World 2004
The sheer variety and numbers of artists in that catchall category world music makes compilations a godsend for both the budget conscious and those in search of great new sounds. Assembled by the BBC's Charlie Gillett, who is a world class DJ and authority on music from around the globe, this double disc effort culls 34 tracks from just about every important released over the last year. Some of these tracks will remind you how much you enjoyed certain albums when they came out, while others will cause you to make of few notes about what you missed out on. The material here ranges from traditional (Venuzuela's Simon Diaz and Portugal's Katia Guerreiro) to multicultural mayhem (U.S./Turkey's Wax Poetic and Germany's 17 Hippies) with an emphasis leaning in no particular direction. The only qualifier seems to be great music, which is really the only thing one should look for when on the hunt for something new to listen to. --Tad Hendrickson