The Legendary Roots Crew at NPR's Tiny Desk (2017)

The video’s Youtube page says:

“Armed with the incredible vocalist Bilal, The Roots performed the signature track from Detroit, a film about the race riots in 1967. "It Ain't Fair" glares unflinchingly, takes a knee and raises a fist against the societal construct that has systematically denied equality of experience to those "presumed inferior," to quote one of Bilal's verses. And it achieves all this while covering its heart with its right hand. This reflective hymn tenderly yanks your heart strings and offers a window into the ethos of those who would like to stand for the flag but cannot in good principle, lest these same evils continue to exist.”

Setlist:

• "It Ain't Fair"

Musicians:

• Curtis L. Jones Jr (Trombone)

• Arnetta Johnson (Trumpet)

• Hiruy E. Tirfe (Sax)

• Richard L. Tate II (Sax)

• Joseph Streater (Trumpet)

• Norman J. Bradshaw (Trombone)

• Damon Bryson (Sousaphone)

• Ahmir (Questlove) Thompson (Drums)

• Tarik (Black Thought) Trotter (Emcee)

• Bilal Oliver (Vocals)

Important People:

• Creative Director: Bob Boilen

• Producers: Abby O'Neill, Morgan Noelle Smith

• Audio Engineer: Josh Rogosin

• Videographers: Morgan Noelle Smith, Maia Stern, Kara Frame, Alyse Young

• Photo: Claire Harbage/NPR

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Prince's Funky Instrumentals (1977)

I can’t believe I haven’t posted this sooner, but I saw someone mention it the other day on Twitter and it was like I was hit with a lightning-bolt need for some unreleased (as far as I know) Prince instrumental tracks from 1977.

Prince was about 19 years old here and plays organ on these tracks. He is accompanied by Prince, Andre Cymone on bass, and Bobby Z on drums. These recordings are dated about a year before Prince’s first “official” album, For You. They are generally known as the “Loring Park Sessions ‘77” but there is a version floating around called “Husney’s: A Work In Progress,” and frankly, I enjoy the artwork for that one, so that’s what I’ve included in the download. Feel free to replace it or create your own or both.

Download mp3 files and the “Husney’s: A Work In Progress” artwork here.

Anyways, enjoy this early, funky Prince:

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• Visit Prince’s official website

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• Download mp3 files and the “Husney’s: A Work In Progress” artwork here.

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Digable Planets Live At KEXP

Digable Planets live for KEXP (November 4, 2016).

Setlist:

1. The May 4th Movement

2. Black Ego

3. Pacifics

4. What Cool Breezes Do

5. Jettin'

Important People:

• Host: Cheryl Waters & Kevin Cole

• Audio Recording & Mixing: Kevin Suggs & Matt Ogaz

• Cameras: Jim Beckmann, Alaia D'Alessandro, Luke Knecht & Justin Wilmore

• Director: Scott Holpainen

• Editor: Jim Beckmann

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Erykah Badu at NPR's Tiny Desk

Erykah Badu performs for NPR’s Tiny Desk. 08/15/18.

Felix Contreras says:

“Some folks around the NPR Music office said they felt an almost spiritual connection to Erykah Badu during her visit to the Tiny Desk. And that was before she and her band even played a single note. It came from the waft of earthly scents that followed in her wake, to the flowing dreads and clothes that hung on her like robes.

After her self-introduction, which included a rundown of her spiritual and creative aliases, Badu rolled into one of her earliest musical calling cards, "Rimshot." It's an ode to the sound the percussionist makes when a drumstick is struck against the metal edge of the snare drum. On this performance, as on her 1997 album Baduizm, it becomes a device to play with time — stretching it, stopping it, suspending it. Propelled by jazz chords on the piano and the steady pulse of the acoustic bass, the playful performance unfolded in the tradition of the best bebop.

But the panoramic song "Green Eyes" is the centerpiece of Badu's Tiny Desk performance. It's wide-ranging in scope and musical arrangement and brilliantly executed by the jazz and hip-hop musicians in her backing band. The story of heartbreak is striking enough, but her interpretation showcases her formidable vocal skills. By the time it was over, we were all just as emotionally and spiritually spent as she was from the experience.

