Africa Straight Ahead [Super Audio CD - DSD]

Various Artists (Artist) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (February 24, 2004)
• Please Note: Requires SACD-compatible hardware
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Super Audio CD - DSD
• Label: Heads Up
• ASIN: B0001BDAQE
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #266,771 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Dance to the music, April 2, 2004

By 

Jan P. Dennis "Longboard jazzer" (Monument, CO USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Africa Straight Ahead (Audio CD)

This wonderful collection of some of Africa's greatest straight ahead jazz players features some very cool tunes covering quite a wide-ranging stylistic soundscape. There's a little Afro-modal Shorter-ish hard bop ("Owed to Bishop"), a bit of McCoy Tyner-styled post bop ("Naivasha"), some great Township jazz ("Celebrate Mzansi"), a dollop of King Sunny Ade juju ("Langery"), Hugh Masekela meets "Cast Your Fate to the Wind" ("Tugela Rail"), Afro-Caribbean ("Dee Mwa Wee"), more Masekela stylings, updated ("Imbali"), and even an Afro-samba ("Shawn's Uhadi Samba")

A wild, untethered joy suffuses these songs, pure blitheness of spirit, with sometimes just a thin vein of sorrow or melancholy sneaking through.

My favorite numbers include "Imbali," by the great pianist Bheki Mseleku (Where's he been hiding out for the past decade, after a handful of fine discs in the early 90s?), music of the very highest standard with some killer sax work by Ezra Ngcukana and the mellow flugel horn of Feya Faku; "Shawn's Uhadi Samba," a simple, mesmeric tune with gorgeous horn harmonies and smart piano vamps by Hotep Idris Galeta; the driving, get-under-your-skin modality of "Owed to Bishop" by trumpeter Marcus Wyatt; and the dancing glee of "Celebrate Mzansi" (I'm a sucker for that Township stuff). But it's all operating on a very high level. And despite the quite amazing diversity of styles, it all hangs together. That's because, I think, it's not like a normal anthology. It's more like selections drawn from a large extended family of music makers, with many of the players popping up on each other's tunes.

Entirely enjoyable and certainly worth picking up.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not SACD format, July 11, 2008

By 

stache "Rick" (Bakersfield CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Africa Straight Ahead (Audio CD)

Caution the item is not in SACD format as listed.
I ordered it because of the format, disappointed when I received the CD.
Musically the CD is great.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Showcasing great African jazz, March 6, 2004

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Africa Straight Ahead (Audio CD)

Africa Straight Ahead is a uniquely performed and flawlessly recorded music CD anthology showcasing great African jazz, and celebrating the ten-year anniversary of the end of apartheid. Featuring a cross-section of jazz styles, these toe-tapping rhythms blend emotion and sheer energy with pulsing drumbeat of human history. Tracks include Owed To Bishop (5:54), Naivasha (6:55), Celebrate Mzansi (5:32), Beautiful Love (4:42), Langery (4:49), Tugela Rail (5:39), Sweet Anathi (7:18), Lovers On Empty Corners (4:17), Amasabekwelanggeni (7:36), Dee Mwa Wee (8:24), Imbali (5:51), and Shawn's Uhadi Samba (4:01).