The Lion (album)

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The Lion
Studio album by
Youssou N'Dour
Released1989
GenreMbalax[1]
LabelVirgin Records
ProducerDavid Sancious, George Acogny, Peter Gabriel
Youssou N'Dour chronology
Nelson Mandela
(1986) 		The Lion
(1989) 		Set
(1990)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic3/5 stars[2]
Robert ChristgauB+[3]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music3/5 stars[4]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide3.5/5 stars[5]
St. Petersburg Times4/5 stars[6]

The Lion is an album by Youssou N'Dour, released in 1989.[7][8] It was his first album to be distributed on a global scale.[7]

Production[]

The album was produced by David Sancious, George Acogny, and Peter Gabriel.[9] The musicians were drawn from both Super Étoile de Dakar and Gabriel's band.[5]

Critical reception[]

The Los Angeles Times wrote that "the lack of definable hooks reduces the music to a luxuriant wash of sound that often buries N’Dour’s vocals."[9] Trouser Press thought that "the title track sounds like mbalax meets the Go-Go’s, while 'Old Tucson' a song about the museums N’Dour has visited on his world travels, is merely puzzling."[10] The Washington Post opined that "some of [N'Dour's] new songs boast the bouncy, hooky tunefulness of [Paul] Simon's, and sit as comfortably atop the Central African rhythms as Simon's did atop the South African rhythms of Graceland."[11]

Track listing[]

  1. "The Lion / Gaïende" – 5:34
  2. "Shakin' The Tree" – 5:42
  3. "Kocc Barma" – 4:28
  4. "Bamako" – 4:19
  5. "The Truth" – 4:04
  6. "Old Tucson" – 5:03
  7. "White Shadow" – 5:14
  8. "Macoy" – 7:17
  9. "My Daughter (Sama Doom)" – 6:38
  10. "Bes" – 5:07

References[]

  1. ^ Feist, Daniel (26 Oct 1989). "A breakthrough album: N'Dour's The Lion roars". The Gazette. p. E8.
  2. ^ "The Lion - Youssou N'Dour | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic" – via www.allmusic.com.
  3. ^ "Robert Christgau: Album: Youssou N'Dour: The Lion". www.robertchristgau.com.
  4. ^ Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Volume 6: MUZE. p. 134.CS1 maint: location (link)
  5. ^ Jump up to: a b The Rolling Stone Album Guide. Random House. 1992. pp. 497–498.
  6. ^ Volk, Steven (8 Dec 1989). "SOUND BITES". St. Petersburg Times. Weekend. p. 17.
  7. ^ Jump up to: a b "Youssou N'Dour | Biography & History". AllMusic.
  8. ^ "An African Superstar Sings Out to the World". The New York Times. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  9. ^ Jump up to: a b "YOUSSOU N'DOUR. "The Lion." Virgin **". Los Angeles Times. August 13, 1989.
  10. ^ "Youssou N'Dour". Trouser Press. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
  11. ^ "INTERNATIONAL POP SOUNDS FROM AFRICA". The Washington Post. Retrieved 4 June 2021.
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