At one time, Hugh Masekela (who died in January) was the most popular trumpet player in the world, almost single-handedly creating what is now called “World Music” back in the 1960s. Born in South Africa, his music mixed traditional sounds and rhythms from his home, but he infused it into either straight-ahead jazz, soul or pop in such a way that everything he did had a feel of exoticism to it. This three disc set covers his most influential years, and reflects a time when music what stretching its horizons to be more inclusive, as opposed to today.There are essentially three pulls to Mr. Masekela’s recordings. One, with his horn that sounds like he was weaned on Lee Morgan, mixes straight-ahead jazz with dashes of African percussion, as on “Felicidade” “A Night in Tunisia” and “Minawa.” Other times he teams with keyboards and gets into a soul groove not unlike Marvin Gaye as on “You Keep Me Hangin’ On” or “Woza.” Lastly are the pieces in which he sings messages of hope or crying for political change, with pulsating grooves durin g”African Secret Society,” “Colonial Man,” “Coincidence” and “ There Are Seeds to Sow.” He feels comfortable in all three genres, and through all modes he consistently keeps a high level of energy afloat, climaxing during the mega 60s hit “Grazing In the Grass” which may be the last jazz song to hit #1 on the radio. The music rarely sounds dated, which is a marvel for the time, as the African percussionists were light years ahead of what was happening back then. Check this out for a history and music lesson!