Africa music reviews

The first time I heard "Danca ma Mi", I fell in love with the album. I've seen him in concert several times and must add that his stage presence is magical. His wonderful Band defines "harmony".

...and I was there. Well, actually the week before in downtown San Jose at a little joint called te Eulipa Cafe.John was there, so was the other John, John Garcia of Gilroy, wringing the hell out of the guitar. The drummer was a mountain of a man. (About ten years later John Lee and Buddy Miles played at a little deli in Campbell. John Lee sat at our table, we talked awhile, but I digress)Anyway, when I saw John in 77 it was a week before this Palo Alto show...It is the Cream.Listen to that Bar Room Drinking. I've been there. That little bar, where real men are saddled up on their stools with their shot glasses. Their eyes squint when the door opens and lets in the sunlight cause its serious afternoon bar room drinking, drinking to forget, drinking away those blues...I originally found this recording in Germany in 1980 in a little shop outside Kirch Goens US Army Post...I still play it...Ten years after first seeing John Lee, my buddy and I did a documentary with John. We recorded a show in San Francisco...Maybe one day we will release it, who knows..I remember what John Lee told me one day when sitting on his couch in his modest Redwood Shores home. Said John Lee, "The Blues was born when woman was born."But in the meantime, enjoy this recording cause its truly The Cream.

The usual suspects of guinean music (Balla, Bembeya, ....)are not present on this album instead the Syli Authentiique,the Djoli Band, the Super Boiro Band, the Camayenne Sofas and the Horoya Band prove the breadth of talent in the music, songs like "Andree", "Sakonke", "Daba", the excellent "Kha Mu Lan Ma" ,"Kulumba" and "Artistes" celebrate the "Revolution" its leaders and love. The melodies and instrumentations are superb on this great piece of work.

I have never been to the home countries of these two artists but over the years I have listened to this album many times and always felt as nostalgic about Africa as these two men obviously do. This
is a haunting, dreamy album that flows from song to song. It evokes a time and a place so different from the living room that I usually hear it in. This is an album for anyone who wants a taste of a different world without the rigors of travel. A true dream song. Listen to it for yourself. Fabulous.

This album by the Duo "Sawt el Atlas" welcomes you with a blend of different sounds like tribal rhythms, tropical beats and oriental vibes that are put together to create an original music made of ra�, funk, R&B, reggae and latino sounds.This album Includes the participation of the singer Natacha Atlas. If you love an album with a diversity in music and sensual rhythms, than you will definitely enjoy this CD named "Donia". You can also visit their website at to have a better understanding of what this wonderful duo is about.Take care and hope you enjoy this CD.

A great record, tracing the roots of the hypnotic ju-ju style popularized by King Sunny Ade... In the 1950s, guitarist Henri Bowane was the bandleader of the Congo's Loningisa Studios, and guided the career of the great pop star Franco; in the '60s he worked with Ry-Co Jazz, and later with Sam Mangwana. This is the first release of Bowane's only solo album, recorded in 1976 and shelved for many years. It's groovy stuff, full of ringing guitars and a clear James Brown influence in the driving, back beat-heavy rhythm. Highly recommended!

A friend in S. Africa sent me this CD. I don't care for jazz; in fact I'm a classical fan. But this CD won me over instantly. It begins with Gumboot Dance, a Xhosa game song for children, and a mood lifter for anyone. It progresses through more African traditional music (some instrumental, some with Zulu or Xhosa lyrics) to some modern-sounding jazzlike vibraphone stuff. This is perfect music to listen to, dance to, write a doctoral dissertation to, or just enjoy!

