Customer Reviews

North African Groove

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I enjoyed "Arabic Groove";after 5 years,it is still marvelous."Sahara Lounge" is the best of Putumayo's Arabic compilations."Cairo to Casablanca" is the worst of Putumayo's Arabic compilations;it has too many repetitive songs.

Where does that put "North African Groove"?Somewhere in the middle.It's neither an absolute bore,but it's better combined with other Arabic albums and put on random shuffle.

Jomed's opening "Montuno Noreno" spicily combines Cuban&North African music,as well as electric effects.Samira Saeid's "Aal Eah" is a great dance song;she's the Moroccan equivalent of Britney Spears,but MUCH better.Amina's "Dis-Moi Pourquoi" has a great beat.Cheb Jilani's "Bahebbak"is a danceable love song.Hamid Baroudi's "Sidi" is disappointing;it's repetitive&dull,unlike his "Caravan II Baghdad" on Putumayo's out-of-print "New World Party" as well as his mesmerizing "Trance Dance" on Putumayo's still in print "World Lounge."Khaled's "Ya-Rayi" shows the "King of Rai" in top form.It's infectious.Cheb Mami's "Viens Habibi" is alright,but the "Prince of Rai" has done much,much better on his albums "Meli Meli"&"Saida." In this song,his sound is too Westernized;it fit in Sting's "Desert Rose" (his ululations made that song exotic),but this time his music is rendered dull.Mohamed Mounir's "Hanina" is excellent,bringing in Nubian rhyth,s.If you're curious,a remix of it by Jasmon is on Putumayo's "Sahara Lounge." It was interesting on my 5-CD player to first hear the Jasmon remix of "Hanina",then the original,thinking,"I've heard this before!"

"North African Groove" is a good introduction to Arabic music.If you want to hear some GREAT Arabic music,listen to Natacha Atlas and Cheb Mami.It's a musical world worth exploring.

Finally, the long-awaited Putumayo follow-up to the infectious Arabic Groove!
If you thought Arabic Groove was as scintillating, inspiring and downright funky as I did, then you're in for a treat with Putumayo's latest Middle Eastern release: North African Groove. Since many of the best artists represented on Arabic Groove were of North African both in origin and in musical inclination (Khaled, Cheb Tarik, Amr Diab, Natacha Atlas, Hamid al-Shaeri, Abdel Ali al-Slimani..) we can see why another whole CD was necesary to do justice the wonderful and infectious music of this diverse region.

Even on the best Putumayo releases there's at least one filler track - but not a dud in sight on this album. Every track is well performed, written and produced, hitting just the right balance between exotic local colour and universal funkiness and danceability.

Past masters like Khaled and Cheb Mami (respectively, the king and prince of rai, Algeria's rebel pop music)and relative newcomers like Faudel and Hamid Baroudi contribute to the Algerian component (Faudel with a catchy, irresistible ode to living righteously,punctuated by accordion riffs and driven by a lively beat), while Egyptian superstar Amr Diab entrances us with a swinging, Gypsy king-like version of an arabic love song, pop queens Samira Saeid (of Morocco) and Amina (Tunisia)give forceul and musically exciting performances of their crossover hits (Amina challenges our apathy and complacency with regards to the tragedies of the world, and urges us to be aware and collectively work towards peace).

Perhaps the most interesting contributions to this album are those of Jomed and Rhany, both of whom seamlessly fuse Latin/Cuban melodies and rhythms with those of North Africa, it sounds like it would never work but in fact it does and the result is impressive and extremely danceable!

Overall I highly recommend this album to all music fans who have worn out their copies of Arabic Groove, and to all those who want to venture into musical terra incognita, and hear some genre-bending musical experiments that have turned out very well

Absolutely one of the best CDs I have purchased and I have over 500 in my collection. I picked this CD up in a store in Japan. I was sort of taken back by the price (US 23.00), but once I put North African Groove (NAG) into my player, I smiled during the first to last track. Samira Saeid's Aal Eah (What Did He Say) is a breath of fresh air. I don't understand a word of the lyrics on the CD, but that did not stop me from at least trying to sing along. Get NAG and you will love it.

Just a little about Putumayo. This company really has it going on. From the music to the cover art of their releases, Putumayo will put a smile on your face. Another thing I want to point out. I went to [...] and they are giving all the money they make on their New Orleans and Mississippi Blues CD to the relief efforts until the end of the year.

