Cheikh Lo Jamm (World Circuit DO84, 2010) Senegal’s Cheikh Lo, he of the long dreadlocks, multicolored quilt-like attire and Sufi spirituality, stands out even among…
High Quality Lo Jamm
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.
Balkan Brass by the Bay
Brass Menazeri Vranjski San (Porto Franco Records PFR018, 2010) You never quite know how it’s going to turn out when a style of music closely…
Making a Federal Case of it
The Definitive Collection of Federal Records 1964-1982 (17 North Parade VP4163, 2010) Ernie Smith – The Best of Ernie Smith: Original Masters (17 North Parade…
Souzatone
Carmen Souza Protegid (Galileo Music GMC036, 2010) Cape Verde, those tiny, previously Portuguese-owned islands just off Africa’s Western tip, has given the world more great…
Dogo From Togo
Elikeh Adje!Adje! (Azalea City Recordings, 2010) Living in Washington D.C., the political epicenter of the United States, can give you a feel for how lousy…
Well Worth the Insomnia
V.M. Bhatt & Matt Malley Sleepless Nights (World Village 468097, 2010) Indian master musician V.M Bhatt was in on one of Ry Cooder’s early excursions…
Think Outside the Squeezebox
Rana Santacruz Chicavasco (Oasis, 2010) The first couple of tracks make Rana Santacruz’s debut CD sound like it’s going to turn out to be a…
Midwest Reggae Test
Carlos Jones and the P.L.U.S. Band – Leave a Trail (Little Fish Records, 2009) Public Property – Work to Do (Little Fish Records, 2009) American…
Showing Some Class
Kartick & Gotam Business Class Refugees (EarthSync ES0030, 2009) This album’s title was inspired by circumstances that caused Kartick (Patrick Sebag) and Gotam (Yotam Agam)…
Cooking Chilean Cumbia
Chico Trujillo Chico De Oro (Barbes Records, 2010) It’s Colombia that usually gets the credit for being the epicenter of cumbia and while that South…