the scorpions & saif abu bakr: jazz, jazz, jazz

Recorded in Kuwait in 1980, Jazz, Jazz, Jazz is the only album compiled by the Sudanese band The Scorpions & Saif Abu Bakr. Habibi Funk label came across the record four years ago during a deep dive on eBay when bids for the record rose to more than $1,000. Jazz, Jazz, Jazz is reissued in its entirety, complete with all the stirring horn arrangements and vibrant percussion housed on the original. Though it’s labeled jazz, it feels more like a funk record as we go deeper in its vibrant mood. While the first part of Jazz, Jazz, Jazz seems to pull from black funk icons like James Brown - using upbeat rhythms to maintain a festive atmosphere -, the album’s second half takes on a more tropical aura - less jazz and funk, more cosmic dance. 

Habibi Funk is again responsible for unveiling to broader audiences new sounds. Within the music scene of Africa and the Middle East they've been exploring, in loco, the releases of various artists long forgotten, or never discovered, by our western world. Their contribution to the European music scene is absolutely essential and invaluable. Jazz, Jazz, Jazz documents a special era of Sudanese music, providing a rare look inside the music that helped sustain a scene. Call it jazz, funk, cosmic dance music, this album will take you elsewhere.