Tuesday, April 20, 2004  

Abdel Wright, "Loose We Now"
from 46664: Part 3, Amandala
Bono / The Edge / Dave Stewart / Youssou N'Dour / Abdel Wright, "46664 (Long Walk to Freedom)"
from 46664: Part 2, Long Walk to Freedom

Today's mail brought the 3-CD collection from the 46664 concert, which benefited Nelson Mandela's new AIDS charity. The collection is a mixed bag of artists, only half of which I have any interest in, and I really only ordered the discs for two reasons: to support the charity and to finally hear a full song by Abdel Wright.

Who's Abdel Wright?

I don't really know either, but by random chance I was seated next to him on a flight in Jamaica. He's an up-and-coming singer-songwriter whose demo has knocked out a ton of people. Dave Stewart of the Eurythmics signed on to work with Abdel as a producer, and Bono opened his trap and stated that Abdel is "the most important Jamaican artist since Marley." Don't put too much pressure on him, Paul.

"Loose We Now" is a solid tune that nicely marries Dylan and Marley. (Johnny Cash was also a huge influence on Abdel, as the Man in Black would visit the foster home in Montego Bay where Wright spent his teen years.) Abdel has a rad delivery, and if his acoustic guitar wasn't drowning in chorus that'd probably sound cool, too.

The other song from 46664 that features Abdel Wright is the title track to disc 2, A Long Walk to Freedom. He takes a verse alongside Bono and Youssou N'Dour as The Edge and Dave Stewart strum away. Nugget: This is the last song Joe Strummer wrote before he died, and it's so obvious that the majority of the tune is his. The lyrics, the rhyme scheme, the cadence all scream Strummer. Abdel does a nice toast in the middle of it, but Bono steps on his opening line and calls him "Abdul" (dope!) but otherwise all's OK. There's a studio version of this tune floating around somewhere, as I bought a download of it from 46664's Web site, but that doesn't seem to be available anymore.

Abdel's debut CD is supposed to come out on Universal this fall, and you can stream demos of the tunes on his Web site. I've got my fingers crossed for him. He was a really nice guy, he has a fascinating life story, and he's obviously a solid talent. But I hope the wheels of industry don't crush him before his career even begins. (And yes, that was a little Heaven 17 reference for you new wavers in the audience.)

If you like the tunes I've posted, or you dig artists like Peter Gabriel (it's cool to hear him do "Biko" in South Africa, finally), be sure to buy the CDs as the money goes to an important cause. AIDS is devastating Subsaharan Africa, and nearly 25% of the continent's residents are HIV positive. Roughly 40 percent of all deaths among South Africans between the ages of 15 and 49 is from AIDS, and more than 4 million South Africans are infected with HIV---more than any other country in the world.

Check out 46664.com for info and to help the cause as well as to purchase CDs, DVDs and some tite threads.

Posted by CP | Link |

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