Youssou N'Dour - The Lion / Gaiende (1989) [Mbalax]
Although he's probably better known internationally for his collabs with people like Nenah Cherry and Peter Gabriel, Youssou N'Dour has been a huge superstar in Senegal and Africa in general for decades. In that part of the world he was actually comparable to Michael Jackson or perhaps Prince in commercial popularity for a very long time.
This opening title cut to 1989's The Lion is a good example of the "style" of dance music that Youssou pioneered, a conflation of traditional njuup music, synth-pop, jazz, rock and Congolese rumba known as Mbalax.
To put it another way, it's like The Police going Earth Wind & Fire on your ass but led with Sabar percussion and a more overtly cheery atmosphere.
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