Basic Elements
The international and roots-music scene heats up
By TED DROZDOWSKI | September 8, 2008

Boston was a world-music stronghold even before the "world music" genre existed. So there's a rich offering of sounds from Africa, South America, Eastern Europe, India, and other locales coming this fall.

The most eagerly awaited return may be that of VIEUX FARKA TOURÉ. He's continuing the legacy of his father, Malian music idol Ali Farka Touré, whose solo recordings and breakthrough work with American guitarist Ry Cooder put the art of his impoverished, landlocked African nation's griots on the charts. Ali died in March 2006; Vieux made his recording debut in 2007 with an album bearing his name on the World Village USA label and a sequel, the remix disc UFOs over Bamako, that introduced him to the international dance circuit...Like his father, Touré also has roots in blues and R&B, as we saw when he came to the Museum of Fine Arts August 20 as part of the "Still Black, Still Proud: An African Tribute to James Brown" project, whose members included Fred Wesley and Pee Wee Ellis from Brown's JB's band, and Senegal's Cheikh Lô. But the guitarist, singer, and percussionist will deliver a more traditional performance at the Somerville Theatre September 27 at 8 pm: a set of Malian and Saharan tunes, backed by his quintet...(link)