This is an excellent collector's set. Complete with 24 page booklet containing authoratative writing on the music, discography, and rare photos from original recording sessions. It speaks volumes about the youth-culture driven recording industry in the U.S. (and perhaps the mark of a major cultural difference regarding the importance of music to society) that this difinitive collection of Olatunji's recordings was produced by a German label that does not even specialize in African or World Beat music. The owner of the label was so taken by Olatunji's music it became his pet project to do the box set so it is thorough, well designed and will more than satisfy the archivist as well as the fan. The box set includes rare singles ('Lady Kennedy', written and performed for Jackie at a democratic fundraiser in the 60's) along with all the full-length recordings for the major U.S. labels. Because of multi-instrumentation centered on drums and percussion, which even today with advances in technology remain a challenge to record, and because of the technique of recording 'live' much of the collection resonates with an historical timbre. Olatunji is the original, historic figure who brought traditional African music to the commercial record industry at a time when rock'n'roll was about to transform it. His recording career began in 1959 and as of 2002 he was still a working musician. The appeal and influence of his music was broad based, leading top jazz musicians as well as popular music artists from Coltrane to Dylan, Dizzy Gillespie to Joan Baez and Carlos Santana, to take serious notice. This is music that is undeniably powerful, moody, exhilarating and joyous, qualities artists sought to achieve in every genre, and qualities that easily make any music a hit with record buyers. It is evident one of Olatunji's greater talents was in bringing together large and small ensembles to present African music as a very positive artistic force. Because of his wide range of activities as musician, cultural ambassador, teacher, cultural activist, there will be more efforts that will seek to collect his work. But this is the first. It is extremely well done, and way overdue.

A gorgeous collection of early Congolese pop, recorded around 1960. This features some of the biggest names in the business, early in their careers, artists like Manu Dibangu, Docteur Nico and Grand Kalle, performing in a number of record label "house bands," which had nondescript names like the African Team, African Jazz, Negro Succes, etc.... Interestingly, this CD is not a new set that was assembled after the fact: it is actually a reissue of a compilation album that came out in the early '60s. Features plenty of unbelievably cool, hypnotic guitar work, some relatively mellow horn charts, and several tunes that are real doozies, in particular, "Tika Kutupende Kolo," which seems to take its main riff from the song "La Bamba..." This is thoughtfully followed by a fine example of African-style Cuban-flavored rumba, also by the band, African Jazz. An outstanding album -- highly recommended!

While I like certain tracks on this CD, I regularly fast forward others which seem to be Sabar drumming not djembe. What I think is unfortunate is that this CD should showcase distinct rhythms that we know and love from the West African diaspora and not simply concentrate on cranked up soloing. It is very difficult to hear the Dun Dun parts behind the blur of the blazing solos and there is a lack of echauffments so typical of Guinea arrangement niceties. This CD really seems to be missing some traditional songs and vocals which would have definitely enhanced these recordings.

Don't get me wrong some of the solos are utterly sick and you can pick up some chops if you listen to it over and over again while playing along.

Volumes 1 and 2 in this series provide excellent Djembe. Volume 1 is a drum and dance ensemble. What you don't see by CD is the choreography and athleticism of the performers. VERY lively performance, and we need more of these performances to expose more people to native African culture. Volume 2 provides absolutely excellent djembe playing by Famoudou Konate, one of the living masters of this drum. While I have not seen him play live, it sounds like he has a large, deeper than normal voiced drum that makes his rhythms sound unique. From track 1 of volume 1 to the ending track of volume 2, it is all excellent African drums. They can be used as a jump start of any drum circle, if you can keep up. Also see my reviews for "Djembe" in the French "Air Mail" CD series and "African Drums" by Mamady Keita. If you have an African Drum CD collection, all of the above are "must haves." Play along. If more people were pounding on drums instead of people, this world would be a better place.

We saw this show live and had to get the cd. It is amazing and some of the fastest, complex drumming I have ever heard. These musicians not only play their instruments, they dance with a fervor at the same time!! You will not be disappointed with this CD if you are into drumming. We tried to play a 10 second drum phrase ourselves from this cd but that was ALL we could play because it was so fast and everchanging. This CD will give you something to strive for in your own drumming.