Rock the Tabla

by Hossam Ramzy

Overview

After countless albums under his own name and guesting on other people's, the Egyptian percussionist comes out with something very high profile indeed. With people like jazz drummer Billy Cobham, Bollywood composer A. R. Rahman, and Turkey's Omar Tekbilek on board, it couldn't be anything less than stellar, and Ramzy has pulled out all the stops here. Although Egypt is at the core of everything, Rock the Tabla glides musically into many corners of the world, as on "Cairo to India," which brings two countries together quite naturally (as does the bonus cut, "This Could Lead to Dancing," which goes out on a glorious swirl of strings). In between, there's some stellar jazz-inflected material in "Six Teens," where Cobham offers a reminder of why he's so lauded, a pair of percussion duets (Egypt meets Japanese taiko drums and Egypt goes to Mali), and some Maghrebi pop on "Sawagy." The true highlight, however, is the title track, one of the best pieces of Arab rock to ever come out of a pair of speakers, with Tekbilek bringing the mizmar and a carefully unnamed guitarist who sounds suspiciously like a '70s icon (Ramzy worked on Page & Plant's Unledded), giving the tune some hard electric lines that really power it, and which might just be Ramzy's best composition to date. Unsurprisingly, all the percussion is mixed high, but not at the expense of everything else, and listening to the players is like attending a master class in musicality. It's certainly Ramzy's most inspired release in years. He's working with people he admires and who push him hard. The joy is hearing him -- and everyone else -- deliver. ~ Chris Nickson

Product Details

Release Date:	08/30/2011
Label:	ARC MUSIC
UPC:	5019396234925

Tracks

1. Arabantana
2. Cairo To India
3. Six Teens
4. Ancient Love Affairs
5. Shukran Arigato
6. Bluesy Flusey
7. Billy Dancing
8. Sawagy
9. Dom & Doumbia
10. Rock the Tabla
11. This Could Lead To Dancing

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Hossam Ramzy   Primary Artist,Percussion,Egyptian Percussion
John Themis   Guitar (Acoustic),Guitar (Electric)
Ossama Al Hendy   Bass,Keyboards
A.R. Rahman   Keyboards
Abdalla Helmy   Nay,Keyboards
Chaz Kkoshi   Keyboards,Sequencing,Piano
Winston Blissett   Bass
Hounda El Sombaty   Vocals
Mohsen Allaam   Quarter Tone Accordion
Morris Eskander   Violin
Suzzane D Mello   Vocals
The Hossam Ramzy String Ensemble   Strings
Chinmayi Shripada   Vocals
Elhamy Ezzat   Vocals
Jimmy Waldo   Bass,Keyboards
Joji Hirota   Taiko Drums
Phil Thornton   E-Bow,Keyboards
Chennai String Orchestra   Strings
Nahini Doumbia   Djun-Djun
Mohammed Ali   Oud,Violin (Electric)
Manu Katche   Drums
Billy Cobham   Drums
Ali Shaker   Qanoun

Technical Credits

Phil Thornton   Sequencers,Mixing,Composer,Engineer
Omar Faruk Tekbilek   Mizmar
Ossama Al Hendy   Composer,Sequencers
A.R. Rahman   Composer
Hossam Ramzy   Mixing,Composer,Engineer,Producer,Liner Notes
Chaz Kkoshi   Mixing,Composer,Engineer,Producer,Sequencers
S. Sivakumar   Engineer
Jeannine Blanpain   Translation
Sayed Al Hosseiny   Mizmar
Pierre Emile Bertona   Photography
Rey Alvarado   Photography
Samantha Wordie   Photography
Xavier Hallauer   Photography
Jimmy Waldo   Mixing,Composer,Engineer,Sequencers
Diz Heller   Liner Notes,Translation
Alex Croft   Typesetting,Cover Design
Jon Astley   Mastering
Martin Smith   Mixing
Andre Elbing   Photography