Talking Timbuktu

Here in Northern Finland, I drank German pils, cooked Indonesian nasi goreng, and listened to a Malian musician. Now, I am writing this in English. I loved all of it, except for the writing in English part

Gets my heartbeat going.

I had a strong sense of déjà vu listening to this record. I’ve heard it before, many times, but I cannot remember from where. Did I put it on? Did I listen to it as a child? Or does it just of my brief time in the desert? I’m unsettled.

Background music. I appreciate what it was trying to do, but every song was about 3 minutes too long, and it all ended up just fading into the background while I was listening to it.

This is is probably both great and traditional for some. Not for me.

Solid background music where everything blends together

loved!! Fav tracks: Bonde, Gomni

This is a great album. Ry Cooder traces the origins of his music from Africa. Ali Farka Toure traces the origins of his from America. A great collaboration.

I have already documented the way that I feel that the ‘world music’ albums on this list are often examples designed to be palatable to Western audiences, occasionally to the point of pandering (Ananda Shankar’s s/t album is the most egregious example). And it is true that Ry Cooder tastefully produced this album in a way that was comprehensible and appealing to Western audiences by emphasising the cognate echoes between African desert blues and the American blues tradition. Ali Farka Touré described the recording studio as having “bad energy” and that America was a “spiritual car park”. Well, I couldn’t possibly comment on that, but it worked in introducing Western audiences. Touré navigates the delicate compromises between his Malian roots and Western audiences. Unlike many world music records that feel overproduced or diluted to appeal to Western tastes, this album preserves enough authentic spirit that feels honest and grounded. This was my first introduction to desert blues, but I have since gone on to explore much of Ali Farka Touré’s catalogue, along with many other performers from similar West African traditions. Ali Farka Touré’s "Talking Timbuktu" is an album I find myself returning to, drawn into its entrancing desert blues grooves. "Talking Timbuktu" is a reminder that music can be both authentic and accessible, without losing its heart. It is a delicate balance of where African artists hear Western musical genres derived from African roots (such as Fela Kuti folding funk and jazz back into his distinctly African forms) to produce a vibrant form and where ‘world music’ influence is used as a generic seasoning to pander to Western audiences. Don’t get me wrong; I have no problem with non-Western artists finding success with Western audiences – more power to them – and the diversity of artistry keeps music fresh and exciting for me. While I have expanded my familiarity with and appreciation of artists from this part of Africa, I still come back to this album that was a gateway for me. It is a perfect listen on a summer afternoon.

I like how bluesy this is and I love the unique style and sound of Touré's guitar. Liked Songs Added: Bonde Amandrai Ai Du

Really cool mix of Sahel folk music and blued. It works really well and is explored in a few different ways which I find cool.

Interesting blend of sounds

smooth and mellow guitar albums are not normally my bag but this is great if a little slow and reparative

Tolles afrikanisches Album

I definitely enjoyed the more bluesy tracks most. I don't think I'm cultured enough to truly appreciate this to the level it probably deserves to be honest.

Don't really like the vocal style

Really fond of this album, immaculate vibes. Not digging some of the tracks lengths but will get back to it eventually.

much better than I was expecting. pretty in the groove at times. 3.49 stars

Fantastic sounding album, and a real pleasure to listen to. Hard to not feel like things are well when this one is spinning.

I've listened to 662 albums from this list so far and it appears that all of the good albums are behind me which is a shame. This album didn't really do much for me.

What a superb album, really liked this one, listened whilst cooking last night, downloaded some songs from the album, the vocals are deep, and the music drifts you along, loved it, nice surprise tbh.

Re top review: at least it's an interesting guy getting 2 records instead of the 9th Elvis Costello. But yeah, as cool as Ali is, this ain't exactly essential. (I realise now you were making a similar point. Way to skim-read, me)

Damn, this is the kinda stuff I wanna hear

17/08/2026 This is why you shouldn't judge a book by it's cover. I won't listen again, but it was alright. Spotify listeners: 508.9k

Ali Farka Touré walked so bands like Khruangbin could fly (iykyk). I played this album with hesitation, expecting another insufferable attempt at making Westerners listen to non-Western music. Instead, I got an album that felt like the bridge between the blues and their African roots. This is the type of surprise I've started doing this challenge for. 4/5, but I'm giving it a 5 because of the joy it brought me.

394/1089 I don’t have any prior knowledge of these artists so going in and knowing it was going to be “world music” and not in english i quite liked the first few songs. But then it took more of an american bluesy sound that starved my interest a bit Lasidan brought me RIGHT back, loving this one okay is won me back again in the end when it went back to the more african soul/folk sound faves: Lasian, Diaraby, Bonde, Keito, Gomni 70/100

love, love, love this album. Two masters at work.

It's ok I guess nothing special.

This album pretty much mixes traditional African musical styles with blues. It was actually a pretty enjoyable listen, and it had a very earthy, organic, and soulful vibe. Thankfully, it didn’t go on for more than an hour, because I did find myself starting to get a little bored toward the end.

Favorite track(s): Bonde, Lasidan, Ai Du

Not my fav

This was nice, great vibes.

Nothing about this was enjoyable for me. Gave me anxiety, couldn't wait to turn it off.

Not typically a blues guy but the Mali fusion of it all was really good! Had it on most of the day at work just vibing.

Our first album released during my lifetime let’s goooooooo And now for something completely different! Enjoyed this a lot, very pleasing listen. I think being freed from listening closely to the lyrics (since they were not in a language I speak) allowed me to just vibe with the music and jam. Dug the rhythms, dug the guitar riffs, dug the sound of his voice. Felt like I was at a backyard BBQ chillin and grillin. Second act montage needle drop in my biopic: “Soukora”

I felt like I was going insane listening to this album. I'm not the target audience even a little bit. The beat was so repetitive it made me nauseous. I really wanted to like this one but just no.

Loved this, obviously, breath of fresh air compared to some of the recent albums where I have been putting myself out of my usual listening zone, this past year I've been listening to a lot of African traditional niche instruments and jam music recently and getting this album today just felt like a relaxing listen on my day off, definitely adding this to the rotation, mwah.

exquisite cottage cheese and pollo asado on scallion pancake

Love Ali Farka Touré. Such a relaxing experience. Nothing much more to say other than beautiful

Nice chill background sound, not something I would purposefully put on to listen to

Up my street. Some very good stuff in here.

I really enjoy and respect the work of Ry Cooder, and this album feels like a musical masterclass. However, the album failed to connect like other similar works. For example, The Buena Vista Social Club, is actually in rotation for me. This album, while very well produced, just didn't click for me. I'll probably have to listen several times discover its greatness.

