VA - Best of World Music (2001)

Countless world music compilations came out in the early 1990s, including this eleven-song CD from the L.A.-based Rhythm Safari label. The Best of World Music focuses not only traditional sounds, but on contemporary pop music from Africa and Latin America. Djavan's "Amazon Farewell" and Margareth Menezes' major hit "Eligibo" are fine examples of Brazilian pop, while Johnny Clegg & Savuka's "Ring On Her Finger," Ladysmith Black Mambazo's "Township Jive" and Youssou N'Dour's "The Lion/Gaiende" illustrate the richness of late-1980s/early-1990s African pop. With its high-tech instrumentation, Cheb Mami's infectious "Do the Rai" shows just how great a debt the Algerian rai singer owes to American and European pop. Though The Best of World Music is far from the last word on worldbeat or ethno-pop, it's well worth picking up if you come across a copy.