Clandestino/Bloody Border

There are plenty of great albums that seem to define a moment in time but, as the zeitgeist moves on, they come to sound trapped in their era. Far rarer are those albums like Manu Chao's Clandestino that capture the spirit of their age but continue to sound fresh and vibrant from one generation to the next. On its release in 1998, Clandestino was the soundtrack to a brief but tangible upsurge of millennial optimism. Some went the whole enchilada and believed we were on the verge of a new age of enlightenment. As we hurtled towards 2000, those of us who were more sceptical that a date on the calendar had such symbolic power were nevertheless convinced that the world was progressively becoming a more tolerant place.

A radical multicultural manifesto with a carnival spirit, Clandestino gave voice to the dispossessed and soundtracked dreams for a better tomorrow. Those dreams may have since been dashed but Chao's irresistible global party rhythms and the message of hope have lost none of their potency. Three bonus tracks bring the story up to date via a cracking reworking of the title-track featuring Calypso Rose, a new song ‘Bloody Bloody Border that seeks to blow a giant hole in Trump's wall and ‘Roadies Rules’, a new version of a previously unreleased track from the original Clandestino sessions. If your faith has been battered by the 21st-century blues, lend Clandestino your ears again. It won't necessarily cure anything. But its medicine will certainly ease the pain.