worth reminding ourselves that when Amha Esthèté set up his Amha Records label in 1968-69, it was in defiance of a state monopoly designed to regulate the imports and production of records by an imperial decree of July 1948. This extravagant state privilege had produced only 78s of traditional music , which though thrilling, excluded anything at all modern. To the best of our knowledge, only sixty-seven of these prehistoric discs were pressed in Great Britain between 1955 and 1961 and released by His Master’s Voice. They were supposed to be part of celebrations of Emperor Haile Selassie’s silver jubilee . . . even though 33s and 45s had existed since 1948 and 1949 respectively! Such incompetence and servility, combined with a rejection of an effervescent contemporary music scene, were symptomatic of the decadence surrounding the end of an era. An audacious, funky outlaw, a music lover and an entrepreneur in tune with the baby-boomer generation, young Amha Esthèté (he was only twenty-four when he launched his label) will be remembered as the instigator of a peaceful revolution thick with soul and rock’n’roll. After the acclaimed reissue of the first volume Ethiopian Hit Parade. Here is the second volume that include all the greatest Ethiopian Hits from 1972 to 1975. Identical reissue to the original vinyl which is extremely rare and expensive. The opening track of the compilation is the song Tezeta Slow and Fast by GETACHEW KASSA were featured on the album Ethiopiques, Vol. 10: Ethiopian Blues & Ballads. and originally released on 1972. The other tracks on this second volume celebrate such pioneers of modern Ethiopian groove as Abayneh Degene, Tèshomè Meteku, Menelik Wossenachew Mulatu Astatqe and Muluken Melesse, alongside “tradi-modern” singers representing Amhara and Oromo culture, so rich and so long marginalized." -
Originally released in 1972 in very limited numbers. A trip of an album rich in percussive energy and African chant - made in Brazil. The sounds of continents colliding in a young, funky & soul fuelled 70s. This is the european pressing! -
Odion Livingstone present another essential reissue from the Nigerian archives, the first ever international release of The Apples’ essential Afro-funk LP rarity ‘Mind Twister’.As part of the St Gregory’s student band scene in Lagos during the late ‘70s alongside Ofege, Grotto and more, Apples were picked up and produced by legendary EMI Nigeria producer Odion Iruoje who added overdubs to the album at Abbey Road in London with Curved Air keyboardist Francis Monkman. The band met and formed in Lagos. Bandleader Frank Ikpefuran teamed up with Georges Vieira from the American School and brothers Clifford and Gerard Nagi who were studying at “St Greg’s” in Lagos, and remembers, “I must have been 19 years old when I met Clifford. We used to hangout on Victoria Island, watching bands play and jamming with them. That’s how we met Georges. We all listened to Jimi Hendrix, Santana, Idris Muhammad and the Beatles.” “We started jamming with Clifford on the guitar, his brother Gerard on the bass and Georges on the guitar. We chipped in with song ideas, with the group contributing arrangements and refning things until we were satisfed. The band had a natural sound, which stemmed from the chemistry we had. It was a strange chemistry, we were an odd combination from different backgrounds but when we played, something happened…” After landing a residency at Tee Mac’s club in Surulere, Apples auditioned for Odion Iruoje who arranged recording dates and cut the record. For a young band, Iruoje was surprised by the quality of the band, adding in extra keyboard parts from Lemmy Udofa and Francis Monkman, founder of Curved Air and session man for Kate Bush, Sky and music libraries like BBC Music, Bruton and KPM. Iruoje remembers, “their playing added a layer of sophistication and sheen without encumbering proceedings.” This defnitive edition of Apples’ ‘Mind Twister’ features new interviews with bandleader Frank Ikpefuran and producer Odion Iruoje and has been fully remastered by The Carvery. -
New material by Sandy B! South African Kwaito inspired music on this one....check out "Qhum Qhaks" which is a favorite here... Sandile Bhengu comes from Durban, South Africa, where he in the middle of the 90’s released his debut kwaito album Amajovi Jovi under the moniker Sandy B. During the following decades he would move actively within the local music scene and touch a variety of genres including afro-pop, deep house, R’n’B and Soul. In the mid 2010’s around 20 years since its release crate diggers and DJ’s across Europe and North America started dropping tracks from Amajovi Jovi. In late 2017 the album was reissued on Canadian label, Invisible City Editions giving a new lease of life to a forgotten classic and giving this once little known artist an international reputation. Following the successful re-issue of the 1995-album Sandy B returns to the forefront of music with original material 24 years later in the form of Qhum Qhaks. Qhum Qhaks comes from a close collaboration between Sandy and Danish DJ and collector Simon Lundsgaard a.k.a Simone Ahà. All songs were recorded in Sandy’s home studio to stick close to the ethics and production techniques of the 1995 classic. The material that emerged from this experimental process between the two of them captures the spirit of old school kwaito from the 90’s. Vumbuka Records was founded by Sandile Bhengu & Simon Lundsgaard in 2019 especially for the release of Qhum Qhaks. The vinyl release of Qhum Qhaks contains seven original tracks and a download code with three extra bonus tracks. -
Double sider 12" including the bubblegum club track ''Let's Make a Deal'' by Linda "Babe” Majika, which was originally released on the rare 'Don’t Treat Me So Bad' lp in South-Africa, 1988. On the flip, you’ll find the deep late-night saxophone driven tune ''Step Out Of My Life'' which includes Don Laka on the keyboard and is produced by Ray Phiri, who also founded the popular South African group 'Stimela'. The song was originally released in 1989 and finally sees a reissue, pressed as a loud DJ-friendly 12-inch.