Dull, and with that awful early nineties mix where everything is too bright

It's fine, it's different, but nothing I fell in love with.

Vamos hoy con otro disco de Ali Farka Touré, artista que ya ha aparecido en éste reto y no lo recordaba. En esta oportunidad, es una colaboración con Ry Cooder. Con el primer track me recuerda a contemporáneos como Bombino (y, salvando las distancias, a Los Espíritus y su primera época). El disco tiene grandes temas, colgados, hipnóticos, ideales para escapar del ruido cotidiano. Gracias y hasta mañana.

É um tipo de música bastante nichado, e bem difícil de falar sobre.. tem aspectos de música africana, Jazz muito bem feito, uma atmosfera bem pegajosa.

Kinda repetitive

Another fun world album that I would not have found outside the project.

Keine Textzeilen in mir verständlicher Sprache. Das ist ein sehr schönes, entspanntes Album musikalisch gesehen. Textlich gehe ich davon aus, das durchaus nicht nur einfache Themen angesprochen werden. Mir gefällt die Entspanntheit und die Stimme. Allerdings gibt es auch viele ähnliche Lieder. Für mich keine so besondere Neuentdeckung dass ich das noch oft hören würde, aber ich fand es schön, es gehört zu haben.

Grundsätzlich finde ich die Tuareg/Wüstenrock Alben die den Feuilleton erreichen cool. Das hier nimmt mich aber nicht so mit.

Track 1 5:30 ok, Track 2 6:00 naja, Track 3 7:00 ehrlich? Track 4 3:10. Cool. Track 5 9:23. Tickts denn noch sauber? Mein Ohr ist auf die sehr einförmige, teppichartige Musik nicht geeicht. Und eine Stunde mit nur 10 verschiedenen Tracks füllen, weiß ich nicht. Ne. Nicht meins. Mag Sequenzen davon sehr und super interessante Kombinationen von Instrumenten und Melodieläufen. Als Album nicht mehr als eine 2.

African music combined with blues is a fun combo. However, this album was pretty mellow and not a great listen when exercising. I'd give it another listen one day.

This was a lazy afternoon vibefest

Excellent

Enjoyed it more than I expected

I ain’t listening to all that. Nothing against it, but 4 tracks in I get what I’m listening to. I have no interest in world folk music and maybe you can call that a shortcoming of mine if you like.

It's not what I usually listen to. The songs were repeating for a bit too long for my liking

Not bad as background music. The guitar tone is nice and there’s a good swing. I was tapping my feet as I read my book.

Already a huge fan of Ali and Ry so this was treat. Honestly all of Ry Cooder's collab albums are excellent (Meeting by the River, Buena Vista Social Club) because he walks a thin line between letting the featured artist showcase their unique abilities while also bringing enough western blues influence make it different from the original sound. The real highlight is the inclusion of drones in a lot of songs. Almost every track features a grounding note in the background that gives a very meditative and peaceful tone to all the tracks. Great stuff. And Ali Farka Toure really shines on this with his complex guitar lines. He's the king of Tuareg music for a reason.

very reminiscent of buenavista social club

Cool exotic music, blues guitars, reggae sounds, African rythms and voices, but all songs are quite relaxed. 3,5/5

I enjoyed listening to this a similar way I enjoy listening to Masayoshi Takanaka And yeah better than joy division

African rhythms all day long!!!

It was above average listen. I want seek it out, but good album.

Regrettable

Solid, kinda repetitive, sounded cool. I don’t really know what was happening so that’s about all I got.

Wait-he’s got another album on here? I enjoyed listening to it & very relaxing sound but it sounds incredibly similar to his other album on this list. (Really confused by the determination on what gets on this list)

Familiar but different. Like BB King, but twice as long. Length and repetition of tracks renders virtuosa guitar into background noise.

I love learning about music like this Best Song: Bonde Rating: 6/10 Stars: 3

*1994. *I really like African folk, so some songs are great. But then the addition of Ry Cooder here (kind of an American blues guitar element) made it a little less enchanting for me. *I'm excited to hear more Ali Farka Toure by himself (he has one more album on the list and plenty of others to explore). Apparently he's a very accomplished Mali musician. RATING - 7/10

Nice album. I really like this kind of thing and wish I spoke a single African language so that I could engage with it more. The only place this lacked was maybe in the recording side in that it was a bit flat.

Lovely guitars.

- Some nice guitar playing and rhythms. - I dislike the tone of the singing voice in the higher registers - it felt strained, thin, and sharp. I definitely would have preferred this to be an instrumental album. - The songs (and album) go on too long without evolving enough. - I can't ever seeing myself be in the mood for this and reaching for it.

An interesting listen

Probably my favorite African album I've heard so far. I love, love the guitar work. Simple, good for background music. 4/5

Sega feel like a sonic the hedgehog deal

Some smooth and enjoyable moments but quite samey all the way through. Certain tracks did capture me, but on the whole I'm not enamoured with it.

this kinda makes me emotional

Amazing album, love Toure's stuff.

3.5 - good album

Beautiful music. Touré and Cooder play really well together. Only complaint is that it starts to sound a little repetitive, but overall this is a great album. 4/5 Will listen again

Soukora Amandrai Lasidan Darby

These 2 are obviously having fun in each other's company. It doesn't really transmit to the listener where 1 song suddenly melds into the other 9 or 10. This has an audience but i would not be part of it.

great talent, has tracks with some being meditative, and some showcasing the virtuosity in instrument playing. Favorite track: ai du other picks: diaraby, soukora, bonde, amandarai

Really interesting album. In some songs I can hear the overlap with American blues/folk and Cajun/zydeco music. My favorite track was definitely Ai Du! The viola and banjo were a great addition to the arrangement

A tad repetitive, but that just might be a consequence of listening with my western music brain. Beautiful traditional Malian folk music, very "feel good" in nature.

Nice :) i liked it

I enjoyed this. It did fade into the background a bit after awhile, but I don’t mind that. 4/5

#404/1001. Review not found.

Nice!

Way better than expected.

I do love that Mali guitar sound

Uhhh, ok, maybe? Sounds like the last one? The music Spotify started playing after this was over was great, though

nice

Really chill world music for work, features Ry Cooder on guitar

One of the things I love about this website is how it exposes you to music from all over the world that you’d likely not be exposed to.

