22 KCRW ‘Sounds Around Town’ - Westfield Plaza, Century City, LA. 8pm. ONLY FULL BAND SHOW - FREE

24 Hotel Cafe - Hollywood, LA. 10pm - SOLO

27 Le Savoy (Metropolis) - Montreal - 8pm - SOLO

28 Le Poisson Rouge - NY - 7.30pm - SOLO

FOR A CHANCE TO WIN A PAIR OF TICKETS EMAIL / WINWINWIN@MEANFIDDLER.CO.UK

PARIS - LE GRAND REX

Come over in Paris at Le Grand Rex to celebrate the Peace Day with lots of other artists such as Lenny Kravitz, Ayo, Olivia Ruiz, Kasabian and Charlie Winston

Give your support to “Peace One Day” booking your tickets right now :

www.gdp.fr/index.php?idDirBill=1422

Introduction to Peace One Day

the evolution of a beautiful object from a very basic form to its more sophisticated version went like this:

1988:

im very high,and im walking along the corridor of the halls of residence of the last  institution/college ill ever set foot in,and im thinking of how to do what i do without injuring myself when i see leaning against the wall next to an open door of someones room the exact thing that im looking for.

its got a wider neck(strings are wider apart),softer strings(nylon)and a stronger and more symmetric body than a steel string acoustic.i pick it up and start to play it,dont know if it was the acoustics in the corridor or the herb i smoked but the sounds went right through me.

forgive me lord but i stole it.

1990:

after busking on the streets of london and paris for a few years with this type of object,i have now acquired a band,and i therefore need to compete in sound intensity with everyone else,it is no longer enough to use a fat steel string as a sixth,i need more volume.so i add a piezo electric pickup to the body of the object.this causes a lot of embarrassing feedback on stage but at least you can now hear the guitar as an integral functional part of my words and music,like it was when i was playing solo.

1991

i am walking down the street thinking of how to resolve this dilemma of melodic as well as percussive presence in my own music when there are other instruments,when i walk into a shop in denmark street in london and am confronted with a guitar that has been made to compete sonically.unfortunately its very heavy and not very beautiful but i buy it anyway and begin to use it.its called a Chet Atkins and it is mainly used by country and western musicians.this forms the basis of the recording of the blufunk is a fact and African Space Craft albums

2000

after African Space Craft in 1995 i sort of lost faith in being able to reproduce what i am hearing through any manmade instrument and i veer into all sorts of esoteric areas like,electric sitars,baritone guitars(fender6,danelectro),electric guitars(fender stratocaster+telecaster,fender jazzmaster,PRS,),twelve string electric guitars,twelve string steel string acoustic guitars,two string and four string guitars jonesified Chet Atkins,electric basses(warwick),acoustic basses,moroccan gembri’s(and several other gut stringed instruments),guitars that were made for me by luthiers(phillipe dubreuille et al),several different amplifiers,types of strings and effects pedals,all these made for interesting sounds,but i found i was ultimately subverting my style to fit the instrument and not the other way around like i heard it in that corridor in 1988.

nothing beats hearing percussion at the same time and as loudly as the tone and melody on the same instrument,this is my style,it is thoroughly whole and organic and the two elements are inseparable from one another(this i found out the hard way though the recording process of all my albums).it simply refuses.

2001

you may notice a pattern evolving here,i am often walking and thinking of what i want to see and i see it.in this case i was thunderstruck at the impossibility of it,but there it was in the window in all its beauty and functionality,it was an acoustic guitar(it had nylon strings and looked and sounded like one) but then again it wasnt,it was an electric guitar(it looked like one,felt like one and sounded like one)but it really wasnt,and its shape was so sexy(which is something that only the original centuries old spanish acoustic guitar shape can express)that it was perfect and i had to have it.i ran into the shop communicated to the woman intensely that its mine,she calmed me down and let me play it for several hours.i left the shop with it(i didnt steal it this time and luckily i didnt have to otherwise i wouldnt be here to write you this)this formed the basis of black orpheus and nigerian wood albums.

