Big and Live

by Rick AndersonMany bands claim to deal in global fusion music, but few have as firm a claim on the genre as the Suns of Arqa. Led by a mysterious bassist and slide guitarist who goes by the name Wadada, the band has included a huge variety of members from all over the world since its inception in 1979, and served as the backing group for Prince Far I on his last concert performance before his untimely death in 1983. Big & Live documents several recent live performances and shows Wadada and his cohorts in top form, delivering everything from Celtic-reggae fusion "Om Kaaraaya" (on which uillean pipes play over a heavyweight reggae groove) to Asian meditational sounds (the dreamy "Arana") and sounds in between, such as "Majhi Ra", which adds the keening tones of the shenai to the Celtic-reggae mix. There are fine vocal performances by Angel Eye, Reba Bhaduri and Cat Von Trapp, and as a special bonus the album ends with three Nucleus Roots remixes of live tracks from the Prince Far I concert. Some listeners will find this music immediately delightful, while other will probably be mostly puzzled. If you've read this far, then you probably already know which camp you'll fall into. Recommended.