Kim Jung Mi (perfect Korean psychedelic folk)

One of my favourite albums is Now by Kim Jung Mi. She was a singer during the 70's in South Korea and has one of the most beautiful voices I've ever heard. A dude named Shin Jung Hyun took her on as his protogé, having her make albums of songs that he had written and recorded with his bands The Men and The Donkeys. As far as I know he was held in very high regard back then in Korea but was all but unknown outside. he blended traditional Korean folk with modern rock and pop, in the same way as bands like The Fairport Convention and the likes were doing with British traditional folk. It sounds like a potentially quaint, cheesy and lame, or even kitsche combination. However, there is something about Shin Jung Hyun's mind that allows him to take the best parts of each tradition and combine them to create something timeless while at the same time being very of it's time, unique, beautiful, cool, and nostalgic. It's a great record. Listen for yourselves. Here are some tracks I uploaded to youtube:









Enjoy.