Ali Farka Toure - The River (1990)

1. Ai Bine
2. Kenouna			play
3. Toungere
4. Heygana
5. Jungou
6. Goydiotodam
7. Lobo				
8. Tamala			
9. Boyrei			play
10. Tangambara
11. Instrumental

Personnel:
Ali Farka Toure (Guitar, Vocals and Njarka) 
Amadou Cisse (Calabash, Percussion and Vocals) 
Mamaye Kouyate (Ngoni) 
Rory McLeod (Harmonica)  
Seane Keane (Fiddle and Bodhran)  
Kevin Conneff (Fiddle and Bodhran) 
Steve Williamson (Tenor Saxophone) 

This 1990 recording contains one of the best African blues tunes ever recorded, and a classic Ali Farka Toure moment. As the electric guitar roars in at the opening, punctured by a darting harmonica line, "Heygana" lays out the roots and branches of the blues in its journey from west Africa to the Americas, and more importantly, back again. Sung in the Songhai language, pushed by a vaguely reggae groove and pulled along by a sometimes idiosyncratic percussion line on a calabash, it pretty well epitomizes what Toure is about. The sound is stripped down, with the guitar and voice working a bare minimum groove. The calabash clicks, a thick stringed ngoni adds some punch, and a few tracks feature Toure on the njarka (fiddle). In addition to Rory McLeod's harmonica, there is one piece with The Chieftains' Seane Keane and Kevin Conneff on fiddle and bodhran (Irish goatskin drum), and a marvelous duet with saxophonist Steve Williamson that adds a little sideways R&B. The River is one of Toure's most straightforward recordings made in the decade after the light of his international fame had first shone. ---Louis Gibson, Editorial Reviews

I listen to this cd for hours on a continuous loop at work. It's hypnotic yet complex with the African version of the sounds of the American south combined with his haunting voice. (Unfortunately I am a musical illiterate in terms of describing similar genres.) Beautiful twanging tunes and melodies. I bought it on a whim and am a complete devotee. --- Susie (Northern California), amazon.com

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