Afriki
Habib Koite

It has been six years since Malian singer/ songwriter Habib Koité released the album "Baro," but it's doubtful that any of his fans have forgotten him. This masterpiece of West African music will reward their loyalty. Incorporating such traditional Malian instruments as the balafon and sokou, Koité contemplates his country, his past and Africa. He offers a lovely tribute to his late mother on "N'ba," and reaches out to Malian regional styles on "Nteri" and "Namania," adroitly blending traditional elements with his rock-influenced sound. His song "Africa," with a horn arrangement by James Brown vet Pee Wee Ellis, is an incisive view of the continent's past and a prophecy that, in the future, Africa will find its own way.

—Philip Van Vleck