Music from Mali

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Please note!
Most of our CDs have been imported from Europe or Asia. They are not all shrink-wrapped, and I am not going to con you by wrapping them here just to make you think they have been sterilized in America. I guarantee that the CDs and the contents are all brand new and in perfect condition. Whenever I can, I use recycled shipping materials. They may not look as pretty on the outside, but they save money and keep the trash dumps a little bit emptier.
Thanks- Cliff, cdRoots

The music of Mali

I Speak Fula - Bassekou Kouyate and Ngoni Ba - 14.99
Malian maestro Bassekou Kouyate is a virtuoso picker and musical visionary whose work blurs the lines between West African and American roots music. Bassekou's instrument, the ngoni, is a 'spike lute' and an ancestor of the banjo, sharing its taut-skinned drum body, percussive attack, and varied picking techniques. Since 2005, Bassekou has led Ngoni Ba, the first-ever group built around not one but four ngonis, all played by members of his family. Bassekou's longtime friend and booster Lucy Duran (a BBC radio host, record producer, and Mande music scholar) produced the band's debut, Segu Blue. These 11 tracks provide a star-studded tour of pan-Malian music, including collaborations with Toumani Diabate, griot vocal legend Kasse Mady Diabate, master of the horse-hair soku fiddle Zoumana Tereta, and guitar phenomenon Vieux Farka Toure. Listen

Segu Blue (allow one week for shipment) - Bassekou Kouyate and Ngoni Ba - 15.99
The first solo album from the Malian ngoni player (orignally released in 2007). Ngoni is the Bambara name for an ancient traditional lute found throughout West Africa that is plucked with the thumb, much like a 5-stringed banjo.Ngoni Ba is Mali's first ngoni quartet and features artists Kassemady Diabate, Lobi Traore, Lassana Diabate and singer Zoumana Tereta.

Imidiwan: Companions - Tinariwen - 17.99
Tuareg band's fourth CD release possesses all the elements that have made them so magnetic: raw simplicity, melodic beauty, songs ranging from the epic and universal to the intimate and personal. Listen!

Ngara - Kandia Kouyaté - 18.99
In the 1980s the Malian contralto Kandia Kouyaté became famous throughout West Africa and beyond, entirely on the strength of live performances and word-of-mouth. She made a few private recordings for wealthy patrons, but she refused to release anything publicly until 'Kita Kan' in 1999 and Biriko in '2002' (both from Sterns Africa). Now that she has retired she has finally agreed to make her private recordings available to her fans around the world. 'Ngara' (the title is the Maninka word for "diva") collects the best of these legendary recordings. Listen

Volume 2: Mansa - Rail Band w/Salif Keita and Mory Kanté - 18.99
The Malian National Railways formed the Rail Band du Buffet Hôtel de la Gare de Bamako to entertain guests at the hotel adjacent to the central train station in Bamako, but that unpromising origin belied how excellent a band it was and what an impact it made right from the get-go in 1970. The lead singer was a young man named Salif Keita. The band's dynamic fusion of jeliya and other traditional Malian forms with rock, blues and Latin music was audacious and brilliant. Salif Keita went on to start his own band, Les Ambassadeurs, in 1972, but by then another talented singer, Mory Kanté (who really was a jeli and not only sang but also played balafon) had joined the Rail Band. Around the same time the band hired a new guitarist, Djelimady Tounkara. Tounkara now leads the Super Rail Band. The three-volume Rail Band retrospective (compiled by Ibrahima Sylla) is not organized chronologically. Each 2-CD volume includes recordings from the 14-year span of 1970 to1983. Volume 2: Mansa includes five tracks with Salif Keita, five with Mory Kanté (including the title track, a 12-minute epic recorded in 1975), and eight others featuring singers Magan Ganessy or Djelimady Sissoko. Highly recommended!

Africa To Appalachia - Jayme Stone and Mansa Sissoko - 15.99
2009 Juno Award winner by banjo ace Stone and Malian koraplayer Sissoko in "a polyrhythmic journey to Mali and back again" to "reconnect Africa and North America -- or is it the other way around?" With guitarist Grant Gordy, bassist Paul Matthew, Casey Driessen on fiddle, Bassekou Kouyate on ngoni and more. Listen

Festival in the Desert (CD) - Various Artists - 17.99
A unique celebration of the music and culture of the Tuareg people, this live recording of performances from the three-day festival held in January, 2003, includes tracks by Lo'Jo, Oumou Sangaré, Ali Farka Touré, Blackfire, Tartit, Afel Boucoum, ballake Sissoko, Tinariwen, Robert Plant, Justin Adams and many others.

