t can't be easy being Lionel Loueke. Is he a world music star in the making? A jazz giant? The new George Benson? The talented Benin-born guitarist has risen rapidly in the jazz firmament, as comfortable with Miles Davis veterans of the previous generation as with his own youthful trio. Yet he can also transfix audiences with solo performances, using electronics and vocals in a way that is both personal and African. Karibu is Loueke's first major-label album after several indie recordings, yet it isn't the classic his admirers hoped for; perhaps he needs a producer to pull together all those diverse threads. Fortunately, there are many details to treasure, such as a delicious reading of Skylark, and the asymmetric rhythms of Benny's Tune. Not to mention a version of Coltrane's Naima - featuring the magnificent Wayne Shorter - that is worth the price of the album alone.