Talking Timbuktu

is it possible for an otherwise excellent album to be decimated by one really bad song? probably not. two really bad songs. yes. in this case, it's one really bad song and one that's not nearly as bad but still a head-scratcher. i think cooder learned much from this recording. mainly, do not insert yourself into the traditions you are trying to capture. _buena vista social club_ is a masterful album done a few years after this one, an album of so much promise. had it remained focused solely on the music of mali, this could contend for five stars. as it stands, "amandrai" is such an interminably boring slog of a slow burn, American blues number that i had to stop about three minutes in. maybe something happens in the reamaining four minutes. i doubt it. "ai du" runs a similar risk, but the focus is still more on touré's playing and some subtle organ work to detract from the boring blues guitar playing

This is really terrific background / studying / reading music. It doesn't demand a lot of you but anytime you tune into it, it's pleasant. This does not sound like high praise, but it actually is. There are not enough albums like this in my life.

1001 really giving me music I can’t review thoroughly this week.

Okay so this record is a mix of American folk and African music and it’s such an interesting record because you can hear the influences from both sides. I love the beginning and ends here the guitar as it always does goes on its way. I could feel myself navigating the musical landscape set behind I got a bit bored during the middle and lyricsllly its artistic if not a bit too much but the music is high quality and a great piece of art

Some great stuff here, but it all kinda blends together and therefore is a bit boring. Hard to pick a favorite track because of that, too. Album #154 Ali Farka Touré album 1/2 Cover rating: 3/5 Favorite Track: Soukora

A very cool sound. This was great to just chill out to, I like the vocals and the percussion a lot. I just wish it was maybe 15 minutes shorter, as it dragged a bit towards the end.

Is this bad? No. Is this good? Also no. Is this boring and reptitive? Fuck yes. I really couldn’t tell you anything about this at all, other than it happened.

Колись слухав щось від Алі Фарка Туре. Цей запис мені спочатку подобався, але поступово він мене трохи почав втомлювати.

I suppose I didn’t actually need to listen to this before I die, and now that I have I don’t want to ever hear it again. Plus 1 because I managed to not skip a single annoying track.

This instantly reminded me how western-centric this list is, being the 1st artist I've encountered who wasn't either European or North American (aside from the awful Vines). This I enjoyed, although I did find parts flirted unnecessarily with more traditional western blues and there's even a motif in the last track that can't be an accidental nod to Under My Thumb by the Stones... Nonetheless, a good listen.

The plucking, the fiddling, the beats… I enjoyed the soundscape of this album. At first, I found it a bit too repetitive, kind of annoying… But it’s settling into a more meditative space while I walk my dog in the crisp night air.

This is a style of music that I find very easy to listen to. I’m much more familiar with Savane, an album that helped me discover bands like Tinariwen and Etran Finatawa. Helped along by Andy Kershaw of course. As an album this is probably a touch too long for my taste. And I’m not convinced that the input from Cooder always helps - Ai Du grates most I think. But I enjoyed this tremendously. And ultimately the list needs way more African music so this was always going to be five stars.

Never even heard of this album. Immediately into song one it reminds me very much of Mdou Moctar. It's a mixture of "Graceland" and Mdou Moctar I suppose. I'm enjoying it. "Amandrai" is a classic OG Blues tune. Because I'm a fan of Mdou Moctar, this album generally hits the spot for me. I enjoyed it quite a bit and will revisit on occasion.

Excellent guitar work, and great "world" music offering. 7/10

Fine background music. Was Ry Cooder involved with this? I wish the title of the album and tracks on Apple Music would mention it!

Adoro Cooder, mas nunca tinha ouvido este disco. Soa como mantras, de uma repetição agradável, calmante. As guitarras são na medida, belos timbres, harmonias. Grande disco.

Det blvier sgu bare meget det samme - ganske behageligt, men kedeligt.

Jeg synes, det er rigtig kedeligt 1.7

Not bad to listen to. Did not understand anything, but was not annoying. 3/5

Actually very pleasant listening. Because some of the tracks were long and repetitive they became background music. Not something I would pick out for myself or listen to again, but not a bad experience.

Bem legal. Gostei dos vocais, e eles casam muito bem com os instrumentais. É um álbum meio relaxante, com sua musicalidade simples e raíz, sem ornamentos desnecessários. Apenas dois músicos talentosos fazendo músicas interessantes e agradáveis de serem ouvidas. No fim das contas, voz e violão não é meu estilo particularmente favorito, mas tudo bem. Ainda assim gostei do álbum. 3.5/5

Ouais non

90s African music. Collab of African and American guitar player.

There is something about the music that comes from Saharan Africa that really tickles my brain.

