In only 2 weeks 7 European musicians based in the UK made eight tracks with four different bands all from The Gambia.

The Gambian musicians were from the tribes Jola, Karoninka, Mandinka and the Wolof. We all meet up in the Alliance Franco - Gambienne Cultural in The Gambia to develop the 8 songs.

The musicians from the UK had not heard any of the Gambian songs before and we split up into four groups of 1-2. Each group worked with a tribe for half a day over the first two days. By the end of the second day each group had achieved different results as they all had a different approach and reaction to the new musical ideas.

At the end of the First full day in The Gambia we were on TV interviewed on one of the most watched programs.

After this introduction process the Wolof and Mandinka worked together with Iqbal and Musa on arranging the rhythms of their songs. This brought together the singers from each tribe who also learnt to sing each other songs.

The Karoninka worked with John, Mike and Laurel who rearranged their songs and fused the African style with English folk music.

Meanwhile Phil helped with recording the Jola, as they did not have much recording experience. Once the Jola were finished the Wolof went into the studio.

Our first day off stated with a fun trip to a crocodile sanctuary near the apartments we were staying at. Followed by a trip to Banjul to see The Gambian Museum which helped put the music, tribal history and songs into perspective. Finally we went down to Tanji the main local fishing port to see where the local fishermen come in with their daily catches.

Back to the centre the next day and throughout the day each tribe was interviewed to get more info on their music, style and what they have got out of the project. The Karoninka were in the studio recording and the Mandinka worked on the arrangement of their songs.

The last 'studio' day started with a quick run through of the songs with the Mandinka and then recording live in the studio with John and Lauren playing guide fiddle with them.

In the evening we all went to the Jola's home village and they put on a performance to welcome us, which unfortunately had to be cut short because one of their old women had died earlier in the day and it was not a appropriate time for a full show. It was only because the woman was old and had a full life that allowed them to put on any show. Everyone enjoyed the experience and it highlighted how different the music is when performed in it's natural environment with a full crowd of musicians singers and the whole group clapping and dancing.

Finally we had got to Saturday which was a live run trough of each track in the state it had evolved to by that stage. Some track were quite similar to the original while others were sounding like entirely new songs. Each tribe played with the musicians from England and there was some musicians from the Gambia who also played with other tribes as well as their own. Each song was rehearsed once or twice then a live recording was made. This all too place in the very hot amphitheatre and an enjoyable light hearted end to the week.

On the Sunday we all went to see St James Island a place where slaves were brought by force and treated very badly before being shipped out to The New World (USA) and also ended up being turned into a fortress to stop the slave traders after it was made illegal to trade in humans. To get to this you have to travel across the River Gambia by ferry which is an experience in it's self followed by a trip through the African Bush which gave us the first real experience of the less developed Africa. We got to see the terrible roads, monkeys, many wild birds and the smaller African villages.

The second week involved more time in the studio developing the songs more and recording overlays of guitars, sax, violins and drums.

We also went to the Karoninka tribe, very different to the Jola tribal greeting, much more of a performance with routines and choreography. This was also the first time we had heard their music with their drummers present. The drums and whistle were again very different to the Jola but used in the same way to give cues to the dancers and signers. The whole group stood around in a circle with two bits of wood in their hands, these were banged together in perfect timing. The performance started and finished with the circle of people slowly rotating as every performer shook hands with each of us. John and Laurel put on a performance of a solo dance and violin part, followed by them both playing and then performed one of the songs they had been working on with the Karoninka.

Because Musa's sister in-law had just had a baby we went to a traditional naming ceremony, where there was supposed to be a live drum performance. But the father had chosen to get in a PA for DJ's to play records and the traditional drum playing never happened. A sign of the changes the modern technology is having on the traditions in The Gambia.

But the end of the two weeks we had 8 great tracks which we are preparing to release later this year some amazing video and photography footage and a deep love of The Gambia.

Upon return to the UK the local musicians rehearsed four of the songs and put on a performance at the Babylon Lounge with African Night Fever. The place was full of photos from the trip, videos for the four songs we could not play were alternated with live performances of the other tracks.

Unfortunately it was impossible to do all the songs live without having the Gambian musicians join us. But the next stage is to work out how to get the whole group back together again and put on some large band shows around Europe and the World.