Senegal to Senatobia
This CD is to the 21st century what Brian Jones'sJajoukarecordings were to the past one. In his 90s, Othar Turner plays Mississippi hill-country music that retains the funky flavor of its African roots. Othar's first release, 1998'sEverybody Hollerin' Goatis as good an introduction to the evolution of blues as is likely to ever be recorded. This new one pairs Othar's fife and drum corps with Senegalese musicians from Chicago, matching marching-band drums to their African mates, an acoustic slide guitar to the kora, and affirming the timeless, universal supremacy of the human breath--in this case blown magnificently by Othar through a fife made from common bamboo. The music blends easily and naturally. The drums hit you in the gut, the slide-guitar sounds roll all round your brain, and the fife makes your heart skip a beat. Like Jim Dickinson's liner notes say, world boogie is coming.--Robert Gordon