3.3/5 Great guitar work. Favorite Songs: Gomni Amandrai Diaraby

01) Bonde - 7,0 02) Soukora - 7,5 03) Gomni - 7,0 04) Sega - 6,0 05) Amandrai - 7,0 06) Lasidan - 7,0 07) Keito - 6,5 08) Banga - 6,0 09) Ai Du - 7,0 10) Diaraby - 7,5 TOTAL: 6,85 (69/100) Current ranking:

sick

Kicks ass

Listened to on my Bose AE2 Soundlink headphones. Talking Timbuktu is a pleasant collection of sometimes folksy, sometimes bluesy jams from Mali, and it was an album I found pleasant for my accompanying walk, but not much more than that. It has a very loose structure, really like a jam every song, so there is a strong rhythm and repetitious riffing giving way to improv soloing on guitar and occasional lyricism as these tracks reach towards the 6-8 minute mark regularly, and I just found it too unstructured to really connect with it strongly. It reminded me greatly of the jam band that would come in weekly to my local bookstore. Suprisingly, it never much disturbed the book browsing and light reading experience because of how little it demanded of my attention, outside of the volume. Talking Timbuktu takes me back there. It's quite alright but doesn't give me much to say, and I don't know how inclined I would be to revisit this one.

Sounded great! Nice listen, enjoyed it! :) it was all new to me

It’s got a jazzy vibe where the album feels like one giant song that changes mood sometimes. It’s probably not the best for intense listening but it’s good in the background

Interesting album

Wow I really liked this. Great discovery thanks to the list. It is super interesting- sort of world music with an underlying blues sound. I was interested in how much a couple of the tracks, while sung in African languages, sound like Irish Seanos style singing.

I am familiar with Ali Farka Toure's name as a greatly respected musician, but never listened to his albums. This is a cool album. I've been listening to it in a backgroundy way. Very enjoyable. Gomni is a standout. Really, really good track.

Taking away the songs where we're slogging through Ry Cooder's not-so-subtle point, ie that Ali Farka Toure's tradition has a direct connection to American blues, this is an enjoyable album. I'm not a fan of jam bands.

I listened to this a lot back in the day and I still enjoyed it. Maybe not as much as back then, but I still liked it a lot.

didnt expect to see a second album from ali farka toure on here but gosh, i'd have to recheck both but i might like this one even better. its just a bath in honey...music to run ur fingers thru. some grooves start beautiful and only get more beautiful the tighter they wrap around u, some dont seem beautiful until u rly get to know them thru sheer power of time and attention. an antidote to summer depression music...summer Peace music?

Just hyvä levy kiireettömään sunnuntaiaamuun… 4/5

a collaborative album between ali farka touré and ry cooder, blending traditional west african folk music with american roots rock. this little cross-country effort managed to get the 1995 grammy for the best world music album. it's a nice little listen today. there's a natural chemistry between these two guys. you can see the album cover with both of them smiling at each other, and i think about that as the album plays, just two humans from different backgrounds collaborating with each other. it's a lovely little fusion of musical culture, makes for an album that's rather chill all the way through. i'm glad to hear some world music recommendations that are actually worth my time.

I hadn’t really listened to any African music before I started with this website. I am thoroughly enjoying it so far though

Smooth guitars and singing with some really nice rhythms throughout. A fun album to have on while going about my day. To me its not music for when listening is the main focus but still something I really enjoyed listening through and something I am glad to have knowledge about starting today.

I think I'm in the wrong setting for this.

A very pensive and groovy album. They aren’t really any bangers, but it’s all good stuff.

while this sound is up my alley and while its clearly great musical work, it got too repetitive. maybe it would have been different had I understood the language. I enjoyed Amandrai most. ----POEM---- I flick the wicker till it is undone soak in the scent of the drenched unfurled earth nearby she hurls soaped water across the marble sharp and fine silver stomps through the melon onto the table our quiet noon is left untouched but for the eager invites of the after

Loved this - great tunes - thx!

Not really my style

had to do a double take because i've listened to this guy's son before lol. sure it's repetitive but damn is it groovy. could listen for a while

Uhh... No thanks.

Love the world sound Ethiopian jazz 🤙

African rhythms, African lyrics, a taste of music that is simultaneously alien and fundamentally familiar. And then we get "Amandrai" or "Ai Du", slow Delta blues numbers (albeit ones with lyrics in Tamasheq or Songhai) that seem like they should be completely out of place, but is still of a piece with the rest of the album. The songs can get repetitive, but in a more trance-like way than a boring way in most cases.

P.o.s sampled Sega off this album.

This was great, never heard of it before, but glad I did. #relisten

4 A really enjoyable album, again didn't understand any lyrics but it sounded good

Strong. Partly like eating in Giraffe, partly like grooving with other cultures. Made me feel erudite and intelligent just by listening to it. The pace was excellent.

9/10

Didn't really stand out, but a beautiful voice.

Lovely

Good but not always

Enjoyable.

Grandes interpretaciones, poca conexión por mi parte, es un álbum objetivamente muy bueno, pero no me terminó de enganchar del todo, pero rescato tres buenas canciones para llevarlas a mí lista.

I enjoyed this a lot, but reading up on it, knowing that the main guy just did not like this record too much, i dont feel good giving it a good rating. Still, it's a good one for lovers of the guitar. Low 4

Different but good.

This is nice though it does feel repetitive half way through. I don't see myself revisiting this purposely in the future but I wouldn't be mad if it showed up on a shuffle algorithm. Solid 3 stars.

Talking Timbuktu is the 1994 collaboration album between Malian guitarist Ali Farka Touré and American guitarist/producer Ry Cooder. The guitar riff from the song "Diaraby" was selected for the Geo-quiz segment of The World PRI-BBC radio program and was retained by popular demand when put to a vote by the listeners. In 2009, the album was awarded a gold certification from the Independent Music Companies Association which indicated sales of at least 100,000 copies throughout Europe.

I like the music but It's not a language I understand.

Masterpiece

Album fantastico, mistico, penso sia la prima volta che ascolto questo genere, mi ha sorpreso

Heerlijk rustgevend, lekker als achtergrond muziek. Toen ik er later nog eens naar luisterde deed het mij niet mega veel. Wel tof om muziek te horen vanuit niet westerse invloeden en dat in een overwegend witte mannen muziek lijst

We hebben al eerder een album van hem gehad, de vorige vond ik leuk maar deze nog leuker. Deze voelt qua opname van betere kwaliteit. Alle instrumenten en zanglijnen staan in dienst van elkaar en geen probeert boven de ander uit te steken. Dit album heeft de afgelopen dagen op repeat gestaan en ik ben er eigenlijk ook nog niet klaar mee. Maar we moeten door. Ik ga dit album nog wel vaker luisteren.

