“Build it and they will come” was


Mekonville’s motto. They didn’t add that you’d go away feeling like a part of something much bigger. Perhaps that’s the real joy of being a Mekons fan. The music is only part of it.


www.mekonville.co.uk Chris Nickson


AFRICA OYÉ Sefton Park, Liverpool


Africa Oyé has the rather clunky tagline of “the biggest live free African music festival in the UK”. All true, but it is also one of the best UK festivals – full stop – a joyous celebration of music and culture and a true community event. Every year, an audience of families, friends and music fans of all ages and back- grounds heads to Liverpool’s beautiful Sefton Park for a weekend full of legends and up-and- comers of African and Afro-diasporic music.


The festival has long been seen as a jewel of the city’s cultural calendar, and with 2017 marking their 25 year anniversary, they pulled out all the stops for this special edi- tion, inviting back some of the many stars who’d graced the Oyé stage over its history. They were helped by some good luck, too. After last year’s event was rather dampened by a torrential downpour, there was much relief that this year’s festival took place dur- ing June’s heatwave, and not a single cloud could be spotted all weekend. An estimated 80,000 people came by, making it the biggest edition yet.


The line-up featured twelve artists from eleven African countries – from Madagascar to Mauritania – as well as the UK and Jamaica, and special slots for community music and dance projects from across Mersey- side. Unlike most summer festivals, though, missing an artist is not a problem at Oyé: there’s just the one stage, and the field is encircled by some of the best Caribbean and African kitchens in Liverpool. They add the tastes and smells of jerk barbecues and cur- ried goat to the colourful costumes, the beautiful sounds and the beating sun to com- plete the multisensory party.


Saturday set the bar with wonderful per- formances from Angolan semba legend Bonga and the new stars of Zimbabwean music, Mokoomba. Sunday, however, took everything to another level, every artist suit- ing the vibe to a T.


The day kicked off with the discovery of the weekend: the duo of Kenyan oud player Anwar Ali and British guitarist Dave Owen and their laid-back, romantic Swahili songs were a lovely start to a sweltering Sunday afternoon. The knockout acts kept coming through the day, including the overall high- light, Jupiter & Okwess International. The powerful figure of Jupiter presided over some of the heaviest and darkest Congolese funk you’re likely to hear, and provided an interesting contrast with the previous band, the Odemba OK Jazz Allstars, representing the DRC’s golden age of dance band music. Two groups playing very different takes on the same traditions, and both making the Oyé crowd bounce.


Filling Oyé’s traditional Sunday-night reggae headliner was the oft-sampled reggae legend Max Romeo. The singer’s Jah-laden roots music had the crowd – by now including a large portion of Liverpool’s Rasta communi- ty – dancing just has hard as they had all day and brought the festival to a fitting close.


After 25 years of music and dance, and hopefully many more to come, a sunburnt and rather merry punter was the one to sum up just what the festival means: “I love Africa Oyé, it’s like Christmas for Scousers!"


www.africaoye.com Jim Hickson


WORLD MUSIC CHARTS EUROPE TOP 15


1. JUPITER & OKWESS INTERNATIONAL Kin Sonic


2. OUMOU SANGARE Mogoya


3. OMIRI Baile Electronico


4. DONA ONETE Banzeiro


5. FRIGG Frost On Fiddles


(Glitterbeat) (No Format!) (Bigorna)


6. MARIA DEL MAR BONET Ultramar


8. MODAL4 Modal4


9. MARIA KALANIEMI & EERO GRUNDSTRÖM Svalan


10. MONOSWEZI A Je


11. FRANK LONDON Glass House Orchestra


13. TOKO TELO Toy Raha Toy


(Mais Um Discos) (Frigg) (Picap)


7. RAHIM ALHAJ Letters From Iraq (Smithsonian Folkways)


(Fishbowl) (Akerö)


(Riverboat) (Piranha)


12. VARIOUS ARTISTS Why Did We Stop Growing Tall


(Glitterbeat) (Anio)


