Salah Ragab and The Cairo Jazz Band Present Egyptian Jazz - Ramadan In Space Time

Les fusions de jazz et de musiques du moyen-orient ont donné des pièces de belle tenue dans les années 50-60 : les disques d'Ahmed Abdul-Malik, de Mohammed El-Bakkar ; les échappées modales de Yusef Lateef ; les interprétations de John Berberian, Gus Vali, Sonny Lester, qui avait revu et corrigé la belly dance pour les oreilles et la libido du mâle américain. Soit de jolies musiques d'effeuillage, mêlant instruments et mélodies d'origine arabe aux thèmes d'un jazz à dominante cuivrée, très illustratif des temps forts du strip et destiné à mener par paliers la gent masculine vers l'apoplexie.
Avec ce disque de Salah Ragab on a tout d'un coup l'impression de tenir le chaînon manquant entre les exotiqueries orientales filtrées pour le goût des américains et une session de jazz filtrée par le goût des égyptiens, qui en connaissent un rayon. Le Cairo Jazz Band s'avance en section : cinq saxophones, quatre trompettes, quatre trombones, piano, basse, batterie et percussions - du pipi de chat pour Salah Ragab, commandant en chef de la musique militaire de l’Egypte à Heliopolis. Et voilà que ce beau monde se découvre d'inouïs métissages entre le faste instrumental des grands orchestres de swing (Neveen, Mervat) et les sinuosités ancestrales du ney et du piccolo (Egypt strut, Kleopatra) ; entre les choeurs masculins typiques des traditions populaires égyptiennes (Ramadan in space time) et les influences des congas à la manière de Mongo. Un superbe collier de perles de jazz et d'orient !

Ramadan In Space Time (en écoute et chargement via le lien seulement, n'est pas dans le rip : http://www.box.net/shared/njybtnzcos).

A2. Dawn
A3. Neveen
B1. Egypt Strut
B2. Oriental Mood
B3. Kleopatra
B4. Mervat

Salah Ragab formed the first jazz big band in Egypt {The Cairo Jazz Band} in 1968, he was also the leader of the Military Music Departments in Heliopolis, some of the best musicians in Egypt of that time were members of the band such as {Zaki Osman, Trumpet} - {Saied Salama, Tenor Sax} - {Khamis El -Kholy, Piano} - {Ala Mostafa, Piano}. On this recording The Band consists of five Saxophones, four Trumpets, four Trombones, Piano, Bass, Drums and Percussion.

The opening concert of The Cairo Jazz Band was in Ewart Memorial Hall at The American University 23/02/1968, There were many other concerts in various prestigious places such as the Old Opera House, The University of Alexandria and appearances on Egyptian T,V Jazz Club Weekly. Salah Ragab accompanied the great band leader and composer Sun Ra on a Tour in Egypt, Greece, France and Spain in 1984. He also studied jazz theories and improvisation with the Jazz musician and composer from Kansas City -USA, Osman Kareem, with whom he formed the first Jazz Quintet in Cairo in 1963 recording with the Radio Service of Cairo. He gave a series of educational lectures about Jazz History at the German Culture "Goethe Institute", plus writing the only jazz book in Arabic "Jazz Music The Roots and Future".

These recordings present Salah Ragab and The Cairo Jazz Band's definitive work, recorded in Heliopolis Egypt between 1968 and 1973. Western Jazz musicians have been fascinated with the world of Islam for many years, for religious - spiritual, musical and sociological reasons. It was therefore inevitable that musicians of the Arabian North African area would play a part in the interaction of these two Musical Cultures. The compositions correspond to the cross over of musical styles at the time of the recording, 5000 miles away across the Mediterranean and Atlantic in New York with releases on Moodsville by Yusef Lateef and RCA by Ahmud Abdul-Malik.