R3 M8 G WIN

[Deleted]

A

Oneness of JuJu - African Rhythms



B

Glen Campbell - Guess I'm Dumb

[bungo the mungo]

of course, B is a classic but it does err towards icarus flying too close to the sun.

A held my interest up to a point before i found myself getting more and more worked up.

round 3 has finished like it began, an old chestnut up against a hipster choice.

B

[wobblie]

A

It feels more than a little generic but at least it isn't Glen Campbell

[Sneelock]

I love GC but I'm going A like I said in the previous round - I've got things to do.
try sitting on your ass and doing nothing while listening to A - I double dog dare you.

you know, I like Glenn's vocal & the arrangement but I don't really think too much of the song. I know my choice isn't exactly much of a song either but it is what it is.

[nolamike]

Two stellar picks... but A is much more in my wheelhouse.

[Crunchy Col]

A song that's almost as boring as 'Wichita Lineman'! that's some achievement!

A

[sloopjohnc]

Good match.

B

[toomanyhatz]

I like A, but it sounded a bit like "African music for people who don't know what African music is supposed to sound like." Sure enough, they're from Richmond, VA. And while they're probably of African descent, just the very fact that 'African Rhythms' is in the title (where in Africa? It's a pretty big continent, and Northern African rhythms are not that similar to other regions, for example) rubs me the wrong way. And it's not like there's any shortage of great regional African music made by Africans living in the region. A bit like picking Sturgill Simpson over Waylon Jennings or something - there's a remove that really doesn't need to be there.

And B may be a slightly unchallenging pick, though there might be someone here who hasn't heard it. And I haven't heard it enough that it's stopped thrilling me.

And I'll fight anyone who denies that Glen and Brian were both great artists pretty close to their peak at the time this was made.

[Deleted]

I'm going to jump to this tie,partly because I can't handle one of the tracks in match five right now and partly because I find myself mildly riled by Hatz' comments above. I should add that I always appreciate the detail and strong voice of his comments, but I've got to say I have little truck with the 'purity/authenticity' way of seeing things. Hybrids can often produce the most surprising and distinctive music and so it is here, the band could come from Croydon for all I care. I want to be transported, not get bogged down in a history project.

This is a great African/Funk/Disco hybrid which is full of colour - the surprising bursts of horn, the jazz-funk groove driven by wah wah and peppered by Rhodes, and powerful, interlocking percussion. The lead vocal brings a real force too. It's part party and part hypnotic ceremony. Great track!
As is B of course. This is my second favourite GC track and its a thing of wonder. I like the way Campbell brings a kind of wide screen cinematic quality to the slight mopiness of Wilson's songwriting.
Tough, because in terms of quality there's little to choose between them, but A is the fresher selection.

[toomanyhatz]

Just to be clear, I wasn't arguing for "authenticity." As I've said before, all music is automatically 'authentic' to the experiences and influences of the person making it. It's the vagueness of 'African Rhythms' that riles me. Suggesting that it's a representation of something that generic. Like Garth Brooks calling an album "Country Music." Seems a bit presumptuous, like claiming something with great depth and variety as your own because you cover one small corner of it.

Yes, I know I'm probably overthinking this. I do that too. But "Rhythms of my homeland" or "Sounds of my ancestors" or something like that would bother me less, and the music wouldn't have to change.

[Sneelock]

Jan 28, 2021 21:53:26 GMT Crunchy Col said:

A song that's almost as boring as 'Wichita Lineman'! that's some achievement!

that's it. you're banished. banish banish banish.
oh, wait. I forgot. carry on.

[toomanyhatz]

I will also add that "Oneness of Juju" is a pretty pretentious band name. That's off-putting too.

[Deleted]

Jan 29, 2021 19:40:39 GMT toomanyhatz said:

Just to be clear, I wasn't arguing for "authenticity." As I've said before, all music is automatically 'authentic' to the experiences and influences of the person making it. It's the vagueness of 'African Rhythms' that riles me. Suggesting that it's a representation of something that generic. Like Garth Brooks calling an album "Country Music." Seems a bit presumptuous, like claiming something with great depth and variety as your own because you cover one small corner of it.

Well you were arguing for authenticity, but I won't clog up the thread by quoting it.

I think you're misunderstanding the nature of Afrocentricity which is a celebration of shared identity and heritage and taking pride in those things, it's not about a specific geographical location, it's the opposite of that!

[DarknessFish]

I was expecting A to be some kind of world pastiche after seeing the bantz between G and hatz, but this feels more of an urban thing wth very slight African influences, though I was hoping for more of a Last Poets vibe from the opening. Could've done with a bit of forceful poetry, rather than the kind of dull repetitive lead vocal. The track is pretty much dragged down by the vocal, when she shuts up, and the music has room to breathe. The "recreation of a party" thing is annoying too, but I'm feeling generous today and shall attempt to overlook it.

I'm the someone that B is new to, and I'm also the someone who had no desire to hear another Glen Campbell track. Just doesn't feel like it has any distinct character to it, there's a lot of time spent on the arrangement, but there doesn't seem to be an underlying song to arrange, or an interesting voice to sing it.

A

[clive gash]

Wait until Hatz finds out where Sun Ra really was from.