The Rough Guide to West African Music

Last updated
The Rough Guide to West African Music
RoughGuideWestAfrica.jpg
Compilation album by
Various artists
Released21 November 1995
Genre World, West African music
Length70:42
Label World Music Network
Full series chronology
The Rough Guide to World Music
(1994)
The Rough Guide to West African Music
(1995)
Global Partnership II
(1995)
Complete list

The Rough Guide to West African Music is a world music compilation album originally released in 1995. The second release of the World Music Network Rough Guides series, [1] it largely focuses on Malian music, with six of the twelve tracks coming from that country. This is followed by Senegal (two tracks), and Guinea, Niger, Ghana, and Mauritania (one track each). The compilation was produced by Phil Stanton, co-founder of the World Music Network. [2]

Chris Nickson of AllMusic gave the album four stars, but lamented the broadness of the topic, stating "the real problem with this album isn't the music, which is glorious throughout, but the fact that it suffers from the size of its ambition and the inability to fully realize it." [3] Michaelangelo Matos, writing for the Chicago Reader , praised the record's focus on slow to midtempo music, stating it "succeeds in sustaining a meditative, inner-gazing mood." [4]

Track listing

No.TitleArtist (Country)Length
1."Foliba" Super Rail Band Flag of Mali.svg 7:51
2."Djelika" Toumani Diabaté Flag of Mali.svg 7:14
3."Roucky" Ali Farka Touré Flag of Mali.svg 8:18
4."Toro" Moussa Poussy Flag of Niger.svg 4:44
5."M'Bore" Sona Diabate Flag of Guinea.svg 6:09
6."Djama Kaissoumou" Oumou Sangare Flag of Mali.svg 6:46
7."I Ka Di Nye" Bajourou Flag of Mali.svg 5:19
8."205" E.T. Mensah Flag of Ghana.svg 3:05
9."Utru Horas" Orchestra Baobab Flag of Senegal.svg 8:41
10."Almamy Bocoum" Mansour Seck Flag of Senegal.svg 4:57
11."Mauritania My Beloved Country" Dimi Mint Abba & Khalifa Ould Eide Flag of Mauritania.svg 3:32
12."Agne Anko" Kante Manfila Flag of Guinea.svg 4:37
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [3]

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References

  1. Douglas H., Henkle (2012-10-23). "Rough Guide Discography / World Music Network Discography". FolkLib Index : A Library of Folk Music Links. Retrieved 2013-12-21.
  2. World Music Network. "About Us - The WMN Story" . Retrieved 2013-12-21.
  3. 1 2 Nickson, Chris. "The Rough Guide to West African Music". Allmusic . Retrieved 21 Dec 2013.
  4. Matos, Michaelangelo (5 November 1998). "A Rough Guide to the Rough Guides". Chicago Reader . Retrieved 2014-01-10.

Khalifa Ould Eide