Amazing week at the Belly Up: The Beat, King Sunny

King Sunny Ade (Courtesy photo)

Read The Slackers: Unconfined ska at the Casbah

It blows my mind how lucky we are in San Diego that so many top-notch musical acts come through at a staggering rate. It is hard to keep up sometimes.

This week, at one venue alone, there are four shows I am aching to see.  It’s time to fill up my tank for some treks to the Belly Up Tavern.

Tonight, Saturday, The Beat and the Chris Murray Combo are setting  up shop. Led by Dave Wakeling of The English Beat, expect a very danceable Two-Tone era ska-punk-soul sound. Check this previous article for more on The Beat. I have seen Chris Murray play everywhere from San Diego to Las Vegas, and probably two-dozen places in between. Where ska is, he is. He is a premier singer/songwriter in the genre, and definitely worth checking out for a chill opening act to The Beat.

Read Mikel Toombs: Sly & Robbie, Gregory Isaacs, Quino

Monday night the Easy Star All Stars, the band that brought you Dub Side of the Moon and Radiodread, world-renowned re-productions of Pink Floyd and Radiohead, are performing their latest act, Lonely Hearts Dub Band. It is a solid cover of the Beatle’s classic album Sgt. Pepper Lonely Hearts Club Band. The term “All Star” refers to the stellar collection of New York musicians that masterfully transforms one of the classic albums of all time into reggae in all of its forms. This is a sight to see for any reggae or Beatles fan, or really anyone that likes good a show. Catch them now, they are on a world tour, and might not be back soon. If I see no other show this week, I will see this.

While driving to work yesterday I turned on my radio and heard an African sounding music coming from KPBS. It caught me off guard and I focused my attention- lucky for me, because I now know about King Sunny Ade. He is playing with his backing band, the African Beats, on Tuesday at the Belly Up. They play an African music known as Juju, known for unique vocal harmonies, traditional talking drums, many percussion instruments, an unusual sounding pedal steel guitar, and other indigenous instruments. With a keen social message, large band, and good vibes, King Sunny Ade was at one time marketed as the African Bob Marley. Fans of world music, reggae, and anyone looking for a unique show should check this one out. It may be one of his last tours, so if you’re interested, go on Tuesday.

Continuing in the world music thread, Friday’s show features Somalian bred hip-hop artist K’NAAN. His music reflects his background, growing up in one of the most dangerous places on Earth, riddled with war and atrocity. His 2009 album Troubadour is a blend of African music, hip-hop beats, reggae, funk, pop, and soul backing up his smooth, yet piercing rhymes. You have to respect someone who can rhyme in English and Somali while flowing seamlessly. Troubadour was recorded with help from Stephen and Damian Marley and legends like Mos Def grace his tracks. K’NAAN is a true poet and has lived the life to back it up. Be sure to keep an ear on his music and if you’re free Friday, see what is sure to be a bumpin’ Belly Up.

That’s the week’s highlights at one venue! Whenever I see a great lineup like this, I will let you know.

Read Wakeling rides his own wave into Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon

Steven Bartholow is SDNN’s multimedia editor and sometimes just likes to write about music.

Tags: easy star all stars, hip hop, k'naan, king sunny ade, reggae, SDNN, ska, the beat

This entry was posted on Saturday, June 13th, 2009 at 1:22 pm and is filed under Music. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.