Erykah Badu is an artist for the ages. To old-school jazz fans like myself, names like Nina Simone, Betty Carter and Shirley Horn come to mind as much as Billie Holiday because of Badu's singular approach to a lyric. They all cut their own creative path and left behind a legacy that you can identify with just one note. Erykah Badu is on that same path, and one day her name will be mentioned along with the other Elders who share her spirit of musical adventure.”

Setlist:

• "Rimshot"

• "Green Eyes"

Players:

• Erykah Badu (lead vocals)

• RC Williams (Keys)

• Braylon Lacy (bass)

• Cleon Edwards (Drums)

• Frank Moka (Percussion)

• Kenneth Whalum (Sax)

• Keyon Harrold (Trumpet)

• Dwayne Kerr (Flute)

Credits:

• Producers: Abby O'Neill, Morgan Noelle Smith

• Creative Director: Bob Boilen

• Audio Engineer: Josh Rogosin

• Videographers: Morgan Noelle Smith, Maia Stern, Kara Frame, Khun Minn Ohn, CJ Riculan

• Production Assistants: Catherine Zhang, Téa Mottolese

• Photo: Morgan Noelle Smith/NPR.

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• Follow the Musical Worldview posts.

• Read about the Musical Worldview Project here.

• Browse all the installments in the Musical Worldview Project.

• Browse the master list of all the Musical Worldview Project posts.

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Sidi Touré Live At KEXP 2013

Sidi Touré is a songhaï blues musician from Bamako, Mali. Here he is performing for KEXP in 2013.

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Iggy Pop Sessions At West 54th (1999)

Iggy Pop live for Sessions at West 54th, 1999. Season 03 with host John Hiatt.

Setlist:

• Nazi Girlfriend

• Wild One

• Interview

• I Felt the Luxury

• Lust for Life

• Passenger

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Café Tacvba Sessions at West 54th (1997)

Café Tacvba performs for Sessions at West 54th (1997).

Setlist:

• No Controles 00:01

• Entrevista 04:13

• Esa Noche 07:00

• Ojala que Llueva Café 11:25

• Entrevista 2 16:04

• El Fin de la Infancia 17:50

• Entrevista 3 20:19

• Chilanga Banda 22:37

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Remembering Black Eyed Sceva

I’ve never been a huge fan of a lot of what been called “Christian Music.” I don’t listen to Christian radio stations. I don’t follow Contemporary Christian Music. In fact, I have often wondered: “Why "Christian" Music Is Often So Bad.”

But there have always been exceptions. For example, I highly recommend you spend some time with my playlist Joyful Sounds: An Introduction to Sacred Steel. And, during college, there were a handful of bands who openly identified as “Christian Artists” (whatever that means) and incorporated their faith into their music without diluting either. Bands like Five O’Clock People, Plankeye, Poor Old Lu, Soulfood 76 and others. But, my favorite band of that time is by far Black Eyed Sceva (later known as Model Engine).

I still remember the first time I heard the group’s first album Way Before The Flood. I was in college and also serving as a volunteer Jr. High youth group leader. I had just found out that a longtime girlfriend had cheated on me and I remember sitting in the back of a car as we drove a couple of hours North for a Jr. High weekend winter retreat when my friend put that cassette.

I also remember buying Model Engine’s The Lean Year’s Tradition the same time I bought Bob Dylan’s Time Out of Mind at the old Zia Records location at 7th Avenue and Indian School. I was lucky enough to see the band several times in both incarnations and am happy to report that they were a terrific live band on top of everything else.

Your Google-Fu skills are probably better than mine but here are the three videos I could find on Youtube. The two were part of a promotional video that I’m pretty sure I had and included both the tour video and the live “Mudhouse” video. The other one is (to my knowledge,) the band’s only official music video and it is for one of their best-known tracks: “Justified.”

Enjoy!

And please let me know if you have other videos not included here (or audio recordings!).

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• Follow Model Engine/Black Eyed Sceva on Facebook (FULL DISCLOSURE: I don’t know the legitimacy of this page)

• Purchase Black Eyed Sceva music at Amazon

• Purchase Model Engine’s music at Amazon

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Taj Mahal Sessions at West 54th

Taj Mahal live for Sessions at West 54th, Season One, 1997.

