There was a time in the 70s when Mogadishu was the coolest place in Africa. It was a city of whitewashed coral houses, colonial arcades on tree-lined boulevards and Italian Art Deco cafes looking over a cobalt-blue sea. And it was funky. Young women in miniskirts strolled alongside older women in billowing direh. Young dudes in bell bottoms and sporting serious Afros, strutted past groups of men in mabwis kilts and white skull caps. And the local bands – inspired by James Brown, The Doors and Santana – were laying down some of the heaviest organ-led funk on the continent.
Sadly, that Mogadishu is long gone. But its spirit lives on in this collection of 45s just released by Afro7 Records.
The singles were originally released by the local Light & Sound label. The label was an off-shoot of the ‘Light & Sound’ electric appliance shop, both owned by local entrepreneur Ali Hagi Dahir. Not only could Light & Sound sell you the record player, they could sell you the LP to play on it as well.
The recording studio sat in a back room just off the main sales floor. It was the first privately owned studio in Somalia. Unlike the State-owned studios at Radio Mogadishu, here musicians were free to experiment and get into their own groove.
The release comes in an authentic sleeve with background story, new pictures, and carefully remastered audio quality that surpasses the original releases. First compilation of it’s kind with this audio quality, no cassette fidelity here! A must for fans of music from the upper East African Region including Ethiopia and Sudan.
| A1 | –Sharero Band | Sharero 75 | 04:01 |
| A2 | –Sharero Band | Yaan Cuskanaa | 4:40 |
| A3 | –Sharero Band | Caashooy | 2:34 |
| A4 | –Sharero Band | Sharero | 4:05 |
| B1 | –Ahmed Rabsha, Hibbo Nuura | Bohol You | 3:27 |
| B2 | –Magool | Wa'ly Sita | 7:52 |
| B3 | –Magool | Shimbir Yohou | 6:51 |
