Leni Stern - Africa (2007)

In recent years, Western artists such as Corey Harris and Markus James have traveled to the West African nation of Mali to make records, and Bonnie Raitt, Ry Cooder, Robert Plant, and Taj Mahal are among those who've collaborated with Malian musicians or at least been fascinated and influenced by Mali's role as a source of the blues. To that list add Leni Stern, whose simply titled Africa is the result of two years of getting to know and finding common ground with Malian artists on their home turf. Stern, a guitarist and singer whose artistic restlessness over two decades of recording has thankfully kept her output consistently fresh, unpredictable, and invigorating, cut Africa at Salif Keita's studio in Bamako, Mali, using a large cast of local musicians and singers alongside Western players -- including her husband, guitarist Michael Stern, and the late jazz saxophonist Michael Brecker. It's a stirring mix in which Leni Stern's crisp, bell-toned electric guitar runs and the sharp horns and melodious keyboards integrate fluidly with talking drums, n'gonis, and ouds, and Stern's impassioned vocals receive a dynamic boost from the battery of Malian vocalists giving voice to her words in their native language. Africa, to its great credit, has absorbed not only the sounds but the feel of native African music. It's a stunning, respectful tribute to Mali's artistry, and to Stern's diligence in making it happen. -- Jeff Tamarkin