Accordion Noir radio playlist 2024-02-14: Tony Cedras and African Diaspora Accordion

Anyone can celebrate Valentine’s day by putting together a program of accordion love songs. But it takes our rare galaxy brain thinking to observe the date by memorializing South Africa’s recently-deceased Tony Cedras by putting together an African diaspora squeezebox playlist. You won’t get this content anywhere else. (Present company excepted.) If your Apple or Android (or plain old RSS) podcast subscriptions (strongly recommended!) haven’t alerted you to the episode’s availability yet, you can listen to it as digital audio courtesy of the Internet Archive. Here’s its playlist:

AccNoir–2024–02–14, Tony Cedras and African Diaspora Accordion   

South African Musician Tony Cedras Dies at 72
https://downbeat.com/news/detail/south-african-musician-tony-cedras-dies-at-72

Tonight’s theme is a memorial for South African jazz accordionist and multi-instrumentalist Tony Cedras, most well-known outside S.A. for playing on Paul Simon’s Graceland tours. But Cedras was a top jazz player with a storied carrier. He’ll be missed.

In his honor we dedicate this episode to a brief tour of some African Diaspora accordion traditions. Touching on their intriguing similarities and differences, connected and divided over centuries and seas. United by history, the brutality of slavery, and the syncretic incorporation of this imported industrial instrument.

* ‟The Many Voices of Accordion Noir, PRA 100.5 FM”  – tune “Boyd’s Cove Singles” – The Dardanelles (2009) – Newfoundland, Canada – http://thedardanelles.com/ – https://thedards.bandcamp.com/releases

* Artist – “Song” – Album (Date) – Where they’re from – Artist Links – Comments

* Tony Cedras – ‟Black Brown Cheri White” – Love Letter to Cape Town (2015) – South Africa – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tony_Cedrashttp://www.zurichsessions.com/featured-artists/tony-cedras/
* Joaquin Diaz – ‟Cana Brava” – Merengue Mas Merengue (1999?) – Montreal, Quebec, Canada; Republica Dominicana – (The Dominican Republic is perhaps identified more as a Spanish-speaking “latin” rather than Afro-Caribbean culture, but musically the relationships between the accordion traditions seem to be worth including? And I admit, helps us meet our Canadian Content requirement 🦫 while staying nearly on theme.)
* Vaovy – ‟Vamba” – Vamba (1998) – Madagascar, Africa – Régis Gizavo, acc. – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Régis_Gizavohttp://www.rootsworld.com/freereed/gizavo.html
* Delford Ngcem’ and His Accordion – ‟Ntlalakahle” – Accordion Jive Special – Vol. 1 (1973) – South Africa – A special compilation of accordion jive 45s from 1970s and ’80s South Africa. For more out-of-print music, please visit electricjive.blogspot.com.
* Bo Hog & Da Rooters – ‟Emma (round dance)” – Bahamian Rake-n-Scrape (2016) – The Bahamas – https://folkways.si.edu/opie-and-da-websites/bo-hog-and-da-rooters/bahamian-rake-n-scrape/caribbean-world/album/smithsonian
* Fefé di Calbicera – ‟Tra Tchapéu” – Pour Me A Grog: The Funaná Revolt in 1990s Cabo Verde (2019) – Cape Verde, off the coast of West Africa – http://ostinatorecords.bandcamp.com
* Taj Mahal meets the Cultural Musical Club of Zanzibar – ‟Mpunga” – Mkutano (2005) – USA / Zanzibar, East Africa – www.tradition-moderne.com  Said Mwinyi, Taimur Rukun acc.
* Franco & Tpok Jazz with Camille Feruzi – ‟Likambo ya ngana” – Francophonic Vol 1 (1971) – Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Central Africa – (Camille Feruzi, acc.)
* Douglas Bellard and Kirby Riley – ‟Valse de la Prison” – 78 RPM disk (1929) – Louisiana, USA – http://npmusic.org/artists.html  Douglas Bellard is said to be the first black Creole to record, Oct. 2, 1929, just before Amede Ardoin.  Folkways’ “Louisiana Creole Music” refers to one story that Bellard may have murdered Ardoin too.
* Clifton Chenier – ‟Instrumental” – Squeezebox Boogie (live) (1978) – Rising Sun Club, Montreal, Canada
* Lightnin’ Hopkins – ‟Zolo Go (Zydeco) (Zoligo)” – The Gold Star Sessions – Vol 1 (1949) – Houston, Texas, USA – Clifton Chenier’s cousin.  The first commercial recording to mention “zydeco.” (see  Wilfred Charles’ “Dégo/Zydeco” from 1934).  Organ sounds like “96 Tears,” which probably has roots in Tex/Mex accordion.
* Po’ Girl – ‟One Little City” – Live (2009) – “All over Canada” – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Po%27_Girl
* Muhal Richard Abrams, Mark Feldman, Tony Cedras, Marty Ehrlich, Patience Higgins, Eddie Allen, Anne Lebaron, Lindsay Horner, Bryon Carrott & Reggie Nicholson – ‟Tribute to Julius Hemphill and Don Pullen” – Muhal Richard Abrams: One Line, Two Views (1995) – USA / South Africa – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muhal_Richard_Abramshttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tony_Cedras

Bo Hog and the Rooters – Rake ‘n’ Scrape from the Bahamas, Now Booking (2014)

Thanks for reading us here (and hopefully listening to us, there), but if you find you want more, you can always keep up with us on … well, we’re putting our Twitter on the back burner indefinitely in pursuit of sunnier pastures, such as Mastodon at @accordionnoir@zirk.us and @AccordionBruce@mastodon.social (we’re even trying out BlueSky to limited effect at accordionnoir.bsky.social) , Instagram (@AccordionNoirFest), and Facebook at Accordion Noir fans, the Accordion Noir Festival, and the Vancouver Squeezebox Circle.  Cheers & squeeze on!