Land of the Sufis: Soul Music from the Indus Valley

Amazon.com
Well, American "soul music" it's not, but it is in keeping with the usual clever titling of these Shanachie albums from Asia. This set looks at the musical confluence of cultures that is Sufi, with its Hindi and Islamic roots but with a distinct mesmerizing "soul" made most famous by Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. The groups here are smaller, closer to a "folk" sound than the sweeping wall of harmoniums and voices of the more famous qawwali. It's best exemplified by Najma and Mumtaz Khanum, the folksy sisters singing with a wild, almost swinging, harmonium. Other tracks feature male and female vocalists, string instruments, and percussion, but all maintain that smallness, the close feeling of a local band playing in a local situation. All the tracks on this set were recorded in Karachi and Lahore and feature performers not heard outside of their home regions. It's all well recorded and effusively annotated. --Louis Gibson

Tracks:

Tarana In Rag Bhairon - Khansahib Nasiruddin Saami/Mohammad Omar Qureshi/Allah Rakha Khan/Allah Rakha Khan/Mohammad Rauf...
Kafi Of Khwaja Ghulam Farid - Najma Khanum/Mumtaz Khanum/Fida Hussein/Manzoor Hussein/Tabla & Shaukat
Melody From Northern Baluchistan - Bashir Ahmed/Qader Bakhsh Urf Kadu Khan/Dotar & Tabla
Qalandari Zikr 'Sokala Kali Jangalakala' - Sahebi & Rahima/Karimbakhsh Nuri/Soruz/Tanburag/Dholak/Benju/Sahebi/Rahima
Qawwali Of Amir Khusrou 'Roop Saroop Jalwa Fadan' - Bahauddin Qutbuddin Qawwal & Party
Dhun In Rag Kirwani - Allah Rakha Khan/Mohammad Omar Qureshi/Tabla & Hisamuddin Junaid/Mohammad urooj/Tanpura
Song Of Shah Abdul Latif 'Omar Andi Marvi Kujo Allaa Dee Ahee' - Kirshan Lal Bheel/Dholak & Harmonium
Seraiki Damal 'Jule Lal Qalandar Lal' - Mansur Ahmed Hazuri Urf Bural/Pir Bakhsh/Tabla & Ustad Fateh Ali/Harmoniun
Seraiki Dhun - Manzoor Ahmed/Murid Hussain/Muhammad Ajwal
Punjabi Damal 'Mast Qalandar Ali Ali' - Rehmet Ali/Zafar Iqbal/Mansur Hussein/Tabla & Nazir Ahmed
Naat 'Hussan-e Rasul Hay' - Zafar Iqbal/Mansur Hussein/Tabla & Nazir Ahmed

Amazon.com

Well, American "soul music" it's not, but it is in keeping with the usual clever titling of these Shanachie albums from Asia. This set looks at the musical confluence of cultures that is Sufi, with its Hindi and Islamic roots but with a distinct mesmerizing "soul" made most famous by Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. The groups here are smaller, closer to a "folk" sound than the sweeping wall of harmoniums and voices of the more famous qawwali. It's best exemplified by Najma and Mumtaz Khanum, the folksy sisters singing with a wild, almost swinging, harmonium. Other tracks feature male and female vocalists, string instruments, and percussion, but all maintain that smallness, the close feeling of a local band playing in a local situation. All the tracks on this set were recorded in Karachi and Lahore and feature performers not heard outside of their home regions. It's all well recorded and effusively annotated. --Louis Gibson

Customer Reviews:

Treasure.......2004-03-01

It is almost as rare to find good world music as it is finding good 'western' music. A lot of the so called world music is just as processed and polished as what we see on MTV or other music channels. As I was looking through a collection of World Music at a used CD shop I saw this CD. I have been a fan of particularly Middle Eastern music for a few months and have found a few good compilations. This music from Pakistan, is the most beautiful I have heard. the most wonderful of the songs is probably the last, NAAT "Hussan-e Khuda Baghair Hee Hussan-e Rasul Hay", not available as a clip at Amazon.com

Please pick up this CD, you won't regret it.

It makes me proud to be a Pakistani!.......2001-02-19

This is some of the finest music on the face of the earth! A great collection of Sufi music that trancends time and space. The music is varied and absolutley brilliant. A must for those who love Pakistani music, world music, and traditional music in general! You have got to have this one!

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