• 
  Alkibar Gignor : La Paix
  
  Malian garage-rock group Alkibar Gignor deliver gloriously rough album.
• 
  Brownout : Oozy
  
  Latin-Funk group Brownout get down with some seriously laid-back swagger.
• 
  Sierra Leone's Refugee All Stars: Radio Salone
  
  Sixteen great new tracks from Sierra Leone's Refugee All Stars.
• 
  Funk Ark : High Noon
  
  Group from DC brings the Afrobeat fire.
• 
  , Amadou et Mariam: Folila
  
  Amadou and Mariam continue their foray into fusing their Malian styles with the sounds of western artists.
• 
  Nneka: Soul Is Heavy
  
  Nigerian-German soulstress channels her inner neo-soul star on her latest release
• 
  Sauti Sol: Sol Filosofia
  
  Kenyan, Afro-fusion outfit Sauti Sol continue their exploration of all things "pop."
• 
  KG Omulo: Ayah Ye!: Moving Train
  
  A synergy of funk, rock, reggae and traditional African sounds from this inventive, young singer/songwriter.
• 
  Various Artists: Chief Boima Presents: Lone Stars - Hipco and Gbema
  
  
• 
  Various Artists: The Kankobela of the Batonga, Vol. 2
  
  Mysterious melodies from a disappearing thumb piano tradition of Southern Africa.
• 
  Kiran Ahluwalia: Aam Zameen: Common Ground
  
  Indo-Canadian Songwriter Combines Folk Poetry with African Rock, Jazz and more
• 
  M.anifest: Immigrant Chronicles: Coming to America
  
  
• 
  Sona Jobarteh: FASIYA
  
  West African female kora virtuoso releases an album full of grace, warmth, and passion.
• 
  Sia Tolno: My Life
  
  Kissi singer releases a strong second album full of pop-infused star power over songs of strife and triumph.

All Reviews >>

What does it say when the most innovative, ground breaking record of 1999 is a fusion of early century American blues and folk with West African string music that's centuries older than that? Put another way, what took so long for someone to do what Taj Mahal and Toumani Diabaté have done here? The easy, unforced aura that pervades these twelve tracks testifies to the fundamental strength of the idea, from the Africanized field holler of "O' Georgie Buck," to the kora and ngoni riddled blues of "Take This Hammer," to the primordial jazz, balafon and piano stomp of "Fanta," and supremely folky takes on ancient Manding griot music in "Tunkaranke" and "Kaira." A lot of the music on this year's top 10 looks to the past, but Kulanjan
offers something heavier than nostalgia for colonial Cuba and Cape Verde. This is a window into the very DNA of our own folk, blues, and rock `n' roll.
Contributed by Banning Eyre for www.afropop.org