Track Listing

1. Namania
2. N'Tesse
3. Africa
4. Fimani
5. N'Ba
6. Mali Ba
7. Barra
8. N'Teri
9. Nta Dima
10. Massak�
11. Titati

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #58123 in Music
• Brand: Dig
• Released on: 2007-09-25
• Number of discs: 1
• Dimensions: .22 pounds

Album Description
After a six year absence from the recording studio, Malian guitarist Habib Koité and his band Bamada return with a stunning new album. Afriki finds the group in fine form, and features an appealing set of songs that reflect Habib's unique approach to the diverse styles of Malian music.

"His reputation as a guitar player has become almost mythical, combining rock and classical techniques with Malian tunings that make the guitar sound like a kora or ngonni." The New York Times

"the biggest pop star of the West African nation of Mali." Rolling Stone

"... in his case, the unfamiliarity of the language was no problem, largely because of his communicative manner - kneeling down at the stage edge to interact with the crowd - dancing in unison with his musicians - made such a clear - nonverbal connection with his listeners." The Los Angeles Times

From the Artist
It seems ironic that an album that was recorded on three continents finds Habib focusing so intently on his roots. As always, Habib takes a unique pan-Malian approach, drawing on a wide range of cultural expressions from the diverse regions of his native land. A number of guest musicians added new flavors to the group's sound. For the first time, Habib invited female singers to lend their striking tonality to his compositions. Hassey Sarré, the late violinist for Ali Farka Touré and Afel Bocoum's, contributed haunting melodies and ornaments on "Barra". On the song "Nta Dima", Habib invited a troupe of traditional animal horn trumpet players in an effort to expose a fading musical legacy.

The overarching theme of Afriki, which means "Africa" in the Malian Bambara language, is about the strengths and challenges of Mali in particular and the African continent in general. He speaks to a young generation of Africans in the hopes of convincing them to cherish their traditions and recognize the positive aspects of life in Africa.

About the Artist
Malian guitarist Habib Koité is one of Africa's most popular and recognized musicians. Habib Koité was born in 1958 in Thiès, a Senegalese town situated on the railway line connecting Dakar to Niger, where his father worked on the construction of the tracks. Six months after his birth, the Koité family returned to the regional capital of west Mali, Kayes, and then to Bamako. Habib comes from a noble line of Khassonké griots, traditional troubadors who provide wit, wisdom and musical entertainment at social gatherings and special events. Habib grew up surrounded by seventeen brothers and sisters, and developed his unique guitar style accompanying his griot mother. He inherited his passion for music from his paternal grandfather who played the kamele n'goni, a traditional four-stringed instrument associated with hunters from the Wassolou region of Mali. "Nobody really taught me to sing or to play the guitar," explains Habib, "I watched my parents, and it washed off on me."

Habib was headed for a career as an engineer, but on the insistence of his uncle, who recognized Habib's musical talent, he enrolled at the National Institute of Arts (INA) in Bamako, Mali. In 1978, after only six months, he was made conductor of INA Star, the school's prestigious band. He studied music for four years, graduating at the top of his class in 1982. (In fact his talent was so impressive, that upon graduation, the INA hired him as a guitar teacher). During his studies, Habib had the opportunity to perform and play with a series of recognized Malian artists, including Kélétigui Diabaté and Toumani Diabaté. He sang and played on Toumani Diabaté's 1991 release Shake the World (Sony), and Kélétigui Diabaté is now a full-time member of Habib's band.

Habib takes some unique approaches to playing the guitar. He tunes his instrument to the pentatonic scale and plays on open strings as one would on a kamale n'goni. At other times Habib plays music that sounds closer to the blues or flamenco, two styles he studied under Khalilou Traoré a veteran of the legendary Afro-Cuban band Maravillas du Mali. Unlike the griots, his singing style is restrained and intimate with varying cadenced rhythms and melodies.

