Notes & Personnel Info |  | Personnel: Ang?lique Kidjo (vocals); Josh Groban, Joss Stone, Alicia Keys, Peter Gabriel, Ziggy Marley (vocals); Joao (Tombo) Mota, Keziah Jones, Dominic Kanza, Amadou Bagayoko, Carlos Santana (guitar); Larry Campbell (steel guitar); Gabriel Schaff, Matt Goeke, Ron Lawrence , Gregor Kitzis (strings); Aaron Johnson , Stuart Bogie, Jordan McLean, Colin Stetson (horns); Onree Gill (keyboards); Poogie Bell (drums); Crespin Kpitiki, Beno?t Avihoue (percussion); Tsholofetso Mokubung, Nompumelelo Skakane, Thandi Bhengu (background vocals); Lionel Loueke (guitar); Romero Lubambo (acoustic guitar); Branford Marsalis (saxophone). | | Audio Mixers: Tony Visconti; Russell Elevado. | | Recording information: Electric Lady Studios; Lion Head Studios; Looking Glass Studio; Orange Studios; Real World; Tapan Studio. | | Arranger: Ang?lique Kidjo. | | The Beninese singer Angelique Kidjo has been a fixture on the world music scene since the early 1990s, with the success of her first internationally released album, PARAKOU. Her inclusive style blends African, Caribbean, Brazilian, and Western rock musical influences in an irresistible potpourri, crowned with her powerful, distinctive voice, which can turn on a dime from sweet to savage. | | Helmed by the veteran producer Tony Visconti, DJIN DJIN follows Kidjo's practice, established on previous albums, of featuring high-caliber guest vocalists, including in this case Peter Gabriel, Ziggy Marley, and Alicia Keys. The wide-ranging set encompasses the haunting, swaying "Salala," the delicate title track, and a typical Kidjo-style Africanized reworking of the Rolling Stones' "Gimme Shelter" (on past albums she has also reinterpreted classics such as Jimi Hendrix's "Voodoo Chile" and Serge Gainsbourg's "Ces Petits Riens"). It's a testament to her formidable musical personality and impeccable musical taste that, despite the presence of her high-powered guests, Kidjo puts her unique stamp on this impressive and eclectic collection. | | Coming full circle, Angelique Kidjo returns to her Beninese roots for the star-studded Djin Djin album, whose title, which loosely translates as Seize the Day, aptly sums up the set and its themes. Djin Djin kicks off with the bright and breezy "Ae Ae," just the type of irrepressible pop/world-without-borders number that regularly takes all of Europe by storm, booming out of clubs from Iceland to Ibiza. It's so infectious that, even though the lyrics are apparently in Spanish, the entire continent joins in regardless, although few will grasp its serious message of the economic distress driving Africans onto European shores. Slightly more sophisticated but equally irresistible is "Papa," an urban club monster-to-be whose blistering rhythms vie with Kidjo's belted-out vocals, all wrapped in a supple arrangement that beautifully blends funk, soul, Afro-beat, and more. And then there's the funky, carnival-styled cover of the Rolling Stones' "Gimme Shelter," which almost seems to celebrate rape and murder. Kidjo's anger is more evident on "Senamou," featuring old friends Amadou & Mariam, a song themed around the upper crust's bling-shackled life, and whose universal truths are reflected in an arrangement that combines African, Middle Eastern, funk, and rock elements. Carlos Santana's elegant guitar illuminates "Pearls," while Kidjo and Josh Groban valiantly try to give weight to Sade's bathos-bathed lyrics. Much better are the haunting title track, featuring Alicia Keys and Branford Marsalis; the smoldering "Salala," which twins the singer with Peter Gabriel; and the Afro-reggae "Sedjedo," where she's joined by Ziggy Marley. "Arouna" also has a reggae tinge around its Arab-esque arrangement, and celebrates individuality on a crowded planet. "Emma," in contrast, explores isolation, and does it with a country twang, a styling that also infects the bouncier "Mama Golo Papa." With the final track, "Lonlon," Kidjo completes the journey, across an inspired vocal version of Ravel's Bolero, a piece that itself broadly hinted at the ties between North and South, East and West, connections made even clearer here. With its many moods, fusions of styles, exploration of serious issues, uplifting themes, and alternately haunting or infectious melodies, Djin Djin is a stunning set, enhanced by the efforts of the fabulous musicians within and Tony Visconti's masterful production. This CD was nominated for a Grammy award in 2007 for Best Contemporary World Music Album. ~ Jo-Ann Greene |
Producer: Tony Visconti; Tony Visconti |
Engineer: Mario J. McNulty |
Musical Guests | | Alicia Keys | | Carlos Santana | | Josh Groban | | Joss Stone | | Peter Gabriel | | Ziggy Marley |
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