Volume 3: Dioba - Rail Band - 19.99
2 CD set: The third and best of the Rail Band series features some fo the band's best work from 1970 to 1983 and includes performances by Salif Keita, Mory Kante, Makan Ganesy, Lanfia Diabate, Sekou Kouyate and Sekou Kante - highly recommended! Listen

Mali 70: Electric Mali - various (African Pearls) - 24.99
2 CD set: Rail Band, Super Djata, Kéné Star, Super Biton, Idrissa Soumaoro, Les Ambassadeurs, many more Listen

Strings Tradition - Mamadou Diabate, Ustad Shujaat Husain Khan, Vidwan Lalgudi Gjr Khrishnan - 18.99
Strings Tradition is an original production, different from the countless recordings which try to mix and mingle musical cultures of various origins. It deals with the union of classical traditions (West Africa, North Indian and South India) which have little in common with the vague idea of popular music that we usually associate with the music of the Indian sitar and violin and the Malian kora. These three musicians are all important artists in their own countries and each one offers inspiration and guidance to the others' musical traditions. They are accompanied by Gourishankar on tabla and Muraly Trichy on ghatam.

Muso Ko - Habib Koité and Bamada - 17.99
Reissue of the great 1990s classic from the Malian guitarist: 'Guitarist Habib Koite is from Mali, but this rising star represents the contemporary sound of African pop. His first album, which is now being re-released here, is mostly made up of upbeat songs that electrify a variety of regional styles. The accompanying translated lyrics show Koite to be a songwriter that takes on weightier subjects than the usual vacuous party fare. The songs don't translate easily, resembling fables at times, but there is no mistaking the message of his hit, "Cigarette A Bana (The Cigarette is Finished)." Koite's brisk, breezy songs layer call-and-response singing over a seamless mix of African percussion and Western instruments. His academic training shows up most notably in his sophisticated arrangements, which continually change textures, keeping his songs as appealing to the head as the feet.' - Marty Lipp, RootsWorld

Live in London (DVD) - Tinariwen +10:1 - 21.99
Touareg desert rockers Tinariwen release their first Live DVD, featuring 12 songs filmed at the Shepherds Bush Empire, London, December 2007. The sound track has been mixed and supervised by Justin Adams. Some of the Saharan guitar rebels' most popular songs appear on the DVD, including "Chet Boghassa", "Cler Achel", "Amassakoul 'n' Tenere" and "Matadjem Yinmixan". The DVD alsohas extras including an intimate 50 minute campfire interview with the band's founder, Ibrahim, tips on how to tie a "Shesh" (toureg turban) as well as a mini documentary on Tinariwen and more.

Ballad of Manding - Zoumana Diarra - 17.99
Guitar music from Mali from a former member of such great bands as Super Biton, Super Djatta and The Rail Band, accompanied by ngoni, balafon, piano, percussion

Soul Science - Justin Adams, Juldeh Camara - 17.99
Buzzing bass lines, no-holds-barred guitar licks, tough but playful rhythms, searing fiddle riffs, percussive groundswells and ancient-rooted vocals, Soul Science is less of a cross-cultural collaboration than a fascinating dispatch from an entirely new nation.Evoking the blues from several continents, American rock 'n' roll, a hot Sahel afternoon and desert evenings, Justin Adams (electric and acoustic guitars, Tamashek lute, percussion, banjo, vocals) and Juldeh Camara (lead vocals, one-string fiddle, West African banjo, percussion) and the tight rhythm section of Salah Dawson Miller (percussion) and Billy Fuller (bass), have achieved a synthesis instigated by centuries of history refracted through the kaleidoscope of the information age. Already an international sensation, Soul Science was nominated for "best album" in the "Culture Crossing" category at the annual BBC World Music Awards, and was selected among the "top 100 albums of the year" by both fRoots and Songlines magazines. Highly Recommended

Wijdan: The Mystery of Gnawa Trance Music (DVD) - Brahim El Belkani, Sibiri Samaké - 23.99
The Gnawa people were exiled from the Malian empire and brought as slaves to Morocco in the sixteenth century. In the last three decades the power of their trance music has come into the spotlight thanks to Western musicians and artists. In this documentary, filmmakers Bella Le Nestour and John Allen paint an intimate portrait of two men - Sibiri Samaké, a Bambarra musician from Mali, and Brahim El Belkani, a Gnawa musician from Morocco - who are seen during theirmusical meeting in 2000. In Arabic, Wijdan means "the meeting of souls." We are allowed to watch as these masters trace their common roots back in time and as they impart their knowledge to the next generation. (NTSC video format)

