His Imperial Majesty Haile Selassie I Emperor of Ethiopia speaks on the role of the United Nations in international peacekeeping, 1963.

Chuck Foster blasts off to the Dub Side of the Moon, the latest in the long tradition of reggae covers of pop music; then checks out new releases from Israel Vibration, Third World, Jah Cure, LMS, Buju Banton, Junior Kelly, Ghetto Priest, U Brown, Don Carlos and Sizzla; reissues and compilations from the Jah Warrior, Bob Marley and the Wailers, Augustus Pablo, Prince Allah, Cornell Campbell, Johnny Clarke, a fistful of dub and ska albums and much more.

Bob Tarte is reduced to life in the slow lane when power goes out on the farm during an ice storm. Saved by a balky generator, he indulges with high-tech offerings from Gigi, Marc Minelli and Mamani Keita and Pharoah Sanders. Finland's Värttinä and Wimme, Corsica's I Muvrini and Juan de Marcos Afro Cuban Allstars all join the party.

Mr. Music celebrates the longstanding tradition of the greatest groovers of all time, among them Cuba's Los Van Van, as evidenced by their live album En el Malecon de la Habana. An out-of-body experience in an underground club leads him to Los Hombres Calientes' exploration of international musical hotspots; Vinicius de Moraes, Osvaldo Chacón and Indestructible Arabian Beats all take a turn on the dance floor.

Drummers Horacio "El Negro" Hernandez and Robby Ameenā's record, El Negro and Robby at the Third World War, is a timely and innovative plea for peace, love and understanding. On the Afro-Cuban jazz tip, Juan Pablo Torres has released two albums, Afrocuban Trombone and Cuban Dreams: A Reunion. Recent releases by Los Van Van, Luis Valle, Ibrahim Ferrer, Oscar D'Leon, Matahambre Son, Estrellas de Envidia and Nestor Torres are spun.

Martin Sinnock comments on Papa Wemba's arrest in France for violating immigration laws, hails Zaiko Langa Langa's fine new release Eureka, and touches on offerings from Victoria Eleison, Josky Kiambukuta and Bozi Boziana.

A Different Thing from Turbulence, new albums from Wayne Wonder, Sizzla, Ghetto Priest, Nahki and Sidestepper, plus a trailer-load of dancehall compilations.

Stephen Davis remarks upon Bob Marley's omnipresence in the Arab street; discusses Helene Lee's book, The First Rasta, the story of Leonard Howell and the beginnings of Rastafarianism in Jamaica; new Gnawa/Israeli fusion from San Francisco's Hamsa Lila and Algerian singer Souad Massi's second release.

Babatunde Olatunji, by Janet Planet

Andre Tanker, by Steven Seftel

Roger Steffens pays tribute to the passing of Babatunde Olatunji and Nina Simone, and notes the recent achievements of Doug "Midnight Dread" Wendt.

Steve Heilig hails the return of King Sunny Ade's 1980s classic Synchro Series, along with West African sounds from Najite, Amadou and Mariam and Super Mama Djombo, and new releases from other parts of the continent by Sam Mangwana, Gigi, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Miriam Makeba and Dorothy Masuka. Heading to Brazil, he discovers Jorge Benjor's Definitive Collection and Marisa Monte's Tribalistas, and then he's off to Jamaica for some new and reissued sounds from the Skatalites, Augustus Pablo, Lee Perry, U Brown and Ghetto Priest.

New film City of God (Cidade de Deus) depicts the harsh life in the favelas of Rio, and the soundtrack reflects the music of the '60s and '70s in which it is set. New releases by Marisa Monte's Tribalistas, and Puerto Rican-Brazilian band Bayanga are recommended.

Bob Marley and the Wailers, Greatest Hits at Studio One, by Mark Gorney

The Rough Guide to Ska and the Skatalites, From Paris With Love, by Norman Weinstein

Barry Chevannes, Reves D'Oasis: Desert Blues 2, by Derek Rath

Black Op, by Roger Steffens

Jane Bunnett, Cuban Odyssey cd and DVD, by Norman Weinstein

Tony Allen, Home Cooking, by Derek Rath

Wild Dub: Dread Meets Punk Rocker Downtown, by Robert Nelson