Cross-Cultural Collaboration in the Blues .You just have to see it, hear it. Featuring Tumani Diabeta & Taj Mahal. Goto> http://www.juffureproduction.com/theconnection.ram Kulanjan is one of the oldest pieces in the repertoire of the West African griots. Some say it's the source of all their music. When Taj Mahal first heard Kulanjan, played by the legendary kora master, Sidiki Diabate, he was deeply touched. For twenty years he has been carrying this song around with him, dreaming of a project that would join the blues he was playing and Kulanjan's roots in West Africa. This dream came true in April 1999 when Taj met Mali's greatest living kora player, Toumani Diabate (son of Sidiki), and his group of 6 hand-picked traditional musicians. They gathered in a studio on a tree-lined street in Athens, Georgia. The close connection of their music became obvious from the very beginning. The first day they jammed on the front porch; the second day, they recorded it. They continued this way until the record was finished-days ahead of schedule. No rehearsals, no pre- or post-production. The ideas and the sounds just came flowing, locking into each other seamlessly, as if they were always meant to be exactly there. The record features classic blues songs along with traditional griot melodies, with Taj and the Malians accompanying each other with ease. 'Queen Bee,' a song Taj has been reworking for 20 years, takes on a completely new character in a duet with Ramatou Diakite's lucid voice. 'Ol'Georgie Buck,' a work song Taj learned from Elizabeth Cotton, transformed into a grooving Wassoulou gem, right there on the porch. The most intimate moment of the record is 'K'an Ben,' featuring one of the most powerful voices in Africa, Kassemady Diabate. It's song for a woman leaving her home to get married. Kassemady's high flying, expressive griot voice is accompanied by a quiet guitar and dobro. Toumani's glittering, flowing, cascades of melody on the kora, perfectly backed by Ballake Sissoko on second kora, add new spark to the pentatonic blues scales in tunes like 'Catfish Blues' and 'Take this Hammer.' Toumani has a successful history of cross-cultural encounters, from jazz to flamenco-as does Taj, who has participated on over 40 records. But Kulanjan is special: it's a milestone of artistic & personal collaboration. This is not the end of a journey, it's the beginning.# Cheers Everyone! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html You may also send subscription requests to [log in to unmask] if you have problems accessing the web interface and remember to write your full name and e-mail address. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------