Amadou & Mariam, the blind couple from Mali, have certainly paid their dues over the last 30 years, and it's about time they received their big break. Certainly given the excellent reviews in Europe, Dimanche a Bamako could be it, thanks to the production and participation by the elf prince of world music, Manu Chao. He brings a playful lightness to their soulful, bluesy Malian sound, letting in plenty of sunshine, and drawing in a sense of place through the ambience of traffic sounds and snippets of conversation. Chao is also obviously present on several tracks, such as "Senegal Fast Food," which offers a bouncy, reggae-styled rhythm so typical of Chao's own records. But even when not so obviously asserting himself, his presence is felt in the space he creates, and the use he makes of Mariam's admittedly limited voice (she's good, but no one will ever mistake her for one of the word's greatest singers), as on "Beau Dimanche," for example. Lyrically, this is very much an album of love songs, postcards between the couple, but it never veers into maudlin sentiment. Yet there's also a political edge to it, such as with "La Realite." Even if you don't understand the words, however, the entire disc is an absolute aural joy, poppy enough to be exquisitely memorable, yet with layers of resonance underneath. Likely to be one of the world music albums of 2005, it can hopefully find the kind of wide audience it surely deserves. © Chris Nickson /TiVo

Eclipse is the experimental new album by Amadou & Mariam, the power couple of West African music. This album comprises a series of concerts, launched ten years ago and recorded in total darkness. This wasn’t done to save electricity but rather to share the performers’ experience of blindness. The spectators no longer focused on what they saw on the stage, just on what they could hear and feel; their ears wide open, sensitive to the atmosphere and the nuance of the music and the stories it tells. This very personal project is also conceived as an autobiographical tale, with a narrator who introduces the songs by recounting the important stages of Amadou & Mariam’s story.They met in 1975, at the Institute for Young Blind People in Bamako. They soon released their first songs in Mali but would eventually reach international fame and begin collaborating with rock stars. French rapper Oxmo Puccino has the honour of recounting Amadou & Mariam’s story in a sonic atmosphere which encapsulates the streets of Bamako. The songs performed by Amadou & Mariam follow the same chronology: from the acoustic modesty of the early days to their more recent danceable hits. The show itself featured admirable performances from producers, musicians and technicians who were obviously not accustomed to working in the dark. For the audience, both of that time and today, it’s a whole new sensory experience, immersed in the love and passions of Amadou & Mariam. Definitely worth listening to this one with your eyes closed, too. © Stéphane Deschamps/Qobuz

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EMI's U.K. collection of Edith Piaf, titled Éternelle, is quite a nice set that includes many of Piaf's numerous hits, such as "La Vie en Rose" and "La Goualante du Pauvre Jean." Overall, Éternelle is comparable to the U.S. mainstay on Capitol Records, The Voice of the Sparrow: The Very Best of Edith Piaf, but with only seven of the 18 songs overlapping.© Gregory McIntosh /TiVo

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Eclipse is the experimental new album by Amadou & Mariam, the power couple of West African music. This album comprises a series of concerts, launched ten years ago and recorded in total darkness. This wasn’t done to save electricity but rather to share the performers’ experience of blindness. The spectators no longer focused on what they saw on the stage, just on what they could hear and feel; their ears wide open, sensitive to the atmosphere and the nuance of the music and the stories it tells. This very personal project is also conceived as an autobiographical tale, with a narrator who introduces the songs by recounting the important stages of Amadou & Mariam’s story.They met in 1975, at the Institute for Young Blind People in Bamako. They soon released their first songs in Mali but would eventually reach international fame and begin collaborating with rock stars. Ivorian actor Isaach de Bankolé has the honour of recounting Amadou & Mariam’s story in a sonic atmosphere which encapsulates the streets of Bamako. The songs performed by Amadou & Mariam follow the same chronology: from the acoustic modesty of the early days to their more recent danceable hits. The show itself featured admirable performances from producers, musicians and technicians who were obviously not accustomed to working in the dark. For the audience, both of that time and today, it’s a whole new sensory experience, immersed in the love and passions of Amadou & Mariam. Definitely worth listening to this one with your eyes closed, too. © Stéphane Deschamps/Qobuz

