Ali Farka Touré - Talking Timbuktu

Ali Farka Touré est originaire de Kanau, un village proche du fleuve Niger, à environ 65 km de Tombouctou. Il appartient à une famille noble de l’ethnie Djerma, elle-même issue de l’ethnie Songhaï. Son père était un militaire, il décède pendant la Seconde Guerre mondiale. Sa famille s’installe alors à Niafunké (250 km au sud-ouest de Tombouctou). Il ne fréquente pas l’école, il passe ses journées à travailler aux champs. Déjà, il s’intéresse à la musique, et plus particulièrement à certains instruments : le gurkel, petite guitare traditionnelle, le njerka, violon populaire, la flûte peul ou le luth ngoni à quatre cordes.

Farka Touré commence alors une carrière solo en donnant des concerts dans toute l’Afrique de l’Ouest. Son premier disque Farka sort en 1976. Dans les années 1980, il effectue plusieurs tournées internationales en Europe, au Japon et aux États-Unis. Après quelques albums à succès, il enregistre en 1991 The Source avec le bluesman Taj Mahal et s’ouvre ainsi à la fusion de la World music. La sortie en 1993 de l’album Talking Timbuktu en duo avec Ry Cooder, le guitariste américain, le propulsera sur la scène internationale avec succès : il reçoit un Grammy Award pour cet album.

Ali Farka Toure - TalKing Tinbuktu

Pass: Kristalna

Wah! - Jai Jai Jai

For Special Friends than like Western musical styles and Eastern spirituality come together seamlessly on Wah!'s Jai Jai Jai, an intoxicating album of chants themed after love, wisdom and praise. The serene sounds of light harmonium, pennywhistle, violin, percussion and guitar comprise the flowing backdrops on which Wah!'s call-and-response style Sanskrit mantras float airily, like whispers on the wind. Shri Krishna, which slowly builds in intensity as the song progresses, is a great example of joyous, uplifting chanting that has universal appeal. Another highlight is Om Mani Padme Hum - a beautiful song whose use of whistle, guitar and Wah!'s ethereal vocals almost make it sound

celtic

This melodic album proved a delight to listen to, sing along with, and gives the listener an opportunity to relax in its rhythmic tunes, from the round-like refrains of Bolo Ram to the soft chant of Gayatri. Bolo Ram consists of several distinct mantras, and begins with Wah!’s solo voice accompanied by the harmonium, then segues into a more up-tempo rhythmic praise tune with a jazz guitar and shaker, then into a more responsive choral effort complete with a men’s choir and additional instruments. As the end nears, the chants grow slower and quieter, bringing the listener to a devotional attitude. With Sri Krishna, Wah! gives us a more bluesy approach, not something one would expect for an Indian chant, but which works nonetheless. Also very reminiscent of the musical chants of the Hare Krishna movement in the 1970s (for those of us who happen to remember—and perhaps miss—those times of Flower Power and Free Love). Shyam Bolo Jai and Durge are two songs of praise, the first to Krishna, and the latter to the Divine Mother. Shyam is light, almost playful in its presentation, while Durge is more solemn, but still delightful. The album ends with Gayatri, a light, flowing musical meditation on the three planes of existence — mortal, immortal and divine. My one complaint? Wah! presents one song in English—What She Has to Give—a light jazzy blues number that, to be quite frank, I really don’t think fits in with the rest of the musical offerings. In spite of the fact that it’s written about a saint from southern India, this song’s style doesn’t suit the up-beat pop devotional aspect of the album.

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