Am just back from two great music festivals. Apollo Bay in Victoria and Byron Bay in NSW. It rained in both places but fortunately this didn’t spoil the show!! Apollo Bay is great for venues around the town and it’s right on the coast. Highlights for me included the Live to Air broadcast of Twang by 3RRR FM. Denise Hylands interviewed all my favourites – the Willson Pickers, Chris Smithers, and The Flatlanders. Byron highlights were Lyle Lovett, Old Crow Medicine Show, The Greencards, The Wagons, Kev Carmody and Friends, The Willson Pickers, Patty Larkin and Justin Townes Earle. Unfortunately at times you could hear the music leaking from the other venues and maybe they could have turned down the volume a touch, but all up a great week of live music.

Today, we featured some cruisey sounds to help us get into the morning on this hot and humid day.  We ‘transitioned’ with some lovely and lively music for children and then had a taster of the sounds of the Kronos Quartet, a truly innovative group, with highly diverse tastes! http://www.kronosquartet.org/

The track listing was

Nitin Sawhney, Reena Bhardawaj and Murtaza Khan – Mausam

Christopher Goze – Bhavani

Sanjeev Koop – Krishna

Transglobal Underground – Mag Ak Ndaw

Natacha Atlas – Hayati Inta

Kaya Project and Gandolfi – Kookarunga

Swayd – Shakti Symphony

Nitin Sawhney – Immigrant / KV5 remix

Banzai Republic with Natacha Atlas – Loolah

Medaka – Bombay Fantasy

Featured collections:  Zen Connection 4, Asian Classic Bar Grooves.

Kids spot
Jay Makita – Eat like a rainbow
Judy Mowatt – Let’s Dance
Wee Hairy Beasties – Animal Crackers

Kronos Quartet special
Mai Nozipa from Pieces of Africa
Crossing Great Salt Lake, U-take from Harry Partch’s US Highball
Light a Match and Lover Come to me now from You’ve Stolen My Heart
Toccata II from Peteris Vasks’ String Quartet No. 4

Plus two selections from Kronos Quartet member David Harrington’s favourite playlist
Getatchew Mekurya - Aha Gedawo
Triakel – Tusen Tankar

One of 8CCC’s newest voices is presenter Jessica McMahon.  Jess has a background in solar PV.  Her expertise and passion for the environment is making a great contribution to Sustenance  on Wednesday nights ( 7pm to 8:30).

Welcome Jess!

Thought it was a about time I put a post on the website. Ove the last month I’ve been featuring a few new names. Jordie Lane was playing at the Norfolk Hotel in Fremantle recently and I just happened to be there! So I bought a copy of his new CD called Sleeping Patterns and I’ve been playing it ever since. He’s young but he sounds and writes like an old soul. He also produced a great album with a Canadian gal, Tracy McNeil under the band name Fireside Bellows. So listeners have been hearing this album over the last month or so. Also Buddy and Julie Miller’s new album, “Written in Chalk” featuring guest appearances from Emmylou Harris, Robert Plant and Patty Griffin. I still haven’t tired of Teddy Thompson’s ”Upfront and Down Low” or Eilen Jewell’s “Sea of Tears”. Today I played Justin Townes Earle just to get in the mood for his Australian tour starting next week. I’ll be in Melbourne for next Friday’s gig at the Thornbury Theatre. I saw him last year at the Grace Emily in Adelaide and have been talking about him ever since. A show not to be missed!! It’s a pity these gigs are a bit more costly these days when you live in Alice Springs. I ordered a copy of JTE’s new album “Midnight at the movies and it still “hasn’t arrived. So that will be the feature of next week’s show. Hopefully a signed copy!

Morris Stuart, musical director with Asante Sana, Alice Springs’ community choir, talked with me about his childhood in British Guiana on the South American continent, his heritage of slaves brought from Africa to work in the sugar cane plantations established in the British Colony.  He spoke of early musical influences of calypso and also the jazz and blues greats eminating from the USA.

Morris went on to describe his life and musical journey from British Guiana to Britain (to go to high school and college), marriage, more travelling, life in New Zealand and finally to Australia.  We played some music that has touched his heart and sprit on the way, and acknowledged lots of other music that has influenced him, which we didn’t have time to play.

here are a few tasters:

Gurrumul – just love the exquisite voice and the power of singing in language stories of importance

Askasa – World Citizen (how Morris feels)

Frank Yamma – Ngurra Watjilpa (memories of Asante Sana singing this song in Trephina Gorge at the 2008 Alice Desert Festival and at the Alice Springs Desert Park on the night that Obama was elected – the night was electric)

Choir of Hard Knocks – magic can be generated when people get together and do something positive and enriching for their spirit

