Magic is always in the air whenever and wherever the Orchestra Baobab plays. And to have these Senegal-based musicians on tour today is truly a miracle in itself. Theirs was a revival story that defied all expectation and after a 15-year split, the group’s return three years ago has become the stuff of legend, not only in the world music circles – but across the broader mainstream as well.  

Those who were present at Orchestra Baobab’s homecoming reunion gig at St Louis, the old French capital of West Africa and Unesco heritage site, in Senegal back in June 2002 must rate as some of the luckiest music fans around considering they were the first to witness the historical return of one of Africa’s most seminal bands from the 1970s.