Hugh Masekela "Home is Where the Music is" (1972)
According to the book, Hugh had had some pop crossover hits, but the
(popular) tide was turning against jazz. Masekela didn't want to go back
to the apartheid regime of his homeland in South Africa, but he had
seen his ex-wife Miriam Makeba (who features earlier in this list)
set herself up in Guinea successfully. He decided home doesn't have to be where you're
from; "Home is where the music is".
All of this serves as a background story to a luscious jazz album. It's underpinned
by African rhythms but would slot in nicely with later Miles Davis when
he was moving from his last acoustic quintet into his fusion era. The
album closes with "Ingoo Pow-Pow (children's song)" that dials back the
jazz (though it's still there) and gives a uplifting dose of native
music from Masekela's homeland.
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