Tinariwen: Blues from a West African Desert

I usually feature “up and coming” artists, but not many people in the states have heard Tinariwen, and they ABSOLUTELY should be heard.   

Tinariwen is a band from mali, one of the poorest nations in the world. Many years ago the lead singer made his first guitar out of bicycle break wire, a tin can, and a stick. He grew up in refugee camps and fled to build a life filled with music and poetry. Read about their incredible journey here.

Listen and learn. It’s proof that Music, when it's in the deepest parts of our being, can make any hardship bearable. Seriously. Your life doesn't suck. 

Lyrics translated in English

I am a traveler in the lone desert

It's nothing special


I can stand the wind

I can stand the thirst


And the sun


I know how to go and walk

Until the setting of the sun


In the desert, flat and empty,


where nothing is given


My head is alert, awake


I have climbed up and climbed down


The mountains where I was born


I know in which caves the water is hidden


These worries are my friends


I'm always on familiar


terms with them and that


Gives birth to the stories of my life


You who are organized,


assembled, walking together


Hand in hand, you're living


A path which is empty of meaning


In truth, you're all alone