Belle Epoque Volume 1: Soundiata - Rail Band - 19.99
These 2 CDs take you back to a time, as the liner notes put it, a penniless Salif Keita was 'still plucking his old Chinese guitar under a tree, forlorn and desperate, lamenting the human condition...' But the National Railways Of Mali had the Buffet Hotel by the railway station in the heart of Bamako and their house band was simly The Rail Band. Their first singer was Salif Keita, their second, Mory Kante. So here are first recordings of artists and a music that went on to help change the way that African music was perceived outside of Africa. It's historic, but more inportant, it's just plain great music. Includes full-color, 20-page booklet with notes detailing the history of the band plus full-page reproductions of the original albums covers.

Le Mandigue: Empire de la Musique - Various - 17.99
A collection of 16 tracks by artists featured at the Festival Musiques Métisses in France. Originating in Mali and Guinea, these musicians are the cultural ambassadors of the vast region once known as the Mandingo Empire, which stretched from the shores of the Gulf of Guinea to the sands of the Sahara, from the forests of Africa’s Atlantic Coast to its desert dunes. Includes previously released tracks by Salif Keita, Amadou and Miriam, Rokia Traore, Nahwa Doumbia, Ali Farka Toure, Boubacar Traore, Super Rail Band, Mory Kante, Habib Koite and many others.

From Mali to America - Cheik Hamala Diabate and Bob Carlin - 15.99
The meeting of clawhammer banjo ace Carlin and west African griot Diabate, master of the ngoni of Mali connects the dots between the 5-string banjo and its African ancestors. With special guest Solo Tounkara on guitar. Extensive notes on the artists and the tunes in English and French.

One Day On Radio Mali (2 CDs) - VA/ African Pearls 3 - 22.99
Fanta Damba, Rail Band, Salif Keita with the Ambassadeurs, Super Biton, Super Diata ... traditional and modern Malian music before the rest of the world caught on

Amin Iman - Tinariwen - 17.99
The 2007 release by the Touareg 'desert blues' masters from Mali.

Vieux Farka Toure - Vieux Farka Touré - 17.99
Bouriema 'Vieux Farka' Touré is the son of the late, great Malian guitar master Ali Farka Touré. This is his first recording, made with his father and many of his musicial compadres.

Heritage - Mamadou Diabate - 17.99
Drawing from the music the Mande jeli, kora player Diabate highlights the flexibility and adaptability of this courtly tradition. The band includes balafonist Bala Kouyaté, Baye Kouyaté on calabash and talking drum, American jazz musician Noah Jarrett on bass, with a special guest cameo from the Guinean guitarist Djikorya Mory Kante. Mande music is usually centered around a singer, this all instrumental recording is unusal, This music is not typically accompanied by calabash or talking drum, so the percussive aspect of the group is also innovative. But the deepest innovation comes in the compositions and arrangements themselves.

Mali: The Fulani Hoddu - various - 17.99
Music of the hoddu (the Fulani lute known elsewhere in Mali as ngoni).

Silk Sound - Liu Fang - 18.99
Chinese born Montreal resident Liu Fang is one of the world's foremost pipa virtuosos. This elegantly packaged CD features Fang's pipa technique, but also includes three tracks where she plays the guzheng - a 21-25 stringed Chinese zither. In addition to solo performances there duet-improvisations with pipa - one with Ballaké Sissoko on kora, two with Henri Tournier on Indian bansuri transverse flute and one with Algerian oud player Alla.

Midnight in Mali - various - 16.99
It can't get much better than this: a live concert with some of Mali's best and most interesting performers: guitarist Djelimady Tounkara, balafonist Keletigui Diabaté, n'goni master Basekou Kouyaté and singer Dieneba Seck with Medina N'Diaye (kora, vocal), Samba Sissoko (percussion), Salif Sissoko (percussion), Mariam Tounkara (vocals), Alou dembele (bass), Zoumana Tereta (sokou-violin), Vieux Kanteall (kamalen n'goni) and all under the direction of guitarist Habib Koité.

Mali: The Bambara Music of Baninko - various - 17.99
Bambara music from Baninko, Mali recorded in 1991 and 1992. Recordings from the Musee d'ethnographie in Geneva's 'Archives internationales de musiques populaire' See the complete series.

