Globetrotting can be an arduous task. It’s not only the jetlag, it’s the hopping in and out of hotel rooms, the impenetrable languages, the impenetrable cuisine, the impenetrable girls, the impenetrable sophistication of a culture twenty-times older and more cosmopolitan than your own. It’s the feeling of being a stranger in a strange land with only a bottle of diet-Pepsi, an idle sexual fantasy and the contents of your hand luggage to relieve the stress of dissociation. And that’s just going to Scarborough. Imagine what it would be like in lands as shamelessly foreign as Brazil, Cuba, Africa, Italy, France, Greece, Argentina, Jamaica, Portugal, Spain, Chile, Turkey and Gypsy Land (not sure of the exact latitude of ‘Gypsy Land’ but it’s right here on the list)? Well no need to imagine for much longer, as Petrol Records are releasing a whopping great 14 albums that covet the very, very best of what world music has to offer. Now normally this would mean a bit of the old Ladysmith Black Mambazo and a couple of tracks from the Gypsy Kings with a bargain bin version of ‘Zorba the Greek’ thrown in for good measure – but not this release. Of course, you could argue that what’s available here, is the sum total of what’s been cleared by copyright and not exactly the best that the world has to offer, but it’s a solid, far-ranging project nonetheless. Led by well respected Australian music man, Chris Murphy, the man behind INXS and sales of some 30 million albums, the mission of petrol Records has been to make and distribute album that lead the listener beyond the usual bounds of ethnocentricity and taste, by unveiling the hidden talents gems of global music and making them available in vaguely stylish and lavishly presented collections like these. So there it is; the fruit of a dozen or so cultures from a handful of different continents and literally fizzing with Calypso grooves, Salsa sighs, Gallic swoon and Indian spice and all trussed up in nicely presented packages that include a 12 page booklet containing pictures, messages and recipes from that chosen region.
Strangely, the Greatest Songs Ever: Ireland fails to include anything by either the lovely Dana or Boyzone and the Greatest Songs Ever....Middle East DOESN'T include Osama Bin Laden and the Jihad Five's 'Ain't No Mountain High Enough' as previously speculated. Highlights:
Petrol Presents: The Greatest Songs Ever…
Brazil: Elza Soares, Marcos Valle, Daniela Mercury, Leila Pinheiro, Clara Nunes
Africa: Bonga, Adriano, Artur, Santos Junior, Falsos Amigos, Gaia, Ghorwane
France: Charles Tenet, Edith Piaf, Charles Aznavour, Julien Clerc, Heni Salvador, Francoise Hardy
Cuba: Maraca, Ad Libitum, Chira & Septeto Nacionai, Laito Y Su Sonora.
Ireland: The Fureys, Celtic Roots, Mary Black, Dolores Keane, Clannad, Chieftains
other title in the series:
The Greatest Songs Ever....Argentina
The Greatest Songs Ever....Chile
The Greatest Songs Ever....Cuba
The Greatest Songs Ever....Greece
The Greatest Songs Ever....Gypsy Land
The Greatest Songs Ever....Italy
The Greatest Songs Ever....Jamaica
The Greatest Songs Ever....Middle East
The Greatest Songs Ever....Portugal
The Greatest Songs Ever....Spain
The Greatest Songs Ever....Turkey
Relevant sites:
http://www.petrolrecords.com/
Alan Sargeant for Crud Magazine 2006© |
