Night Song (1996)

After seven centuries of slow refinement, the Sufi music known as Qawwali is being taken on an uncharted ride into the future. Partnered with Michael Brook, a world-music guitarist whose accompaniment is pleasant but extraneous, Pakistani singer Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan nonetheless conjures up mystical reveries on Night Song that seem equal parts sexual bliss and religious ecstasy. Purists may prefer Khan's earlier, more traditional releases, but this is a fine starting place for the uninitiated. B+