Les Go

"We really want to make musique mondaine, music of the world," says Awa Sangho,one third of the Ivory Coast band Les Go.

And with their second album, Dan Gna, that's exactly what they've succeeded in doing, a perfect mix of African roots and American sheen and styling (but without too much gloss) to appeal to even the most jaded journo and bring a grin to the face of hardcore traditionalists.

Les Go ("it means the girls," explains Sangho), used to be called Les Go de Koteba (which was also the title of their debut release in 1997). The multi-African mix - Sangho is from Mali, the other two from Guinea - first came together in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, in the ‘80s, where they were all members of Souleymane Koly's ensemble Koteba (with which they're still associated).

But that was long ago and far away. Indeed, laughs Sangho, "even our first record seems like ancient history now."

"We want to make musique mondaine, music of the world."

History, maybe, but more a rigorous apprenticeship, since working with people like the legendary Cameroonian Manu Dibango and others helped prepare them for this new disc.

A lot of planning went into Dan Gna, according to Sangho, and plenty of the ideas came from Brooke Wentz, the founder of Juna, the band's record label.

"It was her idea that we should work with [producer] Bruce Swedien," Sangho explains. "We didn't even know who he was."

They might not have known him, but lots of other people did. Having produced records for Quincy Jones and Michael Jackson, Swedien came in to the project with a very strong track record. Enlisting a lot of African-American session musicians, as well as several Africans, to lay down the backing tracks, Swedien baked a very sweet and seductive cake indeed, a fine balance of roots and glitz.

But the true cherry on top was a cover of the 80s Hall and Oates hit "I Can't Go For That."

"We didn't know it," Sangho laughs. "Brooke wanted something that would be very commercial, and she liked that. And it's a great song. But we had to translate it into French and Manding, which wasn't too easy. In the end, though, it worked out very well."

Which is something of an understatement. It still has the fizzy, giddy pop feel of the original, but underscored with some real soul - the type the original aimed for but never really achieved. "A lot of people seem to like it and remember our version," notes Sangho.

While it's the calling card, it's not the be all and end all of the record. Angelique Kidjo from Benin lends her voice to the percolating "Sou," and many of the songs come from the pens of the singers, all souped up and ready for American consumption by Swedien. There's real meat on it, and a lot of joy in the performances.

And there's no doubt who takes centre stage, either. It's the girls themselves, coming across as strong, confident women.

"We're happy with tthis band, and with who we are. We have a lot of positive messages to put across," says Sangho. "We're proud of who we are. We've worked a long time for this, all of us."

So yes, Dan Gna is blatantly commercial, an attempt to draw in a much wider audience than ‘world music' has traditionally had - which was exactly Wentz's idea. There's no reason an African album can't cross over into the American mainstream, and the artists become bigger stars. And, even more, there's no reason for it all to happen without selling out and heading straight for the lowest common denominator, either. Dan Gna proves that it can all happen with taste.

For now, Les Go have been concentrating, understandably, on America, playing selected dates to rapturous receptions. As time and two albums have shown, they're definitely no flash in the pan, but here to stay. Even if Dan Gna and "I Cant Go For That" don't give them massive commercial success, at least it helps them make inroads, so that next time they can hit it big.

"We believe in what we do," Sangho says. "We're a team, we stick together. And really, we just love to sing."

This article first appeared in Folk Roots