First heard on the cassette only (but never commercially issued) Flying Rock compilation this 45rpm EP contains some great South African styled rock and roll and twist. The original notes are imbued with the stereotyping of the day. I hope to share more interesting and out of print South African 45s in the months to come. Stay tuned!
"Street Corner Jazz" (TEYJ8)
"Who of us, whether South Africans or vistors from overseas, are not fascinated by the impromptu enthusiastic street corner African jazz musicians. They are a feature around the streets of most South African cities, particularly in areas of predominantly flat dwellings such as Hillbrow Johannesburg, where they can be sure of large appreciative audiences (yes, they are pretty good at catching the cents without missing a note) from the the balconies of the surrounding buildings.
"The music is simple but it expresses the happiness and inborn feeling for bright foot tapping rhythm. Their instruments are mostly primitive such as a "tea box" bass, improvised guitars, penny whistle flutes and "voice", insteuments in amazingly wide and unique variety.
"The young BOGARD BROTHERS have developed this type of music, but they still retain the characteristi sound. On this record are four titles truly synonymous of this unique African sound adapted to present their ROCK AND TWIST. In this field the numbers are definitely the top tunes of the moment and overseas visitors who take this record back home will treasure it as a vivid reminder of their stay with us."
Street Corner Jazz - The Bogard Brothers (TEYJ8, c 1960)
I'm In Love
Oh, She's There
Flying Rock
She Keeps on Knocking
RS / MF
2 comments:
The outstanding track here is "Oh, She's There." Wild!
But I'm curious: All the other tracks seem to be cover versions or at least "mashups" of misheard Fats Domino and rockabilly tunes that must have filtered their way to South Africa at some point. But I've never heard of a late '50s American rock 'n' roll song called "Oh, She's There" or even just "She's There," and various Web searches for the lyrics or the title or the year all turn up nothing (except for references back to this post).
So I'm curious: Do you know if "Oh, She's There" is an original by the Bogard Brothers, or a cover version? And if it's a cover version, who did the original?
Thanks for digging up and sharing this interesting rarity!
aperson, I will need to check the publishign credits on the EP, but even then I'm not sure that will provide definitive evidence. There is a lot of material in the vein and it may be that I just need to re-share an African Rock and Roll compilation at electricjive.
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