This is the first in a series of Spotify playlists I've put together.  The content is influenced by my personal listening, which ranges from folkloric drumming to salsa and samba to nu world club.  Heavy on the Brazil and Carribean, but not to the exclusion of other palm-tree cultures.  The first is a link to the entire playlist, and then personal notes for each song below.

Yes, you'll need Spotify, which is unfortunately only currently available in Europe.

I don't know about you, but when people mention Western European folk music, I am unfortunately quick to judge and assume it's not going to be of my liking.  But then I'd never heard Lo Còr de la Plana (links to MySpace....), a group of guys out of Marseilles who sing in the traditional southern French language of "Oc" (from whence "Occitane").

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p>I came across this at a recommendation of a friend online, and I've been hooked ever since - Radio Nova, a French radio station that also broadcasts online.  At first I thought it was a station geared towards France's African diasporic population, because there's a heavy rotation of soul, hip-hop, rnb, etc.  And they call themselves "Radio Métisse."  But it's in no way recognizable to U.S.