Electric Africa

If you know Manu Dibango’s name, it’s most likely in connection to the eternal funk of 1973’s  “Soul Makossa,” a staple of David Mancuso’s proto-disco dance parties at the Loft. But the Cameroonian saxophonist’s career stretched into the 21st century, adaptable to a number of musical settings. This 1985 date finds Dibango funking it up with a band of all-stars: Wally Badarou, Bernie Worrell, Herbie Hancock, with Bill Laswell on production, Fairlight, and DMX. Traditional instruments like jimbe, kora, and talking drum mix with cutting edge synthesizers to great effect. The grooves are electric, spry, bouncy, perfect for breakdancing in America or getting down in townships in Africa.

Nowhere does Dibango’s ability for bridging different worlds come through as clearly as it does on his 1985 masterpiece Electric Africa. By then a world famous musician, Dibango gathered the cream of the crop from France, Africa, and the USA, fusing kora and djembe with synths and drum machines. On opener “Pata Piya” Dibango’s typically unhurried vocals sail over Bill Laswell’s drum machines, as Bernie Worrell and Wally Badarou trade synth phrases, Aiyb Dieng’s cowbell makes regular incursions, and Dibango’s laid-back sax stands in contrast to the funkiness of everything else. Herbie Hancock plays on the remaining three tracks, joining the subtle kora of Guinean virtuoso Mory Kanté on “L’arbre a Palabres.” Each track feels like a conversation, a group of luminaries as eager to contribute as they are to listen to each other.