the world at your poolside
A 3 hour 40th birthday celebration mix
I’ve just turned 40 and recently got back from a family holiday to the Algarve in Portugal, where we spent many warm days relaxing by the pool. I listened to a different kind of music there, as moody Modern Classical strings or deep, vacant drones didn’t seem to match the environment. The pool bar speakers emitted a blend of Bossa Nova, Jazz and Electronica and I found that quite often, I’d be sat without my headphones - a rarity for me!
To commemorate 40 years on the planet, and since we hopefully have some warmer months ahead of us, I thought I’d prepare a special birthday mix featuring a whopping 40 tracks! But, not Ambient music as-such... These are some of the tracks I might select if I were allowed to take over the sound system of a luxury hotel’s pool bar.
Whilst away I realised more than ever what my true role in music is. I’ve been a DJ, a blogger, an artist, a record label owner and a radio presenter. I guess in many ways I am still all of these things. But what ties them all together is a word I come back to time and time again: I am a curator at heart. I love to discover music, and I love to share it with people. And even if no one is listening, there is a great joy I get from gathering together different sounds, different atmospheres and different cultures.
You can take a listen via the button below:
*Be warned, this is not straight-up Ambient music!
In my younger DJ days, my taste in records was at its most refined and imaginative when I was only playing in the bedroom to myself. That became diluted once I started to get gigs as I lacked the confidence to just play my sound and felt a pressure to perform with the tunes I was mixing. I remember going to college in the city where jungle heads and ravers would ridicule my Jazzy, Latino House. In the end, the peer pressure and types of places I played at moved me to harder beats, acid basslines and the more aggressive nature of Techno. It felt strengthening in many ways and I felt more prepared should I be faced with any criticism. It was much easier to mix too! The power and simplicity of that music sort of protected me. But really, back home, I was not listening to much Techno. I was listening to the lighter sounds of Jazz, Funk, Chillout and whatever unusual World music I could find. I favoured more delicate sounds with acoustic instruments, some with vocals and always vibrant colour from a diverse range of cultures.
The beauty of growing up and getting older, is you start to wear your taste in music fully as an identity and you do not care for such peer pressure. So today for my birthday, I thought I’d share with you a side of my soul which doesn’t seem linked to Ambient music at first glance. It will feel different from the core work I do with Whitelabrecs, my own production work and a lot of what I’ve been up to in the wider community. You’ll hear African gnawa music one minute, Indian sitar the next, some bossa nova, some Middle Eastern music, some Armenian duduk, some ____? It’s not all instrumental or slow either. Stick this on when you’re on holiday; during the transfer, by the pool or at the beach. Or, put it on at home during dull days, and I hope it’ll breathe its warmth and colour into your life.
TRACKLIST:
Jonny Nash & Teguh Permana – Air
Priscilla Ermel - Martim Pescador
Wax Machine - Canto de Iemanjá
J Boogie's Dubtronic Science – Golden Nectar
Mandala Ohm - Milena's Theme (Duduk)
Paradise Cinema – Casamance
Anoushka Shankar - Say Your Prayers
Marijus Aleksa - Always Now
Jaubi – Straight Path
Shay Hazan – Riff Raff
Noor Jehan - Jadon Holi Jai
Dorothy Ashby - Essence of Sapphire
Rosinha De Valença - Concierto de Aranjuez
Lonnie Liston Smith & The Cosmic Echoes - Sais (Egypt)
Pharoah Sanders - Wisdom Through Music
Ravi Shankar - Raga Rageshri, Pt. 1: Alap
Milton Nascimento - O Trem Azul
Tunde Jegede – Duga
Stan Getz, Astrud Gilberto, Antônio Carlos Jobim & João Gilberto - Corcovado (Quiet Nights of Quiet Stars)
Ive Mendes - Natural High (Hopper Mix)
Arthur Verocai - Que Mapa?
Emílio Santiago – Valeu
Ana Mazzotti - Eu Sou Mais Eu
Mo' Horizons - Ay Y N'Ama
Bruno Pernadas – Huzoor
Zafari - Addis Ababa
Girma Beyene - Ewnet Yet Lagegnesh (Instrumental)
Orlandivo - Ondo Anda a Meu Amor
Osunlade & Mike Steva – Recovery Music
Oumou Sangaré – Moussolou
African Head Charge – Microdosing
African Futurism - Akal Akal
Super Djata Band - Fongnana Kouma
Girma Hadgu - Ené Alantchi Alnorem (I Can't Live Without You)
Saha Gnawa - Soudani Manayou (feat. Nels Cline)
Branko & Iúri Oliveira – CTG
Maalem Mahmoud Guinia & James Holden - Toro Toro Torko Lila
African Vibration - Hinde (Julien Dyne Rework)
Negrocan – Cada Vez (Flute Mix)
Kohachiro Miyata & Rodrigo Rodriguez - Shakuhachi: The Zen Flute (The Distant Call of the Deer)
Next year I’ll be opening up a free weekly Substack series called the ‘Vinyl Files’ in which I’ll spotlight a randomly selected album from my 12” vinyl collection. It’ll be a diverse journey and so if you do enjoy this mix and any of these sounds, hopefully you’ll enjoy diving into my record collection with me.