Sunday, January 27, 2008

Nigerian nostalgia

One of the absolute best blog posts I’ve read in recent months (click here) was on Comb & Razor’s music blog last November.

Comb & Razor wrote about a 1983 album by teenager Yvonne Maha. Apparently many young Nigerians wore the grooves out of this record.

But what’s really interesting is the “urban legend” that grew around Yvonne Maha in subsequent years. Read it and see for yourself.

Best of all, Comb & Razor ripped that vinyl so folks all over the world can download and enjoy it. I’d never heard of Yvonne, but I have heard of Sonny Okosuns, her producer and songwriter.

The songs are so cute. I mean, her face is cute, her accent is cute, the lyrics are super-cute. It’s too much cute!

I’m streaming two tracks on my Vox audio stash. Click here for “Lagos Town.” To hear “Going to School,” click here. You can just picture Yvonne skipping down the road, singing and smiling.

Now, as for the album title – “Child for Sale” – well... having read a bit about sex tourism, the title creeps me out a little bit.

2 comments:

Mes Deux Cents said...

Hi UBM,

I do wonder what the title implies, beside the obvious.

I'm always looking for music so thanks for the information.

Undercover Black Man said...

Thank you, MDC. Comb & Razor's blog opens up a world of African pop culture that we hardly know about in the States.