Welcome to Mali
| Welcome To Mali | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | November 17, 2008 (Europe) March 24, 2009 (US) | |||
| Genre | Pop music African blues Electronic Worldbeat | |||
| Length | 57:33 | |||
| Label | Because Music (Europe) Nonesuch Records (US) | |||
| Producer | Marc Antoine Moreau Laurent Jais Damon Albarn | |||
| Amadou & Mariam chronology | ||||
| ||||
Welcome to Mali is the fifth studio album by Malian musicians Amadou & Mariam. It was released on Because Music on November 17, 2008, in Europe and was released on Nonesuch Records on March 24, 2009, in the United States.
In 2012 it was awarded a gold certification from the Independent Music Companies Association which indicated sales of at least 75,000 copies throughout Europe.[1]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Sabali" | Albarn, Doumbia, Moreau | 3:15 |
| 2. | "Ce N'est Pas Bon" | Bagayoko, Moreau | 3:49 |
| 3. | "Magosa[2]" | Doumbia | 3:43 |
| 4. | "Djama" | Bagayoko, Dembele | 3:15 |
| 5. | "Djuru" | Doumbia | 3:35 |
| 6. | "Je Te Kiffe (feat. Juan Rozoff)" | Bagayoko, Rosoff | 4:18 |
| 7. | "Masiteladi (feat. -M-)" | Bagayoko | 3:56 |
| 8. | "Africa (feat. K'Naan)" | Bagayoko, Keinan | 3:48 |
| 9. | "Compagnon de la Vie" | Bagayoko | 3:46 |
| 10. | "Unissons-nous (feat. Keziah Jones)" | Doumbia | 4:16 |
| 11. | "Bozos" | Bagayoko | 3:46 |
| 12. | "I Follow You (Nia Na Fin)" | Bagayoko | 4:02 |
| 13. | "Welcome to Mali" | Bagayoko | 3:20 |
| 14. | "Batoma" | Doumbia | 4:13 |
| 15. | "Sebeke" | Bagayoko, Doumbia | 4:31 |
| 16. | "Boula (hidden track)" | ||
| Total length: | 57:33 | ||
Singles
"Sabali," released on 27 October 2008, was the first single from the album. The second single was "Masiteladi."
Reception
| Aggregate scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | 86/100[3] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [4] |
| The A.V. Club | A–[5] |
| Christgau’s Consumer Guide | A[6] |
| Entertainment Weekly | B+[7] |
| Mojo |  [8] |
| The Observer | [9] |
| Q | [10] |
| Pitchfork | 8.4/10[11] |
| Uncut | [3] |
| Under the Radar | 9/10[12] |
Welcome to Mali has received mostly positive reviews. On the review aggregate site Metacritic, the album has a score of 86 out of 100, indicating "Universal acclaim."[3]
Keith Phillips of The A.V. Club gave the album a grade of A−, writing "Welcome To Mali sounds heavily produced but not overproduced, and even with the pings and whizzing, Amadou’s playing and the pair’s singing insure it never sounds less than organic."[13] In another positive review, Pitchfork Media's Joe Tangari wrote: "This album is an affirmation of global connectivity and an emerging global culture that transcends and repurposes tradition as it sees fit-- the sound of Mali merging with the world at large."[14]
Paste's Nick Marino, on the other hand, called the album "frustratingly uneven," writing: "[D]espite moments of exuberance, it can also feel like a mundane grind [...]"[15]
In August 2009, the webzine Pitchfork Media named Sabali the 249th track in their staff list "The Top 500 Tracks of the 2000s"[16] and earned a Grammy Award for Best Contemporary World Music Album nomination in 2010.
References
- ^ "Aktuelles VUT: VUT - Verband unabhängiger Musikunternehmer*innen e. V."
- ^ Spelled "Magossa" on the CD back cover, but "Magosa" on http://amadou-mariam.com/, "Magosa" is the title with which this song was registered with the SACEM, "Magossa" being the subtitle
- ^ a b c Critic Reviews for Welcome to Mali. Metacritic. Retrieved 22 February 2012.
- ^ Jurek, Thom (November 17, 2008). "Welcome to Mali - Amadou & Mariam". AllMusic. Retrieved May 6, 2025.
- ^ Phipps, Keith (March 24, 2009). "Amadou & Mariam: Welcome To Mali". The A.V. Club. Retrieved May 6, 2025.
- ^ Christgau, Robert. "Amadou & Mariam". Robert Christgau. Retrieved May 6, 2025.
- ^ Williams, K. Leander (March 25, 2009). "Music". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on February 17, 2015. Retrieved May 6, 2025.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ Welcome to Mali celebrates its artificiality, flaunts its illegitimacy and waggles its infidelities in your face. Amadou & Mariam have just damned authenticite to an eternity in caducite. [Dec 2008, p.98]
- ^ Thompson, Ben (9 November 2008). "World review: Amadou & Mariam, Welcome to Mali". The Observer. Retrieved 6 May 2025.
- ^ Truely, a voyage of discovery. [Jan 2009, p.121]
- ^ Tangari, Joe (November 18, 2008). "Welcome to Mali - Amadou & Mariam". Pitchfork. Retrieved May 6, 2025.
- ^ Like all of Welcome To Mali, the underpinnings of 'I Think Of You' are fantastically layered, with a combination of precision timing and in-the-moment passion. [Winter 2009, p.68]
- ^ Phillips, Keith. Amadou & Mariam: Welcome to Mali. The A.V. Club. 24 March 2009. Retrieved 29 February 2012.
- ^ Tangari, Joe. Amadou & Mariam: Welcome to Mali. Pitchfork Media. 18 November 2008. Retrieved 29 February 2012.
- ^ Marino, Nick. Amadou & Mariam: Welcome to Mali. Paste. 23 March 2009. Retrieved 29 February 2012.
- ^ Pitchfork Staff (17 August 2009). "The Top 500 Tracks of the 2000s". Pitchfork. Retrieved 17 August 2009.