Yaseen & Party, Yaseen & Party  
Yaseen & Party
Yaseen & Party
TIP  
EUR 1xLP 
Label: Afro 7
Release Year: 2019
Style: Latin & Brasil & Afro
 
  Tracks  
  A1 Mahaba Masikini
A2 Lala Mpenzi
A3 Mapenzi Yako
A4 Nategeneza
A5 Ndoto
A6 Nimepata Mwana
B1 Mwana Na Kibarua
B2 Nna-Kiliyo
B3 Haki Yako
B4 Laiti Siwi Ndege
B5 Tufuate
B6 Uwa
 
  ‘Harambe’ by Mac & Party was one of the most interesting recent rediscoveries of Kenyan taarab from the past decades. An English language taarab song with the prominent presence of an early synthesizer, it sounded unlike any other Kenyan music that came out during the 1960s and ‘70s. Initially, when trying to license the track for reissue in 2016 (Soundway’s ‘Kenya Special volume 2’ and the 45 RPM reissue on Afro7), we didn’t have much luck in finding out who had recorded and composed the song, or even when exactly it had come out. Comparing discographies of the original label, and listening to other songs that were close enough by catalogue numbers, it appeared to be the work of the late singer/composer Yaseen Mohamed. His sons were able to confirm that it was their father singing on those singles, that Mac & Party and Yaseen & Party were most likely the same band, and that the recordings were done in the early ‘60s.

A closer look at Yaseen Mohamed’s legacy reveals that he was an important figure in Kenya’s taarab music of the 20th century. Between his first 78 RPM record, which came out around 1947, and the last single released in the mid-sixties, his discography spans nearly 50 confirmed releases, and possibly many more collaborations that he was not credited for.
Yaseen was born in Mombasa in the 1920s. His parents were of Omani heritage. Growing up he joined the British colonial army, which allowed him to travel around the region and soak up a wide variety of cultural influences. During Yaseen’s youth, recorded taarab music had become popular across the region, pioneered by a group of musicians from Zanzibar whose musical output from the late ’20s and early ’30s set a trend.

Socio-economic changes in the colony during the 20th century, which transformed Mombasa from a Swahili town of less than 30,000 people, reigned by the sultan of Zanzibar, into a metropole in the newly independent country of Kenya, had a major impact on music culture. These changes were mirrored in the evolution of taarab between the 1920s and ‘60s. Yaseen’s early work is a patchwork of stylistic influences from Indian and Egyptian film melodies, Cuban son, and trendy dance styles such as the twist, mambo and samba, all thrown in the mix with a traditional taarab combo line-up of vocals, ud and percussion. He would later be quoted as saying that “there is no certain thing which is taarab. Even rock is taarab if people just sit and listen”.

By the early ‘50s, Yaseen had joined Assanand & Sons (Mombasa) Ltd., a shop selling musical instruments and 78 RPM records, which was quickly being developed into Mombasa’s most popular music studio. Yaseen was an all-round member on the team, recording his own music, performing as a session musician, acting as a studio technician, and scouting new talent for Mzuri, the in-house label. Apart from singing and composing he became a master of the taishokoto, a musical instrument of Japanese origin which was introduced in Kenya in the 1940s. During this time he started recording with his wife Saada (credited on releases as ‘Mimi’), who joined him on the stage during live single mic set up in the storage room at the back of the Assanand shop.

Yaseen, Mimi and their band were at the forefront of innovation in Mombasa taarab; their small-band approach with newly introduced instruments such as the (amplified) taishokoto, accordion, and the Clavioline, a predecessor of the synthesizer, sounded quite different from the big-band taarab approach of orchestras that were around during the 1940s and ‘50s. Their short songs (limited to 3 minutes per side for 78 RPM releases, and a bit longer when Mzuri started pressing on 45 RPM singles) appeared easy on the ear, but the lyrics were rooted in the intricate Swahili poetry that had been popular among the East African coast for centuries.

In 1962, Yaseen and Mimi got their first child, a milestone described in ‘Nimepata mwana’. From then on, Yaseen focused on working regular jobs, while music remained a hobby. They struggled to make ends meet though, living with their four children in a single-room apartment in Mombasa’s inner city. While Yaseen was of Omani heritage, Mimi’s parents were Digo, a people from coastal Kenya who were discriminated against during the colonial era. Yaseen’s close family didn’t accept Mimi and her kids into the family. In 1972, Yaseen left Mimi and the children to take up work in Oman, which had just started a transition from one of the middle east’s most traditional societies into a modern Arab oil-fuelled economy. Yaseen’s professional skills as an electrician and a mechanic were welcomed as he joined thousands from the Omani diaspora in East Africa in occupying the work force. Despite continuing to make music in his pastime, performing on national television and radio with his taishokoto, and composing a song for sultan Qaboos, he didn’t record any more music. Yaseen returned to Mombasa to visit his wife and sons every few years, and he intended to retire bring the family over to Oman, but he passed away in 1985. By that time, the Mzuri label and Assanand shop were long gone, and the production of taarab in Kenya had started a decline that has nearly decimated the Mombasa scene by 2019. A few of Yaseen’s songs were featured on foreign compilations, some of his recordings can be found on bootleg CDs in Mombasa, but only some of the older generation in Kenya are aware of the remarkable legacy and the impact that Yaseen and his wife have had on Kenya’s coastal music.
 
