Middle Eastern, North African music these days?

Have fun Inna.

Let us know how you make out.

Some really fine suggestions here.

Abdel Gadir Salim and Abdel Aziz El Mubarak from Sudan are really good.

Not North African, but Gigi from Ethiopia is terrific. Her debut album from 2001 is my favorite of hers.

Check Amazon to listen to samples.

I've been listening to African music for many years and there is still so much I have not heard. Some of the first music from there I heard was Osibisa, back when I was in college...

RX8man, I really like the Cheb Khaled & Safy Boutella Kutche album. I've had it for a long time.... on vinyl!

Really good stuff. Anyone have a top ten, top five, or favorite African recordings list? I'll list some in addition to a few I named above:

Senegal: Baaba Maal & Mansour Seck - Djam Leelii - a must have.
Eqypt: Compilation - Yalla! Hitlist Eqypt
Mali: Nahawa Doumbia - Didadi
Tanzania: Remmy Ongala - Songs for the Poor Man
Nigeria: Fela - a few of his singles
- Upside Down
- Zombie
- Just Like That
S. Africa: Mahlathini & The Mahotella Queens - Paris-Soweto
Benin: Angelique Kidjo - Logozo
Senegal: Orchetra Baobab - Pirate's Choice
S. Africa: Compilation - The Indestructable Beat of Soweto

This is cheating since they are from Spain, but North African influenced:
Radio Tarifa - Rumba Argelina & also Fiebre, their live album.

Lots of very good compilations on the Rough Trade label.
Afropop Worldwide is a also a great resource: http://www.afropop.org/

That would be Egypt, as opposed to Eqypt that I seem to want to keep typing...:^)

I have about half of the ones I listed on vinyl, but I got these quite a while ago. You can get some new and used copies of some of these on vinyl at Amazon as well as CD and MP3.

Tinawiren is a good call.