Various Artists Salsa (Putumayo PUT 289-2, 2009) Any salsa compilation is likely to cause a few grumbles as to whether its selections truly fit the…
More Than One Kind of Sauce
Category: Album reviews
Traveling with the Exiles
Expanded Band of Brothers
Occidental Brothers Dance Band International Odo Sanbra (Occidental Brothers, 2008) The term “short but sweet” seems to have been tailor-made to describe Occidental Brothers Dance…
Africa to Jamaica to Africa
Various Artists African Reggae (Putumayo PUT 287-2, 2009) Africa has always been celebrated as the spiritual home of roots reggae, so it’s no surprise that…
Fanning the Flames of Discontent
The Little Red Box of Protest Songs (Proper Box 805520021470) The Little Red Box of Protest Songs, pays tribute to the Wobblie’s publication, The Little…
Mesmerizing Visions
Joyce, Naná Vasconcelos and Mauricio Maestro Visions of Dawn (Far Out Recordings, 2009) The 1970s were years of exploration and high creativity in music. Brazil…
Malian Invitation
Amadou and Mariam Welcome To Mali (Nonesuch, 209) Malian duo Amadou and Mariam benefit from great publicity and acceptance in some world music circles. The…
Bollywood Whirlwind
A.R. Rahman with Various Artists The Best of A.R. Rahman – Music And Magic From The Composer Of Slumdog Millionaire (Legacy Recordings, 2009) Capitalizing on…
Succulent Soul
Incognito Tales from the Beach (Heads Up International, 2008) The Mauritius-born musician, songwriter and leader of the group Incognito Jean-Paul "Bluey" Maunick has dipped into…
American Pianist Debuts on the Right Footing
Mariah Parker Sangria (Ancient Future, 2009) Let’s not judge books by their cover. Therefore, forget about the amateurish cover exhibited by Sangria, the first recording…