Our Top Ten best Arabic Dance Albums

Here's our, very personal, selection of the top ten best Arabic albums, and why we like them. We hope you enjoy our selection too. If you come to one of our Hafla's you will be able to hear many of the tracks from these albums. As we find new brilliant albums we'll update this page so if you like our choices then return here from time-to-time to get the latest ideas.


	Sabla Tolo. Hossam Ramzy. ARC Music (EUCD 1581) 13 shortish tracks of pure percussion. All very different and each having a description of the rhythms used in the sleeve notes. Perfect for practicing your Tabla Solo's (hence the album title - a spoonerism!?)

	Welcome to Orientales Sensations (Vol 2). Various artists. EMI Music (493324 2) The best of this series so far. A great mix of modern pieces - most easy to the western ear and many good to dance to.

	Bellydance from Egypt. "Gamil Gamal" Bashir Abdel 'Aal. ARC Music (EUCD 1487) A collection of classic pieces including some short Baladi tracks and a substantial drum solo. A good mix of moods and instruments.

	The Best Arabic Album in the World ... Ever! Various artists. Virgin (0946 310854 - 2 0) A good compilation of mainly pop music. Some tracks are also featured on other compilation CD's so compare listings to see what you've already got before you buy this one.

	Best of Bellydance from Egypt, Lebanon, Arabia & Turkey Various artists. ARC Music (EUCD 1358) This is usually really cheap - it's a sample CD from ARC. All the tracks come from other ARC albums. A very mixed bag of classical and more modern pieces - a good first buy.

	Camelspotting Various artists. EMI Music (7243 496184 2 8) Another good compilation of modern (mostly pop) tracks. Some duplication of tracks with other compilations. Was given quite a lot of publicity when released, so may be more widely available 'off the shelf'.

	Baladi Plus Hossam Ramzy. ARC Music (EUCD 1083) Go to the Arabic/Bellydance section of any music store and Hossam Ramzy is a name you'll find on many albums. He has done a lot to popularise Egyptian music of all sorts, though some find his drumming overly mechanical. This album is a good collection of more 'folky' pieces, a bit raw for the untuned western ear, but full of energy.

	Modern Bellydance Music from Lebanon Vol IV Emad Sayyah. ARC Music (EUCD 1332) A good album with a variety of tracks, some a bit 'cheesy'. Most of it is good for dancing and the album ends with a terrific, but short, drum solo.

	The Musicians of the Nile Charcoal Gypsies. REALWorld (CDR W63) Real folk music from real Egyptian folk. This is authentic stuff and so not all that easy to listen to, if you're not familiar with the tones of Middle Eastern music. Well worth buying once you get your ear tuned in, a mix of folk songs with traditional instruments.

	Nour el Ain Amr Diab. EMI Music Arabia (0946 310677 - 2 3) One of the best selling albums in Arabic music, from one of the current super-stars in Egypt. This is a very easy to listen to album of pop music with some Arabic/Spanish fusion elements. Great to dance to. Most people like this one but don't make it your only buy.

Contributors: Chris and Stephen
Contact: chris@cosgb.globalnet.co.uk

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