This came out in 2000 – or at least that’s when I got it. Here’s what I said about it back then (with some minor editing):
If we really do live in a global village, than hip-hop is the true world music.
In little more than a decade, the sounds, styles and stances of African-American musical culture have spread across the planet, cross-pollinating with every genre of sound from Indian sitars to acoustic guitars. This wide-ranging and ever-expanding sound is documented on Phat Global #1, album tracks and remixes from Chris Blackwell’s Palm Pictures label. Think of it as a travelogue to the hip-hop world — from the Bollywood-meets-Beastie-Boys vibe of Indian Ropeman to Sly and Robbie’s deep-dish dub-reggae, from the French rap of Cheb Mami to the South American folk of Manu Chao, each of these exotic tracks dances to the beat of a funky drummer. Turns out it’s a phat world after all.
