LP

1977, Paris France. Two brothers freshly arrived from Casamance, the Senegalese ‘Florida’, are living the tough immigrant experience.Their plan: becoming pop stars. A challenge so ambitious it sounds like science fiction at the time: Bob Marley, Fela Kuti and a handful of others artists have started making waves in the Western World , but the rise of the Pan-African sound is still at an early stage. The Touré brothers have formed a band, written some songs, and start frequently playing their music live, to great effect, at an underground theatre called the Dunois in the 13th Parisian district. The hype starts spreading.Overcoming the odds, their parents' ban on playing music ("a satanic activity"), the death of their brother and mentor Amadou and a stint in a Mauritanian prison, they will ultimately reach stardom a few years later under the name Touré Kunda (The Elephant Family). A legendary 40-year career will follow: 16 albums released, millions of records sold, numerous world tours, awards and collabs with the likes of Manu Dibango, Talking Heads, Carlos Santana, Bill Laswell, Alpha Blondy, Bernie Worrel …Released in 1979, self-financed by loans from friends and allies, Mandinka Dong is the genesis of Touré Kunda, the cornerstone of the band’s unique sound, at the crossroads of Disco, Funk, Pop, Reggae, Portuguese, Guinean, Cuban, Zairean, Mandinke and Soninke music. Limited to 700 copies and very difficult to find in decent condition, the original pressing faded into oblivion for decades. A low-resolution digital version of the album started circulating in recent years, not doing justice to the rich analog sound of the recording.It is an honour for Secousse and Hot Mule Records to present a complete reissue of Mandinka Dong. Faithfully restored and remastered, it will be available in both digital and physical formats (in gatefold vinyl illustrated with photos from the artists’ archives and liner notes by Frank Tenaille, the band’s official biographer).

Dwight Druick’s born in Montreal to a professional gambler and an ex-Radio City Rockette. One of five children, he grew up in a family buoyed by music and beleaguered by the vagaries of miscalculated risk. After attaining a McGill University bachelor’s degree in Art History, Dwight fully embraced both music and risk by traveling to London, where he signed a contract with Pye Records and Joe Cocker’s management company. The ensuing record, Druick & Lorange was released to critical acclaim and relative success. After returning to Canada, Dwight recorded two albums with Phil Vyvial: Midnight and Minuit. Recorded with the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section in Alabama, the duo’s work achieved airplay success in Quebec and across Canada. Dwight subsequently released his first French language solo album, Tanger, released in 1980 by the Canadian label, Bobinason.Today quite hard to find in its original version, Tanger is first of all an incredibly solid album, clearly underrated and deserving more credit. Mostly known by collectors and DJs for the stunning cover of Toto’s classic hit, “Georgy Porgy”, which was produced and arranged with the help of George Thurston (Boule Noire), it includes many other tasty titles, with amongst them another fine rendition of “Open Your Eyes” by The Doobie Brothers. In fact, with its brilliant mix of Modern-Soul, Disco and AOR styles, the whole album is already considered by many connoisseurs as a classic, and clearly a must have for anyone enjoying this musical blend.Never reissued on vinyl until now, there was not much more needed at Favorite Recordings to make it happened. Officially licensed to Dwight Druick, who was unfortunately not able to provide the original tapes, Tanger has been perfectly restored and remastered by Frank Merritt, at The Carvery, London. CD and digital edition will also come with “Georgy Porgy (Version Disco)” as a bonus track.

Mais Alors !!?... c’est à l’envers is the first release of new French Label ICI BIENTÔT (Here Soon ...), launched by Paris Fleamarket’s Record Shop, Geminicricket. On the Menu... Suspended Time, Unsung Heroes, Hidden Records and Next Door Marvels.In 1983, NEF released their first and only album, Mais Alors !!?... c’est à l’envers. At that point, the band already had a long history, interwoven with that of various musical trends and alternative movements from the late sixties to the early eighties. That’s certainly what makes this record so special and able to conciliate such different worlds as Electronic Prog, Film Score, New Wave … while also being able to talk to DJ’s (Daniele Baldelli often quoted it as one of his favorite record).The band’s destiny was most certainly tied to their native region, the South of France, an idyllic environment that attracted a number of musicians during the 1970s, allowing the group to attend many concerts or share the bill with several groups that have gone on to become well known: Can, Ash Ra Tempel, Magma, Catherine Ribeiro, Zao, Chêne Noir, Art Zoyd …Founded in 1975 by Richard Lorenzi, NEF started as a kind of Free Rock band with multiple influences, going from Prog to Musique Concrete, in which any method of making sound, any way of bringing out sounds was good … 2 musicians and a photographer, full member of the band who was projecting slides over the music and influenced their dreamlike universe. In 1978, Vincent Tronc came on board with his keyboards and synths. While the group had been influenced by electroacoustic techniques until then, Vincent broadened NEF’s horizons, bringing in a host of new influences: Ash Ra Tempel, Kraftwerk, Klaus Schulze … the beginnings of electronic music.When the album is recorded in 1983, new directions were taken and changed NEF’s usual sound. First, the idea of playing the accordion, clearly not a common thing and a new Drum Machine, the Roland CJ-5000. Pressed the day a figure of French Chanson died, NEF’s pressing is botched up, a good part of the records were unusable since the records came out totally warped. Then, at the end of the eighties the small stock of remaining records is lost in the sadly famous flood of Nîmes. 2000 records had been pressed, but very few survived!All the more reason to reissue Mais Alors !!?... c’est à l’envers, an unsung record, free and multifaceted, a quirky and daring musical ovni, transcending eras and genres, between synthetic Krautrock and Film Score, reminiscent of NEU! (with a red nose), François de Roubaix and Pascal Comelade.

Xenia França is a singer from Bahia, Brazil. She has been nominated for the 2018 Latin Grammy for this debut album Xenia, and for the song “Pra que me Chamas?”, a favorite among listeners. Part of an art scene concerned with reviving and disseminating the African-Brazilian culture, the singer became a reference of female empowerment and behavior, especially among black women.Xenia has performed at major Brazilian festivals, such as Recbeat, Coala, Coma and Queremos, among others. In 2018 she took to Central Park’s SummerStage Festival in NYC, and has also performed in Philadelphia and at the Pablo Toblón Theater, in Medellin, Colombia.Her first solo effort here, “Xenia”, is an essential album from contemporary Brazil, paying tribute to the sounds of the black diaspora, masterfully blending soul music with jazz, samba, r&b and electronic flavors, now available for the first time outside of Brazil!