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 The Malian father and son duo of Toumani Sidiki Diabate were
named Best Group for their work highlighting the griot (story
teller) tradition in the awards, announced on Thursday.
The Kronos Quartet, usually associated with classical music,
took the Cross-Cultural Collaboration award for an album
embracing the music of countries ranging from Syria to China.
Allen, 74, was nominated for his "Film of Life" album but the
award was as much a recognition of his lifetime achievements,
Songlines editor-in-chief Simon Broughton said.
Allen began working with the late Nigerian music legend Fela
Kuti in 1964 and helped create the Afrobeat style which
energized the continent. Once described as the "finest drummer
on the planet", his music blends jazz, funk and tribal grooves.
"As Fela said, without Tony Allen, there wouldn't be any
Afrobeat. Fela very much handed the invention of Afrobeat over
to him as a moving force," Broughton told Reuters.
"Film of Life," which features a collaboration with Blur's Damon
Albarn, showed him still fresh and eager to experiment.
It also deals with topical issues. Two tracks, "Go Back" and
"Boat Journey", with its refrain of "Don't take the boat
journey", highlight the plight of Africans fleeing from war and
poverty only to risk their lives crossing the Mediterranean.
The London-based Ibibio Sound Machine, fronted by charismatic
singer Eno Williams, are a group of young Nigerian expatriates
who weave the folk tales of southeast Ibibio region with
electronic grooves, funk, Afrobeat and Highlife.
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"They are really making an impact. It's that nice mixture of
Nigerian but in a London context. London is probably the World Music
capital of the world right now," Broughton said.
Sidiki Diabate is better known as a rapper but he linked up with his
father, griot and kora player Toumani, for an eponymous album of
songs in a traditional vein.
"The Diabate family has been absolutely central to Malian music for
years and years, generations and generations. Toumani's father was a
leading kora player. They are very much looking back at the
tradition they have inherited and expressing the idea of passing it
on," Broughton said.
The Diabates also address the refugee tragedy - their song "Lampedusa"
references the Italian island which has offered shelter to
shipwrecked and stranded migrants.
Although The Kronos Quartet usually works with contemporary
composers, its album "A Thousand Thoughts" draws on music from
countries as diverse as Iran, Syria, China, Vietnam and Ethiopia and
features guest artists such as Le Mystere des Voix Bulgare women's
choir and Indian tabla player Zakir Hussain.
(Editing by Louise Ireland and Michael Roddy)
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