Kulanjan
Studio album by
Taj Mahal & Toumani Diabaté
Released1999
RecordedApril 1999
StudioJohn Keane Studios, Athens, Georgia
GenreBlues, world music
LabelHannibal
ProducerJoe Boyd, Lucy Durán
Taj Mahal chronology
Blue Light Boogie
(1998)		 Kulanjan
(1999)		 The Best of Taj Mahal
(2000)
Toumani Diabaté chronology
New Ancient Strings
(1999)		 Kulanjan
(1999)		 Jarabi: The Best of Toumani Diabaté
(2001)

Kulanjan is a 1999 album by blues artist Taj Mahal and Malian kora-player Toumani Diabaté.

Mahal had first visited Mali in 1979, and the title of the album comes from the track "Kulanjan" from the 1970 album of kora music, Ancient Strings, by Toumani Diabaté's father Sidiki Diabaté. Mahal and Toumani Diabaté had first met in 1990, and in 1999, Toumani Diabeté selected six virtuoso Malian musicians and took them to record the album with Mahal in Athens, Georgia.[1][2]

The album was described by New Statesman as "a rousing set of eclectic grooves, calling on ragtime, barrelhouse blues and even rock'n'roll".[3]

Kulanjan was named album of the year by Folk Roots magazine,[4] and President Barack Obama recommended the album in a survey for the Borders book chain.[5]

Taj Mahal followed the album with a tour accompanied by West African musicians, linking his American blues sound to traditional West African rhythms and tracing the origins of blues to West Africa, Mahal is also convinced that Mali's Mande griot (musician) clan were his ancestors.[1]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[6]
Robert ChristgauA−[7]
The Hindu(very favorable)[8]
The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings()[9]
Rolling Stone[10]

Track listing

  1. "Queen Bee" (Mahal)
  2. "Tunkaranke (The Adventurer)" (Mahal, Diabaté)
  3. "Ol' Georgie Buck" (Mahal)
  4. "Kulanjan (The Long-Crested Hawk-Eagle)" (Diabaté)
  5. "Fanta" (Mahal, Diabaté)
  6. "Guede Man Na (Guede Was Here)" (Diabaté)
  7. "Catfish Blues" (Mahal)
  8. "K'an Ben (Let's Get Together)" (Diabaté)
  9. "Take This Hammer" (Mahal)
  10. "Atlanta Kaira" (Diabaté)
  11. "Mississippi-Mali Blues" (Diabaté)
  12. "Sahara" (Mahal)

References

  1. 1 2 Cornwell, Jane (1999) "Taj Mahal meets Central Park", The Independent, 12 November 1999
  2. ↑ "Ali of Mali: Guitar king of the Sahara Archived 2009-05-03 at the Wayback Machine", Salon.com
  3. ↑ Johnson, Phil (1999) "Out of Africa", new Statesman, 2 August 1999
  4. ↑ Sheckter, Alan (2003) "Further on down the road: American blues treasure Taj Mahal performs solo at the Senator", newsreview.com
  5. ↑ "Grammy-nominated Mali musician gets Obama boost", sina.com
  6. ↑ Kulanjan at AllMusic
  7. ↑ "Taj Mahal & Toumani Diabate". robertchristgau.com. Retrieved 2018-09-09.
  8. ↑ "Chords and Notes". The Hindu. 2004-08-11. Archived from the original on 2004-12-22. Retrieved 2012-02-27.
  9. ↑ Russell, Tony; Smith, Chris (2006). The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings. Penguin. p. 625. ISBN 978-0-140-51384-4.
  10. ↑ "Rolling Stone Music | Album Reviews". Rollingstone.com. Archived from the original on November 5, 2007. Retrieved 2012-02-27.
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