Mali has rich and diverse musical traditions, which have many regional variations and styles that are particular to the local cultures. Habib is unique because he brings together different styles, creating a new pan-Malian approach that reflects his open-minded interest in all types of music. The predominant style played by Habib is based on the danssa, a popular rhythm from his native city of Keyes. He calls his version danssa doso, a Bambara term he coined that combines the name of the popular rhythm with the word for hunter's music (doso), one of Mali's most powerful and ancient musical traditions.

Customer Reviews

Laidback and enjoyable.
Koité is without a doubt one of Mali's biggest international artists and is one of Africa's biggest-selling acts having sold more than 250,000 albums around the globe.
In the US, one of his most successful territories, he has collaborated with Bonnie Raitt, appeared on the Dave Letterman show, has been called "Mali's biggest pop star" by Rolling Stone, been featured in a 2-page photo spread in Vanity Fair and has received rave reviews in People, Entertainment Weekly and the New York Times ("His reputation as a guitar player has become almost mythical"). And how about this for a mainstream achievement: two tracks from his first album Muso Ko were included with Microsoft Windows Vista, meaning that his music will be installed on many millions of PCs.
It's been six years since his beautuful last release Baro.
Listening to his new allbum Afriki is like having an old friend coming to visit, full of great tales and smiles.
Only a few minutes into this music and you almost forget that it hasn't always been part of your record collection. It brims with all those comforting things that set the experimental griot Koité apart from most of his contemporaries.
The husky voice, catchy choruses, trickling guitar patterns and clever jigsaw of Mali's myriad musical traditions - all are there. Even the quality of the mix reflects his earlier works. Koité was one of the first artists to break the mould of the thunder-voiced song and ancient repertoire associated with the Mande griots, Mali's traditional praise singers.
He preferred to search the length and breadth of his home country, collecting ideas and inspiration from a huge variety of traditional sounds. Others have since followed in his footsteps, yet Koité's musical universe remains entirely his own.
The main theme looks at developing Africa's strengths and getting Africans themselves to see that what they have can be worth a lot and is worth championing. The familiar range of Malian styles is adapted on the track "Afriki" by some nifty Pee Wee Ellis horn arrangements.
On "Afriki", almost every corner of the country is nodded to in the intricate guitar and percussion patterns that carry all of his songs. There are touches of desert blues, of the griot's ngoni (lute), and even an eerie chorus of hunters' antelope horns that softly caresses the clever arrangement of "Nta Dima" and lifts it to a rare level of musical beauty.
He has also a gloriously easy-going vocal style.
This set is a dash too laidback, though. As ever, he mixes influences from across Mali, but all are given the same gently sophisticated treatment.
The introduction of different instrumentation brings some variety, but when the string arrangements appear on "N'teri", it seems as if he is aiming for the easy-listening mass market.
All in all, it's a very enjoyable listening experience.

Stereo Spirit

A welcome contribution to international music collections.
The first studio album released by "Africa's musical ambassador" Habib Koite in six years, Afriki is a soothing album embracing traditional rhythms and themes. The Malian Bambara language lyrics touch upon themes vital to Africa today, including the value of facing challenges head-on at home. In Koite's own words, "People here in Africa are willing to risk death trying to leave for Europe or the USA, but they are not willing to take the risk staying to develop something here in Africa." The powerful, positive messages are carried through acoustic sound, including some traditional instruments as polyphonic hunter's horns, the balafon (wooden xylophone), n'goni (Malian lute), and Habib's well-known voice and guitar. A welcome contribution to international music collections.

Magical soulful music from Mali
Habib Koite is by far my favorite African musician, a true embassador of his beloved country: Mali and a crusader of peace, love and human rights!
I had the enormous blessing to see him in concert! Mmmm... such a beautiful multi-talented man, such a glorious vibrant spirit!
Habib's voice is like no other, extremely pure, heart opening, healing, inspiring, loving, passionate and beautiful.
He is an amazing composer, singer and guitarist and through his wondrous music can take you to places in your soul that you have never been! I own all of his CDs and love every single one of his songs. He's truly heaven sent. Simply magnificent!