I think of this album in the same way as I do Ry Cooder's album with V M Bhatt, A Meeting by the River, in that it rewards your attention if you listen to it closely, but it doesn't demand your attention. You can put it on and let it plinkety-plink away in the background if you want — though you'd be a fool (and possibly guilty of 'coffee table' musical tourism into the bargain) if that's all you ever did.
In fact Ry Cooder plays on a couple of tracks on this album, including Mamadou Boutiquier, one of my favourites. I just put this on again, and the last track Hawa Dolo is sublime.
I got this last summer from Amazon, having heard bits of it on Andy Kershaw's radio programme and maybe on Late Junction as well.
Ha! Since writing the above paragraphs I've seen that the album is nominated for the BBC World Music Awards, and in the nomination, Ian Anderson writes:
I'm not quite sure why it was really necessary to have some later overdubbage by Ry Cooder with a bit whiffly electronica on Mamadou Boutiquier and Hawa Dolo since it neither really adds nor detracts, but if that's what's necessary to get the Mojo reading audience to pay attention, then no harm done… you'll be hearing it in cafés and dinner parties for years to come…
Well that's me outed and nailed with almost uncanny accuracy, then — though I very rarely read Mojo.
MusicBrainz entry for this album |
Comments