Bass Off: Hapa and "Twinkletoes"

Today's random tune is by the Hawaiian group Hapa. Hapa means "half," and refers to the fact that one of the members, Barry Flanagan, is a white guy from New Jersey who is currently working with Hawaii natives Kapono Nāʻiliʻili, Tarvin Edwin Lono Makia, and Radasha Ho`ohuli. Flanagan has been a consistent 30 year member of the group. He started out partnering with Keli'i Ho'omalu Kaneali'i. Following Kaneali'i, Flanagan teamed with Nathan Aweau, who eventually left for a solo career. Flanagan then partnered with Hawaiian chanter Charles Ka'upu, who described Hapa's goal as helping revive the Polynesian language and to totally change the way the world perceives Hawaiian music. Unfortunately, Ka'upu died suddenly and unexpectedly in his early 50s in 2011. In its new incarnation Hapa continues to draw from jazz, folk, blues, bluegrass, Latin, flamenco, rock, Irish music and slam poetry as well as traditional Hawaiian music. Hapa's debut CD in 1995 became the biggest selling album ever by a Hawaiian group, and they have since released eight albums. This song, TWinkletoes, can be found in a live version on Hapa's 2005 album Maui, and is a bass solo by Nathan Aweau.

Listen to songs like this and more on the KUNM Global Music Show every Monday night from 10 pm - 1 am Mountain Standard Time. Live streaming, program information and the two-week digital archive can be found at http://www.kunm.org.

Source: http://www.hapahawaiimusic.com/index.html

Somethin' Stupid: Najbolji Hrvatski Tamburasi and "Nešto Glupo"

Najbolji Hrvatski Tamburasi covers an American song for today's random tune. Playing a style of music called tamburasi, or tamburica music, the band was formed in 1983 as Zlatni Dukati in the Croatian district of Slavonia and made a name for themselves on a tour of the United States sponsored by the Croatian Fraternal Union. That tour led them to start composing and playing Croatian patriotic songs coinciding with the breakup of the Yugoslav Republic, the establishment of Croatia as an independent nation and the subsequent war. In 1997, they made their name change to Najbolji Hrvatski Tamburasi, which means The Best Croatian Tambur Band. The band meant to use the name only temporarily, but has kept it. You can find this song, Nešto Glupo, on their 2003 album Divne Godine, on their 2007 album Zlatna Kolekcija and on the Najbolji Hrvatski Tamburasi 2017 greatest hits compilation 50 Originalnih Pjesama (Disc 2). You may recognize the song as Somethin' Stupid, which was memorably recorded by Frank and Nancy Sinatra in 1967.

Listen to songs like this and more on the KUNM Global Music Show every Monday night from 10 pm - 1 am Mountain Standard Time. Live streaming, program information and the two-week digital archive can be found at http://www.kunm.org.

Sources: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Najbolji_hrvatski_tambura%C5%A1i

Shake That Thing: Oumar Konaté and "Ayéré Yéré"

Today's tune is called Ayéré Yéré and is by Malian electric guitarist Oumar Konaté. Konaté started music at an early age, astounding his hometown of Gao with nightly performances on an old bucket, helmet and drum outside his family's home. He joined the Orchestra of Gao while in high school and accompanied them on their national tour. While in the orchestra, he was introduced to guitar. He went on to enroll in the National Institute of Arts in Bamako and recorded his first album there which brought him to the attention of many artists such as Vieux Farka Touré, Sidi Touré and Khaira Arby. He has performed in numerous festivals all over the globe, and has received accolades worldwide for his music. Ayéré Yéré can be found on his 2014 CD Addoh.

Listen to songs like this and more on the KUNM Global Music Show every Monday night from 10 pm - 1 am Mountain Standard Time. Live streaming, program information and the two-week digital archive can be found at http://www.kunm.org.

