The performance rendered here begins appropriately with an excerpt from Langston Hughes (whose work serves as a central touchstone for Williams and Teasley) classic "A Negro Speaks of Rivers." which sets an indelible tone, an invocation if your will, for these are all "ancient, dusky rivers..." which Teasley the percussionist and Williams the narrator / griot are exploring. These "ancient, dusky rivers" range from the traditional West African song of welcome "Funga Alafia" to the various tributaries explored by South African visionary Nelson Mandela in his historic presidential inauguration speech.

Williams and Teasley achieve a true marriage of ancient to the future, of African and the West ancient world rhythms as rendered by Teasley's Western-bred reverence for the forms and engagement of modern electronics, and traditional African and African-American verse as rendered by Williams the performance artist. Throughout a distinct partnership permeates this collaboration. These are not two disparate souls rendering their talents in search of a meeting place, rather these are heartfelt collaborators seeking to explore rich and varied tapestries of word and percussion - the very origin of musical and dramatic expression

- Willard Jenkins (regular contributor to Jazz Times, BET on jazz, and radio programmer for WPFW)