Various Artists - The Original Sound of Mali 2 *Pre-Order

Release Date Friday 7th February 2025
All pre-orders will be dispatched/made ready for collection on that day.

Following the success of 'The Original Sound of Mali' compilation, we return
with another explorative delve into the wonders of Malian music compiled by
French writer, journalist and Grammy-nominated compiler Florent Mazzoleni
and Mr Bongo's very own David Buttle
Restoring, reissuing and contextualising iconic tracks from Ousmane Kouyate &
Ambassadeurs Internationaux, Rail Band, Les Messagers du Mali, Mystere Jazz de
Tombouctou and many more, the second compilation in this series dives ever further
into the richness of post-independence music emanating out of Mali. One in which
traditional foundations and instrumentation, blended with modern musical advances
and infuence.
Following Mali's independence, after ten years of maturation, the 1970s saw modern
Malian culture revealed to the world through musical anthologies and overviews of
national and regional productions. It was a remarkably fertile period of the country's
musical history, with state- sponsored bands and orchestras now able to be
documented and recorded by sound engineers. Mali has always had a diverse
storytelling tradition through music, with each province and ethnic group having its
own unique character and nuances. As infuences and sounds from the West drifted
over the Atlantic, Malian musicians began hearing artists like John Lee Hooker, Wilson
Pickett, Johnny Pacheco, Celia Cruz and James Brown. Elements and ideas from
blues, soul, rock and funk led to bands covering artists they'd heard from these
genres. The Tjiwara Band de Kati's raw cover version of Pickett's soul / R&B classic 'In
The Midnight Hour' and the James Brown funk-channelling cut 'Get Up James' from
Les Ambassadeurs du Motel de Bamako, are two such examples featured on this
compilation.
Most bands also relied on playing in hotels in Mali's capital, Bamako, which naturally
became where they honed their sound. With guests wanting to hear the infuence of
foreign styles and modern instrumentation becoming more available, this fusion of
Western ideas with traditional Malian rhythms and organic instruments led to a oneof-a-kind musical excellence.

Tracks: Ousmane Kouyate & Ambassadeurs Internationaux - Kefmba / Bouba et
Sokona Sacko - Mamaniya / Les Ambassadeurs du Motel de Bamako - Get Up
James / Allata Broulaye - Moussokeleyato / Tentemba Jazz du Mali - Yayoroba /
Tjiwara Band de Kati -- Kogola / Rail Band - Massare Mousso / Les Ambassadeurs du
Motel de Bamako - Matou Kagni / Mystere Jazz de Tombouctou - Sidi Yahia / Allata
Broulaye - Yayoroba / Les Messagers du Mali - Diamana Diarra / Tjiwara Band de Kati -
Midnight Hour

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