This is a Random Album Generator.
Home Is Where The Music Is
Hugh Masekela
1972
Wikipedia
Reviews
Like a review? Give it a thumb up to help us display relevant reviews!5/5. Funky and Jazzy, rambles from awesome big band blues to more mellow, wandering piano solos. A new favorite. Big horns, jammy piano and lots of hi hats. Feels like Art Blakey with slightly more blues/rock influence.
What a great album. It's an amazing blend of jazz with african rhythms and instruments. So glad I found this album and this artist!
This is the jazz album I didn't know I was looking for, but definitely was. Blown away. 1. Love the groove. The trumpet/flugelhorn riff is fun. The sax quality has a Canterbury scene sound, which I'm into. Here's the trumpet solo---what a intro!!! Holy cow I am so into this... Piano solo ugghhgbfffnnn 2. Slowing things way down---lovely cocktail bar/impressionistic style piano to start. Trumpet solo starts to heat up... tasty alto sax solo. The band is so in sync, it just feels incredible. The technical imperfections are part of the magic. 3. Another tasty groove holding us down with the winds blowing strong in the skies. The break before the piano solo stops you cold, and in fact you notice the bass before you realize the piano is even taking it, but it gets going. Could be a stronger climax here though. A minor complaint about a great track. 4. Fun bass line. Quiet and kind of mysterious. This doesn't sound like American jazz---it's just more fun. This song by itself doesn't go anywhere new... Except into a fun solo to start the next track! 5. This has a Mariachi/Super-Mario vibe! Moving into a hard swing. To be honest this isn't my favorite part---it almost sounds like the band is having trouble holding it together. But now we're onto solo piano... And back to impressively high speeds. Really in sync at the end here---still a satisfying close to the weakest track so far. 6. Dreamy dark piano. oOOh mmmhm into a funky funky funk! This track is definitely not disappointing. 7. Drum solos! 8. Sounds like a lazy summer day in Mr. Rogers' neighborhood. I'm into it. The piano solo adds a just a hint of mystery, drums add some edge, open up some new dimensions. I love the unison melody that takes us out. 9. Rhodes piano? Mellow opening into a triumphant wall of horns. back to the mellow groove... Lovely keyboard solo, and now we have a groove going. Very nice. Mmm heatin up. I'm bobbin my noggin. Ready for the trumpet solo when it comes---hits perfectly. I love the topography of this piece. 10. Jungly drum intro with some wanton sax. And vocals! Bantu? Love this as a cap to the album. I assume the vocals are placing the album in South Africa, where Masekela grew up. It's a departure from the rest of the album, but a good one. The final trumpet note leaves you hanging---there is definitely more to come for me: I am going to check out the rest of Masekela's catalog.
This is a kick ass jazz album. His connection to Fela Kuti is fascinating as well. Weirdly it reminds me of SimCity 3000 music a bit!
South African trumpeter, flugelhornist, cornetist, singer and composer who has been described as "the father of South African jazz". Great living room lounging album.
First, double albums are notoriously hard to produce with high levels of quality. There are a handful of 5 star examples ("The Beatles" "London Calling" "1999"). This is a solid 4, and some may say 5, because it changed direction and did something new and important -- the fusion of African and American spiritual/soul into jazz.
This was a fun one to explore. Big fan of jazz and while I love my jazz to be “unstructured” from time to time, there is nothing more satisfying than a properly laid out jazz tune. Enjoyable from start to finish.
Warm, soft jazz perfection-- I can actually feel the waves of calm come over me as I listen to this, it's incredible.
Nice and refreshing album. Not my usual style but I wouldn't mind listening to it while reading or working.
Slick and cool. Not normally my thing (I know little about jazz) but this was an easy and smooth listen. I quite enjoyed Ingoo-Pow-Pow with some vocals. The album had some touching pieces and some uplifting ones. Grab a scotch and let this album play.
Now that's what I call background music. I've been listening to these albums mostly as I do my daily walks, and while this wasn't the best album I've heard so far, it was probably the most enjoyable walk I've had. Energetic but serene, with killer horns, drums and bass, this is exactly what I want to hear out of jazz musicians. You could probably cut a track or two, but at the very least, the ones that feel more like filler make me appreciate the standout deviations more. Key Tracks: Minawa, Maseru, Maesha
Super solid jazz/funk/soul record with a touch of Afro-Beat thrown into the mix. Very reminiscent of similar era Crusaders, Mizell brothers, George Duke, Herbie Hancock, Headhunters and so forth. As good as anything in this vein from any of those artists and the era in general. You can play this as background music, or you can really dig in and listen to the musicianship. Either way is rewarding. Also check the horns on ‘Inner Crisis’ that Theo Parrish sampled.