2009

and so….?

well the image ive reproduced here at the top of the page and the chronicle of its evolution that ive tried to describe here is to give you an idea of how forms evolve for me and how beautiful things already exist.they  needed to be materialised into this world through the active power of the imagination.this guitar that i was imagining and prematurely telling you about last year in one of my posts now exists,its called the Rugged1,only one exists at the moment of writing this post but soon there will be several in several stores in france and in other european countries.what ive done is collaborated with LAG guitars to create 4 preset sounds,that have been condensed from the eras of my evolution that i have described above,it is also very beautiful which seems to be a rarity in electro/acoustic guitars,and i dont know why.

i shall be presenting/demonstrating this to the public on the 1st april at the Musicmeese Francfort 2009 at the LAG guitars booth Hall 4 #2E56 at around 2.30pm.it is a guitar show/conference in frankfurt germany.

if you can make it ill see you there!

peace

jones

Apologies to everyone in Cologne anticipating Keziah’s performance. We are currently trying to reschedule the show for early next year. The German tour was a great success and the band would love to come back as often as possible. Thanks to everyone who came out and to those who wanted to but couldn’t. Koln, have no fear the blufunk is a comin’.

AR - blufunkmanagement

great things afoot

i deleted my last post cuz after reading it over and over

and spending too much valuable time pondering over whether the price of a ticket actually has any relevance to the quality of the concert seen,ive emerged out of my funk a better man.

i have been developing a keziah jones guitar with L.A.G guitars

one that is geared exactly to the blufunk technique

this will be available next year.

Amadou and Miriams album is out round about now

on which i played sang on a couple of songs

its a great record and they are beautiful people

same goes for femi kuti’s new album im on a couple of songs and also on an album of a good friend of mine from london

an afrosurrealist poet called anthony joseph.

for anything to happen in relation to creating a new perception of africa and africans and their culture it has to be done collectively and internationally.

new permutations are popping up everywhere.and very soon it will be just music rather than an artificially contrived category.

the semantic distance between the mathematical frequency of a musical note and what it actually symbolises for everyone psychologically is getting smaller and smaller with each passing day.

all praise is due

great music with relevant texts that we need especially in times like these.

this tour is almost finished

and it has been a long haul(for me)

but its mostly gone great

and i want to thank all those who came and gave something of themselves some of which i hope i returned creatively

next year more touring and starting work on a new cd

peace

Keziah will give a private concert at the SFR Studio on Thursday november 20th, at 8.30 pm.
Register on www.live.sfr.fr to watch this concert for free, with different view angles and qualities available.

Premature Autopsies
by Stanley Crouch

Though we are told to mourn it, we must know that it was a noble
sound. It had majesty. Yes, it was majestic. Deep down in the soul of
it all, where the notes themselves provide the levels of revelation we
can only expect of great art, it formed a bridge. That’s right, a
bridge. A bridge that stretched from the realm of dreams to the
highways and byways and thoroughfares and back roads of action. To be
more precise, let me say that this sound was itself an action. Like a
knight wrapped in the glistening armor of invention, of creativity, of
integrity, of grace, of sophistication, of SOUL, this sound took the
field. It arrive when the heart was like a percussively throbbing
community suffering the despair imposed by dragons. Now, if a dragon
think it is grand enough, that dragon will try to make you believe
that what you need to carry your through the inevitable turmoil that
visits human life is beyond your grasp. If that dragon thinks it is
grand enough, it will try to convince you that there is no escape, no
release, no salvation from its wicked dominion. It will tell you that
you are destined to live your life in the dark. But when a majestic
sound takes the field , when it parts the waters of silence and noise
with the power of song, when this majestic concatenation of rhythm,
harmony and melody assembles itself in the invisible world of music,
ears begin to change and lives begin to change and those who were
musically lame begin to walk with a charismatic sophistication to
their steps. You see, when something is pure, when it has the noblest
reasons as its fundamental purpose, then it will become a candle of
sound in the dark cave of silence. Yes, it was a noble sound.
I say that it was a noble sound because we are told today that this
great sound is dead. We are told that because it did not cosign the
ignoble proclivities of the marketplace, because it did not lie back
and relax in the dungeon with riff raff, because it had and attitude
of gutbucket grandeur, and because it sought to elevate through
elegance, for all of these things it has died, for some, a most
welcome death. But we must understand that the money lenders of the
marketplace have never EVER known the difference between an office or
an auction block and a temple, they have never known that there was
any identity to anything other than that of a hustle, a shuck, a scam,
a game. If you listen to them, they’ll tell you that everything is
always up for sale. They recognize no difference or distance between
the sacred and the profane. For them, everything is fair game to be
used in THEIR game. Oh, they chuckle when they hear that the coffin
for this noble sound has been built; they offer to donate more nails.
The send bouquets instead of wreaths. They feel this sound began to
outlive its usefulness the moment it could no longer be abused in the
world of prostitution, that world where the beautiful and wondrous act
of intimate romance and procreation is reduced to one pitiful fact; a
sham ritual in which the customer’s appetite for lies is equaled by
the prostitute’s willingness to tell those lies in whatever detail he
is ready to pay for. The tones of lies are vulgar facts but they are
not noble sounds.

