FILM: XALA-OUSMANE SEMBENE(SENEGAL)

Ousmane Sembene's account of a post colonial African businessman is as angry and seething as it is humerus. It is viewed as one of the most important films in international Cinema. Xala in Wolof( the lingua franca of Senegal) means temporary sexual impotence. El Hadji, the protagonist is a Senegalese businessman who is about to take his third wife. This also coincides with the final negotiations for the independence of the country. The wedding takes place with much pomp and pageantry and includes a live band(The Etoile de Dakar) performing headed by the yet unknown Youssou N'dour who went on to become arguably the biggest African star in the west. The post colonial vibrancy of young Senegal versus the old traditional ways is a constant theme throughout the film and is embodied particularly by El Hadji's daughter, who is much opposed to polygamy and also by the fact that while most people speak in Wolof, it is sin to speak in the language in the halls of the chamber of commerce where they speak French  . El Hadji's wives are also considered at the beginning of the film. His first, and the mother of his grown children is quietly opposed but seems to have gotten used to the polygamous arrangement. As in most polygamous marriages, her physical needs are provided for but she is left to pasture emotionally. The second wife is outwardly opposed and it is appears likely at first that it is she who solicits the curse, The night of the wedding, El Hadji prepares to consummate the marriage, but alas all efforts are futile. He is seen,in one particularly comedic scene, with his face in his hands, the look of a man totally defeated.He is advised by his friends(including the president of the chamber of commerce) to seek out a marabout, or holy man in order to to get the curse lifted. The marabout advises him to put a small device in his mouth, bathe in holy water and crawl to his wife.The next morning, it is apparent that the curse has not been lifted. Again dejected, he is driven to his business place that sells only the finest foreign goods. On the way,his chauffeur tells him of the feats of his village marabout, assuring him that he can remove the Xala.  The man chants a few verses and the Xala is gone. However, the marabout advises him that even though he has removed it, it may not be gone forever as someone else can place it on him again.
               A separate story that takes place while El Hadji is getting himself cured, is the plight of a few beggars, lepers and a griot playing an xalam(a small west African lute,called an n'goni in Mali). These characters at first seem to be observers with no real presence or function in the plot. One man, obviously coming from a desert village where a drought has wrecked their crops for months has come in order to buy foodstuffs so that his people will not starve to death. His money is stolen and he finds himself among the beggars. El Hadji finds their presence quite irritating and orders the police to have them removed from across his business. They are taken in a very humorous  manner to a dusty park on the outskirts of Dakar. There, they have tea and dry bread and the village representative speaks of his plight. Meanwhile, El Hadji has bigger problems than sexual impotence. An import of expensive goods has not arrived as yet and his business his starting to tank. He asks a friend, a local merchant (who is enamored by his accountant and secretary)for a loan to help stave off creditors and hence bankruptcy. The man says that as much as he likes him, he really can't help. The president of the chamber of commerce tells him to go to the central bank and ask for a loan. He does but is again rejected. Business is not only tight for El Hadji, but for other members of the chamber as the Central Bank is very cautious about giving them loans.It is discovered  that this is mainly the effect of El Hadji's indiscretions,even though the other members are just as corrupt. It is also discovered that El Hadji's business ethic has something to do with the famine in the village. At the same time,his second wife, the more modern of the first two, has left him.  At a meeting with members of the chamber, a particularly agitated businessman(seen taking a fifteen percent cut in a deal at El Hadji's wedding ) demands that El Hadji be expelled. His open corruption is attracting unwanted attention and the banks are putting the squeeze on the others.A vote is held and El Hadji's fate is sealed. Further humiliation follows when, on the orders of the chamber,his Mercedes is seized. His secretary realizing that without the protection of the chamber, his business is finished ,bids him good luck and leaves also. El Hadji has to walk his mansion. On arrival,his third wife's mother informs him that the marriage is over and also leaves. At the same time,the beggars and lepers invade his home and immediately gorge themselves on food and drink. They take up occupancy in his living room where El Hadji confronts them. It is revealed that one of the beggars is actually a member of a once respected and wealthy family whose inheritance El Hadji stole. He was thrown in prison and lost his eyesight. He,it is revealed put the Xala on El Hadji in revenge. He reveals that the Xala can be easily removed but requires humiliating treatment: he is instructed to take off his shirt so that the people he has hurt may spit on him. He is adamant that this will not happen but recants when he realizes the only thing he may save is his virility. A wedding tiara is put on his head and the beggars begin to spit on him while his remaining first wife weeps silently in the background.
               In 1975,when the film was released, only a few African states remained under colonial rule. Yet independence in most cases became an absolute disaster. Many of the new nations had boundless resources yet most of their populations lived well under the poverty line. Sembene saw this as a stinging indictment against their rulers and this was the inspiration behind Xala. It is a seminal moment in world cinema and a must see.