Fuck yea, JAZZ BABY! This shit was great. Love to add another jazz album to the list. The whole thing was just smooooth. For me though, I do not remember individual songs that much on a jazz album, but I'll just go with Part Of A Whole as my favorite. 7/8.
Home is where the music is indeed. This album is so much fun. Track after track of masterful Jazz. I’m in love. Thank you Mr. Masekela.
first track is very solid. Yea this is great in the pocket horn playing jazz. oh man this is great atmosphere. yea this thing is great not just good I feel like i am listening to something really special on track nine Maesha
No escribí mi acostumbrado mamotreto. Día ajetreado. Van unas notas: Groove. Me hace sentir como un gangsta en una película de explotación de los 70. Mexaxplotation. Me hace sentir maloso. Como si trabajara de noche. Deep shit. Hermoso. Crepuscular. Mis momentos favoritos son cuando se mezcla el funk y el jazz como ese bajo sucio en Maesha. Mejor track, el cierre. Ingoo-Pow-Pow. Diáspora y madre África al unísono.
another i'd never heard of, and would totally have missed - but holy cow, does this album RIP. there's a lot to love here, but i especially liked the panning of the drums at the very end of the last track. it was the best kind of unnecessary.
First track 5 mics. Second track outstanding chill. Third track groovy. Trumpet solos are tolerable. Didn’t keep more notes on the remaining tracks.
I think this is gonna be my first five star rating that's going to an album I hadn't already heard previously. Such moods and grooves here. Downtempo numbers are absolutely my thing. Uptempo numbers are breezy and enjoyable too.
what a fun change of pace. i don’t usually listen to jazz but this is pretty dang good, and will be added to my regular albums.
Never heard of this guy but it was great, had a lot of hard bop elements and catchy grooves which I like
Huh, Jazz! Welch‘ willkommene Abwechslung in dieser populärmusiklastigen Liste. Gefällt mir gut bis sehr gut. 4 Sterne, hart an der Grenze zu 5.
Thought this was great, usual I'm too dumb for jazz caveats I can probably take as read from now on.
I don’t know if it was due to the inauguration and us having a new president, but this album made me feel great, like the sun was shining a little brighter.
I liked this one a lot in some spots and not as much in other spots. I’m not a huge fan of the jazz improv thing where a soloist goes on and on and on and on… But I generally liked it.
Alternates between: Funky, violent, groovy, mournful, cinematic, and bluesy. Like late-era Coltrane + Funk with 70’s instrumentation.
This was a fantastic album. Completely new to me but will be listening again very soon
More instrumental jazz. I enjoyed it, but I couldn't tell the difference between this, Miles Davis, or Thelonius Monk.
Really solid jazz album. Not much more I can say Favorite tracks: “Part of a Whole” and “Maseru”
Nice jazz album (sounds like jazz to me). I can see the influence the album had for the movie Whiplash by Damien Chazelle
Como de jazz conozco prácticamente nada (si acaso sé algo de Davis, Ellington o Armstrong), solamente añadiré que disfruté escuchar este disco y mencionaré mis canciones favoritas. "Minawa" me dio un confort melancólico que necesitaba hoy, de ahí "Unhome", la vertiginosidad de "Inner Crisis" y esa batería del minuto final de "Blues for Huey". El final es festivo, como un gran cierre, me pareció un discazo y quiero creer que es jazz de calidad. Si acaso de repente estoy muy acostumbrado a asociarlo con música de evento formal y eso no me gusta tanto. No tengo mucho más que añadir. 8.5/10
I like this style of post-bop-ish-borrowing-from-the-less-structured-60s-without-going-all-Ornette-Colman-on-us jazz. But, do I have to compare it to the 1001 jazz albums we must listen to before we die? I wouldn't have known it was Hugh Masekela until the last song. But I do like it. It's better than the pop covers he did in the 60s but I think the music he put out later in the decade was more influential (believe I said the same thing about JB). If the 10 point scale wasn't narrowly defeated yesterday I'd give this a solid 7.
