Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan - Mustt Mustt

The late, great Pakistani Qawwali singer's first collaboration with producer/guitarist Michael Brook took the passionate, gymnastic tenor out of tradition and into trip-hop nation. Recorded at Peter Gabriel's expansive Real World Studios, the album combines ethnic percussion, programmed beats (some by Gabriel himself), Brook's atmospheric and infinite guitar swells, and loop-based motifs with Khan's complex, ornamented vocal delivery and devotional lyrics. On the later Night Song, Brook and Khan perfected their cross-cultural dialogue, though Mustt, with its fiery vocal runs and funky, ethereal production, has become an important touchstone in the ethno-techno movement that includes Transglobal Underground and Loop Guru. --James Rotondi Amazon.com

Qawwali Fever!

It was the late, great Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan who first popularized the art of qawwali music in the West. A form of devotional Sufi music from Pakistan, qawwali is known for it's passion and intensity. This album, which is as good a starting point as any in NFAK's vast corpus of works, marked his first collaboration with Michael Brook and was recorded in studio. Although NFAK's passionate vocals take center stage, there is some creative use of remixing and editing, which would become more prominent later on 'Night Song.' Tracks like the ethereal 'Sea of Vapours,' 'Teri Bina,' and the ever iconic title song 'Mustt Mustt' (perhaps his single most well known song; literally meaning intoxication) are as powerful and beautiful today as they were when NFAK was alive. Perhaps appropriately enough, the final track on this CD is a remix of 'Mustt Mustt' by Massive Attack, foreshadowing the massive popularity of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and other qawwali singers in the "Asian Underground." But the song doesn't need any remix to bring out a sense of ecstasy and awe at the vastness of the Divine. Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan represented the art of Muslim devotional singing more so than any other artist of our lifetime, and this CD is as good a starting point as any. Just listening to it (and you probably HAVE heard NFAK without knowing it) will make you want to seek out more of his work, even without knowing Urdu, Panjabi or Persian. His voice awakens an echo of the Divine in all of us... June 5, 2008

give this album a break

While I agree that Nusrat unproduced in the raw is the way he was meant to be heard, and anyone who can pick up videos of him performing in Birmingham England at some local center, will be amazed. But this album has its brilliant moments. I think noone can own music and sound, and we love music because we love experimentation and allow artists to interpret and reinterpret styles. I think anyone who thinks that all the music that ever will be has been written , and that everything else is derivative misses the point of creativity. I mean if musicians can come together, so can people of different nations come together in other ways. Artists allow us to bring cultures together, and unite instead of divide. I know thats alot to place on one album, but I believe in pure qawalli and I believe in this blend as well, both are art. So Cheers to the makers of this. You will not be dissapointed. May 4, 2008

The best album to come out of the east...

Fulfilling and wonderfully artistic. will be playing at my b&b at the entrance sound... here at the wonderful black sand beach in hawaii...it is worth buying... peace January 26, 2007

I don't know much about Qawaali art...

i recommend this album for one reason: the song "Nothing Without You" is one of the most beautiful songs i have ever heard

it's hard to tell from the brief sample here on Amazon... but the song is pure beauty

i first heard this song (Nothing Without You) on the local Pacifica radio station some years ago... the sound engineer played it between shows... i was so enthralled by it, i immediately called up the station and asked the engineer what he was playing... i wrote it down and at first opportunity sought it out... i was lucky to find the album at my local Tower records (or did i have to special order it? i can't remember... this was pre-internet)

this is one of the songs that sometimes brings tears to my eyes just from its sheer beauty

(some others: Madame George by Van Morrison, Das Lied von die Erde by Mahler, Unchained Melody by the Righteous Brothers... for comparison, in case you wonder what moves my groove)

your mileage may vary... art, afterall, is a matter of taste...
but... this is a profane song, it's a profane album -- Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan usually sings sacred music... i personally think this is the closest a love song ever comes to rivalling the most sacred of sacred songs, irrespective of religion or belief system... from this one song alone, i consider him to be a holy man July 13, 2005

Nusrat Fans (both Old & New) Must, Must own this album.....

Arguably, one of a handful of musicians from the world music province, that was able to successfully remain a huge star in his nativehome land (Pakistan), and make the successful transition over to the west, and still retain complete credibility and artistic excellence, after having worked on various western musician collaborations, and having his work remixed. (especially the stunning 'Massive Attack' remix of "Mustt Mustt").

A truly exceptional vocalist, who's vocal talents are a combination of Organic, passionate, spiritual, vocal gymnastics, that are at the same time exuberantly confident, yet passionately arousing. As this is the voice of a classically-trained vocalist, that is both grand and sweeping , with a level of grandeur and yearning, that earmarked him as one of the finest vocalists of his generation. Forget the fact that for the vast majority of western ears, the lyrics will all but be impenetrable. What Nusrat does virtually better than most, is convey the feeling of emotion through harmonies, soaring choruses, by which, his complete and utter conviction of his enormous voice, which is one minute husky and trenchant, and as powerful as the most emotive of singers, and then on the next as serene and soulful as any legendary Jazz/ Soul singer you care to mention, is extremely impressive. But even more impressive is the fact that Nusrat is able to emotionally connect with the listener, when there are obviously language barriers, and the sheer euphoric and celebratory tone of some songs, transcend the language difficulties and arguably have nearly as much (if not just as much as) impact, as if he was singing in our own native tongue.

But to not mention the musicianship powering this record, would be as much of a misstep as not highlighting the brilliance of Nusrat's vocal contributions, and although the arrangements may seem slightly restrained or unusually considered in comparison to some of the more beat-heavy world music/Worldbeats artists out there, this is so that ample space is given to Nusrat, to perfrom the sort of soaring vocal gymnastics, for which he is renowned for. Tablas rhythmically complement the music, along with the use of various plucked strings, acoustic guitar, and mandolin, and Just as the musicians mantra-like repetition of the whirling motion deepens the trace of the music, Nusrat himself is able to skillfully intergrate his vocals with his musicians, The mood here is one that passionately encourages meditation, through the use of dancing and chanting. With the almost party atmosphere enhanced, by appearing in a virtually classic form, with tablas and harmonium establishing the harmony and rhythm, male singers swelling around Nusrat's central vocal and using hand claps to drive the tempo, it's jaw-dropping stuff for sure, and although Nusrat is arguably the star of the show here, it's the tremendous support, for his musicians that elevate this performance into 'stunning' territory.

If your new to the delights of Nusrat, and have yet to make a purchase of one of his studio albums, most people (will quite rightly) point you in the direction of this studio album. As to whether it's the best thing he's put his name to, isn't entirely clear, but what is beyond doubt, is that this is the perfect starting point for anyone deciding to enter into his music. Its has the accessibility for newcomers, (along with the "Massive Attack" remix of Mustt Mustt, tagged onto the end of the album), as well as the possibility that some of his best known songs are here (increasing the possibility of you knowing a track or two), and enough distingushed performances all round, to...if not become his best album, certainly ranks alongside his best work. And for anyone else that has a Nusrat album or two and DOESN'T have this in their collection already, well.....your next purchase is right here!!!! July 1, 2005

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