Pleasant listen, but nothing to really light my fire. Not something I would have found on my own, but I'm glad to have given it a listen. I actually didn't mind the longer track (Amandrai) that people were pissing on Ry Cooder for getting too involved in, but I don't mind a meandering, long drawn out song.

I've heard or read Ali's name before, but I definitely wasn't about to associate the name with the sound. This type of strings will always sound very "world" and will blend well with Asian varieties of folk as well, what I'm appreciating here is the differences, subtle or not, from track to track. The variety of guitar work is beautiful, I feel like Ry probably had a lot to do with making sure the tunes could fluctuate, but the knowledge and the talent involved here is more than just production. This ends up being a real easy listening experience. It's interesting to see Ry is responsible for Buena Vista Social Club, too, that makes this probably his second effort I've heard so far on this generator. Very varied, kind of impressive. I don't see myself putting this on my streaming services again any time soon, but I DO see myself buying a physical copy if I ever spot one. There's a mood for this and I really like how that feels with an LP spinning sound out of it. 3.2/5

Wow, I am loving the unique guitar sounds on this album. Conceptually this music is fascinating. American blues is the music of black Americans infusing African music and culture with western music, and here it is generations later returning back to Africa to create something unique and engaging. I did find my attention waning with some of the songs that overly rely on repetition; Amandrai was the worst offender. But otherwise I'd be excited to hear more music in this vein.

A couple high-quality guitar players doing there thing. This is rich in culture, with wonderful West African grooves and many different local languages being sung across the record. Toure demonstrates a musical vision and skill that is difficult not to appreciate. Beautiful, chill, consistent, and overall quite enjoyable. 1 listen Favorite Tracks: Ai Du, Bonde

Some of the lengthy instrumetal sections were modestly enjoyable. Otherwise, had trouble connecting with this.

Great

At the start I thought this would be an easy 5 stars. But just the guitars kind of wore thin by the end of the record. Perhaps if it was shorter or there was just a bit more variation, but alas 4 stars it is.

Not much I can say about it - an ok album. "Keito" was a bit like Angine de Poitrine but actually playing live without loopers.

Yeah… the Touré stuff was great. The blues riff underneath it was boring and pointless.

Яя туре брат, это ты?

A really tremendous sense of place in the arrangement and recordings here. Made me fall asleep in a good way.

Never heard Ali Farka Touré before this project. Very good. Was excited to see Ry Cooder involved. Gotta admit though I probably won't just "throw this on," but I'm curious to hear more. Listening to it makes me feel like Hansel in Zooland when he talks about Sting. "The music he's created over the years, I don't really listen to it, but the fact that he's making it, I respect that."

I absolutely adore this album. It's rich and introduced me to what is now some of my favorite music!

It's a very cool album that is pleasant, but I'm not sure I would say it deserves a place on this list. I can't see this having a lasting impact on my life but its good.

Alright.

Like it 3/5

Unfortunate getting two in this vein back to back, didn’t find this one all that compelling.

I am not a jazz guy and this was not a good intro to it

I know it's supposed to be repetitive (and normally I'm OK with that - shoutout to Paysage d'Hiver and Ravi Shankar), but this was really a drag to get through.

enjoyed this one more than the other album from him on the list

Good stuff. But, 2 Toure’ albums out of 81 seems like an odd coincidence. I liked Savane better, Talking Timbuktu is a little repetitive at times. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a great vibe for a long hike, or day of housework. But, Savane has more pep, and so Talking Timbuktu gets 3 stars compared to Savane’ 4 stars

This really feels warm; this album really has songs that breathe, that take their time to create some atmospheres in a way it sounds like some kind of music session. But it's pretty interesting in combining sounds (also with a very bluesy link) and bringing different textures. It flows slowly but being very immersive as well. There are lots of layers in the songs, of instruments, of melodies, and it truly is ear-warming, delicate, beautiful and wonderful to listen to. It is, definitely, a very pleasant listen. Not a rushed one, but rather one that seeks involvement. It is really a gem.

This was cool. I liked the mashup between the two musical styles and seeing how blues worked with traditional folk styling

Love Ry Cooder’s guitar playing on this - goes well with the traditional Mali music. I especially liked Amandrai.

Nice jam session to chill out to

Pleasant world music with a bluesy feel.

So pleasant. I ended up really enjoying this. I was in on the opening bars, then the singing came and I wasn’t as sure, but as the album continued I was increasingly taken. Another example of music as a universal language. I can’t understand it, but I could, and did, listen to it all day with pleasure. The instrumental element on here is sublime. Feels like montage music in a traveling movie.

🫤 too polished

I've never previously been taken by anything in the world music sphere but this was an enjoyable listen.

Mildly interesting. Worth having on the list but not sure I'd listen again.

This is brutal to listen to. Droning voice droning on. No highs or lows just droning. Did I say it just drones on sometimes with added flutes. Just going to the reviews to hear people let on they like it.