Setlist:

• "She Caught the Katy,"

• "Corrina, Corrina"

• "Mr. Pitiful."

• Albita performs

• "Corazon rumbero,"

• "El son del tahurete,"

• "Valca el brillo de tus ojos"

• "El chico Chevere."

But one of the Youtube comments says: 'Queen Bee'.

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Ani DiFranco: Sessions at West 54th

Another gem from the Sessions at West 54th vaults. Listings say that Tricky was also on this episode but I can’t find video of that. This was Season one with Host Chris Douridas and aired 12/13/97.

Sorry, no setlist. Maybe you know it?

Enjoy.

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Liz Phair Live at Sessions At West 54th

Here’s Liz Phair live for Sessions at West 54th. Sorry, I don’t have a setlist for this one, do you? It was with host David Byrne which means that it was Season 02. This one originally aired 10/11/98. The video intro says that the Lounge Lizards also appeared on this episode but I couldn’t find that video. Please let me know if you come across it.

Oh, and Ronald Vaughan really wants us all to know who uploaded the video. We should thank him.

Enjoy.

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Daniel Lanois, Jim Wilson and Steve Nistor Rehearsing (August 2013)

Yesterday’s Daniel Lanois double-whammy reminded me of this 20-minute instrumental jam. Daniel Lanois, Jim Wilson and Steve Nistor are caught “rehearsing” but no other context was given. Maybe you know? Maybe you don’t.

Enjoy.

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Daniel Lanois :: WFUV and Tiny Desk

I am fascinated by these two short live sets from Daniel Lanois. Both feature the same trio of Lanios, Jim Wilson and Brian Blade. The two videos appeared less than a month apart but represent two very different live sets. The WFUV set says it was posted 12/29/14 (recorded on 11/11/14) and the NPR Tiny Desk show says it was posted 01/14/15 (not sure of the recorded date). So, like 16 or 17 days apart, these two videos both appeared representing the same trio with wildly different results and I can’t get enough.

In the WFUV set, Lanois focuses on pedal steel guitar and bassist Jim Wilson plays what appear to be the foot pedals of an organ? Anyone more knowledgeable than me as to what he is doing over there? The NPR Tiny Desk set features Blade on drums, Wilson on bass and Lanois on knobs. Seriously, I understand that things like modular synthesizers exist, it’s just beyond me how someone can get those sounds to come out of a switchboard.

Notes/Setlist:

• "Aquatic/Sonho Dourado/JJ Leaves L.A." live in Studio A. Recorded November 11th, 2014.

Important People:

• Host: Darren Devivo

• Cameras: Caroline Inzucchi & Deirdre Hynes Editor:

• Caroline Inzucchi & Deirdre Hynes

And, the Tiny Desk Concert is one of my favorite things ever. I even downloaded the audio from the NPR site and cut it into individual tracks and I listen to it all the time.

The Tiny Desk Concert Youtube page says that Lanois “led an all-instrumental, somewhat improvisational trio based on the sort of studio processing for which he's become famous. In essence, he brought the studio out of the studio — with the aid of two great players, drummer Brian Blade and bassist Jim Wilson — and directly to my desk. The title of Lanois' new album, Flesh And Machine, describes the music well. He never says a word, but he sculpts some serious, hypnotic sounds.”

Setlist:

• "Sci Fi"

• "Elevator"

• "Apres Calypso"

Important People:

• Producers: Bob Boilen, Maggie Starbard;

• Audio Engineer: Kevin Wait;

• Videographers: Colin Marshall, Maggie Starbard;

• Assistant Producer: Susan Hale Thomas;

• photo by Susan Hale Thomas/NPR

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PJ Harvey at Sessions At West 54th

PJ Harvey live for Sessions at West 54th with host David Byrne. 11/10/98.

Setlist:

• Catherine

• Civil War Correspondent

• Taut My Beautiful Leah

• I Think I'm a Mother

• Is This Desire?

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Ghost of Vroom :: "Rona Pollona"

Singer-songwriter (and former front-man of Soul Coughing) Mike Doughty and long-time collaborator Andrew “Scrap” Livingston have formed a new group called Ghost of Vroom. Their debut EP, Ghost of Vroom 2 is due out September 25 on Mod y Vi Records.