But there is another truth and that truth passes through time in the
very same way that an irresistible force passes through an immovable
object. That’s what I said: this truth is so irresistible that it
passes through immovable objects. It is the truth of a desire for a
refined and impassioned portrait of the presence and the power and the
possibilities of the human spirit. Can you imagine that? I said: a
desire for the refined and impassioned depiction in music of the
presence and power and the possibilities of the human spirit. That is
the desire that lights the candle in the darkness. That is the desire
that confounds dragons who think themselves so grand. We have heard
the striking of the match and have felt ourselves made whole in the
glow of the candle for a long time.

It is possible that we who listened heard something timeless for those
who are descendants of the many who were literally up for sale, those
whose presence on the auction blocks and in the slave quarters formed
the cross upon which the Constitution of this nation was crucified.
Yet, even after that crucifixion there were those who rose in the
third century of American slavery with a vision of freedom; there were
those who lit the mighty wick that extended from the candle and
carried it; there were those who spoke through music of the meaning of
light; those who were not content to accept the darkness in the heart
that comes of surrender to dragons who think themselves grand; there
were those who said - LISTEN CLOSELY NOW - who said, “If you give me a
fair chance I will help you better understand the meaning of
democracy”. Yes, that is precisely what they said. “If you give me a
fair chance I will help you better understand the meaning of
democracy”. These are they who were truly the makers of a noble sound.

But as we mourn the passing of this noble sound, we are told to accept
the idea that no longer are those blessed who are endowed with
majestic inclinations. We are told that no longer are those blessed
who have the intentions of refining those majestic inclinations into
rhythm and tune. If we accept that, however, we might find ourselves
ignoring the democratic imperatives of our birthright. We might fail
to understand what was meant way back in the day when the sun of
liberty had been cloaked by the ignoble practice of slavery. We might
fail to understand that those living in the dragon’s shadow of bondage
fashioned a luminous and mighty chariot that could swing low and carry
us back to the home of all human hope, which is heroism. I say heroism
because it is ever the quality of bravery, of devotion, of the will to
nobility that underscores the marvelous phrases of this music. It
swung low and it swung upward and it wore wings. It knew that it’s
shining armor would fit it well, because it tried that armor on at the
gate of slavery’s hell. It was the ethereal aerodynamics of musical
art in America. It was democratic because it proved over and over that
the sound of human glory knows no social limitations, that the sound
of human glory has no concern with pigmentation, that the sound of
human glory transcends all definitions except those of the human soul
itself. Without a doubt it was a noble sound.

