The great thing about the compilers of the Rough Guide albums has always been the enormous breadth of styles that they attempt to incorporate into whatever compilation they're making. The music on this album ranges quite literally from India to Finland to England and all points in between.
The album starts out with an example of modern flamenco from Pata Negra, then moves into Italian gypsy music and an ultra-high-speed number from the Romanian Fanfare Ciocarlia. It then moves immediately into a slow lament from Greek singer Eleni Vitali. From this odd juxtaposition, it progresses into Rajasthani music, and then back to Asia Minor with a group from Istanbul. A selection from Albania follows, followed itself by the new ambassadors of gypsy music, Taraf de Haidouks. Another Greek musician makes an appearance, followed by a pair of flamenco works, one from the guitar master Tomatito and one from El Indio Gitano and Gerardo Núñez. The album then makes another heavy-duty stylistic change as it jumps to Finnish gypsy love songs and English harmonica-based folk songs.
The album then returns to the more prototypical gypsy sound, with a Hungarian group reminiscent of early klezmer in many respects. A strained shawm-based dance from Kosovo follows, providing a look into the practice of instrument adoption into a culture. The album finishes off with cimbalom master Kálman Bálogh and his arrangement of a traditional number based on styles from Spain, Hungary, and Romania (the Spanish influence is particularly noticeable).
Tracklist:
1 –Pata Negra Yo Me Quedo En Sevilla
2 –Acquaragia Drom Ussa Sà
3 –Fanfare Ciocărlia Doina si Balaseanca
4 –Ελένη Βιτάλη The Song Of the Gypsies (To Tragoudi Ton Gifton)
5 –Musafir Anghuti
6 –Gypsy Music Of Constantinople Rast Tsiftetelli
7 –Kurbeti Love Birds (San Ta Dio Poulia)
8 –Taraf de Haïdouks Cind Eram La’ 48
9 –Kostas Pavlidis* Jastar Amenge Dur
10 –Tomatito Mundi
11 –El Indio Gitano & Gerardo Nuñez El Sereno De Mi Calle
12 –Päivi Ärling Olen Lapsi Minä Syksyjen Illan
13 –Jasper Smith, Levi Smith Cock O’ The North / Garryowen / Flowers Of Edinburgh / Step It Away / The Girl I Left Behind Me / Step It Away
14 –Jozsef Lacatos Fast Csárdas
15 –Krusha Madhë Kalandxój
16 –Kálmán Balogh Cigány Színek
