The list of collaborations Alune Wade enjoyed over the decades read like a Who’s Who from the worlds of jazz and crossover music: Joe Zawinul, Marcus Miller, Oumou Sangare, Bobby McFerrin, Youssou N’Dour, Cheick Tidiane Seck, Harold Lopez-Nussa, Lokua Kanza, Blick Bassy, Fatoumata Diawara… the list goes on. His inspirations – Weather Report, Charlie Parker, Salif Keita, to name but a few – reflect musical choices he made. Many were distilled in explorations with the aptly named University of Gnawa, an ‘institution’ Alune co-founded with the mesmeric Aziz Sahmaoui – the virtuoso singer and sinter player, formerly of L’Orchestre National de Barbès, also makes an appearance in Sultan.
Includes unlimited streaming of Sultan
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Record/Vinyl + Digital Album
limited edition gatefold vinyl, with extra track
Includes unlimited streaming of Sultan
via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
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about
This title is a play on words: both malicious and evil. The seductive binary rhythm is not there by chance. It is there to hook you and focus your attention on the message the artist has decided to pass on. Accompanying Alune’s lyrics are the vocals of Mehdi Nassouri. A symbol of the ongoing struggle is the evil sand, that of petroleum, which brings no joy to the African continent. The melodies cross over between continuity and the mixing of cultures, a guitar and bass riff picks up on the Gnawa rhythms, as brass instruments play both the African and American blues. Wade designates the pianist as the storyteller who stitches together a link between the blues brought back by the deportees (ex-slaves) and their European instruments, and ancient African instruments, cordophones, idiophones and others which, as of now, they are deepening their research. A deconstruction, then reconstruction, which follows the movement of populations which migrate.
Dearest Arooj, firstly thank you. My brother died this year n what can be said about such loss n sadness. I saw n heard you at The end of the Road in England. I spent many years in India n love all the music, poetry of your heritage. Thankyou Arooj❤️ ben1769