Oremi (CD - 1998)

Personnel: Angelique Kidjo; Zolani Mkiva, Cassandra Wilson, Kelly Price (vocals); Ira Siegal (acoustic guitar); Peter "PM" Mokran (guitar, keyboards, bass, drums, programming); George Nash, Jr., Ronny Drayton, Vincent N'Guini, Wah Wah Watson (guitar); Branford Marsalis (soprano saxophone); Kenny Kirkland, DeMonte Possey (Wurlitzer, Fender Rhodes); David Sancious (Wurlitzer); Paul Griffen (Hammond B-3 organ); Jean Hebrail (keyboards, programming); Tom Barney (acoustic bass); T.M. Stevens, Bakithi Kumalo (bass); Skoota Warner, Ahmir Thompson (drums); Bashiri Johnson, David Mirandon (percussion); Sibongile Makgate, Wendy Meleku, Mandisa Dlamga, Puleng Wings Segale, Victor Mzumato, Tommy Farragher (background vocals).

Producers include: Peter "PM" Mokran, Jean Hebrail, EZ Cut & Mr. Mellow.

Engineers include: Chris Habeck, Christian Lachenal.

Recorded at Quad Studios and Hit Factory, New York, New York; Gravity and Chicago Recording Company, Chicago, Illinois; Downtown Studios, Johannesburg, South Africa.

OREMI was nominated for a 1999 Grammy for Best World Music Album.

Singer and songwriter Angelique Kidjo has her feet planted in many worlds on OREMI, and it sounds fantastic. A cosmopolitan hailing from Benin, West Africa, Angelique maneuvers gracefully and transcendently across the African Diaspora and back. Her studio assemblage here is a fine one, in that they help her thread tight seams between "urban" sounds, funk, jazz and the pop of her home region, leading to an outstanding production that sounds as organic as it is diverse.

"Itche Koutche" is robust street-funk that features special guest Branford Marsalis on soprano sax, blowing a lovely batch of sonic bubbles. "Babalao" does more of the same but with a decidedly Deep Forest feel. Jazz chanteuse Cassandra Wilson adds honey to the sage and mellow "Never Know." While no rendition of Hendrix's "Voodoo Child (Slight Return)" may ever rip as ferociously as the original, Kidjo's layered vocal overdubs, jumbo-sized bass lines and down-tempo treatment give it loads of attitude and shine all the same. As she coasts back and forth between her native tongue and English, Kidjo dispenses West African proverbial wisdom in a form both resonant and intensely hip, giving OREMI wide appeal. minimize