Diario Mali - Ludovico Einaudi and Ballake Sissoko - 18.99
I am, to be honest, not quite sure what to make of this one. Italian classical-crossover pianist Ludovico Einaudi and Malian kora player Ballaké Sissoko seem to have found a uniquely odd collaorative place, one that often borders on the George Winston-ian but just as often finds a smooth, incessant blues groove. It never quite explodes, but in its own gentle way it does probe.

The Rhythm of Speech II (2 CDs and 1 DVD) - various - 37.99
Iranian percussionist Keyvan Chemirani's Le rythme de la parole II brings together the seemingly disparate traditions of Persia, India and Mali in an exploration of common heritage, rhythmic diversity and cross-cultural experimentation. Singer Sudha Ragunathan represents the Southern Indian tradition. Nahawa Doumbia from the southern Wassoulou region of Mali is accompanied by kora player Ballaké Sissoko. The 2 disc set also includes a DVD (PAL format) documentary with some live performances. The Rhythm of Speech 2 presents conversations exploring the common ground between Indian sacred music, Sufi mysticism and Malian dance music. The set is presented in a hardcover book format with excellent notes and illustrations, complete with all texts and an essay by French world-music radio personality Caroline Bourgine.

Solon Kono - Djelimady Tounkara - 17.99
One of the great Malian guitarists, Tounkara began his career with the district band Pioneer Jazz in the Missira area of Bamako and then helped establish Super Rail Band, the band the started the careers of Salif Keita and Mory Kante, with whom he appears to this day. His second 'solo' recording features some of Bamako's hottest young musicians. Tounkara gives free reign to his improvisational talents on acoustic guitar (as well as on electric guitar on two pieces) in subtle and elegant style. With Samba Diabate on guitar, Mariam 'M'Bau' Tounkara, Mariam 'Djodjo' Diabate, Samba Sissoko and Mountaga Diabate on vocals, they rock in that unique African way. For Super Rail Band fans, there is a glowing version of the Mory Kante classic 'Sarankegni.'

Golden Afrique Vol. 1 - Various - 42.99
In the 1970s and early 1980s, the popular music scene in Africa exploded with new ideas of merging ancient culture with contemporary ideas and tools. This first volume in the series includes artists from Guinea , Mali , Guinea-Bissao , Gambia , Ivory Coast , Chad and Senegal – many of the tracks are available on CD for the very first time. Artists include Youssou N'Dour, Salif Keita, Baobab de Dakar, Bembeya Jazz National, Super Eagles, Amazones de Guinea, Miriam Makeba, Super Mama Djombo, Maitre Gazonga along with a host of artists you may never have heard of before. Double CD with informative book includes 24 full tracks and 2 and a half hours of music.

Dimanche a Bamako - Amadou and Mariam - 17.99
The Malian husband and wife duo return, joined by producer/participant Manu Chao on their 2005 release, a rich and colorful recordign of mali roots and modern touches.

Kongo Magni - Boubacar Traore - 17.99
Guitarist/singer Boubacar Traoré is one of the 'house favorites' at cdRoots. His dense voice and rugged guitar style contrasts sharply with the rolling lilt of many of his Malian contemporaries. On Kongo Magni, Boubacar’s realistic, if pessimistic, view of life and its problems is finally granted a fragile silver lining. Accompanied by a small combo of accordion and harmonica, kamele ngoni, balafon and percussion, Traoré is again revealed as philosophical, lyrical and resigned - guarded, hopeful and humane.

The Truth - Dieneba Seck - 17.99
A little heard but fantastic singer from Mali accompanied by an ensemble of voices, acoustic bass, percussion, ngoni, soukou (violin), flute and guitar. Simple, wonderful and simply wonderful.

