Juldeh Camara

No Ry Cooder-esque coolness here, no reverence for the sacred cows of north/south collaboration. England's Justin Adams and Gambia's Juldeh Camara meet as equals, showing all their rough edges as Bo Diddley-esque rock 'n' roll collides with its African cousins, as electric guitar meets the one-stringed ritti, as two strands of one music -- American and West African blues -- weave themselves uneasily together. It's a vigorous exchange of memory and custom, and sometimes the songs sound breathless from the sheer excitement of it all. One of 2008's most lauded world music albums.