Black and White

I haven't been posting as much as would have liked. This is mainly due to the hosting situation. In the near future I will probably move to a more reliable setup, i.e. a 'dedicated' hosting service (any useful tips are welcome). But for the moment, I'll continue as before.

This post is a direct result of an earlier post about Amara Touré. Our good friend Zim was helpful then by supplying a colour copy of the sleeve to replace my rather shoddy photocopy. Later, he sent me these wonderful singles by Amara Touré and his Orchestre du Black and White.

Although some of these six tracks are of a disappointing quality, they have only increased my curiosity. I would certainly like to know more about Amara Touré, and about this superb orchestra. I can only guess that the Black and White was a bar or restaurant, because I can't find any solid information about the band.

My favourite is the track "N'niyo"*, of which I already had a copy on a mysterious cassette from Guinea. Vocally one of the highlights of Touré's (known) repertoire, with an overall excellent performance by all musicians (note the great percussion!).

Amara Toure 45s

Thanks again for these singles, Zim!

*the "2" seems to be a superfluous addition to the title.

Amara Touré

A man who has travelled quite a bit, this Amara Touré. Originally from Guinea, he was a member of the Tropical Jazz orchestra in Dakar in the early 1960s and was involved in the formation of the Star Band. Subsequently he was in the line-up of Dexter Johnson's Superstar de Dakar which can be heard on the magnificent Dakar Sound CD's DKS 016 and DKS 017. According to the liner notes he can be heard singing the lead vocal on St. Louis Sierra (DKS 017).

Apparently he ended up in Gabon in the 1970s. He teamed up with orchestre Massako "des F.T.N. du Gabon" (the army?) of Mackjoss (real name Mackaya Jean-Paul), one of the key figures in the Gabonese music scene from the 1960s on to the 1980s, and also a man with a taste for Afro-Cuban music (he is reported to have played with Sonora Matancera in Burkina Faso in the 1980s).

The result is this superb lp, on the Sonafric label. Amara Touré's singing is brilliant, but I also like the chorus and the superior horn section.

Sonafric SAF 50.107 (NEW LINK May 28, 2012)


I only have photocopies of the sleeve...

EDIT: I have replaced - thanks to zim - the photocopy of the front sleeve by a colour version...