I think the most controversial fact was that i picked up this
cd in a tea shop. The album starts off with Montuna Noreno, somewhat Cuban with a West African twist.. A traditional Turkish instrument "ud" is very prominent in the background and stretches the song all the way to the Middle East..

The 2nd song is from Morocco sang by Samira Said. I belive she lived in the US for a while and the song is a blend of Moroccan and Western style pop.

As we move on, more and more Tunisian/Leabanese songs, a lot of
percussions, pulses and French come in to to the picture.
Dis moi pourqui (Tell me why) is the 6th song in the album performed by Amina (she had performed in the Eurovision song contest in the early 90's). Followed by Jilani from Libya your heart is now beating faster, the camel on a pack
of Camel cigarettes came to my mind, gallopping in the desert... The lyrics are powerful "I love my eyes for showing me that life without you is not worth living"

'On the ride' wraps up this album with whatever was not present that you had been listening for the past 40 minutes, darbouka, tambur, kanun.. Heavy Ottoman influence and a touch of clubish beats. Overall an excellent finish.

You can dance, daydream even have sex with this music; highly recommended..

I heard this music playing in the background as I shopped in the museum store at the Fields Museum in Chicago. It was so infectious that I inquired what it was and bought one. I loved that it was a hybrid between mediterranean, latin, hip hop, jazz and middle-eastern. At least that's how I described it to the three friends who listened to the clips on Amazon at my suggestion, and bought it, too.

This is really great, "dance around the house while you're cleaning" music. It could also be great exercise music, or background at a dinner party. Very upbeat, very fun, very full of life. Impossible to be unhappy while listening to this!

Putumayo CDs rarely disappoint, and this one surely does not. Those familiar with Middle Eastern artists will be pleased to hear tracks from Faudel, Amr Diab, Khaled and Cheb Mami. Those *not* familiar with them are in for a treat. North African Groove features musicians from Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia and Libya. You will also hear cross-cultural influences, with some of the songs having a Latin influence, or French. Simply stated, this is good music, great for dancing at a party or just to enjoy. Some are even of interest to belly dancers; I've seen Amina's track, "Dis-Moi Pourquoi" performed by a dance troupe. Do yourself a favor, get this CD, introduce it to your friends, and turn the world on to what great music the Middle East has to offer. (As an added benefit, a portion of the proceeds will be donated by Putumayo to Search for Common Ground.)

From Putumayo, I'd expected something a bit more "ethnic" but a couple of the tunes were just pop tunes. A couple of the cuts are great!

Another one of world music label Putumayo's regional compilations exploring the music of North Africa, this CD has everything you've come to expect from a Putumayo compilation. Focusing on some of the big regional names in Arabic pop music, as well as cross cultural fusion, this album will not doubt be of great interest to anyone who enjoys Middle Eastern/North African music. As could be expected, Algerian Rai plays a big part on this album, including the hot track 'Ya-Rayi' from Khaled's most recent album, but Faudel, Cheb Mami and Libya's Cheb Jilani all make contributions as well. Egyptian pop music is the other big influence here, with Amr Diab's hit 'Nour el Ain' and Algerian-born pop star Sameera Said. Another pop star, Tunisia's Amina, contributes the lovely French-language song 'Dis Moi Pourquoi,' and theres a Nubian song by Mohammed Mounir. More modern traces can be heard in Hamid Baroudi's Algerian electronica, the Latin-Arab stylings of Jomed, and the Eastender's cross-cultural fusion. All in all, if your looking for some more Arabic-tinged grooves from North Africa, then this CD is well worth checking out. It's great listening for the Summer.

Luckily, my local library stocks most of the Putumayo CDs, so I can try them out before I buy them. I have found the Putumayo CDs to be hit or miss. I love some and don't care for others. This is one of my favorites. Along with the World Groove, African Groove, South Islands Groove and Women of Africa.

Hey, hey, hey, don't let this CD pass you by. Okay let's get one thing straight, African, Mediterranean, and Gypsy music are the best sounds on the market. Why? Because those are origins of our roots, and check the women how provocative they are when they dance the Latin beat. This CD is a must for the Arabic listener. The music is awesome and so are the women! I'm lucky because not only do I get to enjoy the music and share the women, my girl freind is very open minded too! But don't take my word for it. Click on all the selections.