Biography
Eclectic world music ensemble Brothers of the Baladi fuse traditional Middle Eastern sounds with wide-ranging international influences and elements of contemporary Western pop, rock, and jazz, cultivating a worldwide audience through their thoughtful, fervent performances. Percussionist and vocalist Michael Beach launched the outfit in 1975 while employed as a schoolteacher in Yuma, Arizona; he had befriended local belly dancer Zamara and assembled local players Colby Whipple, Peter Tilley, and Josh Mertz to back her shows. Beach’s deepening engagement with Middle Eastern music intensified after he jammed with renowned Latin jazz artist David Amram at the 1978 Vancouver Folk Festival and attended a concert by the Middle Eastern rock ensemble Sirocco.
Upon moving to Portland, Oregon, Beach connected with kindred multi-instrumentalist Joseph Pusey; together they revived the Brothers of the Baladi name for their partnership. The group toured widely across the United States and Canada before issuing their debut album, Dance with Gladness, in 1982. Bass guitarist J. Michael Kearsey entered the lineup in 1989; although Pusey departed in 1991, Middle Eastern musicians Ishmael and Boujemma Razgui came aboard as the ensemble shifted further from conventional belly-dance repertoire toward broader international fusions. Beach issued the instructional video Basic Middle Eastern Rhythms in 1992, and in 1995 former Santana percussionist Michael Shrieve produced the album Eye of the World, which contained several original pieces plus the Brothers’ distinctive treatment of the Rolling Stones’ “Paint It Black” and introduced new members Attillo and Tariq Banzi after Ishmael and Razgui exited.
Heart of the Beast, released in 1998, presented another unconventional rock cover—this time the Yardbirds’ “Over Under Sideways Down”—and welcomed keyboardist Geoff George, while the following year brought the holiday collection A Time of Peace. On 2002’s Hope the Brothers demonstrated their command of multiple languages by recording in several Middle Eastern tongues plus English—the members collectively speak seven—and included guest appearances by Sulieman Feldthouse of the pioneering psychedelic ensemble Kaleidoscope. Beach issued the solo project Hands of a Thousand Dances in 2003; the full group reassembled in 2005 for Presence of the Past, an exploration of traditional Arabic, Turkish, and Armenian styles. Their expansive rock-and-world-music synthesis resurfaced on 2008’s Just Do What’s Right, which mixed covers of songs by Buffalo Springfield, Chris Rea, and Neil Young with politically charged originals and marked George’s final album as a core member. As of 2011 the official roster comprised Beach on vocals, percussion, and wind instruments; Kearsey on bass, percussion, and vocals; Clark Salisbury on guitar, oud, saz, and vocals; and Fred Ingram on drum kit. Dance with Gladness reached listeners again in 2012.
Upon moving to Portland, Oregon, Beach connected with kindred multi-instrumentalist Joseph Pusey; together they revived the Brothers of the Baladi name for their partnership. The group toured widely across the United States and Canada before issuing their debut album, Dance with Gladness, in 1982. Bass guitarist J. Michael Kearsey entered the lineup in 1989; although Pusey departed in 1991, Middle Eastern musicians Ishmael and Boujemma Razgui came aboard as the ensemble shifted further from conventional belly-dance repertoire toward broader international fusions. Beach issued the instructional video Basic Middle Eastern Rhythms in 1992, and in 1995 former Santana percussionist Michael Shrieve produced the album Eye of the World, which contained several original pieces plus the Brothers’ distinctive treatment of the Rolling Stones’ “Paint It Black” and introduced new members Attillo and Tariq Banzi after Ishmael and Razgui exited.
Heart of the Beast, released in 1998, presented another unconventional rock cover—this time the Yardbirds’ “Over Under Sideways Down”—and welcomed keyboardist Geoff George, while the following year brought the holiday collection A Time of Peace. On 2002’s Hope the Brothers demonstrated their command of multiple languages by recording in several Middle Eastern tongues plus English—the members collectively speak seven—and included guest appearances by Sulieman Feldthouse of the pioneering psychedelic ensemble Kaleidoscope. Beach issued the solo project Hands of a Thousand Dances in 2003; the full group reassembled in 2005 for Presence of the Past, an exploration of traditional Arabic, Turkish, and Armenian styles. Their expansive rock-and-world-music synthesis resurfaced on 2008’s Just Do What’s Right, which mixed covers of songs by Buffalo Springfield, Chris Rea, and Neil Young with politically charged originals and marked George’s final album as a core member. As of 2011 the official roster comprised Beach on vocals, percussion, and wind instruments; Kearsey on bass, percussion, and vocals; Clark Salisbury on guitar, oud, saz, and vocals; and Fred Ingram on drum kit. Dance with Gladness reached listeners again in 2012.
Albums