Wel toevallig dat er twee Ry Cooder producties achter elkaar zijn. Mijn vorige review kan je gedeeltelijk overnemen voor deze plaat. Toch vind ik de vorige plaat van Ali Farka Toure die we moesten luisteren wel beter. Je hoort dat de productie van Ry Cooder een stuk gepolijster is. Het is een samenwerking die je vooral terug hoort in het gitaarspel, een muzikaal dialoog tussen de twee. Toch mis ik het karakter van Ali Farka Toure een beetje. Het album is het best repetitief en verliest wat diepte waardoor het een beetje achtergrondmuziek word.

Ali Farka Toure is terug! Vorige keer heb ik zijn album te laag beoordeeld, kzou het eigenlijk 5 sterren moeten geven om te compenseren met het vorige album. Talking Timbuktu klinkt nieuwer dan Savane hoewel het 12 jaar ouder is. Door de samenwerking met Ry Cooder klinkt dit album toch anders dan het vorige en ik moet zeggen dat ik door het vorige album verschillende keren heb beluisterd mijn oren beter in kan stellen op dit album en het automatisch het meer waardeer. Ik ben vooral ook erg gecharmeerd van zijn gitaarspel/gitaartoon.

2.5

3*

I always feel the same way whenever I've listened to Ali Farka Toure in that it's often a bit one note. Like, I always enjoy the first couple of tracks I listen to, but it starts to blend into one over time, like air fried beige food at a buffet.

yayy weer een (mij) volledig onbekend album !! prachtig gitaarwerk

Nice Sunday morning vibe. Talented musicians

Started great, but diminishing returns over time, and somewhat hard to distinguish one song from the next.

Did not get much out of this album. Not great, not terrible, 3-stars seems appropriate

Cool!

I love this sound but have no context if this is truly special or not. Yea it’s repetitive but it’s complex too.

Something nice to play in the background. Thanks ❤️

Pretty cool

75

No lo escuché directamente no me gusta el cantante, no es mi género ni tampoco a nivel cultural me gusta. Talvez sea oportunidad para expandir gustos!

Fav- bonde 3/5

The best aural wallpaper possible.

It’s fine for what it was. A couple bluesy tracks stood out

i guess i would have liked it more if it was just instrumental

Really enjoyable.

Really good, felt a bit more delicate than his other album, maybe gentler. Idk.

Nice vibes, easy to listen to. Would need to revisit to really sink my teeth into it, but as a one-time listen on a sunny afternoon, it was enjoyable! 3.5 stars.

I have never heard of this artist. But when I saw he was from Mali - I got cautiously optimistic because I really liked the album Music in Exile by the band called Songhoy Blues who are also from there. Thoughts while listening... Ok, yeah - this has similarities to the Songhoy Blues album - which is good. It looks like this one came out 11 years before that one - so I'm guessing this guy (Ali Farka Touré) has had some influence on those guys. Or at least they are all swimming in a similar genre lake. I looked it up - Songhoy Blues was definitely influenced by Ali Farka Touré and they covered a lot of his songs when they started out. Cool connection! Never guessed that I would become an "expert" in understanding Malian music but here we are - haha. Ali is definitely more folky/acoustic sounding than Songhoy Blues and quite a bit less energetic. I like some of this, but felt it gets a little samey throughout without enough variation or energy to keep it interesting across the whole album. I ended up liking the first 3 songs - "Bonde", "Soukora", and "Gomni" - plus the last song "Diaraby". None of it is bad, just felt like these 4 stood out from the rest. Liked songs on Spotify: 4/10 Rating: 2/5

Pleasant enough, but it was just so so boring. Too long too. I feel like many albums on this list have been like this too. Generous 3.

Finally, something actually interesting this week. This album has a very warm vibe from its strong guitar playing. I can't understand the lyrics, but the singer is clearly good at what he does. This album sounds very similar to Baaba Maal's two records on this list despite coming from a different country. There's probably some nuance here that I'm not getting with my American Anglophone brain being unable to comprehend the lyrics. The percussion adds a nice touch to the record, enhancing what would otherwise be mostly placid guitar songs. This record is still very placid in general, but not in a bad way. Certainly, it's better than the last 3 records I've had.

Enjoyable, and I wouldn't have heard this otherwise (except for the small bit they play on PRI's "The World"). Felt like I should be outside enjoying a joyful day with this on. 4/5

This was a joyful summery listen. Some standout moments. Love me some Ry!

Didn't enjoy this quite as much as the other album he's had on the list but it's still excellent. Also, Ry Cooder is a quality "he doesn't even go here" addition because I guess technically Americans can be part of "World Music"?

This was a pretty chill guitar driven world album.

An interessting experience, felt more like finding a group of people in the street playing some nice music where you just stand there and nod along, then move on with your life.

++: Bonde, Soukora, Sega, Amandrai, Keito, Banga, Ai Du +: Lasidan, Diaraby +-: Gomni 9,0/10

2.5

gostei da vibe

The very first one of my albums of the day that I was unfamiliar with and my wife really really liked. Into the library it goes. 4.5/5

What exactly is Ry Cooder contributing here, except PR? I don't think this is Ali Farka Touré's best album, but it's possible that I would never have heard that other one were it not for this one. Regardless, I am a big fan of the Malian guitar thing, and it is a perfect Sunday morning album.

Perfectly pleasant

I guess this is fine

I liked this album in concept. When I listened too closely I heard pretty standard blues music. All and all though, a pretty comforting listen. 3.5/5 -> 4/5

Not for me

I don't necessarily love it, but I don't hate it, and I can acknowledge how pleasant it is. Reading about Mali and Timbuktu while listening to Ali's music feels like a history lesson in a way, and I really like that. This is the kind of thing I'm excited to find on the list. Since I'm not in the community of internationally well-renowned guitarists, I am 100% positive I never would have heard this on my own. If I didn't fall in love with it, I appreciate it.

Någon borde ge Ry Cooder yrkesförbud. Hur mycket musik har inte den karln förstört?

Svag tvåa.

Ännu mer världsmusik. Egentligen är det väl rätt mycket av ett bluesalbum i västafrikanska tappning. Här finns en del fint malande blues som i Ai du och Amandrai. Eller sköna basslingor som i Soukora. Tyvärr blir det rätt enformigt i längden.

Ökenblues som släpar sig fram. Ry Cooder lyckas inte lätta upp det hela. Tvärtom är det lite mindre svängigt än vad Ali Farka Toure kan vara. Precis godkänt.

