dhafer youssef & wolfgang muthspiel

'Glow'

Year:                   2010

Label:                  Fuse

Track Listing:     1. Mon Parfum 

2. Babylon

3. Sand Dance

4. Mein Versprechen

5. Etude #3

6. Lamento

7. Maya

8. Emmerich

9. Cosmology

10. Rhaspodie

Dave’s 'Glow' - Dhafer Youssef & Wolfgang Muthspiel Review:

Austrian guitarist/composer Wolfgang Muthspiel and French-based Tunision oud player and singer Dhafer Youseef are World Musicians that for a long time have deeply respected each other… some would so that it was only a matter of time before the pair decided to join up on a collaboration… and now that project is with is in the form of the smooth new album ‘Glow’.

 ‘Glow’ really is just for those who love their World music… I can’t see too many people not into this style giving it a listen and falling in love with it, but I must admit I found it a pleasurable listen. The album begins with the haunting ‘Mon Parfum’ and by the time I got to ‘Babylon’ I was in awe of the amazing voice that Dhafer Youssef has.

‘Sand Dance’ conjures up a real jazzy sound while Youssef’s voice takes ‘Mein Verspreachen’ back to the haunting sound that I love so much with this album. So good is his voice that I have to admit that I wasn’t much of a fan of tracks like ‘Etude #3’, ‘Maya’ and ‘Rhaspodie’ which felt they were reduced to soundtrack-formula jazz.

 It is Youssef’s voice that makes tracks like ‘Lamento’ and ‘Emmerich’ so special so you really do miss him when his voice isn’t there. He even sounds great on the very smooth ‘Cosmology’.

 This is a wonderful album and has certainly introduced me to one of the finest vocalists in the world. Great listen but I do feel that instrumental tracks drag down the album a little.

RATING:- *** (out of 5)

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