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Artist Portrait

Sorry Bamba

voc, *1938 ML, Mopti Region
World

A pivotal figure in the history of Malian music, Sorry Bamba was a popular and influential musician whose work bridged the gap between Mali's cultural traditions and the new freedoms of the post-Colonial era. Bamba was born in 1938 in Mopti, a city crossed by the Niger and Bani rivers and known for its cultural diversity. Bamba's father was a distinguished veteran of Emperor Samory Touré's military and a nobleman in Malian society; however, this meant young Sorry was forbidden to make music, as under the nation's caste system, music was an art form reserved for the Griots. However, the death of Sorry's parents was he was ten threw his life into chaos, and he found solace in music, initially teaching himself to play a simple six-holed flute. In his teens, he developed a taste for a rich variety of music -- traditional Malian music, highlife from Ghana, local accordion master Toumani Touré, Corsican vocalist Tino Rossi, and Luis Mariano, a singer from Spain's Basque country -- who would influence his later work. In 1957, Bamba formed his first band, Group Goumbé, named for a dance style then popular along the Ivory Coast; the band featured Bamba on trumpet, an instrument he was still teaching himself to play, and a handful of percussionists. Group Goumbé developed a loyal youth following through aggressive self-promotion, and after Mali gained its independence from France, Bamba and his group benefited from a new openness toward local music on the state-run radio network Radio Mali. Group Goumbé evolved into a more sophisticated ensemble, Bani Jazz, whose ambitious music was married to lyrics influenced by folk tales of the Dogon people. As Mali established nation-wide Youth Week competitions to give music and dance troupes an opportunity to show their talents, Bani Jazz and Bamba's later ensemble, the Kanaga Orchestra, won three biennial trophies as Mali's best band (in 1976, 1978, and 1980), and their fusion of Latin jazz, Western R&B and funk, and traditional Malian styles made them a favorite across the nation. Bamba was also the director of a dance troupe in Mopti as well as a second group strictly devoted to traditional music. As Mail's national support of music fell to the wayside, Bamba relocated to Paris in the '90s, where he continues to write and record music. In 2011, the American independent label Thrill Jockey Records released Sorry Bamba, Vol. 1: 1970-1979, a collection of classic recordings from Bamba's back catalog compiled with the participation of the artist himself.

     
Genres
  • World
  • Folk
  • R&B/Soul
  • Latin
Popular Tracks   
Porry on World Psychedelic Classics: Love's A Real Thing by Various Artists
Porry on Du Mali by Sorry Bamba
Yayoroba on Volume One 1970 - 1979 by Sorry Bamba
Astan Kelly on Volume One 1970 - 1979 by Sorry Bamba
Yayoroba on Du Mali by Sorry Bamba
Gambari on Volume One 1970 - 1979 by Sorry Bamba
Boro on Volume One 1970 - 1979 by Sorry Bamba
Sékou Amadou on Volume One 1970 - 1979 by Sorry Bamba
M'Bife Je T'Aime on Afro Exotique 2 - Further Adventures In The Leftfield, Africa 1975-87 by Various Artists
Sayouwé on Volume One 1970 - 1979 by Sorry Bamba

Track list and 30sec audio provided by


Band Members
Discography



Title Artist Year Type
Volume One 1970 - 1979Sorry Bamba2011Compil.
Dogon BluesSorry Bamba2010Album
Clash MandingueKante Manfila Vs. Sorry Bamba2008Compil.
HamdallayeSorry Bamba1995Album
Le Tonnerre DogonSorry Bamba1987Album
S.P. Presente Sory Bamba Du MaliSorry Bamba1982Album
Sory Bamba Du MaliSorry Bamba1979Album
Sanata - AminataSorry Bamba1977Single
Sorry BambaSorry Bamba1977Single
Sorry Bamba Du MaliSorry Bamba1977Album
Sorry Bamba Du MaliSorry Bamba1976Album
DjelimangoSorry BambaSingle
Serre / Kelai Magni / Bravo Mimos / ManouSorry BambaSingle
External Links
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Acknowledgements
To all the music fans that are contributing on Discogs, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia. Thanks to Franz Flückiger for providing Storygram used to visualize band membership.
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