The album opens with a typical juxtaposition of old and new--the sound of Keita's piercing, high-pitched wail over a sustained synthesizer chord form "Sina," part of his 1987 debut solo album "Soro." Although Keita sings in his native Bambara language, his powerful, eerie high tenor has the impact of a warning siren no matter what tongue the listener understands. His compositions are full of lush harmonies (voices, synths, horns, kora, guitars) set to rippling polyrhythms, but Keita's urgent lead vocal always cuts through everything else.

In addition to three songs from Soro, two from 1989's "Ko-Yan" and one from "Amen," this compilation includes three songs (previously unreleased here) from the Steve Hillage-produced soundtrack for "L'Enfant lion." The rarest, most exciting cut, though, is "Mandjou," the jazzy 12-minute vamp in honor of Guinean statesman Sekou Touré, it was recorded in Cîte d'Ivoire in 1978 and became Keita's first big hit throughout Africa. --Geoffrey Himes