After Ali Farka Toure’s death, Sankare was a founding member of the tribute band the Ali Farka Toure Allstars. One of the most internationally successful West African musicians of the '90s, Ali Farka Touré was described as "the African John Lee Hooker" so many times that it probably began to grate on both Touré's and Hooker's nerves. Mr. Touré's deep grounding in Malian traditions made him one of African music's most profound innovators. 115K likes. A Sense of Weil-Being. So do you need a vaccine card? Ali Farka Touré Birthday and Date of Death. Ali Farka Touré has also been nominated for the BBC Radio 3 awards 2007. Ali Farka Toure Obituary. "But that's not true. Ali was born in Gourma-Rharous, where his father died when Ali was two years old. He was free to move about in his mind.". "Mali is first and foremost a library of the history of African music," he said in a 2005 interview with the world-music magazine Fly. He was best known overseas for his 1994 collaboration with American guitarist Ry Cooder on "Talking Timbuktu," which netted him his first Grammy. He cited many Western musicians for inspiration, including Ray Charles, Otis Redding and John Lee Hooker. At the same time, he was listening to American soul, blues and funk, which he heard as rooted in the music of West Africa. "It's as if I lost my father.". One of the original progenitors of a genre known as Mali Blues, Toure played a traditional Malian stringed instrument called the gurkel. Followers 1. dead Ali Farka Toure. One of Africa's best known musicians, Ali Farka Toure, has died after a long illness in his home country of Mali, the culture ministry has announced. If playback doesn't begin shortly, try restarting your device. His lyrics, in West African style, represented the conscience of a community, urging listeners to work hard, honor the past and act virtuously. On March 7, 2006 , the Ministry of Culture of Mali announced his death at age 66 in Bamako from bone cancer, which he had been battling for some time. Ali Farka Toure. He was married to Fatouma. With the death of Ali Farka Toure, Mali is losing one of its greatest ambassadors," said Mbaye Boubacar Diarra, a television producer. Like many Africans of his generation, the exact date of his birth was not recorded. He established the Ali Farka Touré Foundation, nurturing younger Malian musicians, and he continued to perform in Mali. "For some people, Timbuktu is a place at the end of nowhere," he once was quoted as saying. "I work the spirits and I work with the spirits.". His record company, World Circuit Records, said he suffered from bone cancer and died in his sleep. Ali Farka Touré was born on October 31, 1939 and died on March 6, 2006. After making northern Mali's "Blues" music famous around the world, Ali Farka Toure is a legend in his home town of Niafunke, where he was mayor until his death in 2006. He sang in various West African languages -- his own Sonrai as well as Songhai, Bambara, Peul, Tamasheck and others -- reflecting the traditional foundations of the songs he wrote. World Routes. "A monument has fallen. Ali Farka Toure, who has died of bone cancer in the Malian capital Bamako in his late 60s, was the finest, most influential and best-loved guitarist in Africa. His music is widely regarded as representing a point of intersection of traditional Malian music and its North American cousin, the blues. DAVID WAS: The death of Malian guitar master Ali Farka Toure last year was a great loss for fans of his blues-drenched sound. Nick Gold, Ali Farka Toure’s producer after learning of Sankare’s death called him “A lovely and unique man.” In 2016 Sankare asked Chris Nolan to produce his first album in his own name. He once said in an interview that his songs examined education, work, love and society, according to the Web site allmusic.com. But he still made occasional international forays; his final concert was last year at a festival in Nice, France. Singer, guitarist “ The Sky Opens Up ” Cooder and Toure. "The name I was given was Ali Ibrahim, but it's a custom in Africa to give a child a strange nickname if you have had other child… Nicknamed Farka, meaning donkey, because he was the first child to survive infancy after his mother's ten pregnancies. Death of Ali Farka Touré Malian singer dies at 67 following a long illness. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. In 2004, Toure became mayor of the small farming town. There was powerful psychology there. He was either 66 or 67. In 1982, singer-songwriter and guitarist Ali Farka Touré, then still in the early years of his recording career, got together with the superb percussionist Hama Sankare. Prince Philip laid to rest at St. George's Chapel, Why Crosley Green's freedom still hangs in the balance, Congressional caucus would champion "Anglo-Saxon" traditions, Four Sikhs among victims of Indianapolis mass shooting, COVID-19 death toll tops 3 million worldwide, Macron urges countries to draw "clear red lines" with Russia, Moderna plans to have third vaccine booster shot ready by fall, Louisiana residents gear up for highly active hurricane season, A single text message was key to bringing home a lost hiker, CDC panel adjourns without vote on extending J&J COVID vaccine pause, Michigan officials request help as COVID-19 cases surge. The recording sessions at Hôtel Mandé in Bamako took place from June to July 2004. The album was released posthumously by World Circuit on 17 July 2006, more than four months after Touré's death. He often said that he considered himself a farmer above all, and in 2004 he was elected mayor of the 53 villages of the Niafunke region. The King of the desert 'blues' singers. Mr. Touré forged connections between the hypnotic modal riffs of Malian songs and the driving one-chord boogie of American bluesmen like John Lee Hooker; he mingled the plucked patterns of traditional songs with the aggressive lead-guitar lines of rock. a late eulogy for the late farka toure, prompted by Tinariwen live @ NYC. In Mali he was considered a national hero. Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting. "I'm completely in mourning," singer Djeneba Seck said through her tears. Ali Farka Touré was born on October 31, 1939 in Gourmararusse, Timbuktu, Mali as Ali Ibrahim Touré. In 1987 he performed in Britain and began recording for international release with "Ali Farka Touré" (World Circuit/Nonesuch). Touré was born in 1939 in the village of Kanau, on the banks of the Niger River in Gourma-Rharous Cercle in the northwestern Malian region of Tombouctou. The Associated Press contributed to this report. "Farka," a nickname, means "donkey," an animal praised for its tenacity. In 1970 Mr. Touré moved to Bamako, the nation's capital, where he became an engineer at Radio Mali and a frequent performer on the air. Oral COVID-19 vaccine being tested in LA-area research center, What's behind the push for a 4th stimulus check, Meghan says royal family had "concerns" about Archie's skin tone, Production company’s mission to diversify Hollywood, Skellig Michael is an island seven miles off the coast of Ireland with a history dating back to the dawn of civilization, California Privacy/Information We Collect. I cannot say that I’m not petrified at the thought of a silent Continent. Based on traditional songhaï music, he also uses Fulani (Peul), Touareg and Bambara elements, singing accordingly in one of these languages. You're signed out. Videos you watch may be added to the TV's watch history and influence TV recommendations. ", First published on March 7, 2006 / 5:53 PM. Ali Farka Touré was a farmer, and a singer-guitarist, who plays in a distinct style, very close to the blues. Selected discography. Birthday: October 31, 1939 Date of Death: March 6, 2006 Age at Death: 66 Around 2000 he retired from touring to return to his farm. Ali Farka Toure, self-taught Grammy Award-winning Malian guitarist and songwriter, dies at age 66 or 67; photo (M) The "godfather of the desert blues", he was the first African musician to show, through his often hypnotic, rhythmic and self-assured playing, that the blues had originated in his home country, out on the edge of the Sahara. Bluesman of Africa, Talking Timbuktu. Mr. Touré was his family's 10th child, and the first to survive infancy. He was not governed by anything. SAVANE, released posthumously, is taken from those sessions, and it bears testament to Farka Toure's standing as one of the giants of contemporary African music. Toure melded traditional Malian stringed instruments and vocals with the American blues guitar work he considered firmly rooted in West Africa, where most North American slaves were shipped from. "I have all the spirits," he wrote in liner notes to the collection "Radio Mali" (World Circuit/Nonesuch). SAVANE, released posthumously, is taken from those sessions, and it bears testament to Farka Toure's standing as one of the giants of contemporary African music. AKA Ali Ibrahim Touré. To commemorate the tenth anniversary of his death, Ali Farka Touré will be celebrated in his native Mali with a series of events over the weekend of 5th March. Ali Farka Touré. His family said that although no date had yet been determined, he will be buried in the sandy loam near Timbuktu. Mali paid tribute to the "genius" of Ali Farka Toure by naming a square in the capital after him as the country marked the 10th anniversary of the death of one of Africa's most renowned musicians. Two-time Grammy Award winner Ali Farka Toure, one of Africa's best-known performers, died Tuesday in his native Mali after a long illness. No information was available on his immediate survivors. [15] On 6 March 2006, the Ministry of Culture of Mali announced Touré's death at age 66 in Bamako from bone cancer, which he had been battling for some time. Touré, … His record company called him "a true original.". It is the third and final part of the Hôtel Mandé Sessions, featuring Touré and Toumani Diabaté, recorded by World Circuit head Nick Gold. He also recorded with the American bluesman Taj Mahal. His father died serving in the French Armyin 1940. Touré famously argued that the beloved American genre was "nothing but African," a bold assertion. I'm from Timbuktu, and I can tell you that it's right in the center of the world. He toured Africa widely, establishing a reputation across West Africa. The stark propulsion of his music, and its hints of electric blues, made him a star on the world-music circuit, and he toured the United States, Europe and Japan. Across this deeply impoverished west African nation, people mourned Toure's passing and radio stations suspended regular programming to broadcast his signature lilting sounds. Ali Farka Touré. Hearing the music of spirit ceremonies, he taught himself to play the njurkle, a one-stringed West African lute, in 1950, then the n'jarka, a one-stringed fiddle, and later the n'goni, a four-stringed lute. He learned the gurkel at an early age and later took up the guitar. Copyright © 2021 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. Paris 07/03/2006 - Ali Farka Touré (real name Ali Ibrahim Touré) was an imposing figure in the world of African and world music. Mali became independent of France in 1960, and in 1962 Mr. Touré became the leader of the Niafunke village cultural troupe, dedicated to preserving local culture. He released at least 10 albums and toured often in North America and Europe. At the news of his death, government radio stations there suspended regular programming to play his music. "He transposed the traditional music of his native north Mali and single-handedly brought the style known as desert blues to an international audience," the company said in a statement. He was either 66 or 