Ali Farka Toure: Niafunke (World Circuit)
`My music is about where I come from and our way of life and it is full of important messages for Africans. In the west perhaps this music is just entertainment and I don't expect people to understand. But I hope some might take the time to listen and learn." In world music terms, Ali Farka Toure is a giant. But this wonderfully gifted guitarist from Mali rightly sees the world from the perspective of his native village, Niafunke on the banks of the Niger, where this intriguing collection - his first for five years - was recorded. His intricate, chiming guitar fills are woven into exotic desert tunes that can soothe or bristle with intensity. With these 12 tracks he seeks to convey a sense of what inspires him and his local musicians. It's time to listen, learn and enjoy.
By Joe Breen
Marty Stuart: The Pilgrim
(MCA)
Arghh . . . it's a country concept album! Well, yes it is, but in this case it is surprisingly good. Stuart is a fine guitarist with a track record of solid country albums coloured by a rockist tinge. To hold a single storyline together over the duration of a CD, however, was asking a lot of him. But, through the tasteful employment of guests like Johnny Cash, Pam Tillis, George Jones and Emmylou Harris on a wide variety of country styles from honky tonk to mountain ballads, Stuart manages to breathe real life into this "true story" of romance, death and rebirth. If you're put off by the cheesy love story with religious undertones, don't fret because the CD is convincingly carried along by the variety of the songs and the excellence of the singing and playing.
By Joe Breen