Various ArtistsThe Rough Guide to Bhangra Review

The Rough Guide brand is known and loved for providing accessible information on a wide range of topics, and is responsible for the compilation of several entry-level collections of world music. This bhangra offering, however, is more than a little rough, and doesn’t quite live up to the colourful history of the British-born, Punjabi-influenced musical style.

Of the 14 tracks, standout numbers are provided courtesy of Tigerstyle, KS Bhamrah, Partners in Rhyme, Achanak and Khiza. Tigerstyle’s Bol! Bol! Bol! should probably have been the album opener, providing as it does classic bhangra energy packaged in a truly unique way.

The remaining songs all seem to fall a little short of the mark in comparison, and there are evident gaps. It may seem cliché, but Panjabi MC’s Mundiyan To Bach Ke effectively broke the mould when it broke through to mainstream playlists in 2002, and has continued to reappear since. The use of Boliyan over such an iconic track makes little sense, especially when the same melody is used in Bol! Bol! Bol! to much better effect.

Other glaring omissions include the much-acclaimed Gurdas Maan, and Malkit Singh, who was made an MBE in 2008 for his contributions to Punjabi music. To a lesser extent, there is also no inclusion of B21, who were a distinctive phenomenon on the bhangra scene in the late 1990s.

Naseebo Lal’s Meri Changi Taran is impressive, but comes across as too long and lyrically focussed for an album that is essentially targeted at bhangra novices who (without making too many assumptions) are unlikely to be Punjabi-speakers. There is the unusual inclusion of Niraj Chag’s Bangles, which feels a little out of place in the context of the rest of the album. If, however, it was intended as an example of an alternative direction for Punjabi musical influences then there couldn't be a more sublime choice.

A bonus CD by Achanak – leaders in shaping the UK bhangra scene – is a great collection of their 20-year history but perhaps there may have been more imagination in making this a true double album, collecting together some of the best in bhangra over that time.

Although this is a fairly competent collection for the novice listener, there are many other options available, and The Rough Guide to Bhangra rather unfortunately falls short of being a definitive introduction to this expansive and exciting genre of music.