The lead single “Rona Pollona” was recently released and features production and mixing work by Mario Caldato Jr.. According to a recent interview with Stereogum, Doughty has intentionally begun to revisit the spirit of Soul Coughing, a part of Doughty’s history that he has expressed mixed feelings about to say the least. The same energy is definitely present and the new track resembles Soul Coughing a bit more than some of Doughty’s more singer-songwritery stuff. I’m excited to hear the rest.

Enjoy.

• Pre-Order "Ghost of Vroom 2" Vinyl on Mike Doughty's online store: http://bit.ly/VroomVinyl

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Bassekou Kouyaté & Ngoni Ba Live at KEXP (2015)

I first came across Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba when doing the Global Elite Music Radio Podcast Supershow and featured their track “Miri” in February, 2019 on Episode 37.

Bassekou Kouyate started playing the Ngoni at age 12. The Ngoni is a traditional Malian guitar. The body of the instrument is made of wood or calabash with dried animal skin head stretched over. This traditional instrument is believed by many to be the precursor to the banjo.

In 2015, Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba played a live set for KEXP and today seems like as good a time as any to revisit that wonderful set.

Setlist:

• Musow Fanga

• Jama ko

• Abe Sumaya

• Siran Fen

Important People:

• Host: Rhythma

• Audio Engineer: Kevin Suggs

• Cameras: Jim Beckmann, Scott Holpainen & Justin Wilmore

• Editor: Scott Holpainen

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• Visit the official Bassekou Kouyaté website.

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Meshell Ndegeocello: Sessions at West 54th

Today we return to the Sessions at West 54th archives. Meshell Ndegeocello live for Sessions at West 54th. Season 01 with host Chris Douridas (09/13/97).

Setlist:

1. Step in to the Projects

2. The Way

3. Ecclesiastes - Free my Heart

4. God Shiva

Players:

• Meshell Ndegeocello - bass/keys/vocals,

• Gene Lake - drums,

• David Dyson - bass,

• Federico Gonzalez Pena - Keys,

• Allen Cato - guitar/vocals,

• Byron Jackson - vocals,

• Alfredo Mojica - percussion

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The Upsetter: The Life and Music of Lee Scratch Perry

I have made no secret of my love for Dub music. And you can’t love Dub music without reckoning with Lee “Scratch” Perry.

Yesterday we watched the

Today we’re watching another documentary about Perry. This one narrated by Benicio Del Toro. The Upsetter: The Life and Music of Lee Scratch Perry.

“The definitive life story about Jamaican musical legend Lee 'Scratch' Perry, narrated by Benicio Del Toro and directed by Ethan Higbee & Adam Bhala Lough.”

Enjoy.

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Miles Davis Live at Fillmore West, San Francisco (04/09/70)

This one’s audio only but well worth your time.

April 9, 1970 Fillmore West, San Francisco, California opening for The Grateful Dead.

Personnel:

• Miles Davis: Miles Davis (tpt);

• Steve Grossman (ss);

• Chick Corea (el-p);

• Dave Holland (b, el-b);

• Jack De Johnette (d);

• Airto Moreira (perc)

Setlist:

• “Directions” (J. Zawinul)

• “Miles Runs the Voodoo Down” (M. Davis)

• “This” (C. Corea)

• “It's About That Time” (M. Davis)

• “I Fall in Love Too Easily” (S. Cahn-J. Styne)

• “Sanctuary” (W. Shorter-M. Davis)

• “Spanish Key” (M. Davis)

• “Bitches Brew” (M. Davis)

• “The Theme” (M. Davis)

Concert recording, soundboard source

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• Visit “Give Me Some Of That 1973 Miles Mojo (Have you watched the PBS: American Masters special on Miles Davis?)” here at Holiday at the Sea.

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Lee Scratch Perry's Visions of Paradise

I have this personal website compartmentalized because I realize that not every one of my friends is interested in exactly the same set of things that I am. And that’s not only “OK”, it’s beautiful.

However, I think everyone should love Lee “Scratch” Perry. If you’re not familiar with this brilliant artist, I suggest you get familiar with Google.

And I also suggest starting with this off-beat documentary: Lee Scratch Perry's Vision of Paradise | True Godfather of Reggae.

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• Purchase Lee “Scratch” Perry’s music at Amazon

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