New Yorker Daniel Freedman has drummed with a wide range of musicians, including Angelique Kidjo, Wynton Marsalis, Youssou N’Dour, and Anat Cohen. Bamako by Bus, Freedman’s second release as a leader, features keyboardist Jason Lindner, bassist Meshell Ndegeocello, trumpeter Avishai Cohen, and guitarist Lionel Loueke. (Several guests also make appearances.) “Odudua,” a traditional song that praises the Yoruba orisha of the same name, features Abraham Rodriguez on vocals and bata. The next track, “Elegba Wa,” also honors a Yoruba deity. Backed by chekere, congas, and drums, Loueke vocalizes and riffs away on guitar. “Deep Brooklyn” finds the group operating in slinky jazz mode, with Cohen carving out melodic shapes against Lindner’s cool Fender Rhodes and funky rhythm-section weavings. The ballad “Alona” spotlights Mark Turner’s super-fine tenor sax stylings, and “Darfur/Oasis” finds Joshua Levitt playing the ney—a Middle Eastern flute— over hypnotic rhythms. Turner returns for “Saaba,” where the groove is animated by Ndegecello’s inventive bass.