This is one of the most underrated music documentary of all time. I first saw this movie randomly on the TCM (Turner Classic Movies) channel in the United States and it blew me away. I knew a little about Moroccan music and gnawa, but this group Nass El Ghiwane is something special. They are the forerunners of interpreting Moroccan folk music in the post-independence era. This documentary tracks this group in 1981 and gives an overview of their history and influences. The film balances the narratives of their background with their musical selections.
Nass El Ghiwane broke with traditional Arabic music popular at the time in North Africa and went for a combination of more traditional Moroccan music which is based in Berber and Sub-Saharan African culture and they symbolized this by using all Moroccan instruments and replacing that key Arab instrument–the oud–with that key African instrument: the banjo. They also included Sufism in their music in a big way that contemporary groups at that time rarely did. Their shows also were a way for folks to vent their grievances with Moroccan society and the government at that time and their lyrics summed up the general mood very matter-of-factly. If Moroccan or African music is not your thing than, you don't have a reason to watch this. But if you like those genres, this movie is required viewing.
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