This album demonstrates the brilliance of Malian folk music through rhythms and musical patterns that feel almost hypnotic. It’s an easy listen, yet there’s plenty of substance beneath the surface. It’s true that many of the songs sound somewhat similar, especially in the vocal delivery and guitar work, but that repetition ultimately works in favor of the album by reinforcing its atmosphere and mood. The standout tracks for me are the opening "Bonde" and "Ai Du".

Perfect for the early evening after a hot day.

Wait, a second album from Ali Farka Toure? I didn't know he had two reps on the list. I listened to Savane around 140 albums ago and it was alright. Nothing wrong with a little African blues, though relative to what this genre is I think he might be punching above his weight. Anyways, this album was added first (Savane was added to the 2008 update of the book and much of the reason for its inclusion appears to concern Toure's death), so it evidently has the most staying power. Here goes. Yeah. Not for me, though I can commend this music for being a relaxing listen. I like the warm, mellow, distinctive African guitars. They have a nice sound and work well with the pattering percussion, though I do think the music sounds a little empty whenever they're absent. To compensate for these stretches, the percussion-based tracks typically incorporate more aggressive and layered vocals to fill the emptiness, which is another element that pushes me away. The vocals don't move me. They work well enough whenever they're in the background, but having them front and centre highlights how lackluster the melodies and performances are. There's also the matter of the runtime and how generally repetitious the music is, though these factors didn't bother me as much as they have previously. Overall, I was content with letting this music blow over my head, though I obviously didn't care too much about the particulars of this album. Book time. Won a Grammy. Farka Toure came to prominence when recordings from his early albums were circulated in Europe by DJs, musicians and critics. Apparently, the people who are into this music have gotten into slapfights over whether it's blues, though Farka Toure contends that this music belongs to a more traditional style. The World Circuit label picked him up in '88 and things went from there. Wikipedia says this album has moved 100,000 copies in Europe and 230,000 in the US. It also received middling reactions from the two music publications who reviewed it, though that's about it. I'm not tired of World music being in here just yet, though the level of variety is kind of a bummer. Off the top of my head, I'm pretty sure half of the world music picks are from Africa and a quarter are from India, with the remaining nominations being from South America. East Asia is definitely sorely missing in the world music nominations, though in all fairness the East Asian music industry was pretty insular until around the mid-2010s. Anyways, we're removing this one. Two albums from Toure is definitely him punching above his weight. In place of this album, I humbly submit "I See Seaweed" by The Drones for inclusion on the list.

this is a good one, and exactly the kind of stuff i wish there was more of on the list. i wish it'd throw me way outta my comfort zone with genres i've never even considered more often... like, i see the wikipedia info box listing it as an hour of "malian folk" and i'm like "fuck yes, im down". i (obviously?) don't understand a word of the lyrics, but i don't need to know that to appreciate the rich bluesy sound. i don't think i could really choose a favourite track here cos it really is all great, although, if i'm being honest, it is also a little bit because it does fade into the background for me. it's hard to lock onto, and not too much particularly jumps out and grabs me about any of the tracks. but i think that's at least partly due to the language barrier..? and maybe also the track length to some extent. while i enjoy the sound a lot, and have already listened like 6 times, it's hard to justify a 5 for an album that's largely just been unable to grab my attention fully. so i guess i'm giving it a very strong 4 instead for now, and might bump it up if i finally manage to lock in fully on a future listen. for what it's worth though.... it really is stellar background music.

I wasn't expecting more than one foray into Songhai music or desert blues, but I'll take it! that Songhoy Blues album I listened to some time ago was a real gem, so I was excited to get a glimpse into the musical world of Ali Farka Touré, one of the progenitors of this fusion of traditional Malian music with elements of American blues. Talking Timbuktu was produced by guitarist Ry Cooder for the World Circuit label, with which he was also involved in the creation of some other fantastic international crossovers, especially Afro-Cuban records like the legendary Buena Vista Social Club. like on Buena Vista, Cooder also adds a wide range of instrumental contributions to the proceedings, though I appreciate that he plays a lot more of a background or accompaniment role here most of the time. his turns on electric guitar are great, but Touré's time and feel on that instrument are mesmerizing, so I'm glad Cooder saw fit to let him lead the charge there. these are the types of grooves that really suck me in; there's a strong sense of swing here, but not in a jazz sense. it's the way these various uneven pulses stack against each other in polyrhythm, locking in and out while the harmony stays still to let you focus on it all. John Patitucci shows up for a few tracks, which definitely earns this album some bonus points. decent 8/10.

Some good African jazz vibes. Didn’t blow me away.

Beautyful feeling in my soul.

This is pleasant but didn't quite grab me. Lots of interesting sounds, and definitely worthy of a listen but didn't find much to go back to.

I don’t have much to say other then this was an interesting listen. Its not my genre or language but It’s kind of a vibe. Would make decent background music at work. The tracks kind of blend together so its hard to say my top songs. I don’t know if I’ll come back to it but I enjoyed it. 3/5 stars

I was doing my chores while listening to the album, and I noticed that the songs didn't really change much. They were repetitive and long. The silver lining is that I've never heard of Malian folk before, which I wouldn't have listened to w/o this challenge.

pretty awesome chill vibe reminds me of little big planet

Played it in my office several times, really enjoyed it. Great album, awesome gutar work.

Day860 - super talented musicians making super boring album

I enjoyed this a whole lot. There was a real blend of genres at different points with some heavy American blues influences alongside whatever the hell other countries were being represented here. Some songs veered a little on the dull side but they were still just good vibes.

Really good as a background album. IDK how to rank that compared to other albums though so just going with my gut

Nice and gentle, good chill background music

I'm not exactly sure what happened, but I ended up listening to this one on repeat for two weeks solid. What a vibe. Not the sort of thing I'd usually stick on on the regular, but it's just so good.

2/5

jaaaa ry cooder das isch huuuere cool, mali desert blues und ry cooder goodness. huere fun. will meh. sehr laid back alles, und er singt huere coool. s blibt leider nöd soo viel hange. amandray isch meega classic blues und de ry macht sin slide shit drüber ou fuck yea ich lieb afoch wie de ry cooder spielt und de ali farka toure hets au huere druf werde keine unwahrheiten verbreiten. ai du isch en schwizerdütsche titel oder? huere geil. giige solo? äh jo gern? de letst track isch sooo schön häää? das isch so geil? gitarre mached sache oooh yes.

öhh de ahfang vo bonde hani gfühlt auscho ghört d melodie vo so westafrikanischem gsang (ja us unwüsseheit verallgemeinere ich sorry) isch eifach soo schön und iwie beruhigend? ICH LIEB SOUKORA s gitarrespiel und perkussion isch glichzitig so reduziert aber au villschichtig? gfalltmer megaa amandrai het en coole blues-groove okee ich han chli abgschalte will nöd megaaa vill verschiednigs passiert, aber ich hans mega schön gfunde!

