Pearl of Africa Reborn

Samite of Uganda resides in the United States now, so his frequently autobiographical music tends to romanticize his homeland, the titular "pearl of Africa," as well as his mother, to whom this album is dedicated. Accompanying himself with rolling, repetitious figures on a variety of kalimbas (thumb pianos), Samite sings in a dry tenor voice about his mother's cooking, her storytelling, the introduction of the English language to Uganda, bicycles, and fear (in one song, a boy learns that "it takes more than hair on the chest to be a man"). The ensemble of African and American musicians that joins him also supports a small handful of mellow instrumentals which he leads on wood flute. --Richard Gehr