I'm a West African music geek, so I asked for thread to be revived. Forgive my geekiness, but I'm going to try an introduction to West African music here.
WA music is as diverse as, say British or American music. So, there is definitely not one example that fits all. Many WA countries have contributed to the large pool of music, but, in my opinion, some of the best comes from Mali, Nigeria, Senegal, Ghana, Guinea, Cape Verdi, and Benin. A good place to start if you want samples from various countries is a CD called "africa remix" by Ah Freak Iya. Despite the title, there is only 1 remix on the CD--it is a compilation of various African artists from all over the continent, not just WA. But it has a good selection of WA artists. Beyond this CD, here are some of my favorite WA artists/art forms:
Mali (Mande music):
Mali has produced a lot of musical forms, including Malian folk music. But, music in the country has been dominated by a type known as "Mande," stemming from an empire by same name. My favorite artist from this genre is Salif Keita, known as "The Golden Voice of Africa." Here is an example of a song from "Moffou," which I think is his best album:
Salif Keita’s Music Videos – Listen free and discover music at Last.fm
On the same album, he is joined here by another one of my favorite WA artists, Cesaria Evora, from Cape Verde:
YouTube - YouTube - Salif Keita & Cesária Évora - Yamore
Over the years, Keita has been front for several bands in Mali, including "Le Ambassadours" (later "Le Ambassadours Internationale" when they fled to Cote d'Voire during oppression in Mali). A rival band was "Rail Band," which Keita also sang with at one time. Both bands once played in same venue in Mali when the president was reviving Malian music and culture after the oppression, and people thought it was going to be uncomfortable. Instead, both bands got folks into a frenzy--it was a marker musical experience for Mande music. Here is a more recent cut of Rain Band when they were at the 2001 Grassroots festival in the U.S. (In spite of slow beginning and some mike feedback, I think they rock in this vid, and the "flappy lady" at the end is funny):
YouTube - The Super Rail Band at the Grassroots Festival 2001
If you ever wanted to learn more about Mandee music, there is a great book about it (told you I was a geek):
Eric Charry: Mande Music
In next post, I'll review and provide links to some Nigerian music.