cloudburst Posted July 3, 2012 Share Posted July 3, 2012 Well worth watching for the beautiful tone and rhythm of Bakithi Khumalo. CB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redstriper Posted July 3, 2012 Share Posted July 3, 2012 Thanks for the heads up Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ezbass Posted July 3, 2012 Share Posted July 3, 2012 [quote name='redstriper' timestamp='1341350143' post='1717659'] Thanks for the heads up [/quote]+1 read this and hit record in the nick of time Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wateroftyne Posted July 3, 2012 Share Posted July 3, 2012 Me too... It's Under African Skies. Wanted to see this for yonks. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PTB Posted July 4, 2012 Share Posted July 4, 2012 I'm late again. Hope this is on the iPlayer......... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doctor J Posted July 4, 2012 Share Posted July 4, 2012 The DVD is included with the 25th anniversary edition of the Graceland CD, just watched it last week myself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flyfisher Posted July 4, 2012 Share Posted July 4, 2012 [quote name='PTB' timestamp='1341383163' post='1717893'] I'm late again. Hope this is on the iPlayer......... [/quote] Me too, but fortunately it is: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b01kkn74/imagine..._Summer_2012_Paul_Simons_Graceland_Under_African_Skies/ If anyone doubts that slap [u]can[/u] be a good thing, check out You Can Call Me Al at 1:23:20. Great stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slobluesine Posted July 4, 2012 Share Posted July 4, 2012 (edited) hats off to Paul Simon, would love to have seen him give Tambo a bit of slapping tho Edited July 4, 2012 by slobluesine Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
51m0n Posted July 4, 2012 Share Posted July 4, 2012 Damn Bakithi is just the best fretless player, best tone, best groove I have ever heard on fretless, its just so gorgeous isnt it.... Love his playing so much! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ezbass Posted July 4, 2012 Share Posted July 4, 2012 I enjoyed that, but why did Macca have to be in it at all? I would also have liked to hear Bakithi playing more fretless in the reunion footage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slobluesine Posted July 4, 2012 Share Posted July 4, 2012 (edited) [quote name='ezbass' timestamp='1341417917' post='1718710'] I enjoyed that, but why did Macca have to be in it at all? I would also have liked to hear Bakithi playing more fretless in the reunion footage. [/quote] Paul Simon doesn't have a 'bass player' on his latest album, apparently he doesn't like the sound of a bass guitar, hmmnnn.... wonder how Bakithi took that one? Joni Mitchell also likened bass as 'that horrible brick wall in my music' (with the exception of Jaco and Larry klein) Edited July 4, 2012 by slobluesine Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cloudburst Posted July 4, 2012 Author Share Posted July 4, 2012 [quote name='slobluesine' timestamp='1341419740' post='1718741']Joni Mitchell also likened bass as 'that horrible brick wall in my music' (with the exception of Jaco and Larry klein) [/quote] Daft bint. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
philparker Posted July 4, 2012 Share Posted July 4, 2012 I really enjoyed the program and wish I'd recorded it for further viewing. Not just the music, although that was great and well covered, but the politics and cheap tricks in the US and also the delight of the band going to London and New York especially when they asked where they could get a permit so that they could walk in Central Park! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cloudburst Posted July 4, 2012 Author Share Posted July 4, 2012 [quote name='philparker' timestamp='1341435307' post='1719139'] I really enjoyed the program and wish I'd recorded it for further viewing. Not just the music, although that was great and well covered, but the politics and cheap tricks in the US and also the delight of the band going to London and New York especially when they asked where they could get a permit so that they could walk in Central Park! [/quote] As Doctor J mentioned, Graceland was reissued last month and the deluxe edition of the CD also includes this documentary on DVD. CB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Horton Posted July 4, 2012 Share Posted July 4, 2012 [quote name='Doctor J' timestamp='1341386659' post='1717940'] The DVD is included with the 25th anniversary edition of the Graceland CD, just watched it last week myself. [/quote] I have to get this album , it is just beautiful Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davebass66 Posted July 4, 2012 Share Posted July 4, 2012 There shouldn't be a bass player in the world who doesn't own Graceland...truly great bass playing. As in the whole package IMHO! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wombatboter Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 Graceland had a huge influence on me (and still has). Still not too fond of what he's showing here to my surprise...seems so out of tune [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nAgd9Ijw6WI"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nAgd9Ijw6WI[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ezbass Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 [quote name='wombatboter' timestamp='1341476490' post='1719479'] seems so out of tune [/quote]Yep not the best intonation ever, oh well just put the album on and it'll be alright. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thunderpaws Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 Stumbled across this when it was on. Inspirational. Not a huge Paul Simon fan, well, wasn't, am now! