{"title":"Ali Farka Toure","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAli Farka Touré, born in 1939 in Kanau, Mali, was a renowned Malian guitarist and the leading figure of Mali blues. He gained international recognition for his collaborations with Ry Cooder, winning two Grammy awards for their album Talking Timbuktu. Touré's musical genius extended to his 2005 release Heart Of The Moon, featuring the talented kora player Toumani Diabaté. Not only a musician but also a peacemaker, he played a vital role in resolving the Touareg rebellions of the mid-90s. After battling illness for an extended period, Touré passed away in March 2006, leaving behind a widow and eleven children.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eTouré's unique style and mastery of the guitar captivated audiences worldwide. His music beautifully blended traditional Malian melodies with elements of American blues and folk music. With his soulful voice and intricate guitar playing, he created a sound that resonated deeply with listeners.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAs Mayor of Niafunké in Northern Mali, on the outskirts of the Sahara desert, Touré remained connected to his roots throughout his career. His contributions to both music and society solidified him as one of Africa's most influential artists.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"savane","title":"Savane","description":"\u003cp\u003eReleased in July 2006 via the World Circuit label, \u003cem\u003eSavane\u003c\/em\u003e was Ali Farka Touré’s final solo album, and a deeply resonant “farewell” work. Recorded in Bamako, Mali with his specially assembled down-home ngoni group, and often acclaimed as his finest album, \u003cem\u003eSavane\u003c\/em\u003e is both one of the most traditional and seemingly the most blues drenched of Ali’s recordings.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e2026 celebrates the 20th anniversary of this landmark album, to honour this milestone, World Circuit are issuing a limited edition yellow colour vinyl and housed in a gatefold sleeve.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhether you’ve lived with the music for two decades or are discovering it anew, this edition invites you to experience \u003cem\u003eSavane\u003c\/em\u003e with fresh eyes and ears.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"BMG","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":50382173372747,"sku":"1069349","price":14.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"2LP - Black","offer_id":50434115436875,"sku":"1069348","price":32.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"2LP - Yellow","offer_id":56978055135563,"sku":"R1167-6678","price":37.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/34c2e69b-0e36-41b1-951e-144885554f3f_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1726244100"},{"product_id":"green-16","title":"Green","description":"\u003cp\u003eIn the 1970s, Malian guitarist Ali Farka Touré worked as a sound engineer for national Radio Mali and broadcasts of his own performances earned him a formidable local reputation. He sent some recordings to the Sonodisc record company in Paris, resulting in one of the first ever commercial releases of Malian music - a 12\" vinyl album titled \u003ci\u003eAli Toure 'Farka'\u003c\/i\u003e. Between 1975 and 1988 a total of seven albums were released, all titled only with variations on the artist's name and with no information other than a photo and the song titles. The last two albums released became known as the 'Red' and 'Green' albums due to the colours of their original album sleeves. In the mid-1980s a few copies of these albums found their way to Anne Hunt of World Circuit Records, prompting her to travel to Mali and broadcast an appeal over the airwaves of Radio Mali to find Ali. As luck would have it Ali was visiting the capital Bamako and he heard the broadcast. Thus began Ali's hugely successful international career and his long relationship with the World Circuit label. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eDigitally remastered from the original tapes, Ali Farka Touré’s ‘Green’ album showcases Ali's acoustic guitar and vocals, both alone and accompanied by calabash and ngoni (traditional four string guitar). It’s one of many in Ali’s catalogue that demonstrate his continuing importance to African music. A must-have for both fans and collectors alike.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"BMG","offers":[{"title":"Green LP","offer_id":50421303673163,"sku":"2012273","price":27.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"Black LP","offer_id":50421304983883,"sku":"2170431","price":27.