This morning, we follow in the footsteps of irresistible music synonymous with softness and heat. If Africa is the birthplace of humankind, we will see in this episode that it has also pampered some rhythms which continue to inspire artists from around the world.
And to do this, who better than Ariel Toko, nay, Le Véritable Ariel Toko, to guide us with the malice and all the benevolence that we know of him? Apparently he was hanging in France around Nantes, on Friday, February 16 for the release party of a terribly sweet EP, where Caribbean notes and some Balkan influences also jostle.
Ariel Toko’s selection
City Boys Band - Nye Asem Hwe
Le véritable Ariel Toko: ” This reference takes place in the late 70s, in Ghana, homeland of Ebo Taylor who we will meet again later in this episode. It gives us an insight into what Highlife style is all about. Even though Ariel Toko mainly composes instrumental music, he is sensitive to the voice. Here, a long chant is superimposed on a melodic and rhythmic ostinato, the music goes straight, it is there to make you dance, to generate trance. It’s a long road, on which we don’t run, we take care, to go far, as far as possible, and this voice speaks to us, tells the history of the world. It’s the incessant chatter of fellow travelers: when we talk, we forget that our feet hurt. This music takes us by the hand, “come, follow me, life is beautiful (literally “Highlife”) , let’s dance”. Under this aspect of innocent carelessness, Highlife demanded pan-Africanism, solidarity between peoples and emancipation from colonial powers. A message dear to Ariel Toko, to whom he pays tribute. “
Peter Herbolzheimer - Nerve Wrecker
Le véritable Ariel Toko: ” This extremely innovative German-Romanian trombonist has crossed many genre barriers to compose astonishing pieces at all levels in varied styles. In 50 years of career, he will have heard everything, played everything, with all the great musicians in the world, in short, he rivals Ariel Toko himself in terms of musical experience. Nerve Wrecker comes from one of his first albums and dates from 1976. A dazzling blowing section in the style of a jazz big band whose voices intermingle, a present bass doubled by a baritone saxophone, an organ as rhythmic as it is melodic which plays on a scale parallel to the others, all supported by ultra metronomic drums which underline each riff, constitute an ultra dynamic track whose groove remains absolutely timeless. “
Ebo Taylor - Love and Death
Le véritable Ariel Toko: ” We love it for its quirky side in Afrobeat and for the philosophy of the text. This is the song that brought the first members of the group together. We learned to play it before starting to compose our own pieces. We said to ourselves that we too wanted to tell stories of love and death, which punctuate… life. This is truly the original inspiration of Ariel Toko, and Ebo’s band is an almost identical formation to ours. To pay tribute to him, during our first concerts, we also played another hit by this artist: Atwer Abroba; which deserves to be known, like the rest of the discography. Ebo Taylor, a big big reference. “
MailTape’s selection
Le Véritable Ariel Toko – Highwar
Anto: ” This track represents the world of Ariel Toko well. It starts slowly, we are hooked by a nice rhythm, which we follow with a lot of innocence, like a little butterfly fluttering under the rays of the sun… And then suddenly, it accelerates, we no longer have time, it becomes urgent to move our shoulders frantically, to swing our hips in all directions, without the smile leaving our bewildered faces. What happened? We were sitting quietly on a beach in the Gulf of Guinea and here we are suddenly connected to all the beaches in the world - at least to all those where people party! “
Ekambi Brillant – Aboki
Anto: ” Well, sorry, I had to make that connection! The Ariel Toko-Ekambi Brillant axis is obvious for every football fan (and gives nightmares to our Algerian fellows), yet musically, there is also a link. We are in the mid-70s, in Cameroon. If makossa is the most influential musical movement in the country, Ekambi Brillant takes a step aside with a devastating afro-funk production where the guitar riff mixes with the jerk of the percussion and welcomes with pleasure the neighboring brass instruments, from Accra and Lagos. Aboki (my friend in duala) is, therefore, a tribute to the friendly styles of funk, highlife and afro-beat, a nice mix of influences intended to bring the sunshine to the ears. “
Conjunto Son San - A Pilha La Roz
Anto: ” We stay in the 70s, but this time we change continent to land in South America. Champeta is a style of music which is mainly inspired by Congolese soukouss. No synth in this track, just musicians who interpret a carnival song in their own way, following the influences that were theirs at that time. Proof of this is that music has always traveled and that different styles can nourish extraordinary creativity. “
Black Masters Band - Wonnim A Bisa
Anto: ” Back to Ghana with this little gem that we felt obliged to place in this selection as it seems iconic of the highlife style. What is fascinating about this song is this energetic intro, this very sunny guitar riff which paradoxically turns to melancholy just a few seconds later. The voice supports what seems to be a sort of complaint, as if the author wanted to tell us the inevitability of a somewhat sad story, without losing a certain energy synonymous with survival. A song that symbolizes Africa in itself. “
That’s all for today.
We thank Le Véritable Ariel Toko for taking the time to give us some delights that will certainly brighten up our Sunday afternoon. Here is another unique and original episode, that owes a lot to Camille Lemeunier and her wonderful illustration.
Don’t forget that we’ll see you on March 29 in Paris for a Mail Tape live session.
More info are coming soon!