14. MARTA TÖPFEROVA & MILOKRAJ Tento Svet


(Moravia)


15. ORCHESTRA BAOBAB Tribute To Ndiouga Dieng (World Circuit)


August’s most played world music albums, compiled from returns from radio DJs all over Europe. © giftmusic 2017


TRANSGLOBAL WORLD MUSIC CHART TOP 15


1. TRIO DA KALI & KRONOS QUARTET Ladilikan


2. TOKO TELO Toy Raha Toy


3. BOKANTÉ Strange Circles


4. OUMOU SANGARE Mogoya


5. MAGÍN DIAZ El Orisha De La Rosa


6. SABÎL Zabad


(World Circuit) (Anio)


(Groundup) (No Format!) (Noname)


7. TRIO TEKKE & DAVE DE ROSE Zivo


9. FRIGG Frost On Fiddles


10. DIMITRIS MYSTAKIDIS Amerika


11. LILA DOWNS Salón, Lágrimas y Deseo


12. MEÏKHÂNEH La Silenceuse


13. SONGHOY BLUES Résistance


14. DANYÈL WARO Monmon


15. RANK LONDON Glass House Orchestra


(Harmonia Mundi) (Trio Tekke)


8. RAHIM ALHAJ Letters From Iraq (Smithsonian Folkways)


(Frigg)


(Fishbowl) (Sony) (Buda)


(Transgressive) (Cobalt/Buda) (Piranha)


August’s favourite albums compiled from a worldwide panel of broadcasters and writers. www.transglobalwmc.com


20 YEARS AGO


1. BUENA VISTA SOCIAL CLUB Buena Vista Social Club (World Circuit)


2. LADYSMITH BLACK MAMBAZO Star And The Wiseman


3. OYSTERBAND Deep Dark Ocean


4. JUNE TABOR Aleyn


6. DOUGIE MACLEAN Riof


7. DR JOHN Trippin’ Live


8. ALTAN Runaway Sunday


9. RUBÉN GONZÁLEZ Introducing…


10. TAJ MAHAL Señor Blues


11. WOLFSTONE Pick Of The Litter


12. TAMALIN Rhythm & Rhyme


13. MARTIN HAYES Lonesome Touch


14. BETH ORTON Trailer Park


15. VARIOUS ARTISTS Blasta!


16. DREAMCATCHER Dreamcatcher


17. GREAT BIG SEA Up


18. MAURA O’CONNELL Wandering Home


20. KATE RUSBY Hourglass


(Grapevine)


(Green Linnet) (Heavenway) (Gael Linn)


(Island/Oval)


(Cooking Vinyl) (Hannibal)


19. VARIOUS ARTISTS Cooking Vinyl Sampler (Cooking Vinyl)


(Pure)


July & August 1997 sales from Virgin Retail’s national chain computer


fROOTS PLAYLIST 20 YEARS AGO


1. ORCHESTRE NATIONAL DE BARBÈS En Concert


2. LHASA La Llorona


3. NJAVA From South Madagascar


5. MARTYN BENNETT Bothy Culture


7. VARIOUS ARTISTS …And Still No Hits


8. ERIC AGYEMAN Ghana Gold Live


9. BLUE HORSES Cracking Leather, Skin & Bone


(Native Spirit)


10. JAPONIZE ELEPHANTS Bob’s Bacon Barn (Secretly Canadian)


Playlist choices from our October 1997 issue. (Virgin/Tajmaat) (Audiogram) (Sushi)


4. THOMAS MAPFUMO & THE BLACKS UNLIMITED Chimurenga


(WOMAD) (Ryko)


6. BOB BROZMAN & LEDWARD KAAPANA Kika Kila Meets Ki Ho’alu (Dancing Cat)


(Nation) (MW) (Flame Tree)


(Cooking Vinyl) (Topic)


5. FAIRPORT CONVENTION Who Knows Where The Time Goes? (Woodworm)


(Dunkeld) (Cagle) (Virgin)


(World Circuit) (Private) (Iona)


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