The Toure-Raichel Collective was formed in 2008 after a chance meeting at an airport terminal in Berlin, Germany. Raichel and Touré forged a friendship and promised to perform together in concert. They were later joined by Israeli bassist Yossi Fine and Malian calabash player Souleymane Kane. According to Raichel, the group “recorded a mix of Malian rhythms mixed with Israeli melodies — all originals, but very influenced from both our cultures.” This spontaneous and improvised acoustic recording session lasted for three hours and marked the birth of The Touré-Raichel Collective.
The group’s debut album, The Tel Aviv Session, was released on March 27, 2012 and reached the number one spot on the iTunes World Music sales charts and peaked at number 2 on the Billboard World Music Chart. The album link can be found here.