“Protect your vuvuzela before you waka-waka, don’t let HIV take your life” – so goes the beat line of a song by Alpha Blondy, a.k.a. “the wise elder of African reggae”, with which he engaged the audience at one of the opening shows of this festival yesterday …
Diarabi – One of the best renditions of this celebrated traditional African song (originally from Mali) - which has also been interpreted by our own Bonga in that pioneering Anthology of World Music of African origin, Manu Dibango’s ‘Wakafrika’ -, could also be heard at one of yesterday's shows by ensemble Afrocubism with Eliades Ochoa, Toumani Diabaté, Bassekou Kouyaté, Djelimady Tounkora, Kasse Mady Diabaté...
These were just a couple of highlights from this year's WOMAD in the UK.
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