M bemba salif keita biography

Salif Keita - M'bemba

Salif Keita
M'bemba
Decca-Universal

Having been-there-and-done-that for more than 35 years, evolving from his early days fronting slinky Cuban-inflected tone-poems with the Rail Band and Les Ambassadeurs to his Paris-based eighties hi-tech heyday (Soro being the acme of this period), Salif Keita was inspired to move back home to his native Mali and reclaim his roots at the brink of the new millennium.

All rights reserved. The arrangements featured roiling rhythms, slightly nasal female backup choirs, and traditional percussion typical of Malian music. Tools Tools. The dual forces of tradition and modernity, of his heritage and his journeys throughout the world continue to add to his musical vocabulary.

One tangible result was Moffou, his Grammy-nominated masterpiece in Semi-acoustic and folklore-drenched, it remains his finest, most career-defining effort to date. For the follow-up release M'bemba, the good news is that not only has the singer-composer-bandleader continued to travel in a similar direction but he's retained most of the same personnel.

Among these are guitarists Ousmane Kouyaté and Kanté Manfila, both of whom have been collaborating with Keita for decades. Legendary kora (West African harp) virtuoso Toumani Diabaté also sits in, as does Mama Sissoko on ngoni. Thanks in part to their informed, sensitive contributions, the hits just keep coming. "Bobo," the opening track, is all relaxed graciousness and "Calculer," with its insouciant Congolese soukous swing and glistening guitars flicks its hips while lilting along.

On the final track, "Moriba," Keita's voice blares like a clarion over an eerie, repetitive figure played on a 7-string simbi shadowed by an answering choir. It is unsettling and utterly unforgettable.

Of course, the "Golden Voice Of Mali," being at once nobleman and troubadour, persecuted albino and international superstar, and crabby yet committed humanitarian, will probably always be something of a contradiction.

Salif keita Email address. All rights reserved. Rooted in his Malian heritage, Keita's music often references Mandinka traditions, folklore, and historical figures. Born albino in Mali, a land where such a condition was considered cursed, Keita was treated as an outcast by his family and community.

Not surprisingly, his output has often reflected this. While session players like percussionist Mino Cinelu and bassist Michel Alibo manage to defer to what is going on around them and color inside the lines, to say that Buju Banton's guest turn on "Ladji" breaks the mood would be wild understatement. Whoever made the decision to swath Keita's searing, agile, technically flawless tenor in gratuitous reverb, particularly during the hypnotic drama of "Laban," was also extremely misguided.

Amid the prevailing splendor, these may be relatively minor missteps, but they do lower the tone just enough to position M'bemba a notch below the towering achievement that was Moffou.

M bemba salif keita biography His first work after going home, 's Moffou , was hailed as his best album in many years, [ 8 ] and Keita was inspired to build a recording studio in Bamako, which he used for his album M'Bemba , released in October Selected discography [ edit ]. Retrieved 27 August Miriam Makeba vocals.

- Christina Roden

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