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/NfMrDYtc_dd497076_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1726756884"},{"product_id":"red-album","title":"Red Album","description":"\u003cp\u003eRemastered from the original tapes in 2004 for release on World Circuit, 2021 sees this classic album back on vinyl for the first time since its original 1984 release. In 1982, the great Malian singer songwriter and guitarist Ali Farka Touré, then still in the early years of his recording career, teamed up with the brilliant percussionist Hama Sankare. Together, from a base in Ali’s home village of Niafunké they travelled through Northern Mali, refining a collection of new songs. When they were ready to record they followed the River Niger as it wound down through the desert, to the capital city of Bamako. In one afternoon, the great Radio Mali house engineer Boubacar Traore captured these eight superb performances on two microphones: two voices so close it was thought they were double tracked, one guitar (the distinctive Bulgarian acoustic model that Ali treasured) and Hama’s calabash percussion making its first appearance on record. The album, which includes some of Touré’s best loved songs, was released self-titled with no sleeve notes, just an enigmatic group photo on the cover. It became known as the ‘Red’ album due to the colour of its original sleeve. Vinyl and cassette copies of ‘Red’ began to circulate in West Africa, as well as making their way to Ry Cooder in the US and to specialist journalists and DJs in the UK and France. It was popular in Mali and the Tuareg refugee camps in Libya, where it became an influence on the musicians who came together as Tinariwen. On a tip from Toumani Diabaté and with a copy of ‘Red’ in hand, World Circuit’s Anne Hunt travelled to Mali in the mid 80s to find Ali to invite him to record and tour. An appeal was broadcast over Radio Mali, and Ali, who by chance was visiting the capital Bamako, heard it. Thus began Ali’s incredibly successful international career which took him around the world and resulted in the release of eight acclaimed albums including three Grammy winning collaborations, with Ry Cooder (Talking Timbuktu) and Toumani Diabaté (Ali and Toumani; In The Heart of the Moon).\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"World Circuit","offers":[{"title":"Black | LP","offer_id":50424321704267,"sku":"1113627","price":29.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/c67628d1-1e87-4e9b-94d8-5f6618b570f7_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1726777083"},{"product_id":"ali-and-toumani","title":"Ali and Toumani","description":"\u003cp\u003eDouble 180 gram vinyl housed in a gatefold sleeve with two bonus tracks. \u003ci\u003eAli and Toumani \u003c\/i\u003eis the second and final album pairing the late Malian guitar virtuoso Ali Farka Toure and kora master Toumani Diabate. Recorded over three afternoons at London's Livingston studios in 2005, with contributions from the late Orlando 'Cachaito' Lopez (Buena Vista Social Club) on bass. \u003ci\u003eAli and Toumani\u003c\/i\u003e is the follow-up to the duo's Grammy award-winning 'In The Heart of the Moon'. This album was produced by Nick Gold and recorded by Jerry Boys, the same production team behind the collaboration's first effort. It is the also the last album recorded by Ali Farka Toure, who passed away on March 7, 2006. The duo's new release presents their usual playfulness, effervescence, and mastery in further exploration of songs reaching back into both musicians' pasts. 'It wasn't about covering old songs just because there weren't any new ones, no not at all,' said Diabate, continuing: 'it was about revealing all the different possibilities once again... i believe this album to be stronger and wiser, better than 'In The Heart of the Moon.' simultaneously reverent and informal, this album brings together the divergent folk and classical traditions from northern and southern mali, creating a loving homage to the west african nation that is thoroughly appropriate for the late tour's last recording. in the words of diabat, 'what we are doing is very important because we are both, above all, malians. it's about love, sincerity, [and] solidarity.'\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"World Circuit","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":50432842170699,"sku":"1013563","price":14.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP","offer_id":50432844005707,"sku":"326031","price":32.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/cb12770f-d0d6-4021-a059-650ec44aa1eb_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1726874514"},{"product_id":"the-source-2","title":"The Source","description":"Desert blues at its most hypnotic. \u003cb\u003eAli Farka Touré\u003c\/b\u003e’s final album \u003ci\u003eSavane\u003c\/i\u003e drifts between meditative grooves and deeply rooted rhythms, connecting West African tradition with music far beyond borders.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eNigel, Rough Trade Office\u003c\/b\u003e","brand":"World Circuit","offers":[{"title":"2LP - Black","offer_id":50467225370955,"sku":"1013356","price":32.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50465744060747,"sku":"1013580","price":14.