Disco Sunday #32: Sun, Sea and Piracy
Posted on May 18th, 2008 posted by Baron von Luxxury in Disco Sunday
You ladies might wanna find a good copyright lawyer…
Right: Malcolm Mclaren. Round the outside: Buffalo Gals. Photo by Bob Gruen.
Perhaps as repentance for the horrifyingly offensive video we posted Friday, today’s Disco Sunday is about the white man pilfering rhythms from Africa, and how that is wrong and bad, and how it is pretty much the history of pop music. It’s a slight departure from the electronic/dance stuff I usually post here but it’s the story of a beat that is antecedent to all things disco. Plus its a fascinating story of musical connections.
The capital-B “Burundi Beat” was originally a field recording of 25 drummers of the Ingoma tribe in central Africa released on an album called “Musique Du Burundi” in 1968. An enhanced version (presumably the addition of a rather inorganically mechanical kick drum) was released as “Burundi Black” by Mike Steiphenson and was a minor hit in the UK in 1971.
MP3: “Burundi Black” - Burundi Steiphenson Black
Beastie Boy sample trainspotters take note:
MP3: “59 Chrystie Street (Excerpt from B-Boy Bouillabaise)” - Beastie Boys
Enter Malcolm. In 1979 the ex-Sex Pistols manager offered up his services to a band of rising stars called Adam and the Ants. According to legend, he handed them a copy of the Burundi tape, suggesting they write all new material based on the rhythmns therein. Just months later, McLaren convinced the backing band of Ants to leave Adam, which they did - taking all of their new songs with them.
Then, the shamelessly scandal-seeking (and yet a Manet fan…High art! Low art! Neither! Both!) McLaren found himself a 14 year old Burmese girl with a mohawk. He wrote a stack of shock-horror lyrics about urban piracy and sex on airplanes for her to sing. The former Ants served up a backdrop of twang surf guitar, neverending walking melodic basslines and a tom-tom centric version of the Burundi beat. The new band, christened Bow Wow Wow, brought their amazing new look and sound to the UK Top 10:
Video: Bow Wow Wow perform “Wild In The Country” on Top of the Pops
MP3: “Mile High Club” - Bow Wow Wow
Bow Wow Wow broke in the US and had their biggest hit with a cover of an old 60’s hit by The Strangeloves which, ironically, was based on a different stolen beat:
MP3: “I Want Candy (Kevin Shields Mix)” - Bow Wow Wow
(The Strangeloves, by the way, were a studio group founded by three songwriters, one of whom would go on not only to produce the Go-Go’s and Blondie but also to found Sire Records *and* the digital distribution company The Orchard. Quel flaneur!)
While it must have been doubly difficult to suffer not only the loss of his band but also to watch them succeed from afar, Adam (né Stuart) managed to dust himself off, find new musicians, and steal back the stolen beats. “Antmusic” was a huge hit, going to #2 in 1981, and once again the Western pop charts were infiltrated by African rhythms:
Video: “Ant Music” - Adam and The Ants
MP3: “Ant Music” - Adam and The Ants
This musical thread is far wider and deeper than what I’ve touched on, but I had to draw the line somewhere. There are a dozen more MP3s to post and facts to convey (for example: did you know that Boy George, aka “Lieutenant Lush” was the original singer for Bow Wow Wow?). So if you’re interested in this particular slice of music history, here are some suggestions for further reading:
* I highly highly highly recommend Simon Reynolds‘ fantastic book “Rip It Up And Start Again”. It covers the fertile period from 1978-1984 often known as “postpunk”, which is to say after the Sex Pistols and before gigantic shoulder pads.
* Mr. Reynolds also has a great Blog.
* Also check out “More Reasons to Hate Vampire Weekend”
* And here’s a nice article about Early Adam Ant
* Malcolm McLaren Wiki
* Adam Ant dot Net
* Bow Wow Wiki
* An Incredible Treasure Trove of BWW videos
xx,
Baron von Luxxury is My Fake Name
RELATED POSTS:
May 18th, 2008 3:00 pm
Nice job. But, accidentally I’m sure, you’ve neglected to mention that Joni Mitchell was the first to exploit/celebrate the Burundi sound in her music. ‘The Jungle Line’, off ‘The Hissing of the Summer Lawns’ (1975) uses Burundi drums, a snaky bass synth, and other odd sounds under JM’s cryptic lyrics. You can hear it on youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZcmeZ-cu7o#
I always figured that JM was right up Malcolm and Viv’s street - self conscious boho’s that they were…
May 18th, 2008 4:13 pm
Thanks for the comment and link, such a fantastic track! I’ve actually had this post in “draft” mode for 3 months as it was incredibly difficult to refrain from touching on all the music and personalities involved in the chain of influencers and influencees. Focusing on Malcolm seemed to help keep things succinct and self-contained.
