If you can understand French you’ll get a little history lesson from today’s track. Regardless, you have to appreciate the amazing list of Mande musicians who appear on this recording:

Bako Dagnon, Kemo Conde, Kemo Kouyate, Alkaly Camara, Djelimady Tounkara, Lafia Diabate, Kasse Mady Diabate, Kandia Kouyate, Mama Sissoko, Sekouba ‘Bambino’ Diabate, Kerfala Kante, Djessou Mory Kante, Mamadou Diabate, Baissa Kone, and many more.

Kora, balafon, guitar and wonderful Mande singing by many of the best musicians currently alive in West Africa. Buy the album here.

Mande All Stars – Nare Maghan

I’ve mentioned many times how Senegalese salsa music used to be the big thing in Dakar in the 60s and 70s. Aside from Youssou N’Dour, the Orchestre Baobab is probably the most well known Senegalese group. The other day I posted some Mar Seck, a big name among the older musical generation here.

Laba Sosseh is another great salsa musician. Born in The Gambia, Sosseh moved to Dakar in the early 60s where he started to play with the Etoile de Dakar, Youssou N’Dour’s first band that Mar Seck also sung with. In the 70s Sosseh worked in NY and Cuba with groups like Orquestra Aragón and Aboudou Lassissi.

Today’s track is off the album, El Maestro: 40 ans de salsa. If you’re using this site to learn a little Wolof, the title means “Give me your hand.” If you understand this much you’ll get most of the lyrics, with the exception of “xale bi.” In Wolof this literally means “a child” but is more commonly used to refer to a young woman or your girlfriend. One of my favourite expressions in Wolof is, “xale yi dangay waaru,”which roughly means, “The ladies, they’re nuts.”

Laba Sosseh – Diokma Sa Loxo

We have a guest post today by Benn loxo listener, Dominique.

“Kevin Volans is a South-African composer that studied and worked with Karlheinz Stockhausen in the 70’s. In 1986 he started working with the Kronos Quartet, with whom he recorded the chartbusters “White Man Sleeps” and “Pieces of Africa”, well, sort of… The track presented here was composed in 1980 and somehow ended up on the ‘unpublished work’ list. It was written for 2 specially tuned harpsichords and rattles, and is very much in debt to Shona Mbira music. I had never heard harpsichord sound this groovy!”

Thanks for the music, Dominique. Great stuff. You can buy the album here.

Kevin Volans Ensemble – Mbira

I promised the other day that I’d post some more Senegalese mbalax music.

Mbalax star, Ndongo Lô, has a hard, classic mbalax sound filled with swift and complex percussion and enough synth to make any Casio hater cringe. His music is currently really popular at Dakar nightclubs and on the local radio.

Lô grew up in one of Senegal’s most dynamic – and poorest – neighbourhoods, Pikine. In 2000, when he was 25 years old, he released his first album, Ndoortel. It became an instant hit and Lô went on to release three full-length albums during the next four years. Lô appeals to the Senegalese masses because of his strong Mouride beliefs and his humble background. He sings only in Wolof about things your average guy from Pikine can relate to.

Unfortunately, Lô died this past January at the young age of 30 of some unspecified illness. Apparently after getting word of his death, thousands of his fans from Pikine and elsewhere tried to storm the hospital where he was being kept. The police had to dispatch a large group of armed gendarmes to protect the hospital from Lô’s grieving fans.

Lô was buried in Touba following a big ceremony attended by many prominent Senegalese, including lutteur exceptionel, “Tyson”, and big marabout, Serigne Mbacké.

Ndongo Lô & Papa Ndiaye Guewel – Deg Deg

I was going to pull an All Mbalax, All The Time week here at Benn loxo, but unfortunately I left today’s mbalax pick at the office. We’ll pick up again with some Dakar “Manhattan of West Africa” sabar sounds tomorrow, but for now let’s take a quick dip into that other side of Senegalese music: la musique des vieux, la salsa senegalaise.

Mar Seck used to sing with Etoile de Dakar, Youssou Ndour’s original Dakar band before it reformed as the Super Etoile. He split from the band early – rumour has it his ego was too big for backup – and went on to pursue solo projects and more salsa-oriented groups like Number One. He managed to form quite a rep here in Senegal but never quite reached the kind of international recognition that Youssou enjoys today.

Regardless, Mar Seck is well-loved in Senegal and has some good tunes floating around. True, Senegalese salsa will forever be the music of old folks around these parts, but I love it. Put a little whiskey in me and I’ll grab K and whip her around the dancefloor like there’s no tomorrow.

ps- the name of today’s track can be roughly translated as “rather rotund, seriously dominating Senegalese matriarch.”

Mar Seck – Diongoma