The Rail Band is a Malian band formed in 1970; it was later known as Super Rail Band, Bamako Rail Band or, most comprehensively and formally, Super Rail Band of the Buffet Hotel de la Gare, Bamako.

Background

Rail Band's fame was built upon the mid-20th century craze for Latin — especially

Cuban Cuban may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Cuba, a country in the Caribbean * Cubans, people from Cuba, or of Cuban descent ** Cuban exile, a person who left Cuba for political reasons, or a descendant thereof * Cuban citizen, a perso ...

— jazz music which came out of

Congo Congo or The Congo may refer to either of two countries that border the Congo River in central Africa: * Democratic Republic of the Congo, the larger country to the southeast, capital Kinshasa, formerly known as Zaire, sometimes referred to a ...

in the 1940s. The Rail Band was one of the first West African acts to combine this mature Afro-Latin sound with traditional instruments and styles. In their case, this was built upon the

Mande Mande may refer to: * Mandé peoples of western Africa * Mande languages * Manding, a term covering a subgroup of Mande peoples, and sometimes used for one of them, Mandinka * Garo people of northeastern India and northern Bangladesh * Mande River ...

Griot praise singer tradition, along with Bambara and other Malian and Guinean musical traditions. Their distinctive sound came from combining electric guitar and jazz horns with soaring Mandinka and Bamabara lyrical lines, African and western drums, and local instruments such as the kora and the balafon. At their height of fame in the 1970s, the Rail Band played to sold-out venues and even stadia across West Africa, and launched solo careers for many of its members, including Salif Keita.

History

The first incarnation of the Rail Band was founded in 1970, sponsored by the Ministry of Information and the railway administration. The Malian government had, since the '60s, been sponsoring cultural events and groups to promote national traditions, the Rail Band was among those programs. The band performed as the house band at the Buffet Bar of the Station Hotel in

Bamako Bamako ( bm, ߓߡߊ߬ߞߐ߬ ''Bàmakɔ̌'', ff, 𞤄𞤢𞤥𞤢𞤳𞤮 ''Bamako'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Mali, with a 2009 population of 1,810,366 and an estimated 2022 population of 2.81 million. It is located on t ...

, from which it takes its name. Beginning as a Latin Jazz band in the style of Congolese

Soukous Soukous (from French '' secousse'', "shock, jolt, jerk") is a genre of dance music from Congo-Kinshasa and Congo-Brazzaville. It derived from Congolese rumba in the 1960s, becoming known for its fast dance rhythms and intricate guitar improv ...

, it soon began integrating local

Manding Manding may refer to: * Manding languages, a language-dialect continuum in West Africa * Mandinka (disambiguation) ** Mandinka language, one of the Manding languages ** Mandinka people, a West African ethnic group * The Mandé peoples who speak Man ...

musical styles and traditions, with vocals in the

Bambara language Bambara (Arabic script: ), also known as Bamana (N'Ko script: ) or Bamanankan (), is a lingua franca and national language of Mali spoken by perhaps 15 million people, natively by 5 million Bambara people and about 10 million second-language us ...

. From early on the band featured electric guitar, electric organ, saxophone, horns, and a western drum kit alongside Mande music using kora, balafon, ngoni, talking drums, Islamic-style, Mande hunter co-fraternity song, and griot praise-singing vocals.

Members

The Rail Band's lead singer in the 1970s was Salif Keita, who left the band to join the rival Super Ambassadeurs, and then follow a successful solo career in 1982. The group soon became a training ground for many of Mali's most popular performers, such as singer

Mory Kanté Mory Kanté (29 March 195022 May 2020) was a Guinean vocalist and player of the kora harp. He was best known internationally for his 1987 hit song "Yé ké yé ké", which reached number-one in Belgium, Finland, the Netherlands, and Spain. The ...

and guitarist Kante Manfila. Guitarist

Djelimady Tounkara Djelimady Tounkara is a Malian musician and one of the foremost guitarists in Africa. Life and career Born in the culturally rich town of Kita, west of the Malian capital, Bamako, Djelimady grew up surrounded with traditional music played by mem ...

has been a member of the band for most of its history. The band, changing personnel many times, continues to perform around the world. In May 2020, Kanté died from

chronic illness A chronic condition is a health condition or disease that is persistent or otherwise long-lasting in its effects or a disease that comes with time. The term ''chronic'' is often applied when the course of the disease lasts for more than three mo ...