Some people might ask, “What is this man doing talking about nobility?
Doesn’t he know that is a dragon spawned and blood encrusted century?
Doesn’t he know that the dragon breath of our time is breathing down
the neck of the year 2000? Doesn’t he know that this is the era of
flash and cash?” I will say to them that the interwoven labyrinths of
greed and manipulation are as old as the FIRST lie. When you lie, you
are trying to manipulate; and when you try to manipulate especially
for false profit, you reveal your greed; and when you swallow that
dragon dust cooperatively, you reveal yourself as a chump, and a
sucker, one of those folk P.T. Barnum said was born every minute. But
I will answer them also by saying that nobility is always born
somewhere out there in the world, and when you live in a democratic
nation you have to face the mysterious fact that nobility has no
permanent address, you have to face the fact that nobody has
nobility’s private phone number. Nobility is not listed in the phone
book. Nobility is not listed in the society column, nobility shows up
where it feels like showing up, and where it feels like showing up
might be just about anywhere. If it could rise like a mighty light
from among the human livestock of the plantation, you know it can come
from anywhere it wants to. You see, nobility is listed though. Yes, it
is listed. Nobility lists itself in the human spirit, and its purpose
is to enlist the ears of the listeners in the bittersweet song of
spiritual concerns.

As we gather here to mourn the passing of this noble sound, we should
take the pains to remember something. There are some of us who don’t
accept the dreams of dragons as their own, no matter how grand those
dragons might say they are. Yes, there are some who will refuse to
drop the candle even when pushed into a dark cave and locked there
behind the stone. Don’t forget the people like Duke Ellington, who
will not leave the field once it becomes obvious that the sound of a
cymbal swinging in celebration is more beautiful than the ringing of a
cash register. Remember that there are those who, like Duke, are
willing to face the majesty of their heritage and endure the slow
painful development demanded of serious study. There is, you must
recall, a kind of serious study that will give you the confidence to
strike your match to the mighty wick that will illuminate yet another
portion of the darkness. Out there somewhere are the kind of people
who do not accept the premature autopsy of a noble art form. These are
the ones who follow in the footsteps of the gifted and the
disciplined, who have been deeply hurt but not discouraged, who have
been frightened but have not forgotten how to be brave, who revel in
the company of their friends and sweethearts but are willing to face
the loneliness that is demanded of mastery.

In order to carry the candle, you have to accept the fact that when
the wax on that candle begins to melt it will slide down and burn you
hand. You must be willing to accept the fact that the pain is a part
of the process of revelation. You have to be willing to take the field
and stay on the field the way Duke stayed on the road, traveling in
raggedy cars, traveling in private Pullman railroad cars, traveling by
bus, traveling by boat, traveling against his will sometimes in
airplanes. Duke accepted all the pain and the agony and the self-doubt
and the disappointment he was faced with because he had been inspired!
Duke was inspired he heard coming for the musicians of all hues and
from all levels of training. Duke heard the constitutional orchestra
of American life and transformed it into musical form. Whenever they
said this music was dead, Duke was out there, writing music and
performing the meaning of his democratic birthright in an artistic
language that uttered its first words way back on that first day that
a slave sang a new song in this new and strange land.

I am here to tell you that there are some who do not accept the
premature autopsy of a noble art form. There are some of us out here
who are on a quest, and in the process of that quest who find
ourselves having to perform conquests. There are some of us out here
who believe that the majesty of human life demands and accurate
rendition in rhythm and tune. Duke performed with Sydney Bechet, with
Louis Armstrong, with Coleman Hawkins, with Charlie Parker, with John
Coletrane and wrote music for almost all of them. His own orchestra
was described by Mahalia Jackson as a sacred institution. The Duke
Ellington Orchestra was a manifestation of the elaborately fabricated
drum he called this music. He was dedicated without reservation. He
knew that you would have to listen to a noble sound. You see, you have
to watch out for a tradition built on the intention of putting noble
inclinations into rhythm and tune. You have to beware of premature
autopsies. A noble sound might not lie still in the dark cave where
the dragons have taken it. A noble sound might just rise up and push
away the stones that were placed in its path. A noble sound might just
rise up on the high side of the sky, it might just ring the silver
bells and tear through the cloak of the dragonÕs shadow that blocks
the sun. You got to watch those early autopsies. A noble sound is a
mighty thing. It can mess around and end up swinging low and swinging
high and flapping its wings in a rhythm that might swoop over the
limitations imposed by the dreams of dragons. I said: you better check
those autopsies. A noble sound, the birthright understood so clearly
by Duke Ellington, just might swing low and it might tell you to get
on board. It might move with so much grace and so much confidence that
you will have to remember what I have been telling you: you had better
not pay much attention to those premature autopsies. This noble sound,
this thing of majesty, this art, so battered but so ready for battle,
it jut might lift you high enough in the understanding of human life
to let you know in no uncertain terms why that marvelous
Washingtonian, Edward Kennedy Ellington, never never came off the
road.

