Moving from Morocco, and another huge figure in African music and the style of mbalax, which mixes jazz, soul, Latin, and rock blended with sabar, the traditional drumming and dance music of Senegal. Typically heavy on the percussion, but marked by N'Dour's soaring, powerful voice, and funky electric guitars, this song opens his third album, Immigrés, recorded in 1984 but brought to worldwide release in 1988, when it was very much a breakthrough work. Another huge personality, the songwriter, singer and percussionist was also a major campaigner for the release of Nelson Mandela, supported Peter Gabriel on tour in 1987, and in 2012 had ambitions to stand in the 2012 presidential elections. Among many other collaborations, he worked with Neneh Cherry on the hit song 7 Seconds, but this one, with its complex, bubbling rhythms and emotional vocals, is chosen as more authentic to his music. A live version of the song is also below.
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