Recognition

According to the

Timbuktu Renaissance The Brookings Institution, often stylized as simply Brookings, is an American research group founded in 1916. Located on Think Tank Row in Washington, D.C., the organization conducts research and education in the social sciences, primarily in ec ...

initiative, Super Biton is one of "two bands in particular hathave left an indelible mark on the Malian musical landscape", the other being

Rail Band The Rail Band is a Malian band formed in 1970; it was later known as Super Rail Band, Bamako Rail Band or, most comprehensively and formally, Super Rail Band of the Buffet Hotel de la Gare, Bamako. Background Rail Band's fame was built upon the ...

, both "pioneers of the fusion of the traditional sounds and rhythms of Ségou and modern genres.

Discography

;Albums * 1970 : ''Sunjata'' (Bärenreiter-Musicaphon) * 1976 : ''Melodias "Rail Band" du Mali'' (Kouma) * 1976 : ''Concert "Rail Band" du Mali'' (Kouma) * 1977 : ''Orchestre du Buffet Hôtel de la Gare de Bamako'' (HNLX 5179) * 1979 : ''Affair Social'' (Sacodis LS-25) * 1985 : ''New Dimensions in Rail Culture'' (Globestyle) * 1994 : ''Super Rail Band de Bamako/ Djougouya Magni'' (

Indigo Indigo is a deep color close to the color wheel blue (a primary color in the RGB color space), as well as to some variants of ultramarine, based on the ancient dye of the same name. The word "indigo" comes from the Latin word ''indicum'', m ...

) * 1996 : ''Mansa'' (Indigo) * 2003 : ''Kongo Sigui'' (Indigo) ;Contributing artist * 1995 : ''

The Rough Guide to West African Music ''The Rough Guide to West African Music'' is a world music compilation album originally released in 1995. The second release of the World Music Network Rough Guides series, it largely focuses on Malian music, with six of the twelve tracks comin ...

'' ( World Music Network) * 2012 : ''

The Rough Guide to Psychedelic Africa ''The Rough Guide To Psychedelic Africa'' is a world music compilation album originally released in 2012 featuring 1960s and 1970s African popular music. Part of the World Music Network Rough Guides series, the album contains two discs: an overv ...

'' (World Music Network)
Complete discography available at the Radio Africa web site

References

Super Rail Band
Banning Eyre, Afropop Worldwide (2001).

Cora Connection (2002).
African Legends: Super Rail Band
Bruce Miller. globalrhythm.net (November 6, 2006).
Super Rail Band (aka New Dimensions In Rail Culture) Super Rail Band Of The Buffet Hotel De La Gare De Bamako
Review. Chris May, All About Jazz (2006).

Philip Sweeney. The Independent (London). (4 July 2003).

Fernando Gonzalez. The Washington Post - Washington, D.C. July 11, 2001. * ttps://www.theguardian.com/music/2003/jul/08/worldmusic.artsfeatures Bembeya Jazz v Super Rail Band. Barbican, London The Guardian, Tuesday 8 July 2003. * ttp://www.miaminewtimes.com/2004-01-22/music/super-band-supreme/ Super Band Supreme: The outstanding return of Super Rail Band de Bamako Bob Tarte. Miami News Times. January 22, 2004.
FROM THE MOTHERLAND: Getting on track with Mali's Super Rail Band
Tom Cheyney. L.A. Weekly. July 25, 2002.

BEN RATLIFF. New York Times. July 6, 2001.

JON PARELES. New York Times. July 16, 2002 {{Authority control Malian musical groups Label Bleu artists

Background

History

Members

Recognition

Discography

See also

References