Tag Archives: rock

Maureen Mahon – Black Diamond Queens

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Title: Black Diamond Queens: African American Women and Rock and Roll
Author: Maureen Mahon
Publisher: Duke University Press
Formats: Hardcover, Paperback, Kindle
Release date: October 9, 2020

 

Maureen Mahon’s Black Diamond Queens: African American Women and Rock and Roll is a chronological collection of case studies of African American women’s contributions to rock from 1953–1984, and, simultaneously, a feminist critique of the forces that have prevented African American women from enjoying more success in the rock world. Mahon, an associate professor at New York University, demonstrates that African American women and their music were foundational to the rock genre, and that their contributions have continued to be a driving force in the development of rock over time. These women, however, have found success to be elusive, due to barriers of genre expectations, gender expectations, racial expectations, and record industry marketing.

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December 2020 – January 2021 Black Music Releases of Note

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Following are additional albums released December 2020 and January 2021 across multiple genres—some will be reviewed in future issues of Black Grooves.

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Jimi Hendrix Experience – Live In Maui

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Title: Live In Maui
Artist: Jimi Hendrix Experience
Label: Experience Hendrix L.L.C./Sony Legacy
Formats: 2-CD or 3-LP + Blu-Ray set
Release date: November 20, 2020

 

Rarely a year goes by without a new release from the Hendrix archives and 2020 is no exception. This year’s offering, Live In Maui, features both the audio and video documentation of the “Rainbow Bridge Vibratory Color/Sound Experiment” concerts performed by the Jimi Hendrix Experience in Hawaii on July 30, 1970, plus a new documentary and liner notes that chronicle the story behind the making of the film Rainbow Bridge. As is the case with the majority of these posthumous releases, the results are a mixed bag. For most Hendrix fans, however, there is likely enough new, high quality content to warrant the purchase of this three disc set. First and foremost, there’s the music, a remarkable live performance previously available only on bootlegs, offered here in superb sound, newly restored and mixed by Eddie Kramer and mastered by Bernie Grundman.

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Chuck Berry – The Original King of Rock ‘N’ Roll

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Title: The Original King of Rock ‘N’ Roll
Artist: Chuck Berry
Label: MVD Visual
Formats: DVD, Blu-Ray
Release date: November 6, 2020

 

Back in 1987, while the legendary rock and roll icon Chuck Berry was still alive and performing, the documentary Chuck Berry – Hail! Hail! Rock N’ Roll was released in celebration of the musician’s 60th birthday, but the primarily focus was on two 1986 concerts. Director Jon Brewer (also responsible for great documentaries on B.B. King and Nat King Cole) uses some of that footage for this wonderful new 97-minute film, The Original King of Rock ‘N’ Roll, including clips with Berry’s contemporaries, Little Richard and Bo Diddley. This if the first feature-length documentary on the life and music of Berry, taking us on a journey from his early years right up to the present day.

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Songhoy Blues – Optimisme

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Title: Optimisme
Artist: Songhoy Blues
Label: Fat Possum
Format: CD, LP, Digital
Release Date: October 23, 2020

 

Hailing from Mali, the African rock band Songhoy Blues has returned with their highly anticipated third album, a response to their homeland’s corrupt and oppressive political system. Entitled Optimisme, French for optimism, the album reflects the group’s desire to impact the world around them in tangible and positive ways through their music.

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Cindy Blackman Santana – Give the Drummer Some

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Title: Give the Drummer Some
Artist: Cindy Blackman Santana
Label: Copperline
Formats: CD, LP, Digital
Release date: September 18, 2020

 

Virtuoso drummer Cindy Blackman Santana is well-known for her versatility, especially in the realm of jazz and rock. A member of Lenny Kravitz’s band from 1992-2007, for the past decade she has been the regular touring drummer for Santana (and later married Carlos Santana). Heavily influenced by her mentor, the late drummer Tony Williams who initially rose to fame in the 1960s as a member of Miles Davis’ group, Cindy has extended and expanded his jazz-rock fusion legacy. On her new album, Give the Drummer Some, Cindy reaches new heights, on vocals and percussion, as she collaborates with four of the world’s top fusion guitarists: Carlos Santana, John McLaughlin, Kirk Hammett (Metallica), and Vernon Reid (Living Colour). Produced by Narada Michael Walden, the album was three years in the making, and the results are no less than spectacular.

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Fantastic Negrito – Have You Lost Your Mind Yet?

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Title: Have You Lost Your Mind Yet?
Artist: Fantastic Negrito 
Label: Cooking Vinyl
Formats: CD, LP, Digital
Release date: July 17, 2020

 

GRAMMY award winning artist Fantastic Negrito has returned with his new album, Have You Lost Your Mind Yet?  While the Oakland native’s 2018 release, Please Don’t Be Dead, focused on songs that embrace love and unity, the musical framework for his new project more closely mirrors the pressing issues in the current social, economic and political climate. Using his signature rock-soul style, he presents timely topics such as the benefits of communication, particularly during the pandemic, when so many are battling with or recovering from mental illness. Negrito believes that if we talk more openly about what’s happening in our lives, we can work toward finding healing within our communities by eliminating isolation.

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Summer 2020 Black Music Releases of Note

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Following are additional albums released during June, July and August 2020 across multiple genres—some will be reviewed in future issues of Black Grooves.

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May 2020 Black Music Releases of Note

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Following are additional albums released during May 2020 across multiple genres—some will be reviewed in future issues of Black Grooves.  

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Moonlight Benjamin – Simido

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Title: Simido 
Artist: Moonlight Benjamin
Label: Ma Casa
Formats: CD, Digital
Release date: February 21, 2020

 

Haiti’s high priestess of voodoo rock and roll, Moonlight Benjamin, returns with her latest release, Simido. As with her previous breakout album, Siltane, the lead vocalist performs primarily in her native Creole language, with lyrics that always delve deep into the soul of Haitian culture. Now based in France, Benjamin strives to honor her roots and harness the spiritual power of her homeland. At the same time, she expresses concern that as a woman, she must constantly affirm her existence and command respect. As she states, “It is, unfortunately, an eternal battle for us who are women.”

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Jimi Hendrix – Songs for Groovy Children: The Fillmore East Concerts

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Title: Songs for Groovy Children: The Fillmore East Concerts
Artist: Jimi Hendrix/Band of Gypsys
Label: Sony Legacy
Formats: CD, LP, Digital
Release date: November 22, 2019

 

In the summer of 1969, Jimi Hendrix broke away from The Jimi Hendrix Experience and formed a new trio with bassist Billy Cox and drummer Buddy Miles. The album that was spawned from this black power trio was Band of Gypsys, which featured six songs from the concerts at the Fillmore East on January 1, 1970. As an album much revered by Hendrix fans, as well as one of the best live albums in rock and roll history, Band of Gypsys has certainly received its share of accolades. Songs for Groovy Children supplements this classic live album by including over two dozen previously unreleased tracks and all four of the Band of Gypsys’ performances from the Fillmore East on New Year’s Eve 1969 and New Year’s Day 1970. Continue reading →

November 2019 Black Music Releases of Note

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Following are additional albums released during November 2019 across multiple genres—some will be reviewed in future issues of Black Grooves. Continue reading →