David Dalle
Thursday May 28th, 2020 with David Dalle
Tribute to Guinean singer Mory Kante; Sahel Sounds Music From WhatsApp vol. 5; Kasse Mady Diabate; Moroccan music

Today we remember the great singer and musician Mory Kante who died last Friday, aged 70. Mory Kante was born in Guinea to Guinean and Malian parents, both Griots in long family traditions, and learned the family instrument balafon as well as guitar and singing. As a young teenager he was sent to live with his aunt in Bamako where he started singing on the local circuit. He mastered the kora, which would become his principal instrument, without formal instruction. As a young man, he joined several bands and in 1970 he was invited to join the Rail Band as a guitarist, while Salif Keita was their star singer. However, in 1973, Salif Keita was absent from Bamako for several months pursuing his own gigs. When Salif Keita returned, he found he had been effectively replaced by this popular and charismatic young Guinean as lead singer. Salif Keita left the Rail Band soon after to join a rival band. Mory Kante became the Rail Band's principal singer from 1974-1977. In the late '70's he left the Rail Band striking out on his own and, like many African musicians, he ended up in Paris in 1984. He would succeed beyond all expectations with his 1987 album "Akwaba Beach" and its single "Yé ké yé ké" which became a huge hit in Europe and Africa, topping the charts in several European countries, a first for an African artist. This song featured his signature solo style from the 80's and early 90's, with electric Kora, synths, brass and rhythms. The music still sounds great and has aged better than a lot of 80's fare due to his and the backing female vocalists' urgent vocals still sung in Mandinka and possessing great energy. He released a total of 6 albums over a decade in Paris. In 2002 Mory Kante returned to his roots with an all acoustic album "Sabou" (with the exception of electric bass), a truly masterful album. We will hear a lot of Mory Kante from his days with the Rail Band in the mid 70's to his 2002 acoustic album "Sabou"