Search - Various Artists :: Jalilah's Raks Sharki 6: In a Beirut Mood

It?s rare for a dancer to put out an album--much less her sixth--but famous Oriental dancer Jalilah has done just that. Focusing on the Raks Sharki style (better known by the misnomer "belly dancing"), Jalilah and composer and arranger Ihsan Al-Mounzer choose a broad variety of Lebanese and Egyptian styles of music. The settings range from single-drummer accompaniment on "Beirut Rhythms" (by noted master Bassem Yazbek) to the accordion and tabla workout "Rakset Banat Baladi" (for Baladi style of dancing) to the orchestral and vocal "Lebanese Bouquet" (done like a Lebanese wedding band) to "Kanoun Mood" (featuring the dulcimer-sounding kanoun). The music is overflowing with fantastic playing and often complex arrangements, which are all well captured on tape. But even with all the musical razzle-dazzle, it?s hard to ignore how fun In A Beirut Mood sounds--this is party music designed to get the belly and the rest of the body moving. With this in mind, the album is an unqualified success. --Tad Hendrickson