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/The_Source_6bc28b40_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727295740"},{"product_id":"talking-timbuktu","title":"Talking Timbuktu","description":"\u003cp\u003eSeminal Grammy-award winning album now available as limited edition 2LP on 180 gram vinyl. 'Talking Timbuktu' is a groundbreaking record that vividly illustrates the Africa-Blues connection in real time. Ali Farka Toure, one of Mali's leading singer-guitarists, has a trance-like, bluesy style that, although deeply rooted in Malian tradition, bears astonishing similarity to that of John Lee Hooker or even Canned Heat. It's a mono-chordal vamp, with repetitive song lines cut with shards of blistering solo runs that shimmer like a desert mirage. Toure may be conversant with some blues artists, but it is unlikely that artists like Hooker or Robert Pete Williams ever heard these Malian roots, which makes the connection so uncanny. Ry Cooder, well versed in domestic and world guitar styles, is the perfect counterpoint in these extended songs \/ jams, his sinewy slide guitar intertwining with his partner's in a super world summit without barriers or borders.LP - 180 Gram Double Vinyl with Bonus Track and Download.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"World Circuit","offers":[{"title":"LP | x2","offer_id":50481559339339,"sku":"385545","price":32.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50481557537099,"sku":"1013562","price":14.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/e2fe55b8-ba9c-4b86-9632-a5db2b2d7cdf_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727541214"},{"product_id":"voyageur-2","title":"Voyageur","description":"\u003cp\u003eAli Farka Toure is well known as one of the most influential and talented guitarists that Africa has ever produced. His legacy and impact are hard to overstate: Ali’s sound merged his much-loved traditional Malian musical styles with distinct elements of the blues, resulting in the creation of a ground-breaking new genre, now well known as the ‘Desert Blues’, earning him 3 Grammy awards and widespread reverence. \u003ci\u003eVoyageur\u003c\/i\u003e is the first release of previously unheard music since 2010’s Grammy-winning \u003ci\u003eAli and Toumani,\u003c\/i\u003e and features a collection of previously unheard gems captured at various points in Ali’s illustrious career. The album, which features fellow Malian superstar Oumou Sangaré on 3 tracks, reaffirms Ali’s status as a globally revered legend of African music.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"World Circuit","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":50520370053451,"sku":"2005103","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP","offer_id":50520370708811,"sku":"2005105","price":27.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/Voyageur_52e55838_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727983815"},{"product_id":"ali-farka-toure","title":"Ali Farka Toure","description":"\u003cp\u003eOne of the best-known African musicians of all time, the renowned Malian singer and guitarist Ali Farka Toure was one of the pioneers of African desert blues. Born to a noble cast, he was forbidden to play music but wound up representing Mali in the early 1960s on an international contest held in Bulgaria, where he bought his first guitar and was exposed to the music of John Lee Hooker, which became a big influence. This self-titled classic was recorded for Radio Mali in 1977 and captures Toure at his magnificent best, with just his guitar for accompaniment, and an unusual violin on both ‘Yer Mali Wolo’ and ‘Remobe.’\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Survival Research","offers":[{"title":"LP - Black","offer_id":51082031202635,"sku":"2239033","price":19.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/0637913183430_a10594f6_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1736770909"},{"product_id":"ali-farka-toure-1","title":"Ali Farka Toure","description":"\u003cp\u003eRecorded in 1976, this self-titled album captures Ali Farka Touré at the very dawn of his recording career, working far from the glare of the international spotlight. Pressed in small numbers and circulating quietly for years, it remained largely unknown beyond his home country, yet within its unadorned performances lies the unmistakable spark of an artist on the cusp of greatness. Voice, guitar, and percussion with a directness and intimacy that feel both timeless and deeply personal. Once overlooked, it now stands as a captivating rediscovery, an essential early chapter in a remarkable journey, and a treasured prize for collectors and musical historians alike.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Survival Research","offers":[{"title":"LP - Black","offer_id":53681120346443,"sku":"R9379-9748","price":19.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/0602561413680.jpg?v=1760961001"}],"url":"https:\/\/shop.roughtrade.com\/de\/collections\/ali-farka-toure.oembed","provider":"Rough Trade","version":"1.0","type":"link"}