New Release
Snakeskin Violin
"profound
world blues passage... extremely distinctive pieces,
driven by a seductive rhythmic circularity that's a
keystone of Malian traditional tunes and Delta blues."
—BILLBOARD MAGAZINE
"The mix of sounds, instruments, and influences spanning the program is mind-boggling"
—LIVING BLUES MAGAZINE
"Africa and Mississippi come together..."
—BLUES REVUE MAGAZINE
"This is an extremely powerful album"
—Ben Manilla, Executive Producer, House of Blues Radio Hour
"Snakey"
—Elwood Blues
Markus James’ Snakeskin
Violin featured on:
House of Blues Radio Hour
Afropop Worldwide
Blues Deluxe
XM Cafe |
|
Of late,
a handful of American artists have explored the connection between West
African music and American blues, but Markus James has lived this connection
for the past seven years (and four albums). "Snakeskin Violin"
continues his profound world blues passage. Working, as usual, with several
Malian players, including Hassi Sare (njarka violin), Mamadou Sidibe (calabash,
vocals), Vieux Farka Toure (cadence guitar) and Mama Sissoko (n'goni),
James laid down tracks in Mali, California and Mississippi. His songs
radiate a dark, nearly forbidding glow, while his sparse, shadowy arrangements
cut a groove that draws deeply from the hypnotic vibe of Malian music.
"All That You Can't Keep," "Exile Tracks" and "I
Won't Let It" are extremely distinctive pieces, driven by a seductive
rhythmic circularity that's a keystone of Malian traditional tunes and
Delta blues. —Philip Van Vleck, Billboard Magazine |
Living Blues Magazine
April/May 2008
MARKUS JAMES
Snakeskin Violin
Firenze Records - FR00122
The first episode of Martin Scorsese’s documentary The Blues opens with Corey Harris, a modern day musical pilgrim, journeying to Mali to trace the blues back to West Africa. There he meets and plays with artists who have contributed to some of the most fascinating projects connecting American blues to its African roots, such as Toumani Diabeté, who collaborated with Taj Mahal on 1999’s Kulanjan, and the late Ali Farka Touré, arguably one of the greatest West African artists to bridge the musical gap between his homeland and the American South.
It is in the spirit of that tradition that Markus James, an American artist from the San Francisco Bay Area, has been playing and recording since first meeting Touré during a visit to Mali in 1994. James’ progressive vision has inspired well-received albums like Nightbird, Calabash Blues, and Timbuktoubab, the latter which was also released as a film documentary. Many of the West African artists that James has worked with on these and other projects are featured prominently on Snakeskin Violin, his latest on Firenze Records to explore the intersections between Mississippi’s blues and the diverse musical legacy of Mali.
The 14 original songs on Snakeskin Violin were recorded between 2003 and 2007 in Mali, California, and Como, Mississippi. It’s interesting to note that many of the tracks bearing the strongest structural connection to the blues were recorded overseas, like "O.M. Boogie," with its nod to John Lee Hooker’s "Boom Boom," the trance-like hill country groove of "Heatin’ Up Now," or "Sundown Pearl (Snakeskin Violin Pt. 1)," which gets its title from the violin playing of Hamadou Garba. Another Mali recording, "Lonely Mile," incorporates the incredible sound of the njarka single-string violin, played here by master Hassi Sare (whose njarka bowing sounds remarkably similar to a fife). Call and response is used to great effect on "All That You Can’t Keep," and elsewhere James enlists the help of the sons of two legends: Vieux Farka Touré for "So Much Soul," and Kinney Kimbrough on "Soon." The mix of sounds, instruments, and influences spanning the program is mind-boggling.
With the recent release of both this album and the comparable Alliance from Fulani griot Guelel Kumba (which also features the young Kimbrough), fans of both blues and world music—hell, fans of music period—should have plenty to be excited about.
—Roger Gatchet, Living Blues Magazine, April/May 2008 |
Blues Revue Magazine
April/May 2008
Markus James
Snakeskin Violin
Firenze Records
Most young blues players will travel to the Delta to channel the spirits of Patton, House, and Johnson. Markus James has searched out a much deeper connection. Ever since his first trip to Mali in 1994 where he met Ali Farka Toure, the legendary Mali bluesman, James' mission has been to tie his blues back to its African roots.
Snakeskin Violin is a collection of 15 songs recorded from 2003 to 2007 in places like Mali, California, and Como, Mississippi. Throughout the record, James plays guitar, harmonica, calabash, and karinye with many of Mali's finest traditional musicians. Though you'll hear snatches of the Delta in his guitar, it is mostly the essential, aged riffs he uses that bridge back to the root. The journey begins with the dreamy “I Won't Let It,” featuring James' modern world chants backed by Mamadou Sidibe's droning kamele n'goni. “Lonely Mile” stars Mali's Hassi Sare on the ancient one string violin and Mama Sissoko, the leader of Mali's National Traditional Orchestra, on the 'ngoni or hunter's harp. Recorded in a home in Mali in 2006, this was James' final session with Sare before his death in 2007. A later song, “So Much Soul,” is James' memorial to his friend Sare. To get a better look at Sare and his unique traditional one string, search out James 2005 documentary, Timbuktoubab, where Sare is one of the four prominently featured African musicians traveling with James. By the third song, “Are You Ready (Mississippi Daze)” James has created a natural rhythm and flow with the music of Mali that when he sits in a Como, Mississippi barn in 2007, Sidibe, veteran hill country drummer Calvin Jackson, and James' raw and earthy groove illustrates how easily the music connect over time and spaces. “All That You Can't Keep” is a ceremonial song in the Wassoulou tradition about loss. The hypnotic drone, communal call and responses, and percussive metal scraping give the impression of the dark edge where one stands when facing death. All elements of Africa and Mississippi come together in “Weather Vane,” recorded by James and Sidibe in 2003 after the pair drove from Louisiana to Hattiesburg, Mississippi, on Highway 61. James' slide guitar and howling harmonica pair with Sidibe's karinye to connect the ancient blues roots with its current sound. James' “O.M. Boogie” ties John Lee's boogie groove to the Sokou violin of Zoumana Tereta and the calabash of Hamma Sankare, a Mali based musician who played on all of Ali Farka Toure's records. The journey ends back in Como in 2007 with Kinney Kimbrough's rough hewn drums, Sidibe's n'goni and James' otherworldly guitar swirls on “Soon.”
James' commitment isn't a fleeting curosity. He's dedicated his life to learning the ancient language, customs, and music of Mali since he first traveled there in 1994. James' culture blending has produced true world music.
-Art Tipaldi, Blues Revue Magazine, April/May 2008 |