MILTON NASCIMENTO-TRAVESSIA(BRAZIL)

Milton Nascimento is one of the finest singers and musicians of our time. He is quite possibly the single biggest influence on Latin American music. During the late sixties and seventies, he was undoubtedly South America's most popular artiste. He has inspired musicians such as EWF(Earth Wind &Fire), Wayne Shorter(who he made an album with him and a review on that album is coming) and Esperanza Spalding to name a few. His body of work encompasses over thirty albums and he isn't finished yet. It should be noted that Milton has a significant advantage over most other artistes: a voice blessed to him by the Almighty himself. Moving between a falsetto and a bird call,he effortlessly transcends fantastic arrangements to make some of the finest music ever produced. Also, he is accompanied by fantastic musicians such as Lo Borges and Wagner Tiso. This review is just the first in a series of reviews that we  will be doing about this very imporant musician' work.
                                   In many circles, 1967 is a strange year in Brazillian music.'The Girl from Impanema' had just won the Grammy for album of the year,embodying the international success of Bossa Nova. However, the Military dictatoship's encroachment into the music industry creates an atmosphere which young, radical students reject Bossa Nova(as the dictatoship was backed by the United States) as a Brazillian gift to the Americans and music of the elite. It is readily replaced by Tropicalia, a movement led by folk-rock musicians(Caetano Veloso and Gilberto Gil at the fore) and poets. During this time an album that is so out of the ordinary is released upon an ususpecting public. 'Travessia' is not a Bossa album. It certainly is not a Tropicalia album. Milton and Ricardo Brandt in 1967 created something totally different, a real 'tour-de-force'. It starts off with the title track, a ballad that showcases Milton's undying love for the ballad In it Milton speaks of his traverses in the world of love and his particular love for a young woman and his searches for  the illusive 'bridge of love'.
'Tres Pontas' started particular trend where Milton sang songs for particular regions and places in Brazil. In this particular piece, he sang about the city of Tres Pontas, the city where he grew up. Tres Pontas is not as popular as other cities in Brazil such as Sao Paolo or Rio, so until very recently, it was not the absolute hub of development that these cities. In Milton's day, it remained very rural as expressed in the lyrics:

 Tip sand, period
Bahia-mines, road antural Bahia-mines, road antural
Linking mines to the port, the sea Linking mines to the port, the sea
Railway Railway sent sent boot boot

Old machinist with his bona  Old machinist with his bona
Remember the happy people who came courting Remember the happy people who came courting
Maria, do not smoke Maria sings more, do not smoke sings more

Pras bucks, flowers, windows and backyards Pras bucks, flowers, windows and backyards
In the empty plaza, a cry, a woe In the empty plaza, the cry, the woe
Houses equecidas, vià º vas the portals Houses equecidas, vià vas in portals'

Cancao do Sal is another ballad that has a full orchestra backing the band:

Working the salt is love is sweat I leaves
Vou viver cantando o dia tão quente que faz I will live singing day so hot that makes
Homem ver criança buscando conchinhas no mar Man seeking child see the sea shells
Trabalho o dia inteiro pra vida de gente levar I work all day to life we ​​lead

It should be noted that while Nacimento is a prolific writer, he has had help from several luminaries of Brazilian music such as the seminal band Tamba Trio(famous for a version of Jorge Ben's Mas Que Nada featured during advertisements for the national football team leading up to the 1998 World Cup), Wagner Tiso and Lo Borge, both members of the "Clube da Esquina".

That said, one in exploring the vast discography of this international treasure, should view this album, as great as it is, as the platform to much greater things done by him. Sometimes,music is able to transcend even the most fickle and volatile situations which present itself on a country and at least, bring about some measure of calm and fleeting distraction. Travessia(Crossings) accomplished this(for it is an accomplishment) in 1967 when the dictatorship was starting to show the precedent for the next twenty years

