Salif Keita

Albino vocalist/composer Salif Keita was born in Djoliba, Mali, in 1949. He broke all traditional rules to fufil his ambitions of a career as a musician. Early recordings with Les Ambassadeurs led to Keita composing 'Mandjou', which told the history of the Malian people and paid tribute to Sekou Toure. Seeking international success, the band was renamed to Les Ambassadeurs Internationaux/Internationales and in 1980 he took three members of the new line-up to the USA, where he recorded 'Wassolon-Foli', blending electric reggae with acoustic Malian folksong. In 1986, following a dispute, Les Ambassadeurs split, with Keita going on to lead a new outfit, Super Ambassadeurs. 1987 saw Keita pursue a solo career, debuting with the astonishing rock-flavoured album 'Soro', recorded in Paris and successfully fusing traditional Malian music with hi-tech electronics and western instrumentation. The marriage of influences was further developed on the 1990 album, 'Ko-Yan'. Its successor, 'Amen' was recorded the following year with the aid of jazz musicians Wayne Shorter and Joe Zawinul, with guitar work by Carlos Santana. However, the reception afforded both was lukewarm, and his live performances of this period were judged to be wildly erratic. 'Folon', produced by Wally Badarou, represented something of a return to form, with the title track and a revised version of 'Mandjou' his most outstanding songs since 'Soro'. A regular Whirly fave is the wonderfully uplifting Africa, which is a CD single/12" from the album 'Folon'.

Album: Folon

Track Listing: Tekere Mandjou Africa Nyanyama Mandela Sumun Seydou Dakan-Fe Folon

Released in '95 on Mango/Island Records. All tracks written by Salif Keita. Produced by Wally Badarou except tracks 5 & 9, produced and arranged by Jean-Philippe Rykiel for Musykiel Sarl. Track 7 arranged by Jean-Philippe Rykiel.

CD Single / 12": Africa

Track Listing: Africa - 7" Edit (3.45) Africa - The Jambo Sana 7" Edit (4.18) Africa - The Jambo Sana 12" Mix (7.10) Africa - The Rainy Season Ambient Mix (9.04)

Released '96 on Mango / Island Records. Written by Salif Keita and produced by Wally Badarou. Tracks 2,3 & 4 remixed by Gary Hughes. A big Whirl-Y-Gig favourite is the The Jambo Sana 12" Mix of 'Africa', where Gary Hughes takes the original album mix one step further with a remix full of carnival spirit. The The Rainy Season Ambient Mix is a lovely chilled remix perfect for the small hours of the night.