Putumayo Presents: Arabic Groove

1	Moi et Toi / Abdel Ali Slimani 3:44
2	Galbi / Abdy 4:18
3	Leiley / Dania Transglobal Underground Remix 4:43
4	Amarain / Amr Diab 4:23
5	Intil Waheeda / Hisham Abbas 4:50
6	Hely Meli / Hamid El Shaeri 3:59
7	Mani / Fadela & Sahrawi 4:02
8	Kidda / Natacha Atlas 4:48
9	Mauvais Sang / Khalèd 6:07
10	Ne Me Jugez Pas / Sawt el Atlas Volodia Remix 3:30
11	L' Histoire / Cheb Tarik 3:19

Barnes & Noble

The friendly folks at Putumayo continue to bring the four corners of the world that much closer together with the syncretic bump-and-grind of Arabic Groove. In the Arabic world, the end of the 20th century saw the melding of black urban music of the West, as well as Latin and electronica sounds, with traditional melodic sense and instrumentation; found here are some of the tastiest results. Lined up as a nonstop dance mix, the cuts come in a rainbow of booty-shaking colors. Dig the back-porch twang of a buzok (similar to the Greek bouzouki) and rolling rumba fire of "Intil Waheeda" by Egypt's Hisham Abbas; the waxing heartache of "Leiley" by Lebanon's lovely Dania; or the funky, disco-fied rai of "Mani," in which husband-and-wife duo Fadela & Sahraoui proclaim, "If they are jealous about what we do together / Why don't they do it too?" And if the Reagan years left you thinking Libya was all about authoritarians and air strikes, check out the pounding rub-a-dub goodness of Hamid El Shaeri's "Hely Meli." Tracks by higher-profile pop icons Natacha Atlas and Khaled provide familiar names for the uninitiated, but casual listeners stumbling upon this treasure chamber will feel like lucky dance-floor anthropologists indeed. Abraham Velez

All Music Guide

It took Cheb Mami's collaboration with Sting on the latter's mega-hit "Desert Rose" to bring Arabic music into the collective consciousness of the Western world. Never ones to pass up a trend, the folks at Putumayo have scoured North Africa and the Middle East in search of more Arabic pop music. What they turned up is a collection of dance tracks that show the heavy influence of hip-hop, urban pop, funk, and other Western styles, while maintaining the cultural integrity of the region. There are even nods to the influence of American boy bands and sex symbols such as Ricky Martin and Janet Jackson on a few tracks. The swirling strings and ornate, sinuous melody lines characteristic of the Middle East are laid over funky, chugging rhythm tracks, creating a tapestry that is crossover-ready. The disc is heavy on Algerian rai and Egyptian al-jil, with more than half the artists represented from either Egypt or Algeria. The most recognizable name here is Natacha Atlas, whose orgasmic singing on "Kidda," remixed by Transglobal Underground, stands out over the others. Libyan artist Hamid El Shaeri's track "Hely Meli" combines the cooing female vocals of urban pop with samples of women ululating. The effect is startling. On a technical note, there is virtually no space between most of the tracks. While this usually serves to keep the dance groove going, sometimes it is a little abrupt, as the ends of some tracks get chopped off. Arabic Groove is an intense, high-energy release, sure to appeal to fans of cosmopolitan dance music worldwide. ~ Peggy Latkovich, All Music Guide