Okay, we've got another African artist on the list to talk about. Cool. Ali Farka Touré is definitely one of the more acclaimed artists from the continent that they could've added on a list like this. Definitely not as influential as someone like Fela Kuti, but he's got a legacy from what I can tell. His legacy seems to be mostly focused on his guitar capabilities, which are certainly good on this album here. I like the music of this album quite a bit. The album's got a nice bluesy atmosphere that allows this album to appeal to someone despite any potential language barriers. Speaking of language barriers, they're here again! Yeah, I couldn't find any lyrics for this album, so I have no clue what's being said. I'm sure it's nice stuff, but it does make it a bit harder for me to appreciate what this album is trying to say. Oh well. At least I can appreciate the music, which I will reiterate is quite good. The album is a little long and kinda samey, but the music sounds nice, so I can't complain too much. I'm sure Ry Cooder's production played a pretty big part in this album's sound. Overall, I respect Talking Timbuktu. It's got some nice sounds and a good energy. I can see why this won Best World Music Album at the Grammys. Strong 3/5.

Cool combination of blues and “world” music. Not my favorite thing ever, but enjoyable.

This was such a breath of fresh air and an incredibly chill album. The instrumental use was very very nice and I really wish it was longer so I could listen to more of it.

What a chill treat of an album. I loved every second of it, and I really wish I knew what Ali was singing. This was real good.

Saved to library

Malian folk, guitar with pleasant rhythms Amandrai

Meh 3/5

A great album to put you in a relaxing and good vibes mood 3/5

Allez, 156e album et ça n'est que mon deuxième album d'un artiste africain. Mais pas n'importe qui ! Ali Farka Touré, bordel ! Hier Duke Ellington, aujourd'hui Ali Farka Touré, je suis sur une bonne série ! Alors évidemment, ce n'est pas facile de se lancer dans un album du guitariste malien. Il crée de la musique malienne pure et dure, l'auditeur étranger manque forcément du contexte culturel ou de la connaissance de la langue (à part pour les rares passages en français) pour comprendre la musique. On est donc obligés de l'aborder tout en sachant qu'on n'en captera pas l'essence. Cela dit, la musique d'Ali Farka Touré est chaude, elle est riche en émotion, son chant est très expressif est reconnaissable entre mille. Certaines mélodies trottent en tête et perso, j'en redemande. Cet album est particulier, puisqu'il a été réalisé en collaboration avec un certain Ry Cooder (inconnu au bataillon chez moi), qui apporte des influences extérieures, plus occidentales. Et si on reste d'abord et avant tout sur un album d'Ali Farka Touré, on sent qu'il n'est pas tout seul et l'instrumentation est parfois plus proche de ce qu'on a l'habitude d'entendre en occident. Cela dit, cette collaboration ne dénature par du tout la musique, elle est simplement plus métissée qu'à l'accoutumée. C'est peut-être ça qui rend l'album si accessible et qui explique son succès, mais perso, c'est aussi un peu ce que je reprocherais à ce choix. Je pense qu'un pur album d'Ali Farka Touré aurait été plus représentatif et plus intéressant pour la liste. Mais je ne boude pas mon plaisir, je suis très content d'avoir eu cet album à écouter aujourd'hui !

New to me. Totally immersive - love it! 1. Blonde 2. Amandrai 3. Ai Du 4. Diaraby

New to me. Really liked it!

I was excited about this one because of Ry Cooder but between the repetition and the awful early 90’s guitar tone, I couldn’t take it

good album

It’s okay - I really like the African vibe, but could have lived without all the blues mixed into the songs

i personally think we should smack the person who came up with the "world music" genre upside the head because i've heard folk music from every continent and somehow all of them are just classified as world music in the west. it's frankly insulting anyway i agree with what most people seem to think about this. it's pleasant listening. really beautiful at times. but does get repetitive quickly. i don't think i'll ever return but i had a good time while i was listening to it fave track: soukura

Definitely revolves around a single sound. But tracks are really good

RAW as fuck. What language is this. These noises please me.

6/10

They should probably start talking about something else ...

This was really chill african music. I've been hating a lot on this list lately, and I found this very refreshing on a friday morning. Solid 5* Highlights: soukora. amandrai (very blues-y), lasidan

3.5

"I ping a boy, he a bad boy" "My chicken he make a messy" When someone sings in a foreign language, my idiot brain tries to find English phrases in it. Those are two I extracted. The obvious frame of reference when looking at an African Western collaboration is Paul Simon's Graceland. This is a more lofi experiece, you can clearly hear the sound of the room where they recorded, and it's not an acoustically treated room. It helps to transport you, and you can almost smell the savannah. Musically, it's mostly western in tone, with electric guitar on top of African instruments. There are some African folk style songs and some blues noodling. Quite pleasant, but not hugely memorable.

Cool instruments, no English. I want to be able to sing the songs I listen to if I like them. I guess this has its place but 🤷 don’t feel like listening to the whole thing. Especially with 7 minute songs, it’s a long listen.

Det var meget fedt, har haft lidt travlt på job til at anmelde ordentligt, men en lille 3'er

Jeg synes, det er rigtig kedeligt. 1.8

I enjoyed listening to this album. The guitar work was really amazing, but sometimes the vocals were a little overpowering, and I obviously don’t know what he’s saying. Definitely gives me Khruangbin vibes, but with more vocals. I would definitely listen to this again.

Good album, just not my thing.

Sorry Ali. Not into your music

omg the guitarist was in captain beefheart *gulp*. idk if thats a good or bad thing it was good thing. love the guitar on here ry cooder is great. love the hints of blues sprinkled into these malian tunes. pretty good but id being lying if I said it was very memorable. the album pretty one note, a very pleasant note, but still one note.

Talking Timbuktu es una obra de arte atemporal y un monumento a la diplomacia cultural que ha envejecido bien, manteniendo intacta su pureza y su misticismo. Para quien se sumerge en sus notas, este álbum representa un viaje espiritual profundo, una experiencia mística que brota de la tierra misma. A nivel de ensamble, la producción es perfecta: todos los instrumentos y las voces se entretejen muy bien, borrando las fronteras geográficas entre el blues del Misisipi y el folclor de Malí, permitiendo que las texturas acústicas y eléctricas dejen ver corazones apasionados y conectados en una complicidad única. La guitarra y la voz ancestral de Ali Farka Touré aportan una fuerza y calidez descomunales, dotando al disco de una autoridad espiritual que se percibe conmovedora, cruda y real. El fluir de los temas genera una inmensa sensación de paz y fluidez, un vaivén hipnótico y orgánico que bien puede acompañar en múltiples contextos o convertirse en el catalizador perfecto para dejarse llevar en una danza espontánea. Una obra imprescindible que sana el alma.

not really my taste. good music, but not something i'd really choose to listen to

This is a cool sound and a fun album overall. The songs definitely blend together but I liked it. Good background music for working!

