About the Author

Bamba Suso (d. 1974) was one of the foremost Gambian griots and had an extensive knowledge of local oral traditions. Banna Kanute (d. circa 1994) was a renowned musician and griot who played with the Gambia National Troupe. Gordon Innes researched and wrote about Mande languages and oral literatures during his career at the School of Oriental and African Studies. Lucy Duran and Graham Furniss have written on African music and literature respectively and teach at SOAS.