* En anglais uniquement
Afrocubism is a collective of Cuban and Malian musicians brought together by World Circuit Records producer
Nick Gold.
Gold's original idea in the 1990s was to enlist Cuban musicians,
Ry Cooder, Malian ngoni master
Bassekou Kouyate, and electric guitarist
Djelimady Tounkara. Due to visa snafus, that recording session never happened; the Cubans and
Cooder recorded and the end result was the now legendary
Buena Vista Social Club album. Though it took over a decade,
Gold persisted in pursuit of his concept. He eventually assembled a stellar group of musicians from both countries.
Afrocubism is fronted by lead vocalist and acoustic guitarist
Eliades Ochoa. His long celebrated Grupo Patria make up the majority of the Cuban players in this large band. The Malians are led by
Kouyate and
Tounkara, and are joined by vocalist
Kassé-Mady Diabaté, balafon maestro Lassana Diabaté, and world-renowned kora player
Toumani Diabaté, with
Baba Sissoko on talking drum, among others. The group's self-titled album was released in October of 2010, and met with widespread critical acclaim. A European tour followed. ~ Thom Jurek