African guitarists in New York

mke · January-14th-2006, 05:51 PM

I saw David Murray's Gwo-Ka band a few weeks ago and really liked his Senegalo-Vietnamese guitarist, Hervé Samb. Ben Ratliff is completely taken with Lionel Loueke, so it's starting to sound like an invasion.

Quote:

Mr. Cohen's playing was strong enough, but Mr. Loueke simply destroyed. He played without a pick on a nylon-string, hollow-bodied, electrified acoustic guitar. He put a strip of paper underneath some of the strings, down by the bridge, to get a more percussive, scratchy sound. With cycles of fingerpicking on dampened strings, he could sound like a hand drummer; he played swift, Malian-sounding runs, unspooling beyond bar divisions but making sense within the groove of the music; he forged strong, improvised lines based on scales that clarified his connection to modern, post-Pat Metheny jazz guitar-playing and avoided any kind of typical jazz rhythmic phrasing. He surged through all the music, squeezing it for all its rhythmic and harmonic potential. At the same time, he seemed free to go in any direction he pleased.
(http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/14/ar...c/14avis.html)

Jon Abbey · January-14th-2006, 05:53 PM

Ben told me he thought that Loueke could play with "my guys", as he put it. no idea if that's true or not, but interesting...

Uli · January-14th-2006, 07:38 PM

[QUOTE=mke]Hervé Samb. [QUOTE]

This cat hang around in Chicago for a week or two a year ago. Not only could he play easily with aebly's boyz but he did very well sitting in with our guys.

Ron Thorne · January-15th-2006, 02:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jon Abbey

Ben told me he thought that Loueke could play with "my guys", as he put it. no idea if that's true or not, but interesting...

Interesting, indeed.

mke · January-15th-2006, 10:31 AM

When I saw him, Samb didn't show any eai proclivities, but he did display a very interesting afro/jazz/rock/funk blend. I've read a couple of ecstatic mentions of Loueke now, has anyone around here heard him?

And a few years before these two, there was Richard Bona, albeit on electric bass.

gonzo · January-16th-2006, 04:53 AM

bona
marthe
etienne mbappe
alibo
khumalo
all incredible african bass players.
i bought loueke's gilfema CD, unimpressed.....

Surfer · January-18th-2006, 12:41 PM

Is In A Trance the one to get?

jazzy mary · January-18th-2006, 12:46 PM

I was eager to hear Lionel Loueke at the IAJE and I did. Honestly, I was very disappointed. His playing was contrived and full of "tricks", for lack of a better word, and imho. His singing I thought was just bad. His lyrics, in French, were cliched and sentimental. I wanted to dig him and I'm prejudiced *for* anything African...but he didn't have it for me. I would give him another try though--this was my first live listen and I don't like to judge a player on one time.

Surfer · January-18th-2006, 01:19 PM

I'm beginning not to trust Ben Ratliff at all. I really dont like his taste in music.

gonzo · January-19th-2006, 04:52 AM

richard bona for great,jazz inflected,afro pop.