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Parisian based singer Melanie Dahan, 29 at this time of this, her debut recording, has studied with Sara Lazarus and Michelle Hendriks, displays an affinity for French lyricists like Bernard Dimey and Charles Aznavour, and exploits the innocent side of jazz without going strictly into ballad or romantic territory. Her tunes, sung exclusively in French, tell various tales of life and love, but also are somewhat self-deprecating, at times silly, ironic, or humorous. She is expertly accompanied by a trio led by the wondrous Giovanni Mirabassi, a staunch modernist who shades the songs with light or bright (no grays or in-between) colors, modal-to-contemporary classical elements, and at times jazz swing. Dahan possesses a sweet altissimo voice that is neither seductive nor siren-like. She enjoys being a girl during the playful 5/4 beats of "L'Enfant Maquille" where she speaks of enjoying make-up, or the title track referring to her love for shoes. Her artistic side comes through during "Rimes/Rhymes" alongside Mirabassi's dancing waltz steps, or the very slow ballad "Les Poetes," decelerated to a crawl with the pianist keeping a tortured but brilliant song in rein. Fans of Aznavour will recognize "Je Hais Les Dimanches" in a tick-tock beat as the singer exclaims her disdain for Sunday, while the Harlem stride flavored "Je Me Suis Fait Tout Petit," roughly translated as "I Make Myself Small" is a fun, one-minute, bouncy based scat, and "Le Petit Bal Perdu," or "Go to the Last Dance" is the opposite end of the emotional spectrum, a dour 3/4 waltz with Mirabassi's piano bringing the mood far down. Dimey's lyrics are best heard during "La Salle Et La Terrasse," another of many waltzes, this time enlivened by Mirabassi's modal, McCoy Tyner-styled "My Favorite Things" type piano chords, while "La Mer A Boire" is not so much cute as the other tunes, but expresses that Dahan can be difficult and high maintenance. The cool alto saxophonist Pierrick Pedron is included on the easygoing "A Bicyclette" and the skipping waltz "J'Aimerais Tant Savoir." Those who do not speak or understand the French language will not relate to these selections, but those who do can gain appreciation for French popular singing from this young chanteuse who is learning the ropes, and offers her own modern perspective within traditional means.© Michael G. Nastos /TiVo

Parisian based singer Melanie Dahan, 29 at this time of this, her debut recording, has studied with Sara Lazarus and Michelle Hendriks, displays an affinity for French lyricists like Bernard Dimey and Charles Aznavour, and exploits the innocent side of jazz without going strictly into ballad or romantic territory. Her tunes, sung exclusively in French, tell various tales of life and love, but also are somewhat self-deprecating, at times silly, ironic, or humorous. She is expertly accompanied by a trio led by the wondrous Giovanni Mirabassi, a staunch modernist who shades the songs with light or bright (no grays or in-between) colors, modal-to-contemporary classical elements, and at times jazz swing. Dahan possesses a sweet altissimo voice that is neither seductive nor siren-like. She enjoys being a girl during the playful 5/4 beats of "L'Enfant Maquille" where she speaks of enjoying make-up, or the title track referring to her love for shoes. Her artistic side comes through during "Rimes/Rhymes" alongside Mirabassi's dancing waltz steps, or the very slow ballad "Les Poetes," decelerated to a crawl with the pianist keeping a tortured but brilliant song in rein. Fans of Aznavour will recognize "Je Hais Les Dimanches" in a tick-tock beat as the singer exclaims her disdain for Sunday, while the Harlem stride flavored "Je Me Suis Fait Tout Petit," roughly translated as "I Make Myself Small" is a fun, one-minute, bouncy based scat, and "Le Petit Bal Perdu," or "Go to the Last Dance" is the opposite end of the emotional spectrum, a dour 3/4 waltz with Mirabassi's piano bringing the mood far down. Dimey's lyrics are best heard during "La Salle Et La Terrasse," another of many waltzes, this time enlivened by Mirabassi's modal, McCoy Tyner-styled "My Favorite Things" type piano chords, while "La Mer A Boire" is not so much cute as the other tunes, but expresses that Dahan can be difficult and high maintenance. The cool alto saxophonist Pierrick Pedron is included on the easygoing "A Bicyclette" and the skipping waltz "J'Aimerais Tant Savoir." Those who do not speak or understand the French language will not relate to these selections, but those who do can gain appreciation for French popular singing from this young chanteuse who is learning the ropes, and offers her own modern perspective within traditional means. © Michael G. Nastos /TiVo