Nice background music for work

This guy again? Really? The first one I reviewed was so bad I blocked his music from being played on my Spotify account. I had to unlock him to get to play this album, then I reblocked him so he never comes up in my mix. Cooder adds some clout but the music is still SO boring and wandering. His guitar work is an afterthought. The listener counts were high, likely because it's tied to Cooder. 33M oplayed "Ai Du", 11M listened to "Bonde" and 9M enjoyed "Soukora", which was the only decent tune on the album. No hits, can't sing along or understand, not into the vibe or instrumentation, nearly every song was utterly boring, the vocals suck. Grab a pillow and enjoy this snoozer. 2 stars.

Franchement, album plutôt sympa. Même si je ne suis pas particulièrement proche de ce type de sonorités, j'ai bien aimé l'album et son ambiance. Que ce soit le Blues, que je trouve particulièrement bien géré sur certains morceaux comme "Amandrai" avec un jeu de guitare extrêmement propre et très original pour un album de musique traditionnelle. De plus, je trouve que cette dernière est elle aussi vraiment soignée avec des rythmes très efficaces et des boucles sonores comme hypnotisantes sur lesquelles viennent se greffer les voix et chœurs. L'album a donc une identité qui lui est propre mais qui fonctionne bien, avec une bonne diversité de sonorités, très apaisantes et agréables à l'écoute.

Desert blues, I don't know what ry cooder did on the album

This was a pretty chill album. Although nothing really exciting happened, it was quite nice having it in the background.

I love a bit of 'world music', and it made a change from some of the shite that we have been subjected to during the last couple of weeks.

I enjoyed this - I don't know that we needed more than one album from this pair though!

Some beautiful sounds on here, and each track taken in isolation has plenty to offer. But as an album there’s not enough variety to keep you going for an hour.

It’s great at putting you in a trance, very easy to focus on other thoughts/tasks with it on in the background. Even though I didn’t save many individual tracks, I still enjoyed the whole thing. It just feels like one cohesive piece rather than individual songs. I quite like the desert blues. Whatever he does, something about it does give it more of a “soul” than a lot of Western music. Rating: 2.5

Very surprised by this, but the guitar work is great

Just so so boring

Nice bluesy music.

Love Ali Farke Toure, so this is right in my lane. First half of the album is stronger but it’s a great record to relax to and get lost in

Sounds like holidays - exotic, pleasant jam. Not my daily listen but nice!

This is almost a five for me. So chill, so musical, such good vibes. If I can fault it anything, it's that it maybe gets a little boring at times. But regardless, this has entered my regular rotation.

Beautiful. Man I could really follow Cooder's name around to find lovely recordings I'd never otherwise know about. Wish I'd been at Folk Fest in 1988!

4 or 5 hmmm - let's do 4.5 - this was awesome. such an unlikely pair, but the language of music is universal and so beautiful, I love these 2 tg!!! Cooder is a legend and Ali Tourè too, from the other side of the planet.

Just not my thing. The vocals are irritating musically and I connect even less because I don’t understand them. The music is uninspiring to me.

The feels like the mood at an outdoor restaurant on the beach towards the end of the afternoon. Calm and content with a whisper of what’s to come that evening in paradise.

One of those albums that just sounds amazing. It perfectly sits in the background - maybe a little too much. Two masters of their craft finding common ground. Not the best offering from either artist but still a treat. I get why it's here.

I really love the sound of this album with each song having a similar textrue and yet you can hear different influnces from around the world in some. The blues sounding stuff on Amandrai, the more country sounding Ai Du and the usage of (I think) the sitar on Keito. Its nice, its peaceful, and it makes me smile. Fav tracks: Gomni, Sega, Keito, and Ai Du

Fantastic! First 5 star rating for me! Great music to work to.

Love a bit of Ali Farka Tourre.

such a jam, really got me through the day, great vibes

mmm album de mali africanito, not my tipe 1/5

Dnf

Et skønt album, der giver en del bedre mening på listen end det sidste vi havde med ham. Det sidste nummer er så godt

Lød som en ægte Ali Farka Touré plade, lækkert!

Really nice vibes.

I really tried with this one, but it felt annoyingly repetitive.

really cool instrumentals and melodies but dear lord it was SO repetitive. this would be better live but sitting at work listening to this, i was just growing frustrated. the best song was soukora. 3/10

linda cultura mas não curti

This is a gem that I would have never found without doing this. Great album.

This is fine, but he didn’t need a second album.

Not my kind of music

I had heard of Farka Touré's previous album, The Source, several years ago and was thoroughly impressed with how similar his fingerpicked style was to the American blues. I guess The Source was his "breakthrough" album, because here the Malian guitar great teams up with world-travelled guitarist Ry Cooder for a similar collection of weathered, sun-beat jams. This is definitely a very laid-back, relaxed atmosphere dominated by the guitar interplay and complemented by occasional interjections from what sounds like an African kora harp and/or a violin of some sort. Despite collaborating with a Western musician, I don't feel there's anything really "Westernized" on this album; everything seems to be played exactly as it should be, with all resemblances to other genres like the blues being coincidental. The music here seems tailor-made for typically "exotic" experiences like open-air markets, late-night firelit slow dances, and desert adventures. And yet, nothing feels overly commercial or cloying. I appreciate how well Cooder's inclusion balances these things out. It goes without saying, that Farka Touré - dubbed the African John Lee Hooker by the Western press - is the main attraction here, as the Malian desert blues, apparently called Tishoumaren, really doesn't sound like much anything else out there. This is, in my estimation, the album that paved the way for similarly faraway acts like Tinariwen or Mdou Moctar to find an audience in the West, and I think we all benefit from that sort of cultural intersharing. Key Tracks: Bonde, Lasidan, Keito, Diaraby

Un espectáculo!

