Salia Koroma

This post is about goosebumps. This is what I get from visiting http://nikiibu.wordpress.com/, a site dedicated entirely to Salia Koroma, a Mende accordionist from Sierra Leone.

I can only bow to so much thoroughness.
I have nothing to add to this site except this cassette which I copied from a friend who visited Sierra Leone in the 1980s. The cassette does not have a title, only "Salia Koroma # 40".

As an illustration of nikiibu's thoroughness I add a video borrowed from his/her site. For others, and for more of and about Salia Koroma I humbly refer you to http://nikiibu.wordpress.com/.


EDIT June 11, 2013: The link has been renewed.

White Christmas

Here's the runner-up in the enigmatic cover competition.
This great cover doesn't give you an inkling of a clue towards the music on the cassette.

You will never guess that the music is by a Guinean accordionist, by the composer of the track "Autorail", by one of my musical heroes: Petit Moussa.

I am absolutely baffled by this man's music. And I can tell you this doesn't happen easily.

Accompanied by a great guitarist (Petit Mamadi?), an 'old-style' talking griot (Djiba Kamisoko?) and a powerful female singer (Namafa* Dioubaté?) Petit Moussa creates a wondrous world in which a listener can drift away.

Snow in Guinea? Why not!

ENC 9022

* I'm not sure about this name. I refer you to the first track.

El acordeón cubano

As a fan of any type of accordion music I was very surprised to find the instrument in the touristic resort of Trinidad, Cuba. A place well worth visiting, by the way.

The discovery of the instrument was actually a coincidence, because the owner wasn't playing the instrument when we met. He was playing a tres in a small conjunto. He did this with so much fervour that I decided to compliment him. We got to talk about his music and his musical interests, and he revealed that he owned an accordion, which he played sometimes in another bar.

I asked him if I could record it and he agreed.

And here are these recordings, of Ramón Castro. Recorded in Trinidad, Cuba, in March 2002.

EDIT April 12, 2015: The link has been refreshed.