Ali Farka Toure - Niafunké (1999)

One of the best recordings by the king of African blues, who sadly died of bone cancer in 2006.

«This album, Ali Farka Toure’s first for five years, was recorded in Niafunké, his village on the banks of the Niger at the edge of the Sahara. Over the last few years Ali felt that his travels abroad were weakening the link between his music and its source. He was losing the inspiration to play and today a concert by the legendary guitarist is rare. Farming has increasingly occupied his formidable energies. […] If Ali was to record again it seemed logical to do so in Niafunké. With Ali at the wheel we drove from Bamako over endless scrub land dotted by tiny villages, transporting a mobile studio, several hundred metres of cable and a generator to deal with the lack of electricity. We found the perfect “studio” – a crumbling building with high arched corridors and domed chambers, standing alone and abandoned just outside the village…» (Nick Gold, from the liner notes to Niafunké)

«This record is more real, more authentic. It was recorded in the place where the music belongs – deep Mali. We were in the middle of the landscape which inspired the music and that in turn inspired myself and the musicians. 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.» (Ali Farka Toure)

So long, Ali.

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