Rabih Abou-Khalil - 1991 - Al-Jadida

Rabih Abou-Khalil

1991

Al-Jadida

01. Catania (7:41)
02. Nashwa (9:33)
03. An Evening with Jerry (6:59)
04. When the Lights Go Out (7:14)
05. Storyteller (8:52)
06. Ornette Never Sleeps (4:01)
07. Nadim (8:29)
08. Wishing Well (5:25)

Alto Saxophone – Sonny Fortune
Bass – Glen Moore
Drums [South Indian Drums], Percussion – Ramesh Shotham
Frame Drum [Frame Drums], Percussion – Nabil Khaiat
Oud – Rabih Abou-Khalil

Recorded and mixed 8-10 October 1990 at Bauer Studios, Ludwigsburg, Germany.

Rabih Abou-Khalil, among the rare Arabic musicians who have recorded and played extensively with jazz musicians, successfully navigates the middle ground between traditional North African sounds and hard bop. Besides the leader's oud and flute, alto saxophonist Sonny Fortune provides the blues bite; bassist Glen Moore, the rhythmic connection, and percussionists Ramesh Shotham and Nabil Khaiat, provide the African seasoning.

Sonny Fortune's distinct playing dominates Al-Jadida, right from the opening bars to "Cantania." Though I don't think he's the greatest sax player to play with Rabih, he certainly is one of the most unique, and you'll definitely find yourself waiting for his next solo.

Al-Jadida is pretty minimalist and conventional for RA-K, but the compositions and melodies are great, and the real exploration is in the solos -- and on an oddball, short piece, albeit a worthwhile one, called "Ornette Never Sleeps." I half expected to hear some great flute playing, but no such luck.

"Al-Jadida" is a wonderful blend of jazz and middle-eastern music. Similar to "Between Dusk And Dawn" in that it is heavier on the jazz element, it also differs in the feel. The music seems to have more energy and movement. Of the pieces on this album: "Catania", "An Evening With Jerry", and "Nadim" are all excellent. The interplay between Rabih Abou-Khalil's oud and Sonny Fortune's alto saxophone is simply great.

Al-Jadida is an album that combines traditional Arabic music with jazz and in my opinion the balance between the two musical genres is just perfect. The ensemble that we find includes the oud played by Rabih Abou-Khalil, the bass played by Glen Moore, a series of Indian percussions played by Ramesh Shotham, the frame drum (a percussion instrument made up of skin pulled around a ring with cymbals, very common in North Africa and in the Middle East that gives some really interesting nuances to the music) played by Nabil Khaia and the alto sax played by Sonny Fortune. I really appreciated both the oud and sax melodies and the rhythmic base of the percussion instruments.