Mondo Melodia marches on in its fearless campaign to reveal the beauty and boogie of Arabic-language pop music to Americans awash in negative stereotypes from this part of the world. This compilation offers a friendly and at times scintillating primer in mainstream pop and experimental collaborations from mostly Arabic-speaking musicians in Algeria, Egypt, Lebanon, Tunisia, Iran, and Turkey.

Egyptian shaabi star Hakim kicks off with a playful, reggae-tinged duet with Merengue singer Olga Tañón. Among the many rai tracks--perhaps the best material here--we get Rachid Taha's smoldering, rock-inspired "En Retard," also "Baida," a beautiful ballad from honey-throated Cheb Mami suffused with hints of Spanish and Celtic music, and Khaled's moody remake of "Trigue Lycee," a song he wrote when he was 14, playing hookie and ogling girls back in Oran, Algeria.

The more brazen plays for the crossover market are the least satisfying tracks here. "Take Me I'm Yours" finds Glenn Tilbrook and Chris Difford (formerly of Squeeze) teaming up with Latifa of Tunisia for a jaunty, but also goofy, romp across the desert. And Arkansas-born Shãni's disco turn with "Call of the Wild" is exactly the sort of thing that gives Arabic pop a bad name with the world music crowd. Nawal as Zoughbi fares better with "Bain Albareh Wa Al Yom." While the beat feels simplified and a little flat, we do get beautifully nuanced singing, and the characteristic interplay between a bowed string section and hand percussion. Zoughbi, by the way, is a huge seller in the Arabic-speaking world.

"Yalla Ya Chabab"--a collaboration between Lebanese singer Ragheb Alam, Iranian multi-instrumentalist Andy, and American rock guitarist Steve Stevens--plays like the Gypsy Kings with Arabic vocals. Fun, but fluffy. More fun is an energized track called "Istanboogie" from Oojami, a London based electro-belly dance groove outfit led by Turkish-born composer Necmi.

Notably missing from this compilation is any music from the indigenous Berber people of North Africa, or any of the great Gnawa-derived pop emanating from Morocco. This is too bad, as it represents such a great missed opportunity. We could have easily foregone "The Merciful One," a sleepy contribution from British duo Zohar in favor of a track from German-based Moroccan Houssaine Kili, the brightest desert rose this reviewer has heard in the past year. We'll be waiting for the sound of the Atlas mountains on Desert Roses 3…

Contributed by: Banning Eyre