CHINUA ACHEBE 1930-2013

On Friday, March twenty-first, one of the finest writers of the 21st century passed away. Chinua Achebe was referred to affectionately as the father of African Literature. His first novel, 'Things Fall Apart', shows the destruction of tribal society by colonialism. I have only read two of his novels as only 'Things fall Apart' and  'Arrow of God'. These are two novels of phenomenal quality for two very different reasons. Things fall apart is not a literary masterpiece by any means. In fact, the storyline is the typical interaction between tribal and European societies and the subsequent destruction of the party with less weapons. However, therein lies the magic of Things Fall Apart. It was the first time the African experience of colonialism was articulated. It talks about the interactions and eventual destruction of Okonkwo's (the protagonist) tribal society. He  has interactions with two sections, the legislative sector and the religious sector. Encounters with British governors of other provinces and the missionary who has set up his church with the purpose of converting the 'savages', convince him of the need to fight the colonizer. The book was enthusiastically received and instantly turned Achebe into the biggest literary  discovery since Naipaul a couple years earlier. His third book, viewed  as a continuation of Things Fall Apart, The Arrow of God tells the story of two villages,Umurao and Okperi. The high priest of Umurao is Ezuelu, a proud man with a large family,although somewhat fickle. Controversially received, it not only attacked the system of the armed missionary,but also the system of traditional beliefs dominating the Ibo society of which he is a part. Full of African sayings and proverbs it chronicles the rise and fall of the high priest Ezuelu.

Achebe was never one to mince words. This made him an extremely controversial figure in certain parts of his homeland. Nigeria. This was especially evident during the secession of  certain states in the south-east of the country to form Biafran Republic. This action started events that led to the Nigerian Civil War which lasted from 1967 to 1970. The war is well known for its cruelty and no doubt contributed to the typical stereo-type that Africa is the land of war, starving people and a plethora of STD's. Achebe fell out of favor(if only temporary) with many Nigerians who saw the rebellion as illegal and supported by Apartheid South Africa and other outside power brokers. Even now, several decades after, his legacy remains somewhat divisive. Possibly that is the fate of the Third World writer. The jury is out on that and I or anybody doesn't have the right to cast judgement. That does not however take away one inch of his literary genius. What Achebe's case however does highlight is the faultiness of containing several hundred tribes and cultures in a confined space. In fact, it could be said that he courted controversy until the day literally that he died. That being said. the writer MUST  must be separated from the man. I dislike greatly V.S Naipaul's attitude but it does not stop me from acknowledging his enormous writing ability. Therefore the disrespect that I have seen some bloggers heap upon his memory is truly sad. He may have had views that did not sit well with many people but he also was a genius and for that he is to be respected.

So how will history judge Albert Chinualumogu Achebe? Will it say that he was a myopic, insular Nigerian who looked for the upliftment of the Ibo people alone? Will it read that Achebe was the African Naipaul? Or will it be a more balanced view? It should as Achebe peered into Nigerian  society and understood the reasons for the social and economic chaffing that has plagued Nigeria since the days of colonization. It is said that the quality of a writer is proven by the amount of fans he has, whether small or large. In this case, that is a faulty measuring stick. Many writers think that writing the truth is an excuse to be cynical. Achebe is not of this ilk. In fact, many of his writings are laden with love and respect for certain tribal institutions. He does not however mince his words in highlighting problems and the reasons behind these in his home country and by extension, the rest of Africa. Given this, and considering that we are all human and difference of opinion is what makes life what it is, Achebe should be treated with the utmost respect. He is after all the first and greatest of the Sub-Saharan writers and certainly one of the greatest writers ever

STING-DREAM OF THE BLUE TURTLES(UK)

In 1985, one of the greatest rock groups of all time had run its course. The Police had dominated the pop and rock charts for six years. It seemed as if the experiment was over, the last waltz was finished and people were going home. This did not come as a surprise to some as Andy Summers, Gordon Sumner(Sting) and Stewart Copeland were all working on solo projects and the accompanying strain no doubt was a major factor in the demise of the group. Sting then proceeded to embark on possibly the most ambitious project in pop music history. It could be said that he going insane or that he was so in love with himself that he was overflowing with confidence and ignoring the perceived wants of his listeners. In hindsight, such critics should hang their heads in shame. The Dream of The Blue Turtles is one of the finest albums of the eighties and also of all time. Soon after the breakup of the Police, Sting invited several young, top notch jazz musicians from The United States to play on it and form the Blue Turtles band. Omar Hakim played drums with Weather Report(no introduction needed). Branford Marsalis had played with Art Blakey and his brother Wynton, who(it should be mentioned),was totally against the project. Kenny Kirkland and Darryl Jones played keyboards and bass respectively with Miles Davis. Dollette Mcdonald and Janice Pendarvis were seasoned studio singers. The Dream of the Blue Turtles had arrived.

