This documentary provides an exclusive look at the making of the most eagerly anticipated release in world music. This collaboration of the finest musicians from Cuba and Mali features Eliades Ochoa, Bassekou Kouyate, Djelimady Tounkara, and Toumani Diabate, and sees the realisation of the project that inadvertently became the Buena Vista Social Club.

Release date is 11th October for most countries.

After the jump watch another video – the first take of the first song recorded on this project!…

Here’s some coverage and more background on NPR’s “All Songs Considered.”

The magnificent R. L. Burnside in his first film appearance, performing See My Jumper Hanging On The Line. Filmed by Alan Lomax at Burnside’s home in Independence, Mississippi, August, 1978.

Watch it after the jump:

What a voice. What a life.
Parts 2-6 after the jump.

(via Musinformation)

From PeterGabriel.com:

A new video of Peter covering Tom Waits’ “In The Neighborhood” was released today [Tuesday, June 22] simultaneously across five non-profit web sites. Invisible Children, Oxfam America, Resolve Uganda, Witness and Hope teamed up to premiere this latest instalment of The Voice Project, a music based initiative to raise awareness as well as support for the war torn areas of Northern Uganda, Southern Sudan, Eastern Congo and CAR that have been affected by the ongoing violence of Joseph Kony’s rebel army the LRA in Africa’s longest running conflict.

Watch the video after jump:

Artists have been recording cover songs as links in musical chains that began with a small group of widows and rape survivors in Gulu, Uganda. The women there have been using songs to send messages of forgiveness to those abducted and forced to fight, many of whom escape but hide in the bush, afraid to return home because of reprisals for what they were made to do.

The Voice Project employs this same idea of using music to pass the message as each artist covers another artist’ song creating a chain of melodies. In this particular chain UK based artist Gary Go passed the torch to his friend Joseph Arthur by covering “Chicago”, Joseph passed it to his friend and mentor Peter Gabriel with his version of “Shock the Monkey” and now Gabriel has passed it to Tom Waits with this cover of “In the Neighbourhood.”

“We wanted to release this video together with some of the organisations who’ve been working so hard and for so long to improve the situation there. These are organisations we’ve been working with and who’ve become friends, and one of the great things you can see happening is how willing everyone is to work together at this problem, so we thought all of us releasing this in unison would be a reflection of that,” said Voice Project co-founder Hunter Heaney.

Peter’s daughter, Anna Gabriel, is also one of the founders of The Voice Project. “Music has always been a part of my life and I believe it’s one of the most powerful and effective tools to bring about change. My father has inspired me with his humanitarian work and has always been supportive of my work as a film maker so shooting this video bought together all aspects of my life in an amazing way.”

Peter Gabriel » Tom Waits from The Voice Project on Vimeo.

Tom Waits is Coffee and Cigarettes by Etsy:

Heartbreaking news has come out of the death at 54 yesterday of the well-loved reggae singer, songwriter, producer and promoter Lincoln Barrington “Sugar” Minott. Born and raised in the ghetto in Kingston, Jamaica, Minott spent his teen years in the city’s sound system scene and recording for Clement “Coxsone” Dodd’s legendary Studio One label. The albums he released at this time, like Live Loving, Ghetto-ology and Roots Lovers—along with singles like “Herbman Hustling” and “Rub a Dub Sound Style”—laid the groundwork for the gritty, soulful dancehall sound that reggae would work into for the next 20 years.

Minott was best known for breaking with Jamaica’s soul-singer tradition, which saw many crooners brandishing a refined style that aped American artists. Sugar was sweet, but not slick. Minott would eventually leave Studio One to start his Black Roots label and Youthman Promotion sound system in order to help out young singers also coming out in Kingston’s ghettos. He’s responsible for early recording or performances of legends like Ranking Joe, Barry Brown, Tenor Saw, Little John, Tony Tuff, Barrington Levy, Horace Andy, Nitty Gritty, Junior Reid, Yami Bolo, Daddy Freddy and Garnett Silk.

You’ll see evidence of his popularity below, as Minott can’t get through his first tune at his first Reggae Sunsplash in 1983 without the crowd demanding he pull up and bring it again.

Dig this video, its perspective somehow reminding us of the Vancouver Folk Fest stage…

mojo4music.com

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HIGHLIFE – 2010 Vol. 1.

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