CHEIKH LO A Sufi Stance Peter Culshaw catches up the Senegalese veteran at home in Dakar and chats to the singer about his spiritual antidote to hardline Islam hheikh Li onthe terrace ofhis house the CCheikh starts dancingon the roofop terrace, and launches suburbs of Dakar, with fabulous view overthe _into.an acapella version of James Brown's Isa Man's, Man’, city’s roofiops. And that isthe Cheikh Lo busstop" Man's World’, serenading Flavia Coehlo, the Brazilian singer he indicates below, clearly amused, “on Cheikh LO who is guesting on his album, with the lines from the song Road. Iaskif that’ official. “Mais ou. Usually you have to die “butt would be nothing, nothing without a woman or agirl? to get such accolades ~ Lamm happy Ihave not had to die first” Aflerwards he reminisces about seeing Jarmes Brown in 197 Temust, [suggest be handy if eis out for the night and has to in Dakar, and how Brown rearranged the way he thought remember the right bus sop to getoffon. Helaughs, but it's about musie. Cheikh was actually born in Burkina Faso before fairto.ay Cheikh Lé doesn't do buses heis one ofthe most is family came to Dakar in 1978, “My music i as much fanle sucessful of Senegal’ older artists expecially in Europe. He's as mhalax he says, referring tothe dominant pop thythm of nearly 60 and fll of life, and his new album, Balbalow,a Top Senegal, whose best-known exponent is Youssou N'Dour, the cof the World ths issue and his frstalbum since 2010's jam, is superstar who produced Cheikh's debut album, NéLa Thias. about tobe released on an unsuspecting world, As for following Youssou into polis, he says left school »CHEIKH LO at 14,1'm just a musician, nota businessman or politician, support Youssou as a musician, he's a good singer, but in politics, I'm not supporting anyone, 'm independent" You sense he isa wily character, survivor inthe sometimes treacherous world of Dakae politics. His house, where we are treated toa massive lunch, isa substantial one without being flashy — big enough for his family and his studio, where he does his initial demos, There are numerous photos on the wals of his recently deceased ‘marabout, bis spiritual guide, He isa follower, as all Cheikh Lé fans know, ofthe Baye Fal sect, one ofthe Sufi Mouride brotherhoods founded by the visionary ant-colonialis eader Cheikh Amadou Bamba inthe late 19th century. L8 was born Into family of Mourides but found himself drawn more 10 “the tolerance” of Bamibals first disciple Cheikh Ibrabima Fall, founder ofthe Baye Fall, who are known for their work ethic, colourful patchwork clothes and dreadlocked hair. Hes often ‘mistaken fora Rastafarian, Asked to describe the Baye Fall philosophy ina few words Cheikh says “work as ifyou will never die. Pray asi you will ie tomorrow” He launches Balbalou the next night at Just 4 U, a boutique Dakar nightclub with his band and guests (pictured right) Flavia Cochlo and Fini, a superb French accordionist who has been known to experiment with hip-hop fusions. The album is getting the kind of backing rere in these cash-strapped and Internet piracy times, Ceikhis band was flown to Sweden ‘where they worked with engineer/producer Andreas Unge, ‘overdubs were added in Paris, and forthe launch they have flown out not just Songlnes, bu tp journalists fom likes of Le Mondeand French TV and radio, not to mention ‘video team, who produced atop quality glossy ‘video forthe catchiest rune on the album Degg Gut ‘There is a sense that after the recent tough times in the music business, the new payment models like streaming, may be turninga comer. The level of commitment tothe album, as Cheikh puts it, shows everyone believes inthis one” In ruth, at the Just 4U launch the band seemed hesitant ‘with the new material and the ound was terrible, This was "underlined when we caught the great Orchestra Baobab playing, with a near perfect sound in another nightclub at 4am, who couldn’ have been more tight and well seasoned, No matter, the band gelled with the new material bythe time they got to Europe and appeared on what remains the key music TV show Inthe UK, Later..with Jools Holland. More importantly, the album itself Cheikh’ fifth, is up there with his best recordings. ‘Thealbum isa typically adventurous mix of styles, such as ‘Degg Gut with its vocal contribution in Brazilian Portuguese from Coelho (her own reggae-soaked debut Mundo Mew was reviewed in #108). The album islaid-back and glossly produced, Previously, Cheikh had been on the revered world ‘music label World Cireuit (home ofthe Buena Vista Social Cub as well as Orchestra Baobab) bu this is ona newer Parisian label called Chapter Two, ran by Romain Germa and part of ‘Wagram, one ofthe biggest independent labels in EuropeCheikh i keen to emphasise that te split from World Cireut (orho released the previous ‘Degg Gu! is about people who speak too much, while another standout iDoyal Naniow’ with supreme Malian diva ‘Oumou Sangaré guesting, isa datrbe against African coups tats." We must beable to have democratic elections and ‘votes, and drive off those who try to claim power through ‘of his albums) was amicable. featuring theja rahim Maalouf “The racks trumpet of Lebanr 1eme isthe evils of boasting, an “ld story ra tones boast, so God creates an boasts, so jo creates woman, A woman boasts so God creates child. ‘When the child boasts God creates sleep, ‘and son, in asort of spiritual shagay dog presents something of a new departure forthe alburn in what Cheikh calls its"Afrojaze” favour. The album asa whole manages tobe both majestic and cool, ‘with Cheiki's distinctively warm, relaxed ‘vocals, as ever, atts core. Cheikh L8s return s timely in another in that the Baye Fall are about as op fanatical deathcult of ISIS as it’s possible to get. The Baye Fall are not averse to smoking dope and don't feel they have to necessarily goto the mosque or Mecca, They do repeated Sufi ir chants in groups ot on their Christian/Muslim cemeteries in Dakar and the existence of ‘monasteries like Keur Mouses outside Dakar (a great place to hear Gregorian chants accompanied by koras, by the way) site fom the rm. He mentions the shared CHEIKH LO “Hard to imagine ssasmprsoritseancehesundte people w ho nt to ban music, isn’t it?” ‘Of couse, there are problems in Senegal, ‘with corruption and poverty paramount, but the strength ofthe Sus tradi Senegal seem, for now, indom life-affirming music is much-ne ‘counterpoint in the Islamic world tothe confronted with daily {in the media, "Hard to imagine people who want isn't?” says Cheikh, and listening to him singing for sheer pleasure on his rooftop in Dakar, you can only agree. © ban mus + ALBUM salbalouisa Top ofthe Word review in ti sue see p59 and rac onthe covermount i + DATES Ghetto and his band play at WOMAD Charon Pron the Open Air and BBC Radio 8 Chale Gilet stags on July 25 626 Oo @