Rai Music: North African Rhythm & Blues

Algeria's homegrown music known as "Rai" -- North Africa's version of rhythm and blues -- has survived in spite of attempts by Islamic fundamentalists to stamp it out. During the Algerian civil war between 1992-1997 Islamest militants threatened to attack anyone who sang, played or even listened to Rai music.

The Algerian government now recognizes that Rai (which means 'opinion' in Arabic) is an important tool in its propaganda war against Islamists and they help to promote events like Rai music festivals. It's one of the simple pleasures that many Algerians say they have.

The popularity of Rai music here in the U.S. got a huge boost from Sting's hit 'Desert Roses', a song that fulfilled its potential only after Algerian Rai singer Cheb Mami added his own thrilling and idiomatic melismas."

Cheb Mami is probably the best known name in Algerian Rai music these days, thanks to the collaboration with Sting which became such a huge international hit. Now the floodgates have opened. The pleasant surprise is that early star Cheb Mami is among the least of the Arabic acts to get released over the past year or so.

Rachid Taha, Hakim, Amina, Khaled and Faudel have all recorded stirring albums which leapfrog among styles.

It's Kaled who wears the mantel of 'King of Rai' and is outselling Michael Jackson in India. The reigning king of rai music made his name as a social rebel, but in fact, he's a voice of hope from a land of sad history.

The most innovative of the recent releases is Rachid Taha's 'Made in Medina'. It fuses traditional Mahgreb rhythms with electro beats, aggressive guitars and swooping strings. In Arabic, Medina means the city. And for Rachid Taha, the medina exists all over the world, with neighborhoods stretching from Marrakech to London, Paris to New Orleans.

Egyptian singer and bandleader Hakim's, recent live album The Lion Roars is a non-stop rhythmic showcase reminiscent of a classic James Brown show. He performs what's classified as sha'bi music, but the style is secondary to the incandescent voice, riotous horns, and crashing polyrhythms.

Rai superstars Khaled and Faudel have both released fine solo albums, but they're best heard together on the recent 1,2,3 Soleils. The album documents a historic Paris concert where they were joined by Rachid Taha. The trio performs songs from across their careers, making it an über greatest hits collection.

The most interesting performance isn't on any of these recordings. For that, we turn to Tunisia's most successful international star, Amina, who is an energetic, genre-bending singer and composer. Nomad: The Best of Amina, has an English-sung, Arabic-styled interpretation of the Billie Holiday standard "My Man."