Another recent compilation of note details the recently popularized world of music from Cape Verde, the island chain off the coast of West Africa from whence came the recently-lionized singer Cesaria Evora. The Soul of Cape Verde (Tinder 42831732; 73:58) is a timely and intriguing introduction of this musical world. Evora herself kicks off the collection with the bluesy resignation “Papa Joachin Paris,” with her characteristically smoked, wisdom-colored voice. The tracks that follow, by such Cape Verde-an artists as Tito Paris, Chico Serra, Celina Pereira, and Maria Alice, follow a similar stylistic path, in which the cultures of Africa and Portugal, and elsewhere, converge. It’s crossroads music, with the pulse and sadness of island musical cultures mixed with European elements.
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