Me gustó, sobre todo el solo de batería en Bluess for Huey, pero no tengo mucho que decir en esta ocasión. Supongo que por no saber de teoría musical, lol. En verdad a veces no entiendo este estilo de jazz, me parece sumamente técnico y a la vez como si se equivocaran a media canción y les valiera verga y siguen tocando, pero pues npi donde o cuando. Mood: fumando elegante y pretenciosamente un cigarro hecho por mi mismo en un barcito de Nueva York. Mood: ...
Wish there were a little bit more standout moments but overall was a really engaging listen and can see it being groundbreaking at the time
Like a Dutch prostitute shitting down the back of my neck, as I smoke a cigar and read short stories about medieval torture. The best days of my life.
From the first notes of the first track I knew I’d like it. I’ve listened to music by Hugh Masekela in when he passed away in 2018, don't recall if I listened to this particular album. Probably going to put this into my rotation.
A joy to listen to, fun from start to end. Loved the overt african vibes towards the end too.
Jesus fucking christ, this man can play. Whoever's on the keys is a fucking god. // Favs: Minawa / The Big Apple / Maseru Score: Decent 4
A wonderful album. Very much in the style of Miles Davis Prestige years; Cooking, Working, etc.... I really enjoyed this album and plan to listen to it tomorrow again. 4 🌟
I'm not nearly as knowledgable about jazz as I should be considering I played a decent amount of it in highschool. So I don't have the ability to really compare this to jazz of the era, or much else altogether. But I did really enjoy this album. I'd like to start listening to more jazz, and I would certainly consider Hugh Masekela as an artist to listen to more of as I get further into jazz.
straight ahead jazz. nice and warm mixing style. some interesting instrumentation. big fan of the twang and thunk of the drum tones here. an instant recommendation if you already like this genre.
Pretty good stuff, real nice to chill to, but way too long of an album, especially since there's not a ton of variety going on. Says the guy who likes metal where every song is the same.
An absolutely awesome soul-jazz album. Groovy, a little funky, and a lot of soul all throughout give the record a cool lean against more traditional jazz albums. The music goes a long way in making you feel it, and you can also groove to it effortlessly.
digging it so far. -1 star for being a little too brassy. its funny how easy it is for an all instrumental piece to be my jam. last song is in an african language and is stressful.
really enjoyable, but it didn’t quite hold my attention through the (pretty long) runtime. every instrumentalist on here had some stellar performances. 7/10
“Home is Where the Music Is” by Hugh Masekela (1972) Music lovers may be familiar with ‘African Jazz’ trumpeter Hugh Masekela from his pop hit “Grazing in the Grass” (1968) (which, incidentally, has the most virtuoso cowbell performance ever). Or more internationally engaged listeners may know his anti-apartheid protest song “Soweto Blues”, or his political anthem “Bring Him Back Home” (the “Him” being Nelson Mandela, that is). But on this album, the title “Home is Where the Music Is” reminds us that the South African Hugh Masekela was unable to pursue a career in his home country because of apartheid. In 1960, after the Sharpeville massacre, South African authorities selectively banned “gatherings of ten or more” people in the townships, effectively killing the career of an aspiring jazz musician (illustrating what happens when governments prohibit freedom of assembly in the guise of “public safety”). So Masekela left South Africa and became an international agent of jazz, soul, and social justice. On this record, Masekela successfully resists the temptation to hog the spotlight, thereby revealing the not inconsiderable talents of other members of his jazz ensemble. Pianist Larry Willis is exquisite (the first 2:23 of “Minawa” would make Franz Liszt proud). Drummer Makhaya Ntshoko has innovative rhythms and percussive colorings for every mood (with shining solos on “Blues for Huey”, the end of which contains [almost] the only lyric on the album: “Call an ambulance!” You’ll laugh out loud.) But when Masekela steps up with brass, it’s breathtaking. His pitch-approximating approach to melodies, especially in duet phrases with alto saxophonist Dudu Pukwana, requires some getting used to. But Masekela’s languid vibrato, piercing staccato, double-tonguing, lip bends, trills, mini-slurs and dips are entrancing. What he lacks in range he more than makes up for in mellifluous resonance and flair. “Unhomé” is some of the saddest music you’ll ever hear. Yet “Maseru” grooves, swings, and otherwise romps through jazz progressions that are dazzling. If you’re unfamiliar with jazz, please, please listen to this track for its sheer entertainment value. Hope it hooks ya. The most ‘African’ track is the closing children’s song “Ingoo-Pow-Pow”, delivered with such humorous drama, that I’d love to know what in the world they’re saying to the kids (before playing it for my grandchildren!). The only significant weakness here is that bassist Eddie Gomez seems to be intent on ‘lifting’ the group’s pitch throughout the album. In an ensemble that revels in the “flats”, Gomez seems to be pushing the “sharps”. I hope it’s not just my faulty aging ears. This is good music for all humanity, folks, especially for “gatherings of ten or more”. I don’t give a damn which governments don’t think so. 4/5
Really nice start. Overall beautiful, especially Ninawa. Towards the end more "fanfare" and other music. Doesn't really fit the album.
