Various Artists: The Rough Guide to Latin-Arabia

A conversation.

World Music Network Overlord, Phil Stanton: I am sad. Minions, gladden me.

Minion no. 1: Latin-Arabian music will make you happy, O Lord.

World Music Network Overlord, Phil Stanton: Then go thou, toothless crone, find me Latin-Arabian music.

Minion no. 1: Here’s a Nubian mambo crossover from Mahmoud Fadl, and here’s Rhany Kabbadj doing a Moroccan version of “Chan Chan” that will make you somersault with joy, oh, and here’s a shiny sequin of Arab pop, and we’ll balance out the whole compilation with rock-edged, ecstastic singing from Emil Zrihan and Benjamin Escoriza.

World Music Network Overlord, Phil Stanton: Rock on.

Minion no. 2: But it’s not exactly attached to a particular geographical area, is it? Well, North Africa, Andalucia, sort of, but it’s not a genre, like flamenco, it’s just a nice general sound that people will like and probably buy. Don’t we have whole countries to deal with before we start putting out things like this? What about a Rough Guide to Vietnam? What about the South Pacific? Don’t we already have a Rough Guide to flamenco nuevo and one for flamenco not-nuevo and one for Morocco and one for Spain, all of them overlapping with this one? And hasn’t everyone heard Amr Diab perform “Ya Nour el Ein” a thousand times by now?

World Music Network Overlord, Phil Stanton: Pertinent observation. Take him away.

Minion no. 2 is removed to the DUNGEONS and his Lordship is GLADDENED.