RIP Ali Farka Toure

Ali Farka Toure, of course.

July 7, 2003 Washington Post

Ali Farka Toure, From Mali To the Mall

After winning a Grammy for his 1994 collaboration with Ry Cooder titled "Talking Timbuktu," Malian electric guitarist Ali Farka Toure returned to his life as a farmer on the Niger River. He stopped touring and released only one new album, 1999's "Niafunke," which he recorded with the aid of a mobile studio set up near his home. Saturday night, however, a beaming Toure and his five-member band were on the Mall in Washington before a packed, sweltering crowd in the Smithsonian Folklife Festival's Timbuktu tent.

Drawn, he said, by the honor of playing such an "important festival," Toure, with the aid of an acoustic guitarist, two backing vocalists and conga and calabash percussionists, assertively demonstrated for two hours why it's nice to have him back.

Marketed as the "Bluesman of Africa" because of his instrument's jagged, piercing tones and his familiarity with the likes of John Lee Hooker, Toure proudly rejected that label, noting that "blues are the leaves and branches while the roots and trunk are African." Toure, who had been playing African stringed instruments long before he heard the blues, quickly showed the origins of his approach. On numbers such as "Goye Kur" and "Soukora," his fleet thumb and index finger-picking was aided by lilting North African vocals and proverb-based lyrics one wouldn't hear in Mississippi. While some lengthy cuts in his 12-song set were overly reliant on repeated droning guitar patterns, the contrapuntal percussion, guest dancers from other Malian groups, along with the audience, kept things lively. By the set's end, crowd members, many in traditional flowing robes, offered their approval African-style, pasting and showering the sweating Toure with dollar bills.

Anyone got any other Toure recommendations while we are here.

I pulled out his first record last week for the first time in a long time, too. Still my favorite, and the one that is essential. Though I was a big fan of In the Heart of the Moon (partially b/c I love the sound of the kora and Toumani Diabate). Some of Toure's '90s albums are overproduced (including the Ry Cooder one, which is ok) to my ears. I prefer the stripped down albums with simple instrumentation. Can we just talk about his voice for a minute? I know he can play, but his voice is just so expressive.

Believe it or not, I was turned on to Ali Farka Toure by Ani Difranco, sort of wondering aloud where her percusive playing style came from and she just started gushing about all these West African guys.

RIP.

"While some lengthy cuts in his 12-song set were overly reliant on repeated droning guitar patterns,"

He says that like it's a bad thing.

We are deeply saddened to announce that the legendary Malian musician Ali Farka Touré passed away in his sleep at home in Mali on March 7th 2006, he had bone cancer.

Ali Farka Touré was a true original. An exceptional guitarist, he transposed the traditional music of his native north Mali and single-handedly brought the style known as desert blues to an international audience. Last month he won his second GRAMMY award for the album ‘In the Heart of the Moon’ with Toumani Diabaté, and work had just been completed on his new solo album.

Ali saw his main role in life as that of a farmer and for a large part of his life he dedicated his time and resources to better the agricultural and social situation in Niafunké, his home village in the semi-desert region in northern Mali, Ali’s tireless work was officially recognised when he was appointed mayor of the region in 2004.

Ali Farka Touré was a giant of African music and will be missed by fans throughout the world.

Wow, talk about missing the point entirely. This is incredibly ignorant. Imagine a music writer saying that a blues song relied too much on a 1-4-5 progression?

...i only wish i would have taken the time to see him play in person

May God watch over the soul of Ali

And may he bless Africa