This album is exactly what I needed to hear at the time that I did. This is a record that takes you through a journey of emotional and geographic artistry. The instrumentation is not over the top, it’s precisely structured that the artists play to each other and never leave an empty void in their sound (even in times of silence). The accompanying keyboard is such a nice addition and shake-up to the traditional piano jazz sound. This is probably one of my favorite jazz records ever, I never want it to stop. Favorite Song: Inner Crisis Least Favorite: Legitimately don’t have one…
I don't think of myself as a jazz fan... but this site is going to make me one. I don't listen to jazz often and I'm not too familiar with classic records in this genre but so far I've been enjoying most of the jazz records this site is throwing at me. This is another good one.
This was some really great jazz, really pleasant and ACCESSIBLE. I would say anyway. The music felt very lyrical, but didn't feel like it was missing anything
-The piano and horns be groovin' in "Part Of A Whole." The drumming really picks up in some spots, and the trumpet too -"Minawa" sounded like "Love Reign O'er Me" with the rain sounding piano, and then "Charlie Brown" for a second -Generally solid jazz-y stuff. I'll put it on my study playlist
A wonderful album. Very much in the style of Miles Davis Prestige years; Cooking, Working, etc.... I really enjoyed this album and plan to listen to it tomorrow again. 4 🌟
Ahhh it's jazz, what can I say? Not a huge fan but I can appreciate the effort that goes into it. And there were a few songs here I actually enjoyed! Too long though, didn't need to be over an hour. 3/5.
There were parts I really dug (mostly the trumpet) and parts I really didn't (mostly the alto sax). Some good grooves here. Best track: Maseru
I love this soulful jazz but too many freestyle riffs wreck what is a mostly cohesive record
Excellent musicianship. Truly great playing. Great for background music, or live music, but not something I could listen to continuously for the full album length.
Really enjoy working to this album, but I don't think I could sit down and listen to it directly. Apparently this dude ended apartheid with these jams. what have you done with your tuba. -Favorite cuts: Part of a Whole, The Big Apple, Nomali
Songs that made me look and ask "what's the name of this one?" The Big Apple Maseru - great piano section w/ double stops & uptempo baseline starting around 4:00 Inner Crisis - great groove Maesha Not a bad album overall, worthy of another listen - particularly the first half where I was a bit distracted. The last song can be skipped, though
I’m in between a three and a four here, but I’ll stick with a three for this one right now. Love some jazz though, good times
I liked this, but when tracks from some of his other albums came up after this one I found that I liked them more. There was a little more funk to them.
Eccentric, early-70s fusion jazz/funk with a healthy dose of blues mixed in. Similar to Herbie Handcock with some very abstract solos, but still a good listen if you're in the mood for jazz that doesn't play by the rules. Also has relatively long songs, on average, since the album is 1hr 16min with only 10 songs. Overall a good listen.
Amazing musicians on this album, very cool vibes. Jazz trumpet grates on me after a while tho. 6.5/10
My first time in Jo’Burg was just after Apartheid ended. I went out to watch live African jazz. I quite like Hugh. Great easy listening African jazz.
Before listening to this album I looked it up and was excited that it was described as afrobeat jazz but definitely didn't hear much afrobeat in there. Nice improvisation on the trumpet and really like the richness of the doubled parts, but it doesn't feel that groundbreaking compared to other jazz albums. I'm going to predict that at least one other person's review will describe it as "background music".
Despite it being jazz, I quite liked it. Nice and easy to listen to, good rhythms and flow.