Slinky guitar riffs in a Groove, often with singing and all of it looping and loping along. It often slips into a Glass / Reich style minimalism. Other tracks seem to be built from the same raw materials blues guitar. Beautiful playing of great music.

I’ve heard worse

what the farka is this

6/10 Nothing wrong with this album - very typical-for-this-list African (specifically Malian) guitar-centric fare. It's nice background music but not spectacular.

Musically it's technically solid which I can appreciate but I doubt I'll return here. it got pretty repetitive.

“To me blues is a type of soap powder, my music is older than the blues” 4/5

Lovely sound very nostalgic

This has sat on successive hard drives of mine for a while, song titles mysteriously misnamed, which I only found out yesterday, maybe listened-to, not closely. It shimmers past so effortlessly it’s easy to miss, and hiding my favourite track at the end was an effective way to trick me. Luminous, entwined, spacious, more intricate and structured than I thought for so long, as I was impatient.

My simple enjoyment of West African guitar music continues! There are some very pretty tunes here (esp. "Soukora"). Am I ranking this a bit higher because Ry Cooder's contributions Westernized the style somewhat? Judge for yourself..

It was chill, and amused that there's a track named Sega

Ali Farka Toure walked, so Songhoy Blues could run. With this collaboration with a U.S. guitarist with a funny name, dare I say we have another hidden gem on this list! The production is crisp, the guitar, and other instruments blend beautifully together, and the singing is wonderful. I found myself lost in the ambience a few times while listening to this. For those of you who are still hesitant about expanding your musical taste outside of the western world, this album is a terrific first step. Favorite Track: "Soukora".

A few ups and downs but ultimately a great listen.

He keeps it moving. I love his music.

Entire thing sounded the same, but it was decent background music. 2.5/5

Chill, agréable en musique de fond, mais manque de quelque-chose pour l'écouter de façon active.

Wasn't a huge fan of this although i do like some of Ry Cooder's other work. However, this did lead me down a playlist of other roots / blues / world stuff, some of which i really liked. So an extra star to this for inspiring me.

Not a bad album to work to.

Really enjoyed the guitar work on this

Perfectly cromulant background music. I never wanted to turn it off, but i didnt finish with the desire to listen again.

I mean, I appreciate Cooder's determination to bring Toure's work to a broader audience but I can't help feeling like he's usually holding Toure back as far as the actual music goes here. The more languid 12-bar blues stuff is too languid; the action is all in the more intricate and vibrant African rhythms and melody figures. To the extent this album is intended to point listeners to go seek out more of that, it succeeds.

la verdad me gusto tiene el toque de blues y para mi combina muy bien con las raíces del artista

Naw

Good in parts but not for me (2.5)

I am sure it is merely coincidence but this is the second Ry Cooder album I've received in three days (Captain Beefheart's debut album was the other one.) This project has exposed me to a lot more World Music than I was familiar with before, and I appreciate that. This album was a pleasant listen. I really liked the second track, "Soukora."

ok

Weird but entertaining

Unique and immaculate vibes!

It’s fine, but did there really need to be 2 albums from this guy? Surely there’s other African music out there.

it's background music. you couldve picked a better "world" album 2.5

61

Loved how different this album was. When a song has a chant or repeatable phrase instead of lyrics it can be tough but this artist was able to pull it off. Love the bluesy riffs and the soulful singing. Favorite songs were Bonde and Amandrai.

In the 1990s Ry Cooder was traveling the world plundering cultures for his own selfish gain. And I'm glad he did! It's very good. Feels a little less astro-turfed than the Buena Vista Social Club because it's actually a named guy not an executive-created "collective".

Okay background music.

I'm a sucker for world music.

it’s fine, not super memorable.

This has quite a relaxing vibe to it, unlike a fair amount of 'relaxing' albums it actually goes places and develops rather than it being sparse and ambient-like, definitely this music is quite blues-orientated. The instrumentation is superb (especially the songs that are the highlights; last line in the review) all around. Highlight Song/s: "Gomni" and "Amandrai"

Nice

Is this essentially just Animal Kingdom background music? Yes. Is that why I love it? Mostly yes. But it's also just damn good music. It can get slightly samey, and that's probably the one thing holding it back from a 5. But so much emotion in the performances and totally different from most of the other stuff i've listened to on here, even the other African stuff.

ok. kinda was just waiting for that to be over. felt very uninspired.

Ry cooter

Part of this was enjoyable.

coody

I left Cradle of Filth for this. Make it good Ali Farka….. And it was musically. Not my taste but better than one would think it would be. At least, I think that’s what I thought of it. It’s been 3 days

The lead guitar is the mf star of the SHOW here. More than anything else - voice included. Really fun jam session Highlights: Gomni, Amandrai

Joyful music, bubbling with good vibes