Barthélémy Attisso Explained

Barthélémy Attisso (1945 – 29 August 2021) was a Togolese lawyer and self-taught guitarist, most famous for his work with Senegal-based Pan-African band Orchestra Baobab.^[1]

Biography

Attisso, born in 1945, moved to Dakar in 1966 to study law at the University of Dakar.

He took up guitar to earn money, playing in the club scene and joining the Star Band.^[2] In the early 1970s he joined Orchestra Baobab, and rode the band's success into the 1980s. When the band disbanded in 1987, Attisso returned to Togo to practice law. He did not play the guitar until the 2001 reunion, and went on to record and tour with Orchestra Baobab, although he also maintained his practice in Lomé.^[3]

Attisso died from COVID-19 in 2021, during the COVID-19 pandemic in Togo, at the age of 76.^[4]

Notes and References

1. Web site: Artist Profiles . 3 January 2018 . worldmusiccentral.org . en-US . 3 December 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20161203133211/http://www.worldmusiccentral.org/artists/artist_page.php?id=1292 . dead .
2. News: Made In Dakar . Robin . Denselow . The Guardian . 28 September 2007 . 22 February 2011.
3. Web site: Orchestra Baobab . pitchfork.com. 5 August 2008 . en. 3 January 2018.
4. Web site: Armstrong . John . Barthélemy Attisso: An accidental guitar hero . 7 October 2024 . medium.com . 13 September 2021.