The Twinkle Stars ‎"Trotyl" 1973****

I bought this LP at a record bazaar. It was a case of buy-3-get-1-free and I couldn't find anything else I really wanted in that record stack. I think I mostly chose it because I thought the album cover was inadvertently funny. But, to be honest, I had once more gambled with an unknown Surinamese album and it paid off. You can read about it here, along with some background info on that lesser-known South African country. This LP turned out to be even better than the Johnny Miranda one. It is, likewise, an irresistably danceable mix of Caribbean and South American styles, and mostly sung in that queer Surinamese dialect comprised of English, Dutch and Portuguese elements. The singing style is typical of Kawina, Surinam's 19th century slave music where the call-and-response gospel-like vocals are accompanied by the rhythmical beating of the skratjie drum. This evolved into Kaseko, a popular dance music genre mixing the local kawina style with influences from Caribbean Calypso and New Orleans Jazz. Twinkle Stars' leader Oscar Harris emmigrated to The Netherlands in '63 and formed the band together with American soul singer Billy Jones and members of the large Surinamese community in '65.

They had some hits prior to this, which was apparently his last recording with the band before following a successful solo pop career. He sings lead vocal on "Singerman" (together with Jones, who also sings on the gospel-style "Jerusalem"), "Mina Mina" and "Me Call'am Said No". The latter has a starker African style, just drums and vocals. With the exception of the gently chugging reggae of lead single "Singerman", the rest of the album is dominated by fast afro-cuban rhythms and jovial horn blasts. "Loekoe Fa Den Boi E Danzie" is another highlight, in a less frantic cha cha cha beat. "If you Wanna See Me" is Tito Puente-meets-Harry-Belafonte pastiche, while the rest is salsa-like dance music with the occasional jazz piano flourish. An excellent collection of Latin dance music, this Dutch-made LP has apparently been reissued only once in vinyl (Spain, in '77) and never on CD. Original copies aren't hard to find, so if you like world music and would like to discover a new and interesting variety of it, hurry up! Also, if you like what you hear you may be interested to learn that there is an Oscar Harris tribute concert planned for October 6 at Rotterdam's Theater Zuidplein. The 75-year old singer will, of course, be there, together with younger artists who want to celebrate his legacy.

**** for Singerman, Mi Matie Wefie, Loekoe Fa Den Boi E Danzie, Jerusalem, Mina Mina, Koele Koele

*** for Kaaiman, If You Wanna See Me, Poeroe Voetoe, Me Call'am Said No, Gongo Té

Johnny de Miranda "The Sunny Sound Of Surinam" 1974****

Having lived in The Netherlands for 7 years I've obviousle met a lot of Surinamese people. I must admit that before I came here I wouldn't be able to find the country on the map, or even tell you in which continent it is. I can now place it on north South America (does that make sense?) near Brazil and not very far from the Caribbean. It used to be a Dutch colony until 1975 and its history is, like most of "Latin" America, a history of pillage and exploitation. And slavery, the Dutch having made a fortune in the slave trade. The Dutch West India company alone is estimated to have trafficked 550,000 Africans into slavery, at a time when the population of the whole world was 500 million. When slavery was abolished in the Netherlands and its colonies (in 1863) there was no keeping those free men and women in the plantations - not when they could disappear in the jungle and grow, hunt or gather their own food. The Dutch then transported destitute farmers from Asia (mostly India and Indonesia) to fill the gap. Add the freed Africans, indigenous South American tribes and European colonists, and you have an unprecedented mix of peoples and cultures. Not to mention languages: According to wikipedia, next to the country's official language which is Dutch, recognised regional languages include Sranan Tongo and other Creole dialects, Caribbean Hindustani and Javanese. 

Being curious about the country's music, I once asked a Surinamese colleague if it was similar to Latin music, to which she replied something like "Yes...but not exactly. Similar, but different" - which didn't make me any wiser. Given the large Dutch-Surinamese community, there's surprisingly little music from that region to be found at record shops. But then the same is true for the other big minorities here: Moroccans, Turks and Indonesians. So when I found this cheap LP at a record fair, I thought it could help answer my question. It looked authentic enough and was sung in some local language. The name of Johnny de Miranda wasn't familiar, of course, but this is what I could later find out about him: He was born in 1924 and started playing at an early age. He played violin, clarinet, alt and tenor sax, as well as congas, drums and piano. He joined popular dance orchestras in Curacao and Surinam before moving to The Netherlands in 1955 and making a few records, alone or with his co-patriot Max Woiski. "The Sunny Sound Of Surinam" was the first (of two) LP's mentioned in discogs. Last news piece I found about him mentioned that he was back in Surinam, still an active musician and celebrating his 90th birthday. From what I've gathered, this is more or less typical Surinamese music. Does it sound like Latin music? Yes...but not exactly. There is a strong Caribbean and Afro-Cuban flavor, with some Swing, Calypso, Ska and Samba influences. The liner notes describe this music as Skratjie Pokkoe, a name that evidently derives from the specific kind of drums used in this style. All I know is that it's fun, good-timey music that invites you to dance. The band is tight and sound like seasoned entertainers. Based on their names, it seems to be a mixed Dutch/Surinamese affair. Highlights include the sax on the opener "Sèkanti", nostalgic accordion intro on "Moesje Oe Koemba", the Belafonte-meets-Tito Puente vibe of "Waka Libi" and "Bigi Elena", and the African sounds of "Wai Anisa" and "Bamba Maskita". The latter reminded me of the lost-and-rediscovered Senegalese band Orchestra Baobab. The lyrics are of course unintelligible but I like how the language sounds: exotically strange yet strangely familiar. An English word here, a Dutch there, another that sounds like Portuguese - all in the same song. The album has never been reissued either in LP or CD, but apparently it isn't that rare or expensive. There's a good chance you'll come across a reasonably-priced copy. If you do, buy it. No record collection is complete without at least one album of Skratjie Pokkoe. UPDATE: Johnny De Miranda died on 11/11/2018, aged 94. R.I.P.

**** for Sèkanti, Waka Libi, Bamba Maskita, Bigi Elena, Wai Anisa, Takroe Fesi, Moesje Oe Koemba, Wang Foroe

*** for Ba Wiriang, Lena Pikieng, Alla Modo, Didong Dè