Sadjo Djolo Kouyate | Sabounyima

Grab this sublime kora-driven album from Guinea-Bissau here.

I've been a very neglectful bodega proprietor the last year and half, and for that I apologize. I can't make any promises moving forward, but certainly my lack of activity here -- other than the occasional re-up and weekly Bodega Pop Live show advertisement -- has been weighing on me. Also, I've gotten out and exploring neighborhoods again, thanks entirely to the fine people at Afropop Worldwide, who are currently putting together a show slated for mid-July about African music in New York City. (More to be revealed closer to the date.)

In other words, I've kind of been picking up a LOT of new music recently. Which may -- and I want to stress that word "may," given my recent history -- may mean a series of new posts over the next couple of months.

So, about today's offering.

I found this cassette-to-CD-transfer at a terrific African movie and CD shop just off 116th Street in Harlem's Little Senegal. The owner, a DJ who I am planning to have on my show sometime in the coming weeks, opened up shop in 2010 and carries a diverse selection of music, from his native Gambia as well as Guinea-Bissau, Nigeria, Mali, Ghana, Senegal of course, and Jamaica. I am no doubt forgetting several other countries. The music ranges from traditional to reggae to hip hop to straight up pop. He's there 7 days a week, yet still manages to create dozens of his own mixtape CDs (also for sale in the shop) as well as gigging the occasional party, wedding or other community event.

I know nothing about Sadjo Djolo Kouyate, other than the obvious: He's from Guinea-Bissau, he sings and plays the kora, and he's played gigs as far away as London:



I'd offer you a sound sample from the CD itself, but Divshare has changed its policy and now requires you to be a paying user to use their services, including the hosting of MP3s, for which I'd previously relied on them. Oh, well. If you'd like to hear it, grab it. (Caveat: Tracks 2, 3, and 4 are in mono -- in the original recording, the left channel dropped out mid-way through track 2 and reemerged near the end of track 4, so I collapsed the stereo into mono for those three tracks in Audacity. You're welcome.)

And stay tuned ... I've got dozens more CDs from Little Senegal, as well as jaunts out to Jamaica, Queens, and the south Bronx.