In Griot Time: String Music From Mali
Banning Eyre, the American producer of this stunning compilation, is a true musical wayfarer. He is a noted journalist and one of the few non-African guitarists able to successfully inhabit traditions such as Congolese soukous and, on this set, notoriously demanding Malian picking styles. For seven months in 1995 and 1996, Eyre lived and studied with the Rail Band's revered lead guitarist, Djelimady Tounkara, in Bamako, Mali. The album consists of Eyre's field recordings, tapes of his lessons with Tounkara, plus well-chosen tracks featuring guitarists such asHabib KoiteandLobi Traore. There are also tunes spotlighting thekora(West African harp),ngoni(a banjolike instrument), anddoso ngoni(hunters' harp). The music travels from grittily urban to countrified sounds, but it all has the hot, dusty majesty peculiar to Malian music. The CD is best appreciated along with its eponymousaccompanying book(from Temple University Press), which is an extraordinary document.--Christina Roden