In all my interviews I get asked about this lady a lot and

The other day she invited me up on stage at her gig at the bataclan,her band learnt “kpafuca” and rocked it,i also freestyled on one of her songs in yoruba.
I used the lyrics from an old traditional war song,which fela also covered and in turn remade into a song called “garan garan”,it is the fela version of this that i sing on the”demo” cd on the nigerian wood album.
Is was a great night and a real pleasure to share the stage with another nigerian who is also doing her thing.

she obiously has a lot up her sleeve lyrically,aurally and sonically

You see Whilst asa is a small shy and bookish looking character,her dreadlocked demeanor along with the physical sureness of her gait makes her come across as something much more world weary.
Her political songs, about metaphorical prisons,her songs about the big city,and her ease with traditional yoruba oral poetry set to music,ask the inevitable questions about how she got to speak so old whilst so young.

and here is a question for you:Functionally what type of music is it when an african(male or female) picks up the acoustic guitar and not a drum or a goje or an mbira,and begins to speech/sing of a particular worldview?is it soul,reggae,funk,traditional music,hip-hop,blues?
This is what I think:
The most important fact about asymmetric time-line patterns  found in the music of peoples of african descent worldwide is that their mathematical structures are cultural invariables,i.e:their mathematics cannot be changed by cultural determinants..
They are immune to all social cultural or enviromental influences.
One can change time-line patterns,instrumentation,accentuation,speed,starting point,and the mnemonic syllables used to teach it,but not its mathematical structure.
Any attempt to change that dissolves the pattern.
For this reason time-line patterns are formidable diagnostic markers for detecting historical connections between certain new world africa disapora musical styles and those of distinctive language zones on the african continent
Ha!

When you bump into your hero
What do you do?
Shake their hand?,stay cool?,let them know exactly how you feel?
Well in this case the solution was easy because the hero in question was astonishingly cool,in fact he let us know that he was impressed with how we have turned out,cuz in his day things were definately not as easy,and to see us being the way we were made him happy,which is quite amazing when you think of it.
This man made the first independently produced black film,he not only produced it,he directed it and starred in it,he also composed the music,and wrote the screen play.
The film was “sweet sweetbacks baaadasssong”.a classic in black film history.
We meet people who made their mark against all odds and in an unusually hostile environment and we have to check ourselves because we seem to have forgotten how things were so completely otherwise that we seem to have not noticed.
Whilst on my way to a festival in lausanne,and after having withstood an intense four months of preparation and eventually promotion of my new album,and then the release and all the things that went with it,I took off for charles de gaulle airport,with my sunglasses on and in my freenegro stride I walk up to the checkout desk and who should I see but Melvin Van Peebles the creator of the first independenly produced black film.
I was just talking about him the other day with someone I love,we spoke of growing old in the deepest most creative and funkiest way possible and we began to mention names of people who had achieved so much whilst they were young but still kept on giving in old age,whilst also looking cool.I promptly approached him to shake his hand and to let him know how much we appreciate him,that it was individuals like him that made us possible and he was happy,I gave him a copy of Nigerian Wood and he said he would check it out.he says he has a new film coming out in the spring,it had a really long title but im hipping you to this meeting in the hope that you will look out for it when it comes
Peace
jnz

Just got a brand new electra bike today! Look at this mean machine!!!

Learn about Keziah’s guitar playing style : a video is now available in the Videos Section, where he explains some things about bluefunk…

NEW ALBUM « NIGERIAN WOOD » OUT ON SEPT 1ST (Europe) AND DEBUTING 2009 (UK & USA)

Produced by Karriem Riggins (worked with Kanye West, Erykah Badu, Madlib, J-Dilla…)
Recorded between New York, L.A. and London.
A LIMITED EDITION WILL BE AVAILABLE WITH A 10 UNRELEASED TRACKS BONUS CD

The new Keziah Jones Widget, to stay connected!