Didn't get the chance to fully make it through this one - defaults to a 3, I liked what I heard
The first two numbers are languid, straight-ahead. There's life in the solos, but at ten minutes each my ears start to look for more explicit compositional variety. The Big Apple is much more sparse, with less virtuosity but more counterpoint. The following minutes of music, up to Inner Crisis, are largely similar. There's more space, which I enjoy, but little that's head-turning (the bass emerging at points is the exception). In Crisis, we get some organ on the surface of the texture. Next, the drums get a moment. Still, the percussion is pretty traditional for jazz, and I'm left searching for the advertised Afrobeat. Maesha is the record's crowning achievement, its thematic statement proceeding like something through-composed for jazz orchestra, huge and magnificent. But the organ asserts its freedom once again. The bass tone is as good as it gets, especially as the instrument slides and tries to scream for joy. There's opening-track-quality horn playing, though for far less time. The theme returns in religious bombast. And in the finale we get percussive and vocal variety. The bulk of the music here is not quite to my taste, though the playing is always good. The high points are excellent, but diminished somewhat by the runtime.
afro-jazz. I didn't expect to like this one much, as I absolutely HATED Bitches Brew, the first Jazz album i had listened to. But I ended up kinda liking it. "Part of a Whole" was really good! "The Big Apple" had a cool theme as well.
Some of these tracks are what I called "rainy day" jazz...which I really like. But even the tracks that aren't my cup of tea are brilliantly played and arranged.
I'm a jazz fan and was excited because I've never heard of this artist or the album. Cool trivia that he played on some early Byrds and Simon and Garfunkel and also toured with Paul Simon on the Graceland tour. This album however is not really an exceptional jazz album. My favorite track was the last one "Ingoo Pow-Pow" and it was a pleasant listen but apart from some historical significance I can't really see why this would be on the list.
Some of it was a bit too slow to me. Got the best and the worst of the genre in my opinion. 2,5 right in the middle
Peaceful. As always, jazz puts me in a fall and winter mood. Some impressive trumpeting on here. Favorite track: "Inner Crisis"
Pretty solid jazz fusion, if a little standard for the era IMO. However, there are some lovely standout tracks on here (see: "Inner Crisis"). Tier: B-
Some albums need more than a day to appreciate them. Hadn't heard of Hugh Masekela or this album before. Without a doubt he's highly talented. Good vibes. From my one-time listening, it felt like good background music, to work or walk to, or sitting in a coffee shop. "Where's my frappuccino damnit?!"
The most straightforward of the jazz albums thus far, striking in comparison to Bitches Brew. Great soundtrack for a city walk, and surprising tribal beats to close
I liked the variation between tracks. I also like a certain amount of "lazy" playing on the brass, where the squeaky sound adds character. I did think it was used a little excessively in this case, sometimes sounding more like goose calling than music.
This was fine, I don't get Jazz really so if you asked me why this was better than any of the other Jazz I had, I wouldn't have an answer
As much as I like jazz, I can't do a whole album of improvisational jazz. Tastes like capers.
Wisselvallig. Sowieso al niet mijn stijl, maar door de chaos heen af en toe toch iets toegankelijkere stukjes.
Not really my taste, but I listened to it all. The last track was probably the best, most upbeat and fun.
1001 albums de salon lounge, ça va très mal se passer si je revois un tel album dans la liste
This is a classic album by Hugh Mase...ZZZzzzzzzz. Sorry, not a jazz fan. I'm sure it's great.
Tough to rate, I rarely listen to Jazz. As a drummer I’ve enjoyed playing Jazz charts because it can be so complex and challenging, but I’ve just never felt it. Whenever a movie tries to inspire love of Jazz (Soul, La-la-land) I’m like the character who says, huh? So did I enjoy listening to this album? Not really.
Tämäkään tuotos tästä genrestä ei kovettanut. Kuuntelee kyllä kerran ongelmitta, mutta kuuntelee sen tasan yhden kerran.
Bueno, pero no lo escucharía siempre, seguro es buen músico pero no lo diferencio de alguien más tocando jazz
Well, I thought I'd enjoy this. But I didn't. It wasn't engaging enough and all the songs felt so long. Even that accursed Orbital album was more palatable. Maybe it's just that I haven't listened to much jazz-related music. I don't hate Home Is Where the Music Is but I wouldn't listen to it again. This is definitely not an album that I needed to listen to.
Jammer als je een beetje dwangmatig bent en je vindt dat je elk album van begin tot eind moet luisteren.
I found this happier than most of the jazz we’ve worked with so far but still didn’t do it for me Fave tracks: “The Big Apple” “Part of a Whole”
Wat hebben we gedaan dat we 2 dagen op rij zenuwslopende toeter-jazz voorgeschoteld krijgen? Echt niet te doen.
Laatst verzuchtte een zeer gewaardeerd lid van dit gezelschap: "waarom geen klassieke albums of Jazz", nu geloof ik dat in ieder geval een deel van deze wens nu wel is ingevuld. Niet te doen die Masekela..
Btuh