An oddity,
and a delicious one at that. The Positively Test Card bring
South African pennywhistle genre of Kwela to toe-tapping life.
Kwela was very popular in the 1950’s, being a blend of
African music and American swing and boogie-woogie. Billy Bragg’s
trumpeter Dave Woodhead was so enthusiastic about the music
that he formed this four piece circus. Woodhead handles the
whistles, Adam Keelan wangs away on guitar, Chris Morgan swings
on bass, and Mario Rey lays down the beat. This is a jubilant
five debut that’ll have you jumping all night. The boys
even cover Ellington’s "Caravan" and Booker T.’s
"Soul Limbo." The Positively Test Card get all the
wailing of Kwela right, are totally hip, and they left me a
grinning idiot for days. Viva la pennywhistle!
Review
from : Dirty Linen, the magazine of folk, electric folk,
traditional world music |
