DABY BALDE – “Introducing Daby Balde”
World Music Network, 2005

SENEGAL – Quite different from a lot of the other Senegalese pop you may have encountered, Daby Balde combines the rustic traditional sounds of the Cassamance region (in the south, next to Gambia and Guinea) with kora, guitar, and percussion. The effect, to my ears, is the West African equivalent of country or bluegrass music, with excellent rolling grooves and innovative arrangements given an extra dose of folksy niceness by fiddle, accordion, and flute. Vocals (often subtle unison duets) are in a mélange of Wolof, Mandinka, French, and Fula. I look forward to hearing more!

Fo’s picks: 1, 3, 5, 8

1. 5:49 – quiet intro, then uptempo & rolling: great fiddle/guitar/vocal weavings
2. 5:09 – relaxed/midtempo, walking rhythm, catchy vocal melody
3. 5:03 – low-key but intricate, with layered guitars, delicate vox, a touch of sax
4. 5:03 – chugging rhythm, contrasting lead/backing vox. In praise of women.
5. 4:18 – spare, very bluesy acoustic guitar & solid, plain-spoken vocals
6. 4:32 – gently rocking, but insistent; pointed lyrics. Nice instrumental break.
7. 5:06 – happy, relaxed vibe w/accordion & sax hiding in the mix, nice perc
8. 4:55 – interesting circular groove & clicking perc, flute dances around vox
9. 5:39 – drums/flute/guitar run in a tight circle, choppy vocal, down-home feel
10. 5:40 – pretty walking rhythm, nice guitars & vox, a song for Mother.
11. 4:13 – just folksy guitar & vox (a warning about the end of the world!)
12. 5:34 – lovely kora/guitar riff and earnest lead vox, ends abruptly
13. 4:01 – another version of track 5 (not blues). Very economical in style.

[Fo] 12/9/05