Record of the Month

October 2002
Salif Keita
Moffou
(Universal 8527)

When invited to list the best albums of 2002, this record was an automatic choice, so it's hard to explain why it was not made a record of the month much closer to its release date in March.

Part of the problem has been Salif's uneven performance in the years since delivering the astonishing, path-breaking album Soro in 1987. The power and the glory of that record dispelled all doubts that an African record could match Western rock and its most dramatic and anthemic, with Salif soaring to vocal heights no singer in the West could hope to emulate, framed in arrangements that broke new ground. Western and African rhythms and instruments made room for each other, while the backing vocalists tipped the balance towards the sound of the Sahara.

Fifteen years of disappointment since then built up defences in my ears and head, and I did not allow this record to have the immediate impact it deserved. There was no escaping the beauty of the first song, 'Yamore', a duet with Cesaria Evora that rolls along on Cape Verdian rhythms; or the rousing joy of 'Moussolou', Salif's tribute to women that was included on World 2002. But I did not appreciate straight away that the whole album holds together so well, subtly shifting its moods and instrumental arrangements from one song to the next like every album should, but so few do.

In many ways this turns out to be an acoustic counterpart to Soro, not so much a return to his roots as a successful transformation of traditional instruments to the demands of modern song-writing. The elegant structures of verse and chorus, lead and backing vocal, plucked and blown instruments - everything has been ingeniously conceived and beautifully delivered. Listen to 'Baba' with its echoing acoustic guitar lines floating into the distance, accordion providing the melodic backdrop that meshes all the melodies and sounds into a coherent shape.

The advantage of waiting six months before summing up a record's impact is that one can more confidently say, this is classic that will survive for years to come. It may eventually be seen as the definitive representation of both Salif Keita in particular and this era's Malian music in general, superior even to Soro. It probably could not have been made, and certainly would not have attracted our attention, without Soro being there first. But if Soro opened the doors and windows, this is the album Salif Keita must have been holding inside himself all those years, perhaps not even knowing it was there.

He has built a beautiful house of sound. Come inside and enjoy it.

CG