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thunderpaws Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 [quote name='wombatboter' timestamp='1341476490' post='1719479'] Graceland had a huge influence on me (and still has). Still not too fond of what he's showing here to my surprise...seems so out of tune [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nAgd9Ijw6WI[/media] [/quote] That is one smelly looking bass guitar! Euch! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andydye Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 Watched it on iplayer, superb documentary! Ordered 25th anniversary Graceland cd/dvd set for a tenner from amazon! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cloudburst Posted July 5, 2012 Author Share Posted July 5, 2012 Watching that video - I'm thinking possibly his D string is out of tune. And that bass would scare small children. What is that all about? CB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt P Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 just finished watching the documentary, my favorite album of all time, the first time i heard it was when a friend lent it to me to try out my new record player, i sat on the end of my bed and listened to the whole album through twice, sat there doing nothing but listening, went out first thing the next morning and bought myself a copy. i only got the cd version 6 months ago, the re-issue with the alternate recording of diamonds on the soles of her shoes, with just the voices and Bakithi Khumalo's bass, sends shivers down my spine every time i hear it. Matt Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darkandrew Posted July 5, 2012 Share Posted July 5, 2012 I had no idea it was so controversial. I suppose, like Paul Simon apparently, I thought that the purpose of the boycott was to show the South African government that the rest of world wanted nothing to do with them - not to silence black musicians and deprive them of a stage to both play their music and remind the rest of the world of their plight. Maybe I was just naive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris2112 Posted July 6, 2012 Share Posted July 6, 2012 [quote name='slobluesine' timestamp='1341419740' post='1718741'] Paul Simon doesn't have a 'bass player' on his latest album, apparently he doesn't like the sound of a bass guitar, hmmnnn.... wonder how Bakithi took that one? Joni Mitchell also likened bass as 'that horrible brick wall in my music' (with the exception of Jaco and Larry klein) [/quote] You could argue that Simon has done little of worth since 'Graceland'. 'Rhythm Of The Saints' was hardly incredible, though it had a handful of glorious tunes on it (and Bakithi Kumalo, albeit playing a far less prominent role). Since then, Simon just seems to have released average to poor records. His latest is absolutely dire. Similarly, Joni Mitchell's records with Jaco or Larry are crap! Sometimes the bassist is just the making of the record. Klein's bass playing on the 'Shine' is superb. As for the documentary, I really enjoyed it. I liked the fact it was very well researched, and spent a lot of time focusing on the music and how that came about. I hadn't realised the record had been so controversial at the time, I thought it had just been a mega-hit and that Linda Rondstadt had bore the brunt of the argument against playing in South Africa. I also noticed the show didn't mention Los Lobos or the controversy surrounding their contribution to the record, though as an analysis of the record's mainly South African inspired roots perhaps that episode/track was considered beyond the remit of the documentary. That Tambo bloke came across as a bit of a twat though, just an idiot looking for something to complain about now that the apartheid system is dead and buried. Simon quite easily made him look an idiot when he described how the ANC were seeking to control the situation in a direct parallel to the way the the ruling goverment sought to control life in South Africa. One could not fail to see the genuine affection the South African musicians have for Simon. Graceland is undoubtedly my favourite record of all time (alongside Hold Your Fire by Rush), but to me, the reunion show didn't sound that good. Bakithi's Elrick sounded great but the Yamaha was a little lifeless. What really spoiled it for me is Simon's insistence on fiddling with classic songs. He is always looking to rearrange parts, add new rhythms or change melodies and they are usually hugely unsuccessful. The reunion songs just didn't seem to have the energy or the groove of the album tracks, mainly I think because Simon was in there changing things at the last minute and messing things up. He has been off the boil a long time and needs to recognise that he doesn't really have the touch of genius he did back then, and that meddling with the classics isn't doing them much good. One thing that really sticks out to me, as a Graceland pedant, is most live renditions of The Boy In The Bubble. For me, Graceland is all about the tiny details. When Paul sings "The bomb in the baby carriage was wired to the radio" on the record, he gives it a lovely melody that lifts at the end and really locks in with the sudden drive of the bassline into the chorus. It is a moment of true genius in a small detail that has a huge impact on the song. When he sings it live, he usually changes the phrasing of the line and sings it flat and stacatto, all in one note, taking the melody away and ruining the impact of the line. Sometimes, you can't improve on what you've already done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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