Artist: Djelimady Tounkara
Category: Africa (Winner)
Mali has one of the most intensely musical cultures in all Africa, and among that country¹s greatest musicians is the guitarist Djelimady Tounkara.
While he's not nearly as well known as his compatriot Ali Farka Touré, he has been a driving force in Mali's rich music scene since the early 60s. AN AMERICAN GUITARIST IN MALI. Djelimady Tounkara plays guitar on this tape, he is one the best ever.Djelimady Tounkara is a Malian musician and one of the foremost guitarists in Africa.Vocalist Kassé Mady Diabaté and guitarist Djelimady Tounkara played and studied with Cuban musicians in Mali during the heyday of Cuban music in Mali in the.Biography · Awards.
The former shepherd and drummer began playing in the local 'Orchestre' in Kita, a town in Western Mali renowned for its musical community. Moving to the capital Bamako he was soon in demand as a solo player at weddings.
He keenly absorbed the influence of Cuban and Congolese music from the radio and spent much of the 1960s building his reputation as a player in the bands Misra Jazz and L'Orchestre Nacional du Mali.
By the early '70s he was the lead electric guitarist with the legendary Rail Band, backing first Salif Keita and then Mory Kante.
They were the top band in Mali until Kante left at the end of that
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