What new direction to take, when your debut album is released on the legendary Blue Note label, when it is produced by Mark Neill, known for his work on The Black Keys’ records, and when you have already been on tour with Marcus Miller, Norah Jones, and MC Solaar?
This is likely a question that was raised by Tiwayo, a Parisian in his thirties with a passion for American black music and a wanderlust spirit, and the creator of the aforementioned debut album. Tiwayo’s name is an acronym for T.Y.O., pronounced as “The Young Old”, a nickname he earned during a road trip to
the roots of the blues in the U.S.
The answer was to switch gears, or at least to return to something less produced. Something lighter, cleaner and more personal. The answer was Desert Dream. Every once in a while, an essential and time-
less album like this one is released, regardless of all the present trends: from Tracy Chapman to Sufjan Stevens, and including Wilco, Bon Iver, Ben Harper, and Grant Lee Buffalo.
In Desert Dream, we can hear the echoes of the silence from America’s vast, arid spaces, as we heard them in Bruce Springsteen’s “Nebraska” or in Chris Isaak’s early albums. America’s soul ; which is
contained in its infinite, dusty, and lonely roads leading to hope for a peaceful tomorrow. Tiwayo travels
these roads as a multi-instrumentalist lonesome cowboy, telling the story of his trip with a warm voice
in ten songs that are impossible to resist. From the touching “Daughters of the Stars” to the poignant
“Shelter Me” and the breathtaking “Wait”, each song sketches a color, a shadow, a movement that
gradually brings the complete picture to life. Desert Dream resonates deep within us, reminding us of moments that we have already experienced in past lives (“My Love, My Brother”, “Lost in the Sun”)
and supporting us towards the promises of a hypothetical tomorrow (“Better Days”, “New Dawn”).
What new direction to take when time no longer exists?
Sans rien savoir de Tiwayo, on pourrait lui imaginer un arbre généalogique improbable : fils caché de Janis Joplin et d’Otis Redding, cousin des Black Keys, neveu de Leonard Cohen.
Nourrie par le blues, le gospel, la soul, le rock, le reggae des années 60 et 70, la voix de Tiwayo s’est forgée au fil des nuits blanches et des gigs dans le métro, sur la route aux Etats-Unis, en France et en Europe.
Paru le 28 avril 2023
ALL TRACKS COMPOSED, RECORDED AND PRODUCED
by Tiwayo at Time and Place Studio
DRUMS AND PERCUSSIONS RECORDED by Olivier Lude at QDS Studios, Paris – except “Daughter of the Stars”
and “Lost in the Sun”
MIX by Tiwayo at Time and Place Studio
MASTERING by Manu Schlindwein
LEAD VOCAL, GUITAR, BASS: Tiwayo
BACKGROUND VOCALS:
Gladys Germany, Annaelle Solet, Tiwayo
DRUMS: Erwan Morisse except “Daughter of the Stars” and “Lost in the Sun” by Tiwayo
KEYS: Eli Frot
EXECUTIVE PRODUCTION & MANAGEMENT : Seydou N’Diaye
LABEL : Yotanka Records
PUBLISHING : MarchalMusicP
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