      Wish List  
  Price: CHF 25.00   Currently not on stock!
Please check back later or call us for more information:
+41 (0)43 322 02 04
 
  Releases of the same artist  
  No items found ..  
  Releases of the same label  
  Black Savage, Black Savage  
Black Savage
Black Savage
[Afro 7]
TIP  
EUR 1xLP  Wish List
CHF 26.00 Restocking!
 
  Etuk Ubong, Black Debtors  
Etuk Ubong
Black Debtors
[Afro 7]
EUR 7inch  Wish List
CHF 15.00 Restocking!
 
  Loi Toki Tok, Chakacha  
Loi Toki Tok
Chakacha
[Afro 7]
EUR 7inch  Wish List
CHF 13.00 Add To Cart
 
  Niki Dave & Afro Kids, Shoreza Inyange  
Niki Dave & Afro Kids
Shoreza Inyange
[Afro 7]
EUR 7inch  Wish List
CHF 15.00 Add To Cart
 
  The Scorpios, Let's Go  
The Scorpios
Let's Go
[Afro 7]
TIP  
EUR 1xLP  Wish List
CHF 30.00 Add To Cart
 
  V/A, Light & Sound Of Mogadishu  
V/A
Light & Sound Of Mogadishu
[Afro 7]
ESP 1xLP  Wish List
CHF 25.00 Restocking!
 
Amine
13 Months of Sunshine
[CLBN]
Annahstasia
Tether
[Drink Sum Wtr]
Apollo Brown
Grandeur
[Mello Music Group]
Bigxthaplug
Take Care
[DIGGERS FACTORY]
Billy Woods
Golliwog
[Backwoodz Studioz]
Budos Band
VII
[Diamond West Records]
Darryn Jones
In The Bush
[Hot Biscuits]
Derya Yildirim & Grup Simsek
Yarin Yoksa
[Big Crown Records]
Dogo du Togo & The Alagaa Beat Band
Avoudé Remixes
[Sol Power Sound]
Durand Jones & The Indications
Flowers
[Dead Oceans]
Ennio Morricone
Dietro Il Processo
[BTF]
Hall & Oates
Daryl Hall - John Oates And Dub!
[Not On Label]
Headnodic + Jazz Mafia
Headnodic + Jazz Mafia
[Be With Records]
ISAAC
Love Theme (Ilija Rudman Higher Ground Mix Part I)
[Brooklyn Highs Edits]
Italo Brutalo
Second Horizon
[Bungalo Disco]
J Dilla
928
[Not On Label]
J Dilla
Genius
[Not On Label]
Kodak Black
Collection
[Warner]
Lijadu Sisters
Danger
[Numero Group]
Lil Wayne
VI
[Young Money]
Lovetempo
Live Or Die By Love EP
[Toucan Sounds]
Loyle Carner
Hopefully!
[EMI]
Milton Henry, Jerry Johnson
Them A Devil
[Wackie's ]
Mourning (A) Blkstar
Flowers for the Living
[Don Giovanni]
Nad
DB12 017
[Duca Bianco]
Playboi Carti
Music
[Interscope ]
Richard Norris
Oracle Sound Volume Two
[Not On Label]
Stereolab
Instant Holograms On Metal Film (Clear Vinyl Gf.)
[Warp]
Sylvester
I Need You (Ron Hardy Edit)
[Fantasy]
The Revenge
Roar Groove Meets Dirt Crew Vol. 5
[Dirt Crew Recordings]
Thee Sacred Souls
Somebody Knew
[Penrose]
V/A
Spiritual Jazz 18: Behind The Iron Curtain (Part 1)
[Jazzman]
V/A
Spiritual Jazz 18: Behind The Iron Curtain (Part 2)
[Jazzman]
Wu-Tang Clan X Mathematics
Black Samson, The Bastard Swordsman
[Ruffnation]
  1. Lexx
Rhythm Of Love
 
  2. Palace Pasador
Footprint Affair
 
  3. OG Florin + Melodiesinfonie
Meh Als Null Und Eis
 
  4. Jambonne
Jam On
 
  5. Jimi Tenor & Cold Diamond & Mink
July Blue Skies
 
  6. Amine
13 Months of Sunshine
 
  7. Doechii
Alligator Bites Never Heal
 
  8. Fugees
The Score
 
  9. Glenn Underground
Mother Tongue x Neroli EP
 
  10. Hiroshi Suzuki
Cat