In Brief: : *** 1/2 JOHNNY CLEGG & SAVUKA, “Cruel, Crazy, Beautiful World,” Capitol; <i> Albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor) to five (a classic).</i>

Like Australia’s Midnight Oil, these world-beat veterans anchor their music to specifics of a continent that is foreign to most Westerners. But you needn’t be versed in the politics of apartheid to understand the integrated South African band’s basic message: It’s spoken eloquently in a joyous union of catchy Western pop melodies, seductive Afro-pop rhythms and haunting Zulu chants.