http://www.radioopensource.org/cuba-in-our-ears-iv-ned-sublette/

The man Ned Sublette (as always) drops some great knowledge here about how, due largely to political reasons, Cuban music has remained the ghost in the machine of Anglo-American and African-American popular music, serving as the secret ingredient that broke the distinctively funky Congo edge* to black American music's Senegambian swing.

I know lots of folks got mad last time I posted about this… not sure why. I mean, I get that the idea was that I was trying to take away credit from American negroes for certain musical innovations, but does it really matter when the Cubans came from Africa too (and in fact, had come from Africa much more recently than their American counterparts)?

(Also, if you listen closely you'll hear some validation for my argument that the notion of Fela's afrobeat sound being predominantly influenced by James Brown is fraudulent and ignorant--the main influence was Afro Cuban.)




*peace afrobongo

_____________________

http://fc03.deviantart.net/fs70/i/2010/287/6/c/the_wire_lineup__huge_download_by_dennisculver-d30s7vl.jpg
The man who thinks at 50 the same way he did at 20 has wasted 30 years of his life - Muhammed Ali