Loops rai algerian derbouka
Despite its title, the music collected here is neither rai's nascent form nor particularly underground. Real "proto-rai" occurred in the 1900s, as Bedouin singers punctuated lyrical improvisation with cries of "rai!" As early as 1920, the style born from Oran's musical stew of Bedouin, Arab, Spanish and French influences had congealed into a genre with the name we recognise today. Thus the 1970s rai collected here was a significant aboveground phenomenon with 50 years of history behind it. By the late Eighties, major world music labels across Europe were releasing rai albums. The first artist on this compilation, Bellemou Messaoud, published a career retrospective album (Le Pere Du Rai) 20 years ago on London's premiere world music label, World Circuit - not much of an underground secret.
