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Qareeb
Najma
Qareeb
Genres: International Music, Jazz, Pop
 
  •  Track Listings (7) - Disc #1

A radical yet subtle slant on an old, old story: when East meets West. Soprano sax with Indian violin, tablas with bass, keyboard with santoor, voice on voice. This is the recording which first brought Najma to internation...  more »

     
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CD Details

All Artists: Najma
Title: Qareeb
Members Wishing: 0
Total Copies: 0
Label: Shanachie
Release Date: 7/1/1991
Genres: International Music, Jazz, Pop
Styles: Far East & Asia, Middle East, Arabic, Reggae, India & Pakistan, India
Number of Discs: 1
SwapaCD Credits: 1
UPC: 016351640925

Synopsis

Album Description
A radical yet subtle slant on an old, old story: when East meets West. Soprano sax with Indian violin, tablas with bass, keyboard with santoor, voice on voice. This is the recording which first brought Najma to international attention. She has since performed and recorded throughout the world with musicians as varied as Andy Summers, Jah Wobble and Robert Plant. The ghazal occupies a unique place in the music and poetry of the Indian sub-continent. A perfect example of a form, many hundreds of years old, that has maintained its popularity throughout the ages, yet never more so than within recent years as singers have taken it from the light classical area into the popular market with remarkable success. Najma is the first UK born singer to concentrate on this art and won the Asian song contest at Birmingham in 1984. A few of the accolades:
"More than just a passing fad for jaded ears." The Independent
"This is a fabulous record." NME
"50 recommended Albums of 1987" Q
"Vinyl Finals of 1987" NME

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CD Reviews

Purely Sublime Aural Beauty
BlueJay54 | 02/06/2002
(5 out of 5 stars)

"Najma is an Apsara, a divine musician from beyond this world. As her pure and melodious voice soars upwards to the heavens, you too will be swept away in her embrace. In the same way that there is only one Enya, Najma is a completely singular artist. But that is not to compare their sound. These are traditional ghazals, songs of love and longing, sung in an Indian tongue. But the heart hears and understands all. I listen to a wide variety of music: jazz, traditional and contemporary Indian, Indonesian gamelan, African kora & drum music. But "Quareeb" is one of my absolute favorite CDs. If I could only own 5 CDs, this would be one of them. (The others? probably Coltrane's "My Favorite Things" live in Copenhagen, Ladysmith Black Mambazo's "Shaka Zulu," Liz Story's "Solid Colors" and John McLaughlin's "My Goal's Beyond"--but that would leave out Hamza el Din's oud playing...). Her voice renders audible the slowly burning desire to become lost in union with the Beloved. Listening, you will be transported into an eternal realm beyond the senses, yet deeply rooted in the voluptuous traditions of sublimated Indian sensuality. Listen, and be transformed."
My favorite CD!!
Helen A. Bird | NEW YORK, NY USA | 06/23/2001
(5 out of 5 stars)

"I tend to like moody, passionate vocal music -for instance I love Joni Mitchells Blue, John Coltrane & Johnny Hartman, Robbie Robertson and Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. Najma has a beautiful voice that she really knows how to use. Her voice is supported by the tabla drum which weaves and melts in and out of the melody. Najma's Qareeb has ended up being the most played of all my music in the last 5 years. It is very peaceful and stirring at the same time. I love it and recommend it."
Indian Love Songs with a Western beat
G. S | 08/22/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)

"My brother's roommate in Xian had this record, so my brother sent it to me in the US. It's great. Definitely in the Indian tradition, but with fascinating rhythms. Very accessible for a westerner like myself."