I'm not sure Ama Maïga's Une Fleche Malienne (Disques Sonics SONICS 79426, ca. 1984) succeeds completely as a fusion between traditional Malian kora sounds and modern African pop, but it was one of the first, and certainly bears a listen or two. Graeme Counsel's Burkinabé vinyl discography notes a 1976 pressing by Maïga, but that's the extent of what I've been able to find out about him. He recorded this one-off in Paris with a crew of session musicians and then dropped off the map, never to be heard from again. Enjoy!
Ama Maïga - Keleya
Ama Maïga - Lannaya-Tilebana
Ama Maïga - Souboury
Ama Maïga - Djougou Sago
Download Une Fleche Malienne as a zipped file here.
