I'm really struggling to categorize Robert Palmer's "Woke Up Laughing" from his 1980 album "Clues." The rhythm, apparently borrowed from an African mbira style, is central to the song, with a polyrhythmic structure that circles back to the "1" every 12 bars. Instead of getting bogged down in the technicalities of the rhythm, though, it's what gives the song this unique dreamy vibe. It's like the song drifts in like a dream. It starts off with Palmer riffing lyrics against the