Then and Now...

Atwer Abroba


Ebo Taylor Acoustinc Session

This will be the last blog on Ghanian music for a while. But this is one I have to put up. Because then man who made these two tracks is a close friend and because he's an amazing musician that deserves a little spotlight. Like so many musicians from West Africa, Ebo Taylor will most likely get little props for his contributions to the musical world. Some may come across his work in the "global grooves" or "world music " section at the local music store. I've been lucky to know the humble old man (although I hear he was far from humble during his young days) and can call him a friend. Perhaps one of the last few original Highlife musicians in Ghana, Ebo spends his time these days schooling younger generations of Ghanians on the old ways of Palm Wine guitar. These two tracks are just a big up to the old man. It's something I'll call Uncle Ebo then and now. The first is a track when Ebo was rockin' out throughout the gold coast and other funky parts of W. Africa. It's off the Soundway Records compilation Ghana Sounds and is one of my favorites. The second track is something Uncle Ebo threw down at my request. It's his palm wine interpretation of a recent Hiplife track. I hope you all enjoy these.

Robodo Taekwon V: The Funky Ass Robot

Robodo Taekwon V Main Theme (korean)


Robodo Taekwon V Main Theme (funky)


Robodo Taekwon V Shaft-like Theme

This was a priceless find from my dig at Edae in Seoul. It's the kind of thing MF Doom would have a field day with and what rare record diggers have wet dreams about. It's a recording of an episode of Robodo Taekwon V (known as Robot Taekwon in the Western World). From what I can piece together from the net and from some Korean friends, Robodo Taekwon was a bad ass robot made because the world was being terrorized by giant monsters. In between chillen with his homies and kickin' some monster ass he gets down to some funky beats.

The cartoon had it's run between the 60's and 70's and later spun off into full length films, a comic book series, toys, and all that other good stuff that comes with animation. This record was pressed in 1974 and I think is of one of the later episodes. It features some funky ass theme music that sounds a lot like something out of a Shaft movie. It's also pretty fun because it has some quality cover art. I'm not an expert on Korean animation-but I have a feeling that this one is a classic. The guy priced the record at 80,000 won at frist. But because I was buying a crap load of other expensive stuff (thank you T.J. Watson Foundation) he brought it down to about 30,000 won (about 30 bucks). It wasn't until I threw it on at home that I realized it was a steal. The record was in quality shape and it was just fun to listen to. And besides -who doesn't love a world-saving robot? Enjoy.

Korean Funky

He6-Mulsae-ae Norae (Water Song)


He6-Sing a Simple Song

No. This one is not about kimchi. This one is about some bad Korean soul brothers from way back who put out some tasty records in a time when things were hectic and the Korean peninsula needed a little funk. The band is He 6, led by guitarist Kim Hong-Tak (who is now president of the Seoul Jazz Academy...and a very nice man I must say) and they paved the way for other bands during a period in Korean Pop when "group sound" was becoming steadily popular.

The Korean War of the 1950's brought a significant American presence to the Korean Peninsula. Like most contries that had a western community during this time (eg. Ghana, Nigera, the list goes on), local Korean bands began to play funk and psyche rock covers to cater to the G.I. and ex-pat audiences-bringing about the "group sound" era in Korea. Naturally, Kim and his boys earned their chops in Itaewon entertaining the large ex-pat community with their version of American and British funk and psyche rock covers. Although Kim and He 6 are not considered the best "group sound" band (that title goes to Shin Jung-Hyun and his band Add 4), the group is acknowledged as the second funkiest Koreans on the peninsula.

Their first album is solid, but is mostly covers of Beatles and other well known rock groups. It was't until later albums that they began to play around a little more and rock out with some original tracks in Korean (this is what eventually made them popular throughout S. Korea). The cuts on this post come from the second album titled Vol.2. The first, "Mulsae-ae Norae", is perhaps one of the best Korean tracks from the album. But what really sold this record to me was their cover of "Sing a Simple Song." Admittedly it's not as good as The Meters version, but it's still pretty damn good. In any case-I went bonkers over the simple fact that I found a Korean funk group, which just further proves my theory that no one can resist the funk. Listen to these and enjoy.

Buddah Blessed It

Kwaku Ananse ft. J Fresco-Buddah Blessed It

Kwaku Ananse-Wakalo Le

Kwaku Ananse-Ebo 1

While I was out there I linked up with a very talented producer, Kwaku Ananse. I met him through Ebo Taylor, one of the musicians I was working with while in Accra, and it turned out we had similar taste in music. He invited me on to his weekly show at Vibe 91.9 FM and when our forces combined, we started a underground hip-hop movement that Accra had never seen. But enought of that.

What we have here is an assortment of beats that I picked up during my four months in Ghana. The first track featured here was a colabo effort after one of our late night shows on Vibe. We were blazed on some sticky Ghana green, but that only helped the creative juices. Now I'm not saying it's J Dilla status, but it's a tasty little beat using a sample from one of Ghana's best muscians. The last two tracks were made by Kwaku Ananse and are fine example of the wicked beats one can make when they can pick from the tree of Ghanian samples. Enjoy.

First things first...

So this is my first attempt at audiobloggin'. I guess it seemed like it was the next step in my bloggin' experience. The idea behing this space is that I share the tasty music I've come across during my travels (you can read more about that at www.travelingbeans.blogspot.com). Anyhow. Here's a taste of what I'm made of. This mix comes live and direct from S. Korea. Nothing too out there, but it's fun to listen to. The heavy shit will come later. Enjoy it.

J Fresco-Flava for your Ear

check one, two

kick in it off