67; he was born in 1939 but he did not know his birth date. When this episode first aired, the recent death of Malian guitar legend Ali Farka Touré inspired a new round of speculation about the roots of the blues in Africa. In an interview yesterday, Mr. Cooder said: "It's important for a traditional performer to be coming from a place and tradition, and most people who are like that tend to be part of their scene rather than transcendent of their scene. Brought to you by World Circuit Records www.worldcircuit.co.uk Sources. Sent away for a year to be cured, he returned as someone who was recognized for the ability to communicate with spirits. Ali Farka Toure. He won his second Grammy last month, taking traditional world music album honors for his "In the Heart of the Moon" album, performed with fellow Malian Toumani Diabate. ali farka: death and the tamasheq blues. He was one of … In 1980, he returned to his hometown, Niafunke, and established a farm that he tended between musical engagements. Last album from the recently deceased Malian master stands among his best. Six albums of music recorded at Radio Mali were released in France in the 1970's. Ali Farka Touré was one of the true giants of African music, the greatest … Ali Farka Touré has also recently been nominated for the BBC Radio 3 awards 2007. There is a lot of truth to … Toure was born in 1939 in the northern Sahara Desert trading post of Timbuktu. World Circuit Records said Toure had just completed work on a new solo album. The album “Red” from legendary Malian musician Ali Farka Touré was reissued in March 2021, coinciding with the 15th anniversary of Ali Farka Toure’s death on March 6, 2006 at the age of 66. Before his death in 2006, Malian guitarist Ali Farka Toure recorded some sessions in the Hotel Mande in Bamako, Mali. © 2006 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. Ali Farka Toure Sign in to follow this . Ali Farka Touré, Grammy-Winning Musician of West Africa, Dies, https://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/08/arts/music/ali-farka-toure-grammywinning-musician-of-west-africa-dies.html. When he was about 13, after an encounter with a snake, he suffered attacks he believed to have been caused by contact with the spirit world. He was the tenth son of his mother but the only one to survive past infancy. You've been vaccinated. One of the most internationally successful West African musicians of the '90s, Ali Farka Touré was described as "the African John Lee Hooker" so many times that it probably began to grate on both Touré's and Hooker's nerves. Before his death in 2006, Malian guitarist Ali Farka Toure recorded some sessions in the Hotel Mande in Bamako, Mali. "It is also the sharing of history, legend, biography of Africa.". Mali paid tribute to the "genius" of Ali Farka Toure by naming a square in the capital after him as the country marked the 10th anniversary of the death of one of Africa's most renowned musicians. That's what their calling is all about. Unlike many West African musicians, Mr. Touré was not born into a musical dynasty; rather, he was drawn to music despite the wishes of his family. Outside his home country of Mali, he was seen as blending African music with the blues of the southern United States and he … But Ali was a seeker. MADELEINE BRAND, … Ali Farka Touré (October 31, 1939 – March 7, 2006) was a Malian singer and multi-instrumentalist, and one of the African continent's most internationally renowned musicians. After seeing the Guinean guitarist Keita Fodeba, he took up the guitar in the mid-1950's and joined a local band. Malian guitarist Ali Farka Toure has often been referred to as a missing link between the blues and traditional music of West Africa. Tap to unmute. His family belonged to the Arma community and moved to the nearby village of Niafunké when he was still an infant. With the death of Ali Farka Toure, Mali is losing one of its greatest ambassadors," said Mbaye Boubacar Diarra, a television producer. Mali's Culture Ministry said Toure died at his home in the capital, Bamako, after a long struggle with an unidentified illness. Ali Farka Toure, known as the "Bluesman of Africa", who has died of cancer, was one of the continent's best known musicians. His record company, World Circuit Records, said he had suffered from bone cancer. He died on March 6, 2006 in Bamako, Mali. Mr. Touré collaborated widely, winning Grammys for albums he made with the American guitarist Ry Cooder ("Talking Timbuktu" in 1994) and with the Malian griot Toumani Diabaté ("In the Heart of the Moon," 2005). Toure spent much of his older age in his childhood town of Niafunke, which has become a pilgrimage spot for many music-loving Africans and tourists. Ali Ibrahim "Farka" Touré, guitarist and farmer: born Kanau, Mali 1939; twice married (12 children); died Bamako 6 March 2006. Savane is the final solo album by Malian musician Ali Farka Touré. I shudder to think that Africa’s constant sonic blast could be reduced to an impenetrable hum. When desert blues pioneer Ali Farka Toure, one of Africa's best-loved musicians, died last year in his native Mali few could have imagined his son would follow so quickly in his footsteps. Ali Farka Touré, the self-taught Malian guitarist and songwriter who merged West African traditions with the blues and carried his music to a worldwide audience, winning two Grammy Awards, died in his sleep on Monday at his farm in the village of Niafunke in northwestern Mali, the Ministry of Culture of Mali announced. Following the death of the mighty Malian guitarist Ali Farka Toure, Lucy Duran and Andy Kershaw present a special tribute to their friend. Ali was 66 years old at the time of death. Birthplace: Kanau, near Gourmararouse, Timbuktu, Mali Location of death: Bamako, Mali Cause of death: Cancer . 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