Sunday Times, CD Review >>
“Drop the Debt” (Say it Loud Records, $15.98) – Various Artists
Chico Cesar of Brazil serves up a party song about it, Faya Tess and Lokua Kanda of the Congo swing it, and Teofilo Chantre and Cesaria Evora from Cape Verde mourn it hypnotically, but the message is the same: It’s time to annul the Third World Debt.
Debt from loans made during the 1970s force many developing countries to shift their focus from providing basic needs to repaying what they owe, the liner notes of “Drop the Debt” explain. And so, El Hadj N’Diaye grieves, “We don’t live, we hang on, We don’t live, we suffer, Let’s cancel the debt, And raise our heads again.” Sally Nyolo and Shingo2 let their a capella prayer bound over a chorus of hand percussion and choral harmonies: “Lord forgive us our debts as we forgive those in debt to us.”
Often the danger of having an album dedicated to championing a political cause is a repetitiveness that can sound preachy. But these artists express their angst in a tapestry of languages and moods, making the entire CD well worth the listen.
--Aimee Maude Sims, AP Writer 08/10/03