"Talking Timbuktu" is a collaboration album by Malian guitarist Ali Farka Touré and American guitarist/producer Ry Cooder. Malian folk is the sole Wiki-listed genre. The album was acclaimed for "its intimate, warm and conversational guitar interplay, offering a "chilled-out" yet emotionally deep experience." Commercially, album sales reached at least 100,000 copies throughout Europe. The album opens with "Bonde." A finger-picking high-pitched guitar. A handclap, African beat. Cooder comes in with his guitar and we hear the aforementioned guitar interplay. Touré with high tenor vocals and repeating, echoing backing vocals. The musical tone is more of the African desert blues. The next song, "Soukora," continues with a high-pitched guitar riff but a gentler beat/percussion. This music is more in the traditional Malian/African folk style. "Lasidan" picks up the pace. A happier sounding tone. It has a groove. Great guitar melodic interplay between an acoustic and electric guitar. "Au Du" has a blues beat and two bluesy guitars. This is the most American-sounding blues song on the album. Touré is making his guitar sound like a violin...maybe its Cooder. The album ends with "Diaraby." Back to the high-pitched guitar and desert blues. Cooder adds a slide guitar and we get maybe the most obvious fusion of blues styles on the album. The focus of the album is the guitar interplay of Touré and Cooder. There's African percussion but it's mostly in the background. There's also vocals in just about all the songs but probably in 50% of the musical space. There's guitar tone is the star of the show. Cooder adds an electric or even a slide guitar but is clearly giving way to Touré. The musical styles are mostly desert blues and traditional Malian folk but they do go American blues in one song. This album reminded me of the other Malian album I had, Songhoy Blues' "Music in Exile." This is a very good album and worth checking out for just about everybody especially blues fans.

interessant

Not bad

Would have loved to hear this guy collab with Stevie Ray Vaughn or Kenny Wayne Shepherd.

Pleasant as a background listen but damn is this repetitive.

Fine album but not for me

I’ve heard this before. I said this in a previous review but I don’t like the production on a lot of African records from the late 80s onwards where the sound is softened and sweetened to the point of being saccharine. Which is unfortunate here because these are great songs. Once you get past the production, there’s a good drone blues sound like what I’d expect John Lee hooker or Junior Kimbrough would make if they were from the Niger delta rather than the Mississippi.

Sadly, no amount of semi-interesting pentatonic guitar fills could make this entertaining to me. I had really hoped this blend of genres and styles would do something for me. I did just find myself very bored. I’ve never been partial to chanted vocals and this album is chock full of them. The whole thing felt like a slog from about halfway through the first song. A worthwhile experiment for me to dip my toe into this sound but unfortunately an unsuccessful one.

Bonde - 4.5/5 Soukora - 3.5/5 Gomni - 4/5 Sega - 3.5/5 Amandrai - 3/5 Lasidan - 3/5 Keito - 3/5 Banga - 3/5 Ai Du - 3.5/5 Diaraby - 3.5/5 Albums like these are why I wanted to start this journey. It's great as background music, almost as if this was meant to be used in a strategy game. Or maybe that's just my many hours in Civ games talking to me. There are some pretty good tracks on here but most of them kinda sound the same after a while. It's not bad at all, just a bit repetitive. Overall: 3/5 Favorites: Bonde, Gomni

Not bad, but I'm surprised it made this list. ★★★

Bizarrement relaxant.

2.4/5 interesting jams

Back to back Ry Cooder albums. It was interesting listening to this immediately after Buena Vista Social Club. The music is good, but really specific. Can't say I'd revisit, but its a solid listen.

71/100. Slowpaced jazzy african blues that really delivers on its premise. Being performed and produced by two excellent guitar players it really sets a distinct vibe that is both relaxing and musically rich. The interplay between the traditional African rhythms and the slide guitar work creates a very unique texture.

Ry Cooder is the master of pretty boredom. As nice as it is to have some African elements here, this just makes me feel sleepy. Too much repetition, too little dynamics, it just lulls you in and...

good!

Great start, solid finish, just OK through the middle - but AFT has an agreed Grammy winner here in (although not sure how many other international folk entries there were in 1994.) Makes for an hour of good, late night background music with some light international fare, maybe tapas. (2.45*s) Always enjoy the world music entries!

World music can be great but it can also be a bit redundant and bland. Talking Timbuktu is the former. The album is not bad but I was pretty over it after song 3. A Malian teaming up with a guy named Ry Cooder...I thought it'd be better but not feeling the vibes as much. Certainly better than Dry Cooter though. I'm feeling sorta like the drummer on the album cover, just going along and looking bored. 1.59 stars.

Surprisingly I have a little bit of exposure to Malian music through Damon Albarn's extensive collaboration with African Express and others. He has a handful of releases that I don't regularly listen to but have given each of them a spin over the years as a completionist. Worldbeat isn't my typical genre in any way, but I found Talking Tumbukto to be pleasant for a little while. The beats and delicate stringwork provide a fine foundation for some low energy background music. There's a wide variance of instruments that I don't expect I would hear in traditional american/english music. After a while it all starts to sound similar and you tune out. Even if I can't understand anything they are singing about I can appreciate the exposure. Like many of the other international releases on the list its not bad and just another reason to gain some insight into music from another culture. A half hour of it is about all I need every year or so. After a while it starts to run together and sound too similar so it gets shelved and I move on. 1.53 stars

This really felt good today. Loping West African bluesy folk. It's going to be a hot day, but this is for the morning when it's still not to bad out.

I have taken a bit of a break from this because of various parts of my life getting a lot busier, so this is the first album I've heard from the list in a month. It's a fine album, it has some nice chord progressions and melodies played well by the musicians, but it doesn't really have a lot going on. A lot of the songs sound very similar, to the point that I thought a couple of tracks were reprises of earlier ones, and the songs themselves are often very repetitive. This isn't helped by the length of many of the tracks, there are only two on the whole album under five minutes and I don't think any really earn their length. Ultimately, I think this album would make for some good background music for other activities, as it's easy to move your focus elsewhere while listening to it. I struggle to envision someone putting Talking Timbuktu on specifically to listen to it, though I can absolutely see it providing ambience in a chilled out environment. Favourite song: Soukora

Do not like african music

The music is beautiful. A bit boring but lovely

Two Ali Farka Touré albums in a row, what are the odds!? Granted, I would've appreciate this much more if there was some more time between the records. This is very similar to Savane to my ears. If I would've let the two albums play back-to-back, I would've have realized without first knowing they were two different albums. Still, it's not too bad. Definitely Some nice guitar playing. I do find some of the songs to drag on for way too long, reaching up to 7-9 minutes of without much variation. Weak 3.

We had the other Ali Farka Toure album the day before so I've already listned to quite a lot. The last album I gave a 4 but this didn't really bring anything new to the table. Giving it a strong 3.

Loved it from beginning to end - just hits the right vibe, with bluesy tone without loosing authenticity.