Best Of

There was a time, back in the 90s, when it seemed that Ismaël Lô was destined to become one of the best-known musicians in West Africa. After all, he was a singer-songwriter with a compelling, soulful voice who accompanied himself on acoustic guitar and harmonica: he inevitably became known as the ‘Bob Dylan of Senegal.’ His album Ismaël Lô, released in 1991, was a revelation, thanks to the cool, often exquisite songs, several of which make a welcome re-appearance here. They include the charming, harmonica-backed ‘Tajabone’, a gloriously melodic tribute to a Muslim festival, and the more brooding and thoughtful ‘Raciste’.

The worst songs are left until last, making them easy to avoid: two tracks from the 2001 Dabah album, on which he is backed by a guitar and keyboards rock band, and an over-lush reworking of ‘Tajabone’. Better by far is his remarkable vocal workout on ‘Jammu Africa’, and several reminders of his attempts to achieve greater commercial success. There's a fine, drifting duet with Souad Massi, ‘Noir et Blanc’, and the quietly pained ‘Without Blame’, which he co-wrote with Roger Waters and on which he is joined by Marianne Faithfull.