        The album itself has ten tracks, not including two bonus tunes. In many ways this album is a black sheep. Firstly, jazz had started it's descent as fresh ideas to make the music appeal to a younger audience had all but dried up. So a rock musician, more so a white musician making an album with black, jazz artistes was totally unheard of and sent the worlds of rock and jazz on a collision course. Secondly, this album is much more socially conscious than most other albums of the period. It actually was the first in a series of  albums by Sting culminating in 'Nothing But The Sun'(a review coming on this album soon) in 1987. The album starts off with 'If you love somebody,set them free', an extremely popular song that probably sold the album to the un-indoctrinated. Sting is an exceptional lyricist. as exemplified on 'Children's Crusade', a shadow classic. In poetic language, Sting parallels the literal Children's Crusades of the middle ages to the young men going to fight in World War I to the heroin addiction plaguing London's streets in the 1980s. 'Russians' pleads with leaders of the super powers to halt their march toward Mutual Assured Destruction(MAT) during the final years of the Cold War. Ending every verse with the line "I hope the Russians love their children too", he emphasises the futility of such action as both sides would lose anyway.Musically, these two tracks are extremely different as Children's Crusade features a full ensemble and an extended saxophone solo by Marsalis. Russians however features keyboards synths made to sound like a full symphony and Sting on vocals without backup. 'We Work The Black Seam'  is another socially conscious track which criticises the economic policies of Margaret Thatcher. Sting comes from a working class town which was famous for ship building an industry  which also collapsed with the advent of mass privatisation. 'Consider Me Gone' is about a man who is saying goodbye to all  the troubles plaguing the world today. 'Shadows in the Rain' features an extended keyboard solo from the late Kenny Kirkland. Enough fresh ideas were created on this album to power jazz and rock for the next twenty years. Unfortunately, the purists did not appreciate what took place in a studio in Barbados in 1984/5. Many purists(Wynton Marsalis being the most vocal), said that the project was rubbiish. I have a philosophy about that. I believe that the musician's duty is not only to play music but cover as many forms as possible in one's lifetime, both intellectually and performance-wise. The album concludes with another very popular love song 'Fortress Around Your Heart'. This song is a personal favorite of mine, Sting in this song tries to balance the price of loving a woman while trying not to keep her caged so that she looses her identity and spirit. This album is a masterpiece and should be on a 'must listen' list for any true music lover, any student of history or philosphy and anyone interested in the general future of music.

        

MERCEDES SOSA EN ARGENTINE(ARGENTINA)

   
 Nada Sera Como Antes
     
The culture of the first peoples of the Americas has been vilified and viewed as the culture of savages for the better part of  of the last millennium. This has been the case in this millennium also, but thankfully, this view is only held by the staunchest of colonial-minded Europeans. Nevertheless, the music of  South America's indigenous peoples has not only survived, but has served as an inspiration and influence for some of the finest musicians in the region. Mercedes Sosa was one of the leading lights of Amerindian folk music. Born in Buenos Aires in 1935,  she became possibly the greatest and best known folk singer in South America. She has influenced musicians from  Venezuela to Chile, Brazil to Paraguay. She has worked with artistes such as Milton Nascimento and Victor Jara. Her professional career started when she was 15 when she won a radio contest. This resulted in her receiving a two-month contract with that radio station.  A tireless worker, she made music almost literally until the day she died, her last album being released in 2009 (the year she died).  What is most remarkable about Sosa is the fact that despite being a member of a community frequently discriminated against, her songs focus on love and the unification of Latin America (an impossible dream.) just as Simon Bolivar himself had intended.

        MERCEDES SOSA EN ARGENTINE is an album of phenomenal quality. It is released at a very strange time in Argentinian history. The country is governed by a brutal dictatorship and also is fighting a soon-to-be infamous war with the British. Shortly, Argentinian national pride is going to suffer a major blow when the controversial sinking of the Belgrano catalyses their defeat in that war. In the midst of all this, Sosa (The Voice of Latin America) delivers a flawless performance.The set is as intimate as a poetry recital among lovers in an amphitheatre.The album starts off with 'Sueno Con Serpientes' or 'Dream With Snakes'. Looking at the translation of the lyrics in English, it becomes apparent that Cuban singer Silvio Rodriguez(the writer of the song sung by Sosa) tries to paint a picture of obsession, obsession that started off as a nightmare, no doubt about the writer's most obvious fears. A Cuban children's song titled Drume Negrita is also included. The real highlight of this album is the classic ballad 'Volver a los 17'. The first place I heard this song was on Gerais, an album by Milton Nascimento.Written by Violetta Para of Chile, it celebrates the joy of youthful life, as the title suggests. Sosa effortlessly uses the natural lift that is a characteristic of Spanish, in order to emphasise the beauty of it's poetry. Soul music, not American Soul but music that comes from deep within the heart.

