The only song of his I know of is "7 seconds", a duet with Neneh Cherry. It did rather well at the time. Neneh's vocals were in English, his in French or whatever language they speak in Senegal. So what's this album like? Does he sing in English here? Not that it matters much to me if he doesn't.Quote:
Originally Posted by Barry
Being a one-time French colony, French is the official language of government and education. However Wolof is the primary language and is understood and spoken by a large majority of the country. In "7 Seconds" N'Dour sings in Wolof to start then either French or English in the chorus.Quote:
Originally Posted by Pigmy Pony
However Wolof is often mixed with French and Arabic in urban areas such as the capital Dakar.
On "Egypt", N'Dour sings with Cairo's Fathy Salama Orchestra and with a small group of Senegalese musicians and singers. The album is a homage to various saints and sages of Senegal's mystical (and moderate) Sufi take on Islam. I assume N'Dour sings in Wolof, but it doesn't matter to me; I collect "World" music (a stupid and Western exceptionalist catagorisation - all music is 'world music') for both the ethnic instrumental playing as well as for singing, so I much prefer to hear the singing in the local language.
Top record, one of my all time favourites. Every song is perfect and one of the best cover art of all time too.Quote:
Originally Posted by Dom66
Agreed! :)Quote:
Originally Posted by Macca
Youssou N'Dour - The Best of Youssou'
A collection of tracks from his first three records, released between 1988 and 1990: Immigres, The Lion and Set. IMO it's not the "Best of", as it displays N'Dour's attempt to copy western production values at the expense of authenticity. Fortunately he seems to have learnt from his early output.