Source: http://www.clermontmusic.com/oumar-konate/

Party Down: Old Blind Dogs and "A Wild Rumpus"

Today's partying tune is by Old Blind Dogs who sing about A Wild Rumpus. Old Blind Dogs are a Scottish band which plays traditional Scottish and Celtic music with influences from rock, reggae, jazz, blues and Middle Eastern music. They are known for performing songs unique to northeast Scotland and singing in the unique Doric dialect of the Aberdeen area. A Wild Rumpus can be found on their 2003 album The Gab O May, and on their 2006 live album Play Live.

Listen to songs like this and more on the KUNM Global Music Show every Monday night from 10 pm - 1 am Mountain Standard Time. Live streaming, program information and the two-week digital archive can be found at http://www.kunm.org.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Blind_Dogs

You're Flawless: Emrah and "Kusursuzsun"

From Putumayo Presents: Turkish Groove (2006) comes today's random song by Emrah, a singer and actor of Kurdish origin. A pop star in Turkey from the age of 13, Emrah became known for Arabesk songs that were high on sentimentality and themes of grief and suffering. He was the first Turkish artist to fill the Inönü Stadium in Istanbul (50,000 seats), has appeared over two dozen films and has been in nine television series, including some in the leading role. As he grew older, his pop became lighter and this song, Kusursuzsun (Acoustic Version) is an example, which first appeared on his album of the same name in 2004. The lyrics say "Believe me, you're perfect, you make me wild. It is impossible to say no to you. What kind of being are you? My soul is shaking."

Here is Emrah's music video that goes with the non-acoustic version of the song.



Listen to songs like this and more on the KUNM Global Music Show every Monday night from 10 pm - 1 am Mountain Standard Time. Live streaming, program information and the two-week digital archive can be found at http://www.kunm.org.

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emrah_(singer), Putumayo Presents: Turkish Groove liner notes

French Colonies a World Away: Beausoleil and "Bamako"

Beausoleil brings us today's random tune, called Bamako. Beausoleil was founded in 1975, released its first album in 1977 and became one of the most well-known groups from playing traditional and original music in the Creole tradition of Louisiana. They have also gone beyond the traditional, incorporating rock and roll, jazz, blues, calypso and other genres. They are an extensive touring band, and they sing in both English and Colonial Louisiana French. The band takes its name from Joseph Broussard dit Beausoleil, who led the Acadian resistance to British deportation from Canada and led 193 exiles to safety in Louisiana. The band almost didn't come to be - Michael Doucet, one of the founders, was going to New Mexico to study Romantic Poets, but he won a Folk Arts Apprenticeship sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts. As he puts it: "I traded William Blake for Dewey Balfa," and he sought out every living Cajun/Creole performer to learn what he could about Cajun music and their techniques. He even encouraged some to resume performing. They are one of the few Creole/Cajun groups to win a Grammy. Bamako can be found on their 2013 CD From Bamako to Carencro. The title refers to the capital city of Mali.

Listen to songs like this and more on the KUNM Global Music Show every Monday night from 10 pm - 1 am Mountain Standard Time. Live streaming, program information and the two-week digital archive can be found at http://www.kunm.org.

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BeauSoleil

Riding to My Man: Chirgilchin and "Dyngyldai"

Chirgilchin and their song Dyngyldai are today's random tune. Chirchilchin is a group performing traditional Tuvan music. Formed in 1996, Chirgilchin are master throat singers and instrumentalists, and have as members multiple winners of throat singing competitions and music awards, who have made a name for themselves on the strength of their music and on the strength of their international performances and collaborations with other artists. They have collaborated with avante-garde performance artist Laurie Anderson on her album Homeland, and guest performed Puerto Rican singer Residente's song Somos Anormales (warning, video is explicit) in 2017, which may have made them one of the most unlikely groups to win a Latin Grammy. You can find Dyngyldai on their 1999 album Aryskan's Wind. The song says "I will mount the horse of the heavenly color to get to my beloved man."

Listen to songs like this and more on the KUNM Global Music Show every Monday night from 10 pm - 1 am Mountain Standard Time. Live streaming, program information and the two-week digital archive can be found at http://www.kunm.org.

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chirgilchin