Les Yeux Noirs Live (World Village 4680190, 2003) Led by classically-trained violinists Eric and Olivier Slabiak, Les Yeux Noirs created one of last year’s more…
Klezmer Gypsies Take The Stage
Author: Tom Orr
Tom Orr is a California-based writer whose talent and mental stability are of an equally questionable nature. His hobbies include ignoring trends, striking dramatic poses in front of his ever-tolerant wife and watching helplessly as his kids surpass him in all desirable traits.
Colombia Goes African
Batata y Su Rumba Palenquera Radio Bakongo (Network 24.127, 2003) About 300 years ago, a group of escaped African slaves barricaded themselves in a safe…
Abundant Latin Heat From Two New Rough Guides
Various Artists – The Rough Guide to Latin Jazz (RGNET 1089 CD, 2003) Various Artists – The Rough Guide to Salsa De Puerto Rico (RGNET…
Mali’s Blind Couple- Great Match, Great Music
Amadou and Mariam Wati (Circular Moves CIM 7011, 2003) Known as “The Blind Couple of Mali” when they first began to make a splash in…
Bhattacharya Plus Brozman Equals Guitar Greatness
Debashish Bhattacharya and Bob Brozman Mahima (Riverboat Records/World Music Network TUGCD1029) American acoustic guitarist Bob Brozman certainly has a knack for wonderfully unique collaborations. I’m…
Puerto Rico meets Brazil by way of Jamaica
Bayanga Bayanga(RAS Records 06076-89603-2, 2003) RAS Records, known as one of the finest reggae labels, steps a bit off their beaten path with this disc.…
Reggae Remake is in the Pink
Easy Star All-Stars Dub Side of the Moon (Easy Star Records ES-1012, 2003) I first learned of this project while interviewing Eric Smith of Easy…
Klezmatics on the Rise
The Klezmatics Rise Up! Shteyt Oyf! (Rounder Records 11661-3197-2, 2003) The venerable Jewish roots music called klezmer has seen peaks and valleys of popularity, and…
Don’t Pardon My French
Various Artists French Caribbean (Putumayo PUT 211-2, 2003) Musically, some Caribbean islands bear strong marks of having been former colonies of Spain, England or The…
Good Weed Indeed
Yerba Buena President Alien (Razor and Tie 7930182894-2, 2003) It’s easy to like a band whose name means “good weed.” Truly, it appears that some…