In Griot Time: An American Guitarist in Mali

AN AMERICAN GUITARIST IN MALI

Five years in the making, Banning Eyre's In Griot Time (Temple) provides a vivid, behind-the-scenes look at the music scene in Bamako, Mali. Eyre spent seven months as an apprentice to guitarist Djelimady Tounkara of the Super Rail Band. His account goes beyond musicology and social history to reveal the personalities and the inner workings of one of the world's most fascinating music cultures. Are the griots guardians of Mali's cultural heritage? Or are they exploiters who keep society trapped in the past? Do American blues and string music really have roots in West Africa? Can an African nation embrace modernity without losing its ancient soul? These are the questions that unify the stories in this remarkable book. Mali's top musicians are here: Salif Keita, Oumou Sangar, Ali Farka Tour, Habib Koite, Sali Sidib, and others. But equally interesting are less famous incidental characters. Anyone who has ever been touched by African music, or dreamed of travel, will want to read In Griot Time.

Djelimady Tounkara steps out for a solo.

PRAISE FOR BANNING EYRE'S IN GRIOT TIME "Banning's book presents a riveting, richly illustrative and insightful look into his extraordinary 7 month journey deep into the heart of Mali's music scene. To have been accepted both personally and musically is amazing in itself. That he writes about it this well is a revelation. With the explosion and popularity and appetite for world music, Banning's book is a one of a kind primer on just how deep the connection runs between West African cultural traditions and nearly all of our Western popular music. I can't remember when a Westerner has been able to dive so deeply into another culture with such soulful results. His adventures inspired me to make my own journey with him to Mali this year. I had to see and hear this extraordinary world for myself." Bonnie Raitt

"Banning Eyre has produced a moving work which captures the feel and scent of living in an African society the way few travel books ever do. The community of musicians in Bamako comes to life in these pages. Readers who may have heard any of the music which is the book's focus will find Eyre's knowledge and perspective fascinating!" Bruce Cockburn

"Guitarist Banning Eyre, driven by a deep love of Malian guitar and the desire to learn with the masters at the source of the tradition, goes to spend seven months in Mali's capital. There, against the backdrop of some of Africa's most beautiful music, he finds himself in the thick of girot intrigue. An affectionate and gripping account of what makes Mali's most popular musicians tick." Dr. Lucy Duran, School of Oriental and African Studies, London University.

In Griot Time "is an extremely engaging, thoroughly well-written description of the exciting and complex modern musical scene of Bamako, Mali. Thanks to Banning Eyre's seven-month's total immersion in this West African society, his sensitive and colorful insights succeed in capturing the essence of that remarkably vibrant culture for his readers in a way that could only be equaled by personal experience." David C. Conrad, Professor of African History, State University of New York, Oswego.