Herve Samb pays tribute to Senegal with eclectic album Jolof

When I got my hands on the album, put it into my sound system and the music started playing, I couldn’t agree more with the term Samb uses to refer to his sixth album. The title track is a spontaneous invitation to the dance floor, with the throbbing sounds of the sabar drum leading the way.

Released on his own label Euleuk Vision, the album not only showcases Samb's exceptional guitar playing and talent as a composer but also a personal vision of his art. The title Jolof refers to the ancient empire from which the territorial, ethnic and cultural constitution of present-day Senegal flows.

Born in Rufisque, near Dakar, Samb turns to his African roots without neglecting what has continued to influence his music throughout his career – the blues and jazz. From this harmonious blend, sabar jazz was born – a concept he has turned into its own style, a formal and identity-based quest that began with previous albums like Time to Feel (2013) and Teranga (2018).

A poetic album with controlled tension between expressive power and lyrical phrasing, Jolof fully submits to an ancestral tradition while giving the musician the freedom to move away from it, thanks to the ‘letting go’ of jazz.

It is the sabar that has earned Senegal a reputation as one of Africa’s most important countries in terms of drumming and percussion. Indissociable from the Senegalese identity, its rhythms gave birth to the mbalax style, now assimilated into the country’s modern music, thanks to big names like Youssou N'Dour.

At the age of 11, Samb was first discovered on a famous television show. He was inspired by blues and rock legends such as B.B. King and Jimi Hendrix before being introduced to the structures of modern jazz. Very quickly, his playing acquired, in addition to virtuosity, a melodic sense and inventiveness, placing him in the lineage of great jazz guitarists, from Wes Montgomery for fluidity to Sonny Sharrock for progressive renewal and reimagination of jazz standards.

Because of his versatility, Samb has become a key player on the international scene, working on projects by greats like Oumou Sangaré, Jimmy Cliff, Salif Keïta, Meshell Ndegeocello, Marcus Miller and Amadou & Mariam. With his new album, he has embarked on a personal mission that has led him back to his roots.

“People thought I was an American because I was assimilated into the jazz and blues scene," he says. “A compatriot even asked me one day, ‘Are you really Senegalese? Jolof gives a resounding and definitive answer to this question.

Through his collaboration with local musicians, particularly the singer Oumar Pène and percussionist Alioune Seck, Samb has gained strong proponents of the mysteries and subtleties of the Senegalese sound. “Alioune Seck is one of the best percussionists in the country,” Samb says. “He comes from a family of sabar performers, with all that this implies in terms of knowledge and spirituality. Thanks to him, I was able to acquire the codes.”

From this collaboration and the elective affinities it reveals, come the remarkable ‘Song Ko’, ‘Barbatóor’ and ‘Yàkki’ – song that employ a dynamic approach that fuses rock, jazz and traditional music. Samb brilliantly succeeds in his confrontation with the vigorous rhythms impelled by the colourful drums on this album.

Proof of a permanent search for balance between tradition and experimentation, Samb uses the singular harmony of Serer voices on ‘Ñaan’ and is inspired by a Bach sonata in ‘Doole’ – a breathtaking seven-minute piece on which the tassu, an ancestral vocal form specific to the sabar and close to rap, is invited.

On ‘Gëm sa Bop’, Samb simplifies matters by allowing the music to breathe before closing off Jolof with the rhythmically laden ‘Senegaal’. On this album, he also fulfils a dream of his youth by taking over singing duties on three tracks – a role devolved to the griot Alpha Dieng for the rest of the album.

Through Jolof, Samb pays a vibrant tribute to his country and provides a magnificent musical conversation for new and old listeners alike.

Artist: Herve Samb
Album: Jolof
Label: Euleuk Vision
Year: 2023