Album: Red Hot On Impulse

This entire album is an ode to the wandering mind;

Majid Shabaaz's weary bass shuffles and endures, carrying on its back Tulsi's bow-tambura. Soon, one is buffeted by showers of Alice Coltrane's harp technique on Journey into the Satchidananda. It whetts the consciousness, and lulls one into a pseudo-hypnopompic state; priming the mind as the arab girds his feet. From beneath the brow of Majid's bass, the eyes of the piece, Pharoah Sanders' Sax runs over dusty cities in the cleft of bleached mountains...I am rambling. In truth, what I have written before is more of an interpretation of what I saw: A traveller bound in cloth and turban trudging through a pulsing dust storm in a purple dessert. Also, there was something to the effect of silver filings suspended perpetually ahead [Tulsi's tambura]. And this was without drugs.
The album contains stunning examples of Spiritual Jazz, many of the tracks seeming to facilitate looking into past lives and things. All of them (but particulary the tracks by Pharoah Sanders et al) have surpassed the mere transmission of mood, and cause one to see the outlines of structures. Pharoah Sanders' Work on the second track, The Creator has a Master Plan is superb, and it is so good that one finds oneself singing along when he begins to chant in his kind of oakwood-oboe voice at the end. Another track of note is Stolen Moments by Oliver Nelson.Though his style is far more orthodox than many of the others', he fits in well if only for his use of the double-bass and horns; Stolen Moments is more reminiscent of a finely cut marble sculpture (as opposed to the driftwood carvings of Alice Coltrane et al), but is not emotionally sterile, and his phrases are clever, at times, succinct. Upper and Lower Egypt starts off quite well but doesn't go too far, and unfortunately, as I have observed on many other tracks by Mr. Sanders and his mentor (even The Creator) , descends gradually into unaccountable chaos (In my humble opinion). I cannot say that I have a favourite song on this album, but A Love Supreme: Acknowledgement is of real note. It is the most eclectic of the tracks and a polarizing one at that. I would recommend reading A LOVE SUPREME (a review of which I, Mono will be doing shortly) by Kent Nussey(a man far more talented than I)  to get the full meditation. Charles Mingus' Hora Decubritus is just as frightening and sparse as one would expect of a Mingus track on this collection. It gives one the image of a dance of the dead actually. I imagine I have left little to you, but, in truth, there is much, much more to be derived. This album is highly recommended by Juan and myself.







---Mono

The Teacup Whale

I came across this story in an old, coverless edition on the bookshelf. I understand that It has been featured in several collections, most notably Tales for Little Rebels. That being said, the short story itself is so...precious that one balks at looking deeper into it (even though it is the irresistible next step). It is about a boy who finds a whale in a puddle and who, upon noticing he is a whale, immediately takes him home and puts him first into a teacup of water, then other receptacles of varying size as the handsome little black fellow grows bigger and bigger and stronger and stronger .  Now I've done some wiki reading on Lydia Gibson, and I understand that she was quite the leftist [although I'm sure she would have reconsidered supporting the soviet communist party had she known where it would end up. Or perhaps she was simply not as well-informed as one would like to believe(?)]. She seemed more to be an appendage of that time of upheaval, rather than an actual revolutionary. That being said, her story echoes in a number of directions, some possibly unintended. For me, her little contended captive recalls several dispossessed peoples who she [possibly] wished would grow more solute, and achieve some liberation-just as the whale, having grown bigger and stronger-big enough to swim out-did. Juan tells me that I am looking too deep this puddle, but it has been my experience that often, creative persons when asked about the meaning of a piece, will say only that which is palateable, give an ill-defined shadow of its true meaning while hoping to reach those they hope to reach. Perhaps she did hold this opinion, and decided to be silent, racial tolerance being what it was in those days. This is especially considering the attitude of the boy's mother in the story. She denies the whale's whaleness (hahaha!!) untill the end of the story when he breaks that chain! Or maybe I am confusing shadows on the cave wall with reality (?). Needless to say, while it could be interpreted in this way, the story is not outrightly political, and is such fanciful nonsense and is so pleasantly written that I would recommend it as a read.









---Mono