Sunday at Bob's #22 - In Between Places

Hello again and welcome back for another Sunday at Bob's! This week I have been moving out/in a new flat right accross the street of my old one. I am very excited about it, so excited that today's playlist will be dedicated to this event. The wind, oh my god the wind today, I heard Amsterdam had been put on yellow alert, I have no clue what it means but I know I was practically alone on the bicycle roads today. There even was waves on the Sloter lake. The wind, I talk to the wind, the wind does not hear. Let's see what we have today.

The opening song is from a much impressive record. Black String is an elegant South Korean folk jazz band, as Neil Spencer from The Guardian puts it. Hanging Gardens of Babylon is nine frenzied minutes led by an oud-like horn, his description still, to which I subscribe. I first thought it might a bit too intense to begin with it however a good friend once told me that variety is the spice of life. Anyhow, if you haven't listened to it yet, I suggest you run to your favourite record shop and purchase Karma because it is worth it, oh yes it is.

Right after comes the famous Lhesa de Sela, who I first heard (like millions, I guess) on a mix of Nicolas Jaar when I was a teenager. I don't think she needs introduction however and once again, if you haven't heard her album, don't think twice and run back to your favourite record shop (I suggest you do it all at once, after listening to the entire playlist). Oh mama, it is followed by a most magnificent song from a most outstanding album and at this point I am too ashamed to suggest you once again another purchase. But... you know. I first listened to Khaled Kurbeh & Raman Khalaf Ensemble in my home town of Geneva while visiting my sister. I think the first song I heard from them was the very dancable but rather short Shamal. What was not my surprise when I listened to the album and found a greatly diverse and ever exciting piece. Today I introduce you (or not) to Al Baseet, a composition which starts in a quite classic jazzy way and goes on with rythms my biased mind links to gnaoua music.

One of the greatest French poets to have been put into music, in my opinion and from my current knowledge, is Louis Aragon. He wrote Il n'y a pas d'amour heureux, beautifully sang by Georges Brassens, and Est-ce ainsi que les hommes vivent? Greatly interprated by Léo Ferré or Marc Ogeret who we have the honour of hearing tonight. La rose du premier de l'an is a very moving piece, and I will take the risk of repeating myself but, I you are a French poetry afficionado, I strongly recommend you purchase Ogeret's album singing Aragon's poems.

I talk to the wind, the wind does not hear. What a nice song! And how suiting for such a windy day!

It is the second time Sampa the Great is featured here, she released a new album recently and... well.

It is Andy Bey's turn to remind us how fragile we are on this windy foating track where his voice becomes a horn and merges with the other instruments as well as with the topic and the lyrics themselves. And then... a U turn with some electric reggae all the way from Lybia! Stay tuned because Habibi Funk is about to release a whole EP of this guy. And... you know... you might wanna purchase it... maybe, who knows?

The next song I took from one of the USB keys I brought back from Morocco. Now if you have ever bought music in Morocco you know it can be very tricky to keep track of what is what. Basically you can buy a USB key filled with whatever stuff you want (it is nice to keep it vague because you wanna discover don't you?). So what happens is that you talk a bit with the shop guy, tell him what you are into, go have a walk and an hour later come back to pick up your treasure. The thing is these guys they just fill up your key with shitloads of stuff and most of it is named Track1.mp3, etc. Therefore I have no clue what I am featuring here. My guess is that it is from the most recent Gnawa Festival in Essaouira.

I thought I'd close this playlist with one of the songs I had in mind when I was thinking of making a Ethiopian/Berber playlist. The Moan of the Stone, can you feel it?

Here it is, the end again, but only until next time isn't it? I hope you liked it and I send you kisses from the reception.

Do not forget about the check out time (10h30) no excuses will be accepted.

The receptionist

Playlist:

1. Black Strings - Hanging Gardens of Babylon
2. Lhasa de Sela - La celestina
3. Khaled Kurbeh & Raman Khalaf Ensemble - Al Baseet
4. Marc Ogeret - La rose du premier de l'an
5. King Crimson - I Talk to the Wind
6. Sampa the Great - Grass Is Greener
7. Andy Bey - Fragile
8. Ahmed Ben Ali - Subhana
9. Unknown - Unknown
10. Hassan Awarug - Asmammi-n-uzru (La plainte de la pierre / The Moan of the Stone)