‘African Party’
Tuesday, April 29th, 2008
I got a tune stuck in my head. Then the disc got stuck in a CD player & got lost from memory. Searched for it but could not find it & so upon getting back the ’so thought’ lost CD almost a year later, it sounded one of the best songs I have ever heard.
The incident was an over a year or two ago when I listened to the album World Grooves by Putumayo. During that time world music selection was not all that varied plus the number of nightspots who were brave enough to venture there were close to none. It was my first introduction to world music from putumayo, one that I have been able to happily indulge myself again at Putumayo music’s 15th anniversary.
I was able to sample some of the sounds from the amazing new compilation African Party. The album itself is a colorful mix of music from South Africa all the way to Ivory Coast, a blend of the old & new. I found the music so infectious that I was playing it all the time on my music machine.

Raised in multicultural India, music has been something that has had a profound significance to my life & has transcended borders & Africa is home to some of the best music in the world.
I have always believed that art needs strife & Africa has more than it’s fair share of it. So the music that comes out of the continent is soulful & original.
Even though the majority of us myself included may not be able to understand the songs, the beauty of the music is hard to escape.
Listening to the African Dance Party compilation made me look up some of the names on the internet…. Some names are not really out there yet. The names that are there amazed me with the simplicity & originality of the music & visual accompaniments.
This is definitely an album you should check out. I got mine from Borders @ Wheelock place.
I will be having an interview with one of the artists pretty soon. Watch this space.
Get the album online Amazon or the Putumayo site.
Get it in Singapore at Borders.
Tags: culture, putumayo, review, world music,