Folon...The Pas - Keita,Salif - 16.99
As on earlier albums, Keita is still backed by a crack team of musicians including Cheick Tidiane (keyboard), Ousmane Kouyate and Diely Moussa Kouyate (guitars), Moriba Koita (kora) and Lansine Kouyate (Balafon). But Folon, compared to the three ealier albums in which Keita's voice is pure fire and brimstone, is mostly sweet gentle melody. Simply put, it is a move away from the slickly rich layers of sound that characterised Amen.In fact, listening to the signature tune 'Mandjou', you are thrown back to the 70s when Keita was starting out with the Rail band of Bamako and then Les Ambassadeurs. Still, for Keita fans (and I am one of them) this is a must have album.' Opiyo Oloya, RootsWorld

Moffou - Keita,Salif - 16.99
'...it is the ballads, simple and usually accompanied only by guitar, that emerge as the heart and soul of Moffou. In them, Keita's life's work is consolidated and glorified via the sympathetic, relaxed maturity of an artist in his prime. His soaring, Islamic-flavored tenor is supported throughout by Kante Manfila's gracious, meticulously crafted acoustic arrangements. Some of Keita's earlier efforts, for all their manifold beauties, have not entirely withstood the ravages of hindsight. Moffou is a classic in the making; it will never, ever sound dated.' - Christina Roden, RootsWorld.

Behmanka - Mamadou Diabate - 17.99
Mamadou Diabate’s combination of fiery melodic improvisation, inexorable rhythmic precision, and ringing tone is a revelation. The eight solo performances tracks on Behmanka, which is named for very old dialect of the artist’s native Mandinka language, reveal a virtuoso in his prime.

Douga Mansa - Mamadou Diabate - 17.99
His reputation as a kora virtuoso and tradition-based musical maverick is well known. In Diabate's hands, the kora proves capable of infinite variation, encompassing delicately articulated structures, swirling eddies of glissandi, pounding, vertical rhythms and roaring cataracts of arpeggio. On the opening track, an astounding range of simultaneous yet syncopated melodies and rhythms join and separate in a complex clarity that amazes. The 12 selections that follow are all equal to that moment,, showing a rich tradition that lives on in the hands of a master.

Akh Issudar - Terakaft - 17.99
Malian Touoareg ensemble's keening, scratchy singing veers off onto curvy, Islamic-flavored tangents and passages of "talking blues," discursive chanting, and raucous call-and-response, punctuated by wailing, cries, ululations and even an underlying, buzzing drone. The multi-layered guitars fulfil the image with their rich, sensually tinny chords and lead riffs. They might evoke the Mississippi Delta at high noon, T Rex and the early Stones, and certainly the late Ali Farka Touré, but they are unique and stand apart. This is potent music of the 'desert blues' variety, and highly recommended.

Mali Blue - Lobi Traore - 16.99
A collection of tracks from Bambara singer Lobi Traoré's previous recordings, 14 tracks includes on live recording.

Soro - Salif Keita - 14.99
The classic recording is back, on its original label in its original form. An absolute must for any fan of contemporary African music.

Festival in the Desert: the film (DVD) - Various Artists - 23.99
Lionel Brouet's documentary about the 2003 Festival in the Desert tells the story of the event, and does so in a uniquely compelling and atmospheric way. Bonus features include an interview with event organizer Issa Dicko about the Touaregs and a photo gallery. Live performance footage and interviews with participating artists offer a magical journey seen through the eyes of those who attended the festival. This 52-minute documentary on DVD is in French with English subtitles.

Amassakoul - Tinariwen - 16.99
The second release by this much-heralded Malian-Tamashek ensemble once again redefines 'desert blues'

Tassoumakan - Issa Bagayogo - 16.99
He's a recognized leader in the fusion of electronic pop indigenous rhythms of Mali, a singer and master of the 6-string n'goni (a regional string instrument that could be described as a cross between a harp and a lute), Bagayogo is renowned for his ability to present dance music that is so steeped in Malian rhythm and instrumentation that the music feels completely organic. TASSOUMAKAN (Voice of Fire) is a mixed bag of styles, ranging from the acoustic sounding opening track Ciew Mawele to the techno-dance grooves of Furu to the downbeat Kanou, which features shades of American blues. Backing Bagayogo is an arsenal of instrumentation that includes the balafon, flute, female vocals, percussion and keyboards.

Djiriyo - Abdoulaye Diabate - 17.99
This 1995 recording was the international debut of a champion of modern Bambara music and one of today's outstanding Malian voices, in a mix of high tech and traditional instruments.

je chanterai pour toi (I will sing for you) - Boubacar Traore - 17.99
the sound track to a french made film features Kar Kar's best known songs, rerecorded in a wonderfully informal manner, trace the story. Guests include Ali Farka Toure and Kelitigui Diabate.

Fôly! - Habib Koité and Bamada - special order-19.99
Foly! – Live Around the World' features live recordings made during 2001 and 2002 by Koite and his band. The 18 on this specially-priced double album. Hailed as the 'African Eric Clapton,' Koité's music combines Malian tradition with Western influences, proving that one does not have to forsake the past in order to grow, and that the modern world, for all of its benefits, needs to keep its links to the folklore, mythology and history of the people in order for it to retain its soul. 2 CD set.

