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Orchestra Baobab to Appear Live on KPFA's "Music of the World" Today

Orchestra Baobab kicked off their US tour in support of their latest album, Made in Dakar, last night at Yoshi's in San Francisco and will play at the club's Oakland venue tomorrow night. Today, at 11 AM PST (2 PM EST), the band will appear live on the listener-supported Berkeley radio station KPFA, 94.1 FM, program Music of the World.

Fans around the world can tune in live at kpfa.org.

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San Francisco Examiner's Derk Richardson understatedly suggests that "there would be a lot less meaningful ways" to spend one's hard-earned money than "to spring for the new Baobab CD, Made in Dakar, or ... to see this phenomenal band when it plays live in the Bay Area over the next several nights."

The band, with its Afro-Cuban roots, is in good company with its label mates in the Buena Vista Social Club, and then some. Baobab, says Richardson,

has enough Cuban feel to please fans of the late Compay Segundo, Rubén González and Ibrahim Ferrer, plus there's lead guitarist Barthélemy Attisso unraveling solos that rival B.B. King, Peter Green and Carlos Santana for fluid emotional expression, and original singer/percussionists Balla Sidibe and Rudy Gomis as well as Wolof singer Ndiouga Dieng ... casting indelible vocal spells and inducing ecstatic swoons.

Read the article at examiner.com.

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Spinner.com's Steve Hochman spoke with Attiso, the band's guitarist, about how life has changed for the band since their early days in the 1970s, when they first came together and were "key in the development of West African music," in Hochman's words. As the writer sees it:

On the new album, the rumba lilt is as persuasive and seductive as ever, woven with the various shades of Afrobeat, and Attisso's guitar retains the distinctive fluid sting that was crucial to the old recordings. And throughout there is a sense of deep appreciation for both past and present successes and the people who have been parts of that.

Read the interview at spinner.com.

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The Christian Science Monitor's Stephen Humphries examines the rise in popularity in the US and Europe of the music of West Africa. Writes Humphries:

West Africa may be one of the poorest regions in the world but it boasts a natural resource of astonishing wealth: its music. In recent years, the aural riches of Mali, Niger, Senegal, and Gambia have been gaining currency in America and Europe through several ambassadors.

Including among those the Monitor cites in this group: Orchestra Baobab, Amadou & Mariam, Ali Farka Toure, Oumou Sangare, and Toumani Diabate.

To read the article, visit csmonitor.com.

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The Monitor's Norman Weinstein reviews two new records from that set of West African luminaries: Orchestra Baobab's Made in Dakar and Diabate's The Mandé Variations.

"Named after a sturdy African tree with healing properties," writes Weinstein of Orchestra Baobab, "this 11-piece Senegalese band proves as life-affirming as its namesake." The band, he says, "uncannily merge Caribbean rhythms, American soul mannerisms, and Congolese dance styles into a spectacular display of brash virtuosity."

In trying to conceptualize the unique artis that is Toumani Diabate, Weinstein suggests imagining a kora player who "listens carefully to Jimi Hendrix, UB40's reggae-rock, blues, and flamenco" then "invents a technique of playing bass lines and melodic embellishments that suggest hearing two or more musicians simultaneously." What Diabate has created from such an undertaking on The Mandé Variations:

An astonishing tour de force: a solo kora recital of exquisite delicacy, breathtaking improvisational skill, and elegiac stateliness.

Those reviews can also be found at csmonitor.com.

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Click here to add Orchestra Baobab's Made in Dakar CD now for $16 and download the album MP3s, including the exclusive Nonesuch Store bonus track, "Mamadou," at no extra charge.

Click here to add Toumani Diabate's The Mande Variations CD directly to your Shopping Cart for $16, along with the album MP3s at no additional cost.

Guardian Names 1,000 Must-Hear Albums (Part 2: N-Z)

The Guardian has revealed the last batch of albums on its list of the 1,000 all-time must-hears. Earlier this week, we brought you Nonesuch artists A through M on the list. Here are N through Z, along with the Guardian's take on each:

• Orchestra Baobab: Specialist in All Styles (World Circuit/Nonesuch; 2002) "Until the arrival of Youssou N'Dour and his frantic mbalax style in the 80s, Orchestra Baobab dominated the Dakar music scene with their fine harmonies and blend of Latin and African styles. Invited to reform after a break of 16 years, they sounded as fresh and engaging as ever—and this time around, the quality of their recordings was vastly improved."

• Astor Piazzolla: Tango Zero Hour (1986, r. 1998) "It's impossible to summarise up the career and influence of the great Argentine nuevo tango composer and bandoneon-player. However, this Kip Hanrahan–produced studio album caught Piazzolla and his New Tango Quintet at the height of their powers."

• Radio Tarifa: Rumba Argelina (World Circuit/Nonesuch; 1993, r. 1997) "For more than a decade, Radio Tarifa were the quintessential world music band, mixing Moorish and African sounds and rhythms with catchy tunes. Singer Benjamin Escoriza adds a gritty charisma to the cleverly crafted studio concoctions of Vincent Molino and Fain S Duenas."

• Oumou Sangare: Moussolou (World Circuit/Nonesuch; 1991, r. 1999) "One of the finest female singers in Mali, Oumou Sangare is a national celebrity both for her songs and for the messages behind them. On this early recording, she was backed by a small band dominated by guitar, kamelngoni and a mournful violin that matches her fine, thoughtful songs of advice to women."

• SF Jazz Collective: SF Jazz Collective (2005) "Under Joshua Redman's leadership, the SFJC pioneered a new approach to jazz repertoire that complements their better-funded counterparts in the 'straight' world. This is the first of a series of beautifully recorded live concerts that uses Ornette Coleman's compositions as a springboard to new work."

• Taraf de Haïdouks: Band of Gypsies (2001) "International success for these gifted Romanians took their government by surprise. This generous and energetic live album boosts the collective's family core with guests including Kocani Orchestra and Bulgarian clarinetist Filip Simeonov, resulting in exultant tracks such as 'Bride in a Red Dress' and the breakneck 'Carolina.'"

• Rokia Traoré: Bowmboï (2004) "The most bravely experimental female performer in Africa, Rokia Traoré started out matching her cool, clear vocals against her own acoustic guitar and traditional instruments such as the ngoni. Here she is joined by the strings of the Kronos Quartet."

• Wilco: Yankee Hotel Foxtrot (2002) "By their fourth album, Jeff Tweedy's once stoutly country-rock group had spread their wings. Frazzled Krautrock, shortwave static and Tweedy's lovelorn melodicism formed the basis of Yankee Hotel Foxtrot, to stunning effect."

Also listed were Youssou N'Dour (Immigres), Scritti Politti (Songs to Remember), and Caetano Veloso (Definitive Collection [UK]).

Check out the complete list at music.guardian.co.uk.