Interesting to imagine JM interacting with MM + VW. She seems like someone that would be more attuned to, and wary of, a charlatan in her midst. But then again it sounds like she has a history of less than perfect judgement in men…
May 18th, 2008 6:02 pm
[…] unknown wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptMalcolm Mclaren by Bob Gruen You ladies might wanna find a good copyright lawyer… Right: Malcolm Mclaren. Round the outside: Buffalo Gals. Photo by Bob Gruen. Perhaps as repentance for the horrifyingly offensive video we posted Friday, … […]
May 18th, 2008 6:04 pm
Wow I think this is the first time I’ve learned something useful on a music blog. Good work.
May 19th, 2008 2:16 pm
To Baron von Luxxury
I wasn’t complaining - it’s great to see all that stuff that I grew up with getting another airing. But even at the time I remember everyone seemed to think that the Burundi idea was a Malcolm original. Same thing happened when Paul Weller nicked the bass from ‘Taxman’ for ‘Start’ - many of my mates had no idea… People have such short cultural memories. But then pop music’s all about making it new again anyway…
I didn’t mean to imply that JM actually ever met MM & VW either - just that she was the sort of artist that pre-punk bohemians like those two might well be expected to have had on their turntable…
May 19th, 2008 3:59 pm
Hey there Martin -
Oh, I didn’t remotely take it as complaining - your comment and that link are a great contribution to this post! If anything I hope I didn’t sound defensive, I truly meant what I wrote. Seriously, I started this piece ages ago and only finally finished it Sunday morning by deciding to have the throughline about Mclaren.
Also as I mentioned, the Stephenson track was on the UK charts in 1971, so I’d have to assume that people with longer memories (or, more simply, who were old enough to remember) would have seen through MM’s claims (assuming he made them - did he?) of being “the first” to steal the beats.
BTW did you click through the “Reasons to Hate Vampire Weekend” link? AMAZING essay in 4 parts that goes way way deeper than my little post. Check out the Mahotella Queens track side by side with BWW’s “See Jungle”…fucking shameless!
Where are you coming from? Your name doesn’t link to a site or anything…
May 21st, 2008 2:53 pm
I wrote back to your discoworkout email address, as we seemed to be wandering off topic…
May 24th, 2008 2:51 am
Didn’t Gary Glitter and all of those seventies glam rockers borrow from the Burundi beat as well? I love Annabella from Bow Wow Wow by the way! What has become of her? Is she a respectable housewife nowadays?
May 24th, 2008 12:06 pm
@ Eddy - That’s possible, which tracks in particular are you thinking about? Pop songs are always a stew of stolen goods and over time one will often hear new things in old, beloved tracks. So for me, in the glam stuff I hear the pilfering of (or, more generously, the homage to) 50’s slapback on the vocals and snare. I don’t hear the Burundi but that doesn’t mean it’s not there - curious what you are hearing that I’m missing!
May 24th, 2008 2:49 pm
Well, it’s the emphasis on the drums on ‘Rock ‘n’ roll part 2′ (the instrumental version). When you listen to the sample of ‘Burundi Black’ and then to ‘Rock ‘n’ roll part 2′, you can hear some similarities. But I admit, it’s more a simplified version of the Burundi beat. You can hear it better on the Adam & the Ants and Bow Wow Wow tracks.
May 26th, 2008 12:00 pm
@ Eddy - You’re right to make the connection. Gary Glitter’s producer Mike Leander (who arranged the Beatles’ “She’s Leaving Home”) was apparently listening to the Burundi stuff when he was creating the instrumental track for “Rock and Roll”.
Specifically, musically, you’re hearing the “triplet” feel that they both share, also known as the shuffle beat. Unlike straight ahead backbeat driven rock or four on the floor based dance music, its a got a swing feel, literally the same rhythm that underlies all of jazz music.
Interesting side note: there are dozens of separate percussion instruments on top in the Burundi stuff, as there were literally 25 drummers. So when it came time to do the live show, the Glitter band had 2 trap kit drummers to try and recreate that feel. Adam and the Ants did the same.
May 26th, 2008 1:26 pm
Thanks for the interesting articles! And it’s good to know that I was not talking nonsense…
May 26th, 2008 11:03 pm
Far from nonsense - and I wouldn’t have made the Glitter connection had you not brought it up, so thank *you*!
May 27th, 2008 12:15 pm
I start to like this blog more and more!
And thanks, LeBarøn, for your comment on Summer Grooves. After seeing the movie ‘40-year-old virgin’ I had to begin with Michael McDonald. For some reason he’s very cool, although the guys at Laid Back Radio still refuse to play his music… Strange, isn’t it?
December 28th, 2008 8:09 pm
Top marks!
A better example of Adam & The Ants utilizing the Burundi beat would be “Kings Of The Wild Frontier”.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xT27A6Sa10k
PersonaIly, I think it’s great compliment for someone to borrow an idea, be it rhythm, visual or otherwise. However, I draw the line at illegal ‘un-cleared’ samples of the original recording. In this case, the artist & performers (musicians) should get credit and a performance royalty. Bless ‘em!