By George Varga
POP MUSIC CRITIC

June 26, 2008

Groove is in the art for Senegal's Orchestra Baobab, which was formed in 1970, broke up in 1985, then reactivated in 2001.

On its second album since reuniting, this 11-man band and its various guest artists (including vocal superstar Youssou N'Dour and Buena Vista Social Club trombonist Jesus “Aguaje” Ramos) reaffirm their mastery of rhythm and melody. Ghanian high-life, Congolese rumba, Senegalese mbalax, Jamaican reggae, the salsa hybrid known as mbalsa and all manner of Afro-Cuban styles are performed with consistently infectious results.

DETAILS Orchestra Baobab “Made in Dakar” World Music/Nonesuch (nonesuch.com)

On top of this dance-happy melange are brassy vamps, improbably fluid guitar work by the great Barthelemy Attisso and the captivating singing of Assane Mboup, whose sweet falsetto rivals that of Smokey Robinson and Aaron Neville in their primes.

Mixing new songs with revamped versions of classics from Orchestra Baobab's first 20 albums, “Made in Dakar” finds Mboup and his four fellow singers performing with flair and finesse in French, Malinke, Wolof and Portuguese Creole. Even the most accelerated songs, such as “Sibam” and the ska-tinged “Jirim,” sound relaxed, while Issa Kasse's lilting alto-sax solo on “Bikowa” features a fleeting but perfectly placed homage to “Stormy Weather.”

  

The Baseball Project

“Vol. 1 Frozen Ropes and Dying Quails”

YepRoc (yeproc.com)

Some of the most memorable rock and folk songs about baseball include Bob Dylan's “Catfish,” John Fogerty's “Centerfield,” Paul Simon's “Night Game,” Jonathan Richman's “Walter Johnson” and Steve Goodman's “A Dying Cub Fan's Last Request.”

But none of them packs the simultaneously reverent and snarky punch of “Ted (Expletive) Williams.” It's a highlight of the debut album (due out July 8) by The Baseball Project, which teams Dream Syndicate veteran Steve Wynn, R.E.M's Peter Buck, The Minus 5's Scott McCaughey and Golden Smog's Linda Pitmon. (Sample verse: And everyone says: Hey, Mick Mantle this / Mantle that – It makes me sick / It's just so hard to see / Why do they like him better than me? / I'm Ted (Expletive) Williams!”

The expletive in question might set some tongues clucking, just as the song's rock-a-boogie Gary Glitter beat should set feet tapping, but it's all in good fun. So are such choice songs as “Harvey Haddix,” the Dylan-flavored “Satchel Paige Said,” the Mark McGuire-inspired “Broken Man” and “The Yankee Flipper,” whose well-chosen title tells you everything you need to know about pitcher Jack McDowell's infamous gesture to the crowd as he exited a 1995 game at Yankee Stadium.

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