LJUBA DAVIS LADINO ENSEMBLE - Described as World Beat and Mediterranean music, East And West features the sound of singer-songwriter Ljuba Davis. Exploring the roots of early Jewish music, Ms. Davis remembers the words of her paternal grandmother that, ‘Never forget that your family are Sephardim. That you came from Spain.’ That music which explores that “Ladino” roots of Sephardic music and melodies, both secular and liturgical, are explored on the double CD set called East And West. The release is a double CD set divided into two halves, both with Ljuba’s Spanish and Hebrew language vocals and a second CD, without her voice and with occasional male backing vocals, that's primarily instrumental. East And West combines for an album of her uniquely heartfelt renditions and the stunning melodies of the Ladino tradition. In addition to the Middle Eastern vibe, some of the music here also evokes the time honored Klezmer music sound. For her ensemble, Ms. Davis has assembled a wide mix of World Beat musicians, including players from Greece, Israel, Egypt, Morocco and Brooklyn. The work of guitarist Nadav Lev, on Spanish guitar, is quite interesting as is the way he interacts with the excellent musicians taking part in this cross-continental musical experiment. Commenting on such a diverse group of musicians, Ms. Davis adds, ‘What brought us together was the music.’ Exotic sounding World Beat music, East And West is superbly packaged in a most appealing CD artwork / layout.