Moroccan Street Music CD - Import

Collectors of Moroccan music may be tricked into thinking this is a recording made in the streets of a town such as Fez. They may listen to the songs and wonder where all the background noise is. Actually, these are studio recordings of three musicians who, in the course of their careers, played frequently at outdoor events such as public markets. The musicians sing and perform on oud, the 11-string fretless instrument most closely associated with Moroccan music. Four different types of drums provide rhythmic counterpoint. The songs are of the variety that probably go into extended versions at a live performance, and are given a reasonable amount of space over two album sides. Documentation standards are a bit down for this label; for example, although the musicians' names are listed with short biographies, there is no information about who plays what instruments, and one would have to read the label to find out what instruments are featured on each song. All in all good playing and lively music, but the photo on the front cover has it all beat in terms of atmosphere. ~ Eugene Chadbourne

From the open squares Morocco's traditional cities, where the air is electrified with the sounds of public performance, gather food vendors, dentists, fortune tellers, story-tellers, musicians and singers, whose cries and songs combine to create a cacoph

Personnel: Abdeslam Cherkaoui (vocals, oud).

Recording information: 1970.