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1973-1980 (2-LP) - Amara Toure
Titel : 1973-1980 (2-LP)
Artiest(en) : Amara Toure
Genre : Vinyl: LPs nieuw, African
Medium : Vinyl
Jaar : 06-2015
Label : Analog Africa
€ 27,99
10-track by extraordinary Guinean singer showcasing Cuban music with African influence. 2x 180-gram LP, includes a voucher to download high quality WAV/MP3 of the album.
Het is muziek waarvan je nooit genoeg krijgt, maar helaas moeten we voor de betere Afro-Cubaanse dansmuziek toch vooral in de archieven duiken. Het label Analog Africa doet dat met plezier en zo wordt nu dan eens de Senegalees Amara Touré aan de vergetelheid ontrukt.
Touré was een voornaam lid van de Dakarese groep Star Band de Dakar, als achtergrondzanger en percussionist. Maar de zware en begeesterde stem van Touré viel op: die man moest zelf maar eens het voortouw nemen. Vanaf midden jaren zeventig tot 1980 deed hij dienst als frontman bij bands als Ensemble Black & White en het prachtorkest Massako. Daarna verdween Touré: niemand weet waar de man uithangt, en zelfs niet of hij nog leeft.
Het mooiste werk uit de actieve periode van het Senegalese enigma is verpakt in een luxe uitgave, die natuurlijk even op vinyl moet worden aangeschaft. Mooi, hoe de zacht wiegende Cubaanse son- en salsaritmes worden `verafrikaanst` met behulp van jengelende elektrische gitaren en aangeblazen door eindeloos melancholieke en soms schitterend uit de bocht vliegende saxen.
De stem van Touré blijft de troef. Curieus toch, hoe de spiritualiteit haar intrede doet in eigenlijk behoorlijk louche nachtclubmuziek. In bijvoorbeeld het trage openingslied N`nijo, waarin het lijkt of vele voorvaderen tegelijk worden aangeroepen.
Iets dansbaarder wordt het ook, voor de salsadansers onder ons. Afalago is zoet én gepeperd, vooral door de Mexicaans tetterende trompetjes. Slot Africa is een wonder van Afrikaanse psychedelica: wat een bizar geluidseffect wordt hier aan bas en gitaar gehangen! (Volkskrant 15-07-2015)
The music is polyrhythmic, and the melodies scrape against the basic beat, making it very propulsive. But on top is Toure`s voice, almost operatic in scope. There is some Cuban influence, but I find it more like Youssou N`Dour`s Senegalese music (they were in the Star Band of Dakar together). Anyway, Salamouti is really one for the ages - at nine minutes, it starts very unassuming and ends with pile-driving repetition that gets pretty near religious ecstasy.
Amara Touré Et L`Orchestre Black & White (Singles Collection 1973 - 1975)
SIDE A:
1. N`Niyo (5:59)
2. Temedy (4:18)
3. Lamento Cubano (5:45)
SIDE B:
1. Cuando Llegare ( 4:25)
2. Fatou (4:53)
3. N`ga Digne M`be (5:05)
Amara Touré Et L`Orchestre Massako (Long Play 1980)
SIDE C:
1. Salamouti (9:07)
2. Afalago (8:21)
SIDE D:
1. Tela (8:07)
2. Africa (7:27)
ometimes when a musician bridges two styles, they do so to show off. When African singer/percussionist Amara Touré started tackling Cuban music, he didn’t see it this way: “Latin music, is it really foreign to us Africans? I don’t think so. Listen to the drums, to the rhythm. It all seems very close to us—it feels like it’s our own culture.” Similarities in music is one thing, but Touré saw a direct reflection of his very culture in Cuban music. The musician would go quite far with this cultural melting act. As a member of Le Star Band de Dakar, Amara Touré became part of the influx of live entertainment in Senegal’s capital, Dakar. Along the way, people began to notice that Touré could truly sing his ass off and that he had a special affinity for Latin music. As the ‘60s gave way to the ‘70s, Touré was recruited into a band called Black and White. After recording three singles in the mid-‘70s, Touré branched out to record a heavily acclaimed album with Orchestre Massako. The resulting 1980 record Amara Touré Accompagné Par L’Orchestre Massako has enjoyed a reputation that appears to have swelled beyond legendary. Amara Touré eventually vanished. His whereabouts remain unknown.
The plainly titled 1973-1980 collects all of the aforementioned material and puts it in chronological order. According to liner notes authors Jennie Loiseau and Samy Ben Redjeb, finding first-person accounts of what the scene was like during the Black and White/Orchestre Massako days was difficult. Fortunately, a few leads do yield some anecdotes such as Amara Touré‘s stuttering problem (which disappeared when he sang) and how the Black and White ensemble were hot off the heels of firing their egotistical yet popular lead singer when they hired Touré (“very few believed he could be replaced”, recalls acquaintance Moustapha Diop). Black and White’s busy schedule and enormous success for being a live act easily sealed a deal to record a handful of tracks. These singles make up the first six tracks of 1973-1980. The bridging of Latin and African musics was well underway at this point as Touré incorporated his dialect with the emotive melodies and swaying rhythms of “Fatou”, “Temedy”, and “N’njjo”. The recording quality sounds like it’s a bit behind the curve as far as the mid-‘70s were concerned, but this doesn’t dull the attack of the guitars, saxophones, and Amara Touré‘s ten-ton voice, the very one that got all the rumps of Senegal’s social elite moving when performing in Luna Parc.
The last four tracks of 1973-1980 represent the now-legendary Amara Touré Accompagné Par L’Orchestre Massako. Orchestra Massako’s bandleader Jean-Christian Makaya told Loiseau and Redjeb that Amara Touré was performing with the orchestra as late as 1996. No one knows exactly what has happened since. The record they made togther, however, is described by Analog Africa as “one of the very best African albums.” Wow, that’s quite a statement to pin to such a musically rich continent. Amara Touré Accompagné Par L’Orchestre Massako enjoys slightly better recording quality which enables a very fat sounding brass section. The songs are lengthier (four tracks giving you 33 minutes) and the sound is bigger. Opener “Salamouti” seems to slap you in the face with this fact, scolding you for almost bailing before the main course arrived. Within these cuts, the orchestra rides the groove for all its worth as Amara Touré takes his voice sky high. As catchy as the Black and White singles are, they feel almost embarrassingly timid next to the four vibrant songs recorded with Orchestre Massako.
Reading the liner notes of 1973-1980 reminds you that vibrant music reflects vibrant times. Yet for being such an important figure in the middle of a huge musical transition within Africa, many pieces of the story are being lost to history. Amara Touré was once the toast of Senegal. Now, no one is even sure if he’s still alive. There are some things that we can retain though, and Analog Africa do their past by distilling Touré‘s career to the ten tracks you hear on 1973-1980
© 2015 Most Wanted Latin Music. Alle rechten voorbehouden.
By BizzServices