Richard Bona: Munia/The Tale (2003) mp3 @ 320K

The beauty of music and instruments has intrigued Richard Bona since the days of his childhood in the Minta village of Cameroon. As a young boy in West Africa he made his own wooden instruments and performed as a singer and multi-instrumentalist for various religious ceremonies, weddings and celebrations in his village. Appropriately dubbed, "The African Sting", Richard Bona has been showcasing his West African inspired genius all over the world for the last 15 years. His unique style is situated at the crossroads of a horde of influences - jazz, bossa nova, pop music, afro beat, traditional song and funk. This fusion in conjunction with Bona's poignant voice is what constitutes his latest release, Munia (The Tale).

Munia, which means "tale" in the Douala language, tells its own eclectic musical story that could only be authored by Richard Bona. The album is packed with a variety of flavors, which include tropical rock, "Balemba na Bwemba", rhumba "Couscous" and an exhilarating fusion piece "Engingilaye". Collaborations with notable musicians like Salif Keita (vocals), Djely Moussa Conde (kora) and Bailo Ba (traditional flutes) on the zesty "Kalabancoro" or the virtuoso Romero Lubambo on the acoustic guitar on the vivacious bossa nova "Bona Petit" complete with Bona singing in French make Munia a world classic.