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CD Review
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Dirty Linen (Baltimore, MD), CD Review >>
Perhaps the main reason the financial gulf between the economically developing countries in Africa and Latin America and the developed countries in Europe and North America continues to widen is the heavy load of debt the developing countries are struggling to repay to the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. These debts, which have inflated because of variable interest rates – many of which were incurred by regimes no longer in power – often eat up nearly half of the budgets of countries that cannot afford to provide basic services to their citizens. For this project, producer Francois Mauger assembled a stellar cast of artists from many of the debt-ridden countries to contribute new songs exhorting those holding the debts to reduce or completely forgive the remaining portions of the debts. The 16 tracks, mostly performed by African and South American musicians, are passionate (but joyful) calls for economic relief. Highlights include “Quem Pode,” a sensual duet between Teofilo Chantre and Cesaria Evora, and the drum-heavy “Tilma (Remix),” which pairs Cameroon’s Sally Nyoto and Japan’s Shingo2. Oliver Mtukudzi’s contribution is the anthemic “Murini Munhu.” Space prohibits description of the other tracks, but this is a rare compilation that brings together a diverse roster of artists and countries united by a compelling, humanitarian common cause. (MP) 06/01/04
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