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Review
When Senegal's number one cult band returned from the wilderness in 2002 after a sixteen year hiatus, most old fans were so thrilled they forgave the fact that their comeback album, Specialist In All Styles, relied entirely on reworkings of items from their admittedly glittering back catalogue, and found them a wee bit rusty in places.
This second effort by Orchestra Baobab Mk. 2 comes in the wake of five years back in business as a working band and is the product of a tighter and brighter unit. Even if they are still leaning quite heavily on old material, it's generally songs that are less familiar to a non-Senegalese audience, often shedding light on their roots and influences. They're also revamped with a more zestful, live-in-the-studio feel, the band is beefed up by extra brass and percussion, and the new compositions are pure, vintage Baobab.
As ever, their foremost instrumental star is lead guitarist Barthélemy Attisso, whose fluid but never florid licks continuously percolate through the music, occasionally emerging for exquisitely timed solo spots, as on "Aline" - a lovely relaxed tribute to Congolese rumba - and, more grittily on "Ndéleng Ndéleng". A driving piece based on the mbalax rhythm, it also features a strong lead vocal from the youngest of their five singers, Assane Mboup. If he sounds a bit like Youssou N'Dour, that's maybe because he's one of N'dour's protégés, and the two trade verses brilliantly on ''Nijaay''.
Praise should also go to Issa Cissoko, who decorates his own gorgeously smoochy calypso ''Bikowa'' with an utterly beseeching solo. And what about percussionist Mountaga Koite, whose deft, insistent cymbal work powers the likes of ''Ami Kita Bay'' and ''Colette''? I could go on. The latter closes the album on a slightly unusual note - blending reggae, '70s soul and a dash of boogaloo into something like Senegalese ska. Yes, that is the Buena Vista Social Club's Jesus 'Aguaje' Ramos on trombone, but there's no falling into the trap of gratuitous celebrity cameos. How could there be when Orchestra Baobab have so many outstanding talents of their own? --Jon Lusk
Find more music at the BBC This link will take you off Amazon in a new window
The Times, (Pete Paphides), October 12, 2007
(4 stars) You'd need a box of pins to represent these songs on a map...great party music.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
47 of 48 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A real party of a follow-up for the all-style specialists!,
By
This review is from: Made In Dakar (Audio CD)
While not quite in the Buena Vista Social Club class as a romantic story of veteran virtuosity rediscovered, the 2002 comeback of Senegal's Orchestra Baobab almost two decades after they split up was spectacular enough. Five years on comes the second reunion album and, listening to its warm melodies and lilting rhythms, it's hard to argue with the record company's press release which excitedly announces `Africa's perfect pop group are back!' Mixing new compositions with reworked songs from their 70s heyday, Baobab have probably never sounded better. First, Nick Gold's production leaves the sound quality of those early recordings in the shade. And secondly, their return to playing live means that their musical chops are in much better shape than on 2002's Specialist In All Styles. Each of the group's six lead vocalists brings a different soulful nuance, but in many ways the album belongs to guitarist Barthélemy Attisso. You'd never have guessed on their last album that he hadn't touched a guitar in years but on this one you can definitely hear that he's been playing regularly ever since and his fluidity now rivals the Rail Band's Djelimady Tounkara. The stand-out track is probably `Nijaay', a 70s epic reinvented by Attisso's wah-wah guitar and great guest vocals from Youssou N'Dour. But the overwhelming feeling of Made In Dakar is of a band having fun, from the infectious rumba of `Aline' via the speeded-up chachachá of `Jirim' to the last track, `Colette', on which they sound like a Senegalese Skatalites. Perfect African pop, indeed.
© Nigel Williamson/Songlines magazine
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Not as good as Specialist in All Styles, Pirates Choice or Bamba,
By Paul (London, England) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Made In Dakar (Audio CD)
While production standards on this latest offering are very high, I felt that these versions fell short of the scratchy perfection of earlier ones. Cabral, Ndéleng Ndéleng and Sibam are all available on African Classics (aka Classic Titles). Cabral, in particular, misses the lazy elegance of the version from way back when - this one has an altered guitar intro and a faster beat. Having said that, Nijaay is great and I only give this album four stars rather than five because of the outstanding quality of Orchestra Baobab's other work.
11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Their best yet,
By
This review is from: Made In Dakar (Audio CD)
If you've heard them before I don't need to explain why. If you haven't, I can't. Orchestra Baobab is an experience one has to take on ones own. You would think that a bunch of such armature but talented musicians would not be able to go beyond the boundaries of their own town. But here comes the exception, and what an exception it is. Their music is so intoxicating that `professionalism' becomes a dirty word. If you also saw them live you would know what I mean.
The first two recordings made them world famous. Now comes the third recording of a completely new material, and with much more complex arrangement. Barthelemy Attisso's, who is my favourite member of the band, guitar playing is more confident, experiments more and the whole ensemble follows suite. Both Sax take centre stage, and the rest of the group make this recording number one. Looking forward to number four.
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