Rare West African music, reviews, discographies, videos, and more.

Radio Africa was originally the name of a radio programme that I presented on 3 CR in Melbourne. Click here for a playlist archive. It has since grown into this web site, devoted to the music of West Africa.

→ In memoriam - Talibé Traoré

It is with great sadness that I have learnt of the death of Talibé Traoré, the principal trumpeter in the orchestra Keletigui et ses Tambourinis. Talibé died when his motorcycle was hit by a taxi at 1am on February 5 in Conakry. A brief report is here with Justin Morel Jnr writing another here.

Talibé was one of the last great trumpeters of his generation. He originally played with the regional orchestra Télé Jazz from Télimélé, then joined Keletigui's orchestra in the early 1970s. He can be heard on Syliphone LP 55 - Le Rétour. He played alongside Kerfala Camara at a time when the Tambourinis boasted the best (and the biggest) brass section in Guinea. His trumpet tone was bright and strident, it made you sit up straight and take notice, and he was still a great trumpeter when I last saw him play in 2008. He provided a lot of assistance with the preparation for the recent Stern's Keletigui et ses Tambourinis "The Syliphone years" CD, supplying translations for the songs and histories of the group. He was so very friendly and helpful, a gentleman, and his passing away is tragic. I offer sincere condolences to his friends and family.

→ New publication

My latest book has recently been published. It is available from Amazon.

→ Radio Africa videos

Great and rare music videos from West Africa. Click here
 

→ African classics
Occasional reviews of rare and out of print classic recordings from Africa

L'Orchestre Kanaga de Mopti

   The decade of the 1970s was a golden era for the big bands of West Africa. State-funding in Guinea, Mali, Burkina Faso, and to a lesser extent, Senegal, had created a vast network of modern orchestras across the region. In Guinea alone there were more than 50 regional and national orchestras. In Mali, the regional orchestras performed for both state and private functions, and when performing under their private guise the orchestras used their commercial name. For example, the Regional Orchestra of Mopti also performed in their private guise as Kanaga de Mopti. In 1977 the Malian government released a series of LPs on the Mali Kunkan label highlighting some of the great Malian orchestras of the period. Kanaga de Mopti's release is pictured above.
   The opening track, Gambari, encapsulates the essence of the Malian orchestra style. The guitar solo, which evokes the best of Sékou "Diamond Fingers" Diabaté, assumes a central role, and explores the melody across several octaves. The solo is well-supported by electric organ, and the brass section is used sparingly to punctuate and reiterate the melody. All the sections of the orchestra combine in the last stanza of the song, thus unifying and reinforcing the theme. Gambari is unquestionably one of the great songs recorded by Mali's orchestras, yet, incredibly, it is available only on this LP. Side B opens with Kanaga, and a funk-laden organ solo which segues into one of the most compelling brass section riffs one is ever likely to come across. This song really swings and towers above its contemporaries. The track is followed by N'do N'do, another classic, featuring a weaving organ and staccato brass section. The backing vocalists propel the number with their call-and-response Fela-like chorus, and are led by the vocals of Sory Bamba, who is in career-best form throughout the LP.
   This record is quite simply one of West Africa's masterpieces. Why it has never been re-released is a tragedy, and one that underscores the need for a retrospective of Mali's regional orchestras. Other LPs on the Mali Kunkan label featured National Badema, Kéné Star de Mopti, Mystere Jazz de Tombouctou, L'Orchestre Sidi Yassa de Kayes, and L'Orchestre Bida de la Capitale, with only the National Badema LP released on CD. There are many other classic Malian orchestra recordings from the 1970s (for example, Regard sur le passé à travers le présent - 1973, Panorama du Mali - 1973, and the Rail Band's RCAM series of five LPs recorded in Nigeria in 1975) resting in the vaults, gathering dust, and waiting to be brought back to life.…
  
   For the discography of the Mali Kunkan label click here and for a discography of Malian vinyl recordings click here.
  
   L'Orchestre Kanaga de Mopti continues to perform today.