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pendence Malian music with indigenous influences, hence the range of Peul, Bambara and Dogon traditions we hear, filtered through the unmistakeably funky, grainy sound of ‘70s West African big band music (although the Latin American influence is never that far away).
Bamba is pictured on the back of the CD sleeve with his trademark six-holed flute, but the key format during the decade cov- ered here is the dense, dry peal of electric guitar (Kanté Manfila amongst the greats cutting their teeth), off-centre horns, spongy organ and clattering percussion that form a broiling, soulful undercarriage to Bamba’s vocals, a range of suave call and response and stac cato raps.
The flute’s there at times of course, flightily leading in Astan Kelly’s swaying Cubano-Bambara groove, popping up on the borderline-shambolic off-beat closing track Sare Mabo, and trading winding solos with guitarist Mamadou Koko Dembélé on the Regional Orchestra of Mopti’s driving flag song Boro. The natural tendency was to keep the tempo brisk, reflecting Sorry’s back- ground as director of Mopti’s regional dance troupe. But it’s an equally impressive sound when the brakes are on. Gambari, with its pendulum swing of clanging guitar and its vivid horn arrangement, and the rolling blues Sekou Amadou allow the musicians to unwind and stretch the melody as vocals punctuate and colour proceedings. The eleven-minute dance number Porry takes centre-stage though, a brightly sung tale of the dangers of alcoholism intoned against a backdrop of snaking trumpet, whirling organ and bristling rhythm guitar. Irresistible.
www.thrilljockey.com Con Murphy
KATE & ANNA MCGARRIGLE Tell My Sister Nonesuch 7559-79770-8
Odditties Querbeservice
There’s going to be a sting of poignancy with any McGarrigles release in the wake of Kate’s sad departure. As with many of us, I find it hard to reach an objective position. My child- hood years were infused with Kate & Anna’s records. I feel an intense emotional bond with their sound and their songs; desert island no-brainers, comfort blankets, spirit lifters and sure-fire tear-inducers, they are interlocking pieces in the jigsaw puzzle of life, as someone once said.
Anna & Kate McGarrigle Joe Boyd’s re-mastered versions of Kate
& Anna McGarrigle (1975) and Dancer With Bruised Knees (1977) reveal anew the sisters’ delicious harmonic alchemy, their generosity and warmth. Immersed again in these two classics, we can revel in their much-cited front parlour intimacy – with those songs that explore life in all its aspects, from the trivial (Loudon’s Swimming Song) to the dev- astating (Anna’s Heart Like A Wheel). We can relish their rich French Canadian heritage in traditional song arrangements like Blanche Comme La Neige, or in Kate’s bluesy honky- tonks like Kiss & Say Goodbye, the reggae- beat novelty of Complainte Pour Ste-Cather- ine or just plain weep at the heart-wrench- ing humanity and knowing sentimentality of numbers like The Walking Song, Go Leave or Talk To Me Of Mendocino.
The third disc is a dusted-off attic trea-
sure of previously unreleased demos from 1971-1974. Direct, looking-you-right-in-the- eye versions of many familiar songs and some rarities, these are honestly captured, tendersweet moments, coughs and laughs ‘n’all. The simplicity of it has just as much weight as the two richly arranged other albums. Among many lovely moments: lumi- nous vocal of Roses Blanches, the bare-boned sadness of Willie Moore and the in-the-room intensity of Tell My Sister.
Also discussed in this issue’s feature,
Odditties offers another insight into the duo’s musical journey: a rich array of much-loved McGarrigle songs selected and recorded for a variety of projects between 1973 and 1990. It documents both their broad-ranging taste – from The Log Driver’s Waltz to the lo-fi delights of A La Claire Fontaine – and that fine line between vulnerability and strength that characterises their vocals. Odditties is one for completists, a whimsical and welcome addi- tion to any McGarrigles collection.
www.mcgarrigles.com Sarah Coxson OWINY SIGOMA BAND
Owiny Sigoma Band Brownswood Recordings BWOOD062CD
This album’s all about mood, groove and texture. It shouldn’t really work at all. After all, haven’t we
had enough of western rock musicians mess- ing about with one African tradition or another, usually in order to advance their own ego or as some exotic plank to prop up
Photo: Randy Saharuni
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