Delta blues and Tuvan throat-singing: Paul Pena and Genghis Blues

In the Christmas episode of sf writer Spider Robinson's delightfully eclectic podcast (I'm running a little behind in my podcasts right now), Spider introduced the work of American bluesman Paul Pena, playing a couple of his tracks. I was blown away.

Pena, a blind musician, was captivated by the sounds of Tuvan throat-singing, which he encountered for the first time on a late-night shortwave transmission. He taught himself to throat-sing, and met with and befriended Kongar-ol Ondar, forming the band Genghis Blues, which merged throat-singing with Delta blues in a marvellous and haunting way.

Pena died tragically after a misdiagnosis of pancreatic cancer led to his being addicted to -- and then brutally denied -- heavy painkillers, and subsequently died from pancreatitis and complications from diabetes. (Set sez, "He was never brutally denied painkillers -- after he found out that the first Dr. made a mistake in diagnosis, he finally found a competent and good Dr. who helped him manage his pain, quite compassionately, up until the end. ")

His music is a rich legacy, though. The combination of Tuvan throat-singing and the blues is not to be believed -- or missed. MP3 link to Spider's podcast (Pena segment starts about 5:20), Genghis Blues DVD, Genghis Blues CD

Information on Genghis Blues, Paul Pena homepage, Paul Pena on Wikipedia,

Spider Robinson podcast

[#1 posted by backstab , January 19, 2008 2:14 AM]

this is an awesome documentary. i suggest anyone interested in music to check it out.

[#2 posted by Takuan , January 19, 2008 2:26 AM]

Not just music. Pena's heart and courage shine.

[#3 posted by hassan-i-sabbah , January 19, 2008 4:55 AM]

Awesome!!
Thanks.Really great ace podcast!

[#4 posted by bunnyman2112 , January 19, 2008 6:18 AM]

When Frank Zappa was dying from cancer, he held "soirees" in his studio. One of which featured the Throat Singers jamming with Johnny "Guitar" Watson, and the Chieftans. I saw a couple minutes of it on the A & E Zappa Biography show, but I'd LOVE to hear the whole set!

[#5 posted by soubriquet , January 19, 2008 6:30 AM]

If you liked Paul Pena....
You might like the Mongolian band Yat-Kha, led by Albert Kuvezhin.
I posted a track here:- http://preview.tinyurl.com/2sfyne..
The track is off the album "Re-Covers".
Or there's a great Polish band with throatsingers.... Yerba Mater... You'll find them here- http://preview.tinyurl.com/2nzlpq along with Masala Soundsystem.......
The Internet has wonderful diversity.....
I found all these after an interest in Tuva was sparked by Dr Richard Feynman, physicist. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Feynman

[#6 posted by MHotel , January 19, 2008 6:59 AM]

The documentary Genghis Blues is awesome... There is an interesting point where it changes from novel to gripping when it really hits Pena that nothing around him is familiar, a hard thing for a blind person to cope with.

Also, lots of background Feynman goodness.

[#7 posted by Kaiser , January 19, 2008 8:22 AM]

I had no idea Paul was dead. I'm sitting here utterly shocked.

[#8 posted by horsepj , January 19, 2008 8:37 AM]

I liked the movie as well as the soundtrack. I second the recommendation of Yat-Kha, I saw them here in Indiana doing the music for the silent film "Storm Over Asia". The projectionist could not get the movie started for an hour and a half, so they gave us an impromptu concert. I also recommend Hun Huur Tu.

[#9 posted by am , January 19, 2008 9:12 AM]

Genghis Blues is not just a good documentary. In my opinion, it is one of the five or so greatest documentaries of all time. If you open your heart to it, and let yourself really understand and feel what is happening in it, you will be blown away.

[#10 posted by Infinite Decay , January 19, 2008 9:38 AM]

I remember being fascinated by Kongar-ol Ondar when he performed on Letterman a few years back. (Here's a clip of this that I found on YouTube.)

[#11 posted by Clifton , January 19, 2008 9:44 AM]

Genghis Blues is a amazing film. Incredible heart, incredible people. (Netflix has it, if you don't want to buy a copy sight unseen.)

[#12 posted by soubriquet , January 19, 2008 11:05 AM]

Further to my earlier comments ande links, I forgot this one, I posted Paul Pena/Kongar-ol Ondar, Kargyraa Moan, Here:- http://preview.tinyurl.com/36vpa8

Enjoy!

[#13 posted by andydub , January 19, 2008 12:09 PM]

Paul Pena also studied with Jill Purce, and apparently she was the person he heard on the shortwave broadcast. Here she is introduced by Terence McKenna:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DJdmTqRMvVM

[#14 posted by elsmiley , January 19, 2008 1:26 PM]

I have pancreatitis. As a devout atheist/existentialist, I would readily kill my worst enemy, but I would not wish this horribly painful malady on him.

Trip out: When it flares up, about every 4 months or so, I take heroin to deal with the pain, and I'm not a drug user otherwise--at all. I can't go to hospital any more because they think I'm just trying to get free drugs from them. I have no choice.

[#15 posted by Takuan , January 19, 2008 1:37 PM]

I've heard pot helps.

[#16 posted by elsmiley , January 19, 2008 1:51 PM]

Thanks for the suggestion. Mokin' a yoint? No offense, but you don't realize the intensity. It's way beyond THC.

[#17 posted by Takuan , January 19, 2008 2:56 PM]

the gods be with you then

[#18 posted by FmGT , January 19, 2008 3:48 PM]

Hey, Pena is absolutely fantastic. I've been a fan of his for quite some time. At the moment, my blog is hosting his debut album [out of print]...

http://feedmegoodtunes.blogspot.com/2007/06/loose-review-paul-pena-paul-pena.html

Enjoy this! It's a masterpiece, easily trumping his other release, New Train.

JT

[#19 posted by lukobe , January 19, 2008 6:50 PM]

Great doc--loved it when it came out and picked it up on DVD last year.

Surprised no one's mentioned that almost everyone reading this has heard at least one Paul Pena song before: "Jet Airliner," made famous by one Steve Miller...

[#20 posted by craig1st , January 20, 2008 9:23 PM]

It's nice to see this added recognition. Paul was a luminary.

[#21 posted by scruzia , January 20, 2008 9:25 PM]

One of Ondar's albums is called Back Tuva Future. I wrote a bit about Genghis Blues a few years ago.

[#22 posted by raytube , January 21, 2008 8:08 AM]

I must take a moment to add in:
Afrissippi

"Senegalese native and North Mississippi transplant Guelel Kumba plays amplified acoustic guitar and sings in Fulani. Able backing comes from guitarist and Junior Kimbrough apprentice Eric Deaton, Kimbrough's son Kinney (drums), R.L. Burnside's grandson Cedric (drums), a host of North Mississippi session men, and other guests including Memphis sax-flute journeyman Herman Green (Lionel Hampton, B.B. King, Miles Davis) and activist-poet-jazz historian-promoter-DJ John Sinclair (of MC5 and White Panther fame, and a New Orleans resident since the early 1990s)..."

http://www.cdroots.com/tg-afri.html
http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=65053284

[#23 posted by hassan-i-sabbah , January 24, 2008 4:56 AM]

Thanks BB! thanks to all posters who have given me more insight into Paul Pena,just finished watching the doc - blown away -cultural curiosity is a beautiful human trait,intrinsic in our very nature,more so than fear and suspicion.Truly heart warming.Music can bring us together.
elsmiley - My heart goes out to you.