If there’s a most consistently told lie in my life besides “I got this record in a trade” it is that I only collect records from Detroit and Michigan.

Collecting from there is probably 95% true. But I still have my ears perked up for the weird and the unpredictable from any locale.

My daughters are both 25% Arabic and because of that I’ve learned to sing them no less than two Arabic children’s folk songs that, on occasion, can get them to go to sleep.

With that in mind, I want to make sure they are aware and proud of this heritage, so I try to know more about it and expose them to as much of it as filtered through my world.

So with “Habibi Funk” scratching both my constant jones for odd compilations AND my mission for my daughters, all while including my pet name for them (habibi) in the process…SIGN ME UP.

The definition of funk here is a loose translation, but without a doubt, everything here cooks. Spanning the diaspora to include varied locales like Morocco, Lebanon, Egypt, Sudan others, the wide-range is welcome.

Liner notes are insanely well-researched and in-depth. And ALL songs appear to have been licensed direct from the artists or the controlling labels….so there’s some feel good vibes baked in.

I think my main jam here is “Unknown” song by Attarazat Addahabia. It sounds REALLY familiar. The main guitar lick…shit, is that from “London Bridge is Falling Down” or some other deeply imbedded song in my psyche?

If someone can place it, I’ve got a special prize put aside for their troubles.

Also don’t sleep on Fadoul’s “Bsslama Hbibti” which rips in a James Brown and the Famous Flames sort of abandon.

I’ve included play links for both below, but really, the entire album/package is a testament to the hard work the compilers buried into this thing. The rest of the Habibi Funk label also looks incredibly worthy to dig one’s teeth into, so if this whets your whistle…