In the 1970s, Malian guitarist Ali Farka Touré worked as a sound engineer for national Radio Mali and broadcasts of his own performances earned him a formidable local reputation. He sent some recordings to the Sonodisc record company in Paris, resulting in one of the first ever commercial releases of Malian music - a 12" vinyl album titled Ali Toure 'Farka'. Between 1975 and 1988 a total of seven albums were released, all titled only with variations on the artist's name and with no information other than a photo and the song titles. The last two albums released became known as the 'Red' and 'Green' albums due to the colours of their original album sleeves. In the mid-1980s a few copies of these albums found their way to Anne Hunt of World Circuit Records, prompting her to travel to Mali and broadcast an appeal over the airwaves of Radio Mali to find Ali. As luck would have it Ali was visiting the capital Bamako and he heard the broadcast. Thus began Ali's hugely successful international career and his long relationship with the World Circuit label.

Digitally remastered from the original tapes, Ali Farka Touré’s ‘Green’ album showcases Ali's acoustic guitar and vocals, both alone and accompanied by calabash and ngoni (traditional four string guitar). It’s one of many in Ali’s catalogue that demonstrate his continuing importance to African music. A must-have for both fans and collectors alike.

TRACK LISTING

Side 1
1. Sidi Gouro
2. O Kata Gouna
3. Devele Wague
4. Zona
Side 2
1. N'timbara
2. M'baudy" (vinyl Edit)
3. Petenere
4. L'exode

Ali Farka Touré is well known as one of the most influential and talented guitarists that Africa has ever produced. His legacy and impact are hard to overstate: Ali’s sound merged his much-loved traditional Malian musical styles with distinct elements of the blues, resulting in the creation of a ground-breaking new genre, now well known as the ‘Desert Blues’, earning him 3 Grammy awards and widespread reverence. ‘Voyageur’ is the first release of previously unheard music since 2010’s Grammy-winning ‘Ali & Toumani’, and features a collection of previously unheard gems captured at various points in Ali’s illustrious career. The album, which features fellow Malian superstar Oumou Sangaré on 3 tracks, reaffirms Ali’s status as a globally revered legend of African music.

TRACK LISTING

Safari
Malahani
Sambadio (acoustic)
Bandoloborou (feat. Oumou Sangaré)
Cherie (feat. Oumou Sangaré)
Kenouna
Sadjona (feat. Oumou Sangaré)
Sambadio (electric)
Kombo Galia

Ali Farka Touré trekked the world, bringing his beloved Malian music to the masses. Dubbed “the African John Lee Hooker,” one could hear strong connections between the two; both employed a bluesy style of play with gritty textures that elicit calm and fury in equal measure. While the influence of Black blues music prevailed, Touré created a West African blend of 'desert blues' that garnered Grammy awards and widespread reverence.

Though he transcended in 2006, Ali’s musical legacy lives on through his son, Vieux aka “the Hendrix of the Sahara,” an accomplished guitarist and champion of Malian music in his own right. On Ali, his collaborative album with Khruangbin, Vieux pays homage to his father by recreating some of his most resonant work, putting new twists on it while maintaining the original’s integrity. The result is a rightful ode to a legend. Ali isn’t just a greatest hits compilation. It’s a lullaby, a remembrance of Ali's life through known highlights and B-sides from his catalog. It is a testament to what happens when creativity is approached through open arms and open hearts. “To me, music is magic, it is spontaneous, it is the energy between people,” Vieux says. “I think Khruangbin understands this very well.” The genesis of the album dates back to 2019, when Khruangbin, coming off their breakthrough album Con Todo el Mundo, was beginning to play to bigger crowds. The record was finished in 2021, as a global pandemic shuttered businesses and forced us to take stock of what Earth was becoming. Indirectly, Ali captures this as a moment of peace within a raging storm, a conversation between past and present without allegiance to suffering. Now, given Khruangbin’s reach as a unit with legions of fans (including the likes of Jay-Z and Paul McCartney), they’re poised to bring Malian music to broader groups of listeners. Ali is a masterful work in which the love surrounding it is just as vital as the music itself, driving it to unforeseen places; Vieux and Khruangbin are spreading the good word to a completely new generation. “I hope it takes them somewhere new, or puts them in a place they haven't felt or heard,” Lee says. “It is about the love of new friendship and making something beautiful together,” Vieux continues. “It is about pouring your love into something old to make it new again. In the end and in a word it is love, that's all.”