Commendable Comps: Round 5

***UPDATE - LINKS HAVE BEEN FIXED!***

Grupo Los Yoyi : El Fino
taken from the compilation "Si, Para Usted" on Waxing Deep (2006)

Silvestre Y Sus Guantanameros : Silbando
taken from the compilation "Gozalo!" on Vampisoul (2007)

Jay Mitchell : Goombay Bump
taken from the compilation "Grand Bahama Goombay" on Numero Group (2007)

Sapan Jagmohan : Meri Aakhon Mein
taken from the compilation "Sitar Beat Vol.1" on Guerrilla Reissues (2007)

The Brothers Hawk : Tweedle-Dee Tweedle-Dum
taken from the compilation "Teen Dance Music From China And Malaysia" on Thrift Score (2007)

Vainica Doble : Dime Felix
taken from the compilation "Folk Is Not A Four Letter Word Vol.2" on Delay 68 (2006)

It's fun (for me at least) to think about the collective work of fiending record junkies, scouring the world over, stepping into foreign and often uncomfortable situations in search of forgotten memories, fueled merely by the dream of bringing someone else's art back into the light - or revealing it to a world that never heard it in the first place. I suppose it would be sacrilegious to compare this obsessive archeology to the global advancement of medical sciences, but music freaks also seek a cure. We want a prescription to escape the mundane, an old sound that will help us hear better, an understanding of the paths of rhythms that will help us make sense of our own peculiar ticks. That being said, here's a bunch of songs that I didn't have to work hard to unearth. Thankfully, other people did the digging for us!

A very brief synopsis of what's here, and the great albums they are culled from:

-As I mentioned a while ago, there's a whole world of revolutionary Cuban funk that I am basically unaware of. That's why I'm so thankful for Dan Zacks, and his weekly radio show, and all the work that he put into this high caliber collection. If this mellow fusion funk from Grupo Los Yoyi doesn't get you hype enough, then check out Irakere's "Bacalao Con Pan" for a more dancefloor focussed cut.

-VAMPISOUL. and more VAMPISOUL. Who are these cats? And why was I not in Peru in the 60's???

-Yet again, Numero Group come correct with a retrospective of diverse material from a little known label- this time the Bahamaian GBI. For me, funky architect Jay Mitchell is the real revelation here, contributing 5 of the 16 songs, all of them BANGIN. I get such a funny mental image when he asks "come streak with me", prolly not what he meant though. One of the songs on the comp, a heavy bottomed rocksteady tune by The Mustangs, was featured here a long, long time ago.

-Sitar Beat on CD. Makes me feel a little silly for buying all those 12" EPs, but hey, glad to have it all consolidated in one place. I used to love dropping this Sapan Jagmohan track into sets. Unsuspecting heads that were bobbing to the funk would always turn around in shock or tilt suddenly when the beat falls out and the hindi vocals breeze in.

-Thrift Score is the name of the record label. Kinda says it all. This is definitely some bootleg, recorded off of vinyl type release, but I'm not complaining. Who woulda known that kids in Malaysia were going crazy over... Wild West soundtrack music?!? And other cool sounds, as exhibited here by The Brothers Hawk.

-Andy Votel pulled out the stunning selection of trippy folk psych sounds on Folk Is Not... Honestly, I didn't think I liked folk music that much until I listened to this. With devastatingly good selections from all over the world, and an artist line-up that includes only one name I've ever heard of, Votel is clearly putting in work. Someone promote this crazy cat to surgeon general already so we can have a phonic-freakout routine implemented in public schools everywhere.