Jimi Tenor Band – Selenites, Selenites!

Tapete

Although Jimi Tenor is renowned as a solo artist, he is also a serial collaborator; but for the first time, during the pandemic, he drew a band around him of local musicians to bring to life some of his delightful paeans to positivity that must have bubbled up over the lockdown period.

Having spent some time demoing in Jimi’s kitchen, the group, consisting of Eeti Nieminen on percussion and Wurlitzer; Heikki Tuhkanen on trombone, tuba and jawbone; Ekow Alabi Savage on keyboards and more percussion, and Lauri Kallio on guitar and bass, found their way to an abandoned house in the middle of nowhere and let loose to see how they could flesh out these particular songs.

The natural interplay between the players is noticeable, but the overall effect is of everyone having the best of times. Drawing form easy listening, funk, jazz and Afrobeat with lyrics full of positivity and love, this is a hard album to resist with the easy sway of opener “Selenites, Selenites!” full of horns and dreamy voices. A Latin rhythm kicks in and it feels like a party has started, with the horns warm and the voices sweet.

There is a jazzy soul groove to “Some Kind Of Good Thing” and the lyrics say it all. It is a sax-led hip-swinger with sprays of synth to give it a spacey vibe. They are desperate to have the listener on the dancefloor and shower them with good vibes, and this is the general approach for the whole album.

There is bongo percussion, pastoral flute and birdsong diversions on the almost saccharine “Sunny Song”, where “The worries I had have all faded away”, while “Universal Harmony” is all African horns with a slightly deeper sound. They are trying to draw everyone together using music as the catalyst, the otherworldly synth sounds reacting just a touch to the idyllic sentiments.

The groove is taken a bit deeper on “Alice In Kumasi” and then Ekow takes over vocal duties; and although they are deeper and more vibrant, the insistent beat and air of possibility remains. Lauri’s elastic bass is utterly irresistible and provides the kind of fluidity that would free up even the stiffest of hips.

Queen of Ghanaian frafra Florence Adooni adds whispered entreaties to the electronic beats and New Orleans sax groan of “Shine All Night” and the slurping saxophone sounds sultry and steamy. It drags the group along with a restless beat that adds the funk in a more measured way, to make way for the hot township jazz intro of closer “Furry Dice”. It feels like a madcap hybrid of all that came before, the insistent groove offset with a touch of spy theme mystery.

The group fully swings here, their legs stretching to the greatest extent and a full on funk twist coming from the bass. It is a delirious ending to a truly charming album that not only grooves like crazy but is positive and fun. In times like these, we need more of this.

-Mr Olivetti-