Sandiya - Kelitigui Diabate - 17.99
The amazing balafon master from Mali (well known for his recent work with Habib Koite), with guest artists Toumani Diabaté, Djelymadi Tounkara, l'Ensemble Traditionnel du Mali, Fassery Diabate, Diawoye Diarra, Habib Koité and Bamada. A gorgeous collection of music for mallets, solo and accompanied by kora, guitar, flutes and percussion, all of it full of elegance and vitality. Listen

MALIcool - Roswell Rudd and Toumani Diabate - 17.99
The outside jazz trombonist and the master of Malian kora and cool mix it all together on an exporation of sound.

Sa Golo - Boubacar Traore - 17.99
One of Kar Kar's most acclaimed recordings, a solo endeavor for voice and guitar with occasional percussion from Baba Dramé on calabash. Focused titghtly on more traditional griot music than much of his work.

The Divas From Mali - Various Women of Mali - 17.99
Kandia Kouyaté, Mah Damba, Sali Sidibé, Oumou Sangaré

Desert Blues -- Ambiances du Sahara - Various artists - 39.99
a journey through the rich traditions of ballads from the Sahara, the Sahel and neighbouring African regions. Artists include Baaba Maal, Youssou N'Dour, Abou Djouba, Ali Farka Toure with Ry Cooder and Taj Mahal, Oumou Sangare, Sali Sidibe, Hassan Hakmoun, Dimi Mint Abba, Tata Dindin, Kante Manfila, Abdel Gadir Salim, Hamza El Din, Aster Aweke and Mahmoud Ahmed.

Kongo Sigui - Super Rail Band de Bamako - 16.99
fRoots says: 'the magnificent new one from the other outfit in the holy trinity of guitar-led West African bands.' Great new, stripped down and grooving, this is the best of the west African guitar sound.

Mansa - Super Rail Band - 17.99

Mouneissa - Rokia Traore - 16.99
Vocalist from Mali

Radio Tisdas Sessions - Tinariwen - 16.99
Their sung poetry calls for the political awakening of consciousness and approaches the problems of the exile, of the repression in Mali, of the policy of their people's expulsion to Algeria and of the claims for sovereignty and self determination.

Brazilian Scenes - Wagner Tiso - 17.99
The Brazilian composer and pianist is joined by Salif Keita, Vincente Amigo, Suso Saiz and Paulo Moura

Espace - Tama - 13.99
Musicans from Guinea Bissau, Mali and UK join forces in a rich Afro-pop mix

Vol 1: Trovador - Africando - 17.99
The first recording by this African-Latin fusion supergroup

Tierra Tradicional - Africando - 17.99
The second recording by this African-Latin fusion supergroup

The Music in My Head 2: Guitars are from Mars, balafons are from Venus - Various African artists - 17.99
Classics, hits and unknown wonders from oft-mentioned 'the golden age of African music' from the late seventies into the early nineties, when bands like Etoile De Dakar and singers like Youssou N'Dour still ruled the African music scene, when groove was god. This set includes major artists like N'Dour and the Etolies, Thione Seck, The Rail Band and Baobab, but more important, some of the less- published but important artists of the time like Kelitigui et ses Tambourins, Aminata Fall and Balla et ses Balladins.

Biriko - Kandia Kouyate - 17.99
Kandia Kouyate is an artist who simply demands respect. Listen to her voice for only a minute, and you'll understand why people have surrendered possessions, heart and soul upon hearing it. You'll also understand why Kandia has been attributed with mystic powers. Mali may be full of thunder-voiced females, but they fade into oblivion in the presence of Kandia's commanding alto.' - fROOTS

Hoga - Sidi Toure - 17.99
Songs recount Songhai Empire history as the weirdly sympathetic strains of an archaic Songhai viol and bluesy overdriven electric guitar swirl around it. This is a truly unque musician, with a sound all his own.

Mariama - Traore, Boubacar - 13.99
A nicely priced reissue of the classic acoustic guitar sound of Mali, by the grand old man of the music.

The Wassoulou Sound: Women of Mali - Various Malian singers - 16.99
One of the classics of the 1980s Malian music explosion features Sali Sidibe, Oumou Sangare, Coumba Sidibe, Dienaba Diaki, Dienaba Diakt and Kagbe Sidibe.