WaMutunga – Morris and Barb and their children formed this group to sing together.  They’ve not released a CD but we got to hear a recording of them in concert

Soweto Gospel Choir – effortless harmonies and such passion

From the soundtrack of “The Power of One” – Mother Africa – Asante Sana has sung this twice in public and in 2009 Alice Desert Festival Morris has done a more complex arrangement to challenge the choir members and to bring a greater depth and richer sound for the audience.  this will be performed during Desert Song, 6pm, Sunday 13th September at the Pod on Anzac Oval.

http://www.alicedesertfestival.com.au/ and http://asantasana.wikispaces.com

Other Tracks played were

1 giant Leap – all along (on Eilean Shona)

Rahul Sharma and Adita Kalyanpar – Jhalla

Ali Farke Toure – Kadi Kadi

Najma Akhtar and Gary Lucas – Naya Dhin

Danielle Silvestri – Le Cose in Comane

Quadro Nuevo – Tu Vuo Fa L’Americano

Dya Singh – All Aboard

Chris Wood – Albion

Coum Sands – The Politician’s Song

Staff Benda Bilili – Marguerite

Today’s show featured Eilen Jewell’s new album ‘Sea of Tears’ and Teddy Thompson’s Upfront and Down Low. I’ve been a fan since I heard his version of King of the Road sung with Rufus Wainright and then heard him belt out a beautiful rendition of the Leonard Cohen song “Tonight will be Fine”. Eilen Jewell’s music is kinda country swing and rockabililly. I love her voice and different style. So in there as well were some old tracks of Chris Isaak who fits with alternative country and Dwight Yoakam too. All great singers with modern day crooner voices. And I ended with Neil Murray singing Coolamon Moon becasue he was here in Alice Springs the other night – a very short notice gig at Olive Pink Botanic Gardens and Sammy Butcher came late and played guitar alongside him. Old mates from their days in the Warumpi Band from Papunya. A great night of dancing in the dust!

Today’s show started and closed with some uplifting lyrics from Bluesman, Eric Bibb. We travelled through the USA down to Mexico and Argentina, over to Spain and home to Australia.  world Tracks featured interviews with singer/songwriter and activist, Oumou Sangare and rapper, Amkoullie, both from Mali.  Our journey continued in Africa, asking the question has Oumou Sangare taken up the mantle as Mother Africa, since the death erlier this year of Miriam Makeba.  What do you think?

We also heard from the group Staff Benda Bilili from Kinshasa (which is in the Congo).  Check out the film footage on you Tube!  Amazing electric wheelchairs, great music … hopefully I will be able to bring you more of their music in coming months.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JtVZhaZp6Ng

Until next week, happy listening!  Joy

Track listings and links

Eric Bibb – don’t let noboby drag your spirit down, USA (for the writers, film-makers, actors and producers of Sampson and Delilah, which had its premiere screening at the Telegraph station in Alice Springs last night, watched by a huge number of people against the backdrop of the cliffs which drop into the Alice Spring)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0szwmdAfeNw - watch Eric Bibb and his band in concert

Hot Club of Cowtown – Ida Red, USA

Pink Martini – No hay problema, USA

Linda Ronstadt – La Mariquita (Spanish for Ladybird), Mexico

Jaramar – La Tortuga, Mexico

Binni Gulaza – Ni Bixi Dxi Zina, Mexico

Manu Chao – 13 Dias and  Tristeza Maleza, Spain
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mzgjiPBCsss lovely little video of his song Me gustas tu

Rodrigo y Gabriela – Stairway to Heaven (for Huss, family and visiting relatives), Mexico
How many people have done covers of this track?  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stairway_to_Heaven

Astor Piazzola and Roberto Goyenecke – Vuelvo Al Sur, Argentina

Geoffrey Gurrumul Yunupingu – Galiku, Australia

Seaman Dan – perfect Pearl (for Grace), Australia

WORLD TRACKS – Oumou Sangare and Amkoullel
Oumou Sangare http://www.myspace.com/oumousangare 
Amkoullel http://www.myspace.com/amkoullel

Miriam Makeba – Uthando Luyaphelo and  Table Mountain, South Africa
Miriam makeba perfoming Pata Pata http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kCc61z9IFu4

Oumou Sangare – Wele Wele Wintout, Mali

Staff Benda Bilili – Je T’aime, Congo
http://www.myspace.com/staffbendabilili

Gigi – Utopia, Ethiopia

Laya Project – Glorious Sun, India
Find out more about this project to celebrate the music of the people and cultures affected by the 2004 Tsunami http://www.layaproject.com/layaproject/index.html

Eric Bibb – A Ship Called Love, USA