I’m really quite excited about this. Soon (hopefully, within the next month) I will launching my first podcast. It’s called Lollywood Tales: the incredible untold story of the Pakistani film industry.
In the podcast I will trace the history of the Pakistani film industry–based in and around the city of Lahore– and tell the stories of the starlets, heroes and villains, singers, dancers and directors that made Lollywood one of the largest film centers in the world…until the generals and mullahs decided it was the source of all moral corruption and did their best to shut the industry down.
When you subscribe and listen you’ll become an expert on something very few people in the world know about. You’ll be amazed at the connections between Lollywood and Bollywood. You’ll thrill to the music that accompanied the movies. You’ll gasp at the scandals, fall in love with the characters and be inspired by the commitment of Pakistanis to make entertainment and a unique brand of cinema…against all odds.
Stay tuned for further information on how and where and when. In the meantime, here is a wonderful clip from the 1971 movie, Anjuman to keep you smiling.
L.T.D/Love to the World [1976] A fine example of that positive-thinking, idealist strain of American R&B that seemed to be quite popular in the 1970s. Think Marvin Gaye’s What’s Goin’ On or Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes Wake Up Everybody or Love Train by the OJays. L.T.D cleaved closer to the funk than smooth soul but were just as effective in getting their message across.  Love to the World is an album of love songs and prayers to God, to the woman and to The Man, all hoping for a better day. Fast moving bumping and jumping basslines with horns, screaming electric guitars and keyboards that at times seem to be inspired by Supertramp’s Rick Davies. A swirling grandiose album of funk and devotion. 
Bob Dylan and The Band/
Les McCann/Spanish Onions [1964] Recorded live after hours at the Esquire Theatre in LA by the legendary Richard Bock for his Pacific Jazz label. Though soul-jazz was not yet a marketing category McCann and his two mates, Victor Gaskin on bass and Paul Humphry on drums, play a rousing R&B influenced set of originals that really show off his talent at the keyboard. The title track gives him lots of space to build and stretch out but the highlight for me is ‘
Leon Russell/Hank’s Back [1973] Leon Russell the rockin’ pianist with silver, below-the-shoulder hair was a big thing in the early 70s. In the 60s he made his name as a sought after LA session man and the following decade had hit albums on his own but also collaborated with and produced many others from George Harrison to Willie Nelson. In 1973 alone he released 4 albums including this straight-ahead country set. Covering Hank Williams, George Jones and others Russell is not playing around here. He puts every ounce of his creative spirit into these covers with the high point being 
The Moonfires/Gotta to Keep It Rollin’ [2018] The Copenhagen-based Italian composer/arranger who’s musical vision is inspired by cinema soundtracks, Alex Puddu, has put together an incarnation of those heavily populated R&B bands of the 60s and 70s (cf. L.T.D, Blood Sweat and Tears, Tower of Power) and named it The Moonfires. Gotta Keep it Rollin’ is an energetic set of funky, guitar (played ably by Puddu himself) and percussion driven tracks that never fail to delight. Even people who have lost interest in most music years ago find themselves getting frisky and exclaiming ‘Right on!’. 
Los Cenzontles, Texmaniacs, and Flaco Jimenez/ Carta Jugada [2017] Tex Mex heaven. Neo-traditionalists, icons and Texas rockers all come together for a sweet but far too short (just over 35 minutes) set of Mexican American harmonies, acoustic bass and guitar and simply amazing accordion playing. In the early tracks by the giant Flaco Jimenez and in the back half of the album by Josh Baca of the Texmaniacs. All of these tracks are great but my current favorite is 
Lou Rawls and Les McCann Ltd./Sings Stormy Monday [1962] Lou Rawls ‘debut’ as a solo performer. That deep bass voice cooks up stellar renditions of a set of standards many of which would remain a part of his repertoire for the rest of his career: Stormy Monday, 
Naseer Shama/Lute of Baghdad [1994] Iraqi oud player and composer, Naseer Shamma studied at the Baghdad Institute of Music where he received a diploma in musical art in 1987. He has developed his own unique 8-string oud and on this his first Western gives a virtuoistic performance with some really innovative sounds especially on the spectacular tour de force and album closer 
John Fogerty/Blue Ridge Rangers [1973] Head honcho of CCR John Fogerty’s first solo effort on which he played and sang (almost?) all instruments and parts is a little gem.  A country album today means something very different than it did back in 1973 when the division between rock n roll, with which CCR and Fogerty were so intimately associated, and country was nearly as wide as the Grand Canyon. But Fogerty is an orny bugger and knew where he wanted to go. Like Leon Russell’s Hank’s Back this is unadulterated country and old time gospel music sans any contemporary sprucing up. For the most part it works well with the possible exception of She Thinks I Still Care which his voice cannot carry. But on the other hand his rendering of 
Larry Sparks/It’s Never Too Late [1980] Recorded with his group the Lonesome Ramblers, this record is a beauty. Alison Krauss had likened Sparks’ voice to that of Ray Charles and his guitar playing, which got him a spot in the premier bluegrass band in the country, the Clinch Mountain Boys, is powerful. Both are on gorgeous display here. It’s hard to pick a single highlight but probably the hat needs to be tipped to 
e-lecK-tric saar-deen 