Added to iPod

October 15, 2008 | Filed Under Music |

Jules was going to fall off the page, so I moved him here.

First – the ladies.
Sarah McLachlan – “Closer” The new greatest hits package.
Kate Bush – “Aerial” I didn’t even know she put out a new record. This is very ambitious and not totally successful, but there is good stuff abounding.
Rachel Sweet – “Fool Around” Hands up if you remember Rachel Sweet! The sixteen year old with a big voice circa 1978. This came out of Stiff Records and was produced by Nick Lowe and is STILL fun to listen to. I can hear a lot of Ms. Sweet in a number of today’s alterna-women singers.

Now – Istanbul. Mind you, I just picked these off the rack. Two I found in the Museum of Modern Art, the DJ stuff was suggested by the guy in the record store and one was actually playing at the time. So any info I giving you here has been researched… last night. In these tracks you hear violins, tablas, the oud, the ney, a zither, clarinets and various horns along with the standard instruments.
“Bosphorus Night 2” – Various artists put together by Turkish DJ Suat Ateşdaği. Suat is a pioneer in the music industry out here, having worked many of the big clubs and even starting the first Turkish dance radio station. It is very disco with Turkish instruments and vocals. You can dance to it! I’ll give is an 85, Dick.
Ferhat Albayrak – “Techno-Logic” A great mix of techno stuff from one of the young… Turks in the business.
Mercan Dede- “800” Mercan Dede is a also known as DJ Arkin Allen. This record won Best World Album for 2008 from WOMEX (World Music Expo). He is pretty well known in music circles. His discs can be found on iTunes and I even had a composition of his from another techno disc. It is a very chill record, incorporating folk music, beats and ambient sounds (even a rap in Turkish). Very nice.
Cahit Berkay & Grup Zan – “Toprak” This is rock mixed with traditional. Sounds a great deal like the Irish band Boiled In Lead, but there are no vocals. I can’t find anything for this band that isn’t in Turkish but they have been playing for 42 years! (Maybe they are the Turkish Stones..) Anyway, the album rocks!
Brooklyn Funk Essentials – “Watcha Playin’” Way back in the 90s, I was introduced to one of my favorite albums of all time, “In The Buzz Bag” by the Brooklyn Funk Essentials. This was an amazing mix of R&B, funk, reggae, beats and all played with a group of Turkish musicians sitting in and adding the cultural vibe. The whole album was centered around Istanbul. It works in so many ways – you just have to hear it. I didn’t even know they made any other records. This is their first in eight years and though it doesn’t have the highs or the energy of “Buzz Bag”, it is still great music and worth a listen.