He’s truly a man of the world

It’s after midnight in London, but Chris Blackwell’s voice is full of enthusiasm. He has a new project and he’s eager to discuss it.

“I’m always up late, working,” he says over the phone. “And this is something I’m really excited about.”

“This” is “Vedic Path,” the first release in a series of CD and DVD world music packages developed for Palm World Voices, a new partnership between Blackwell’s Palm Pictures label and Universal Music Enterprises.

When Blackwell is enthused, it’s wise to pay attention. For nearly 50 years he has been on the cutting edge of music. The list of artists the 68-year-old exec nurtured at his former label Island Records includes Bob Marley, Cat Stevens, U2, Traffic and Roxy Music, and he practically created the world-music genre by helping make Marley an international star. He sees world music as an idea whose time has come.

“I feel that there’s a lot of interest in -- to use a sort of overused word -- organic-type products, whatever they may be,” he says. “All of which goes with the wellness movement, the yoga movement, the proliferation of spas, etc. And world music in general, which doesn’t have a lot of processed music, is much more organic and natural. To me, it feels like the right music for this kind of movement.”

The “Vedic Path” package includes a 40-page illustrated cultural history of India and a custom map made by National Geographic displaying its cultural, spiritual and sociological aspects. “The DVD is really a visual CD,” says Blackwell, “with images designed to be ambient visuals, as if you’re standing in one of the locations where the music comes from.”

The locations in “Vedic Path,” range from the mountains of northeast India to the streets of Calcutta. The music is similarly far-reaching, embracing a Ravi Shankar orchestral piece, the tender duets of Buddhist nun Choying Drolma and Minnesota guitarist Steve Tibbetts, Indian singer Sheila Chandra’s atmospheric sounds and the lovely musical interplay between sarod player Ali Akbar Khan and singer Asha Bhosle. The combination of visuals and music is stunning, a lyrical blend of gripping images and warm, enveloping sounds.

His plans for future Palm World Voices releases are based on his belief that the “right music” for the organic movement is music that is largely acoustic and meditative, “not geared to be played on hit radio, although it certainly is music that can be played on NPR.”

Blackwell feels that the Palm World Voices series can reach an audience that has been ignored lately.

“I think that after people are 35, 45 and beyond, they’re looking for something more than what they’ve been hearing -- whether it’s rock music or rap music,” he says. “There is an interest in seeing what else is going on out there.

“But I also think that if you’re going to market anything to this demographic, you have to package it beautifully, make it something that you’re proud to give someone as a gift. That’s an approach that pretty much disappeared when we left the 12-inch record behind, and it’s something that we’re trying to revive with Palm World Voices.”

If “Vedic Path” is a solid example of what’s to come in future releases -- which will be issued at the rate of one per month -- then Blackwell is firmly on the path toward his goal.

“I love world music,” he concluded, his enthusiasm undiminished as the hour grew later. “And I’m convinced that there’s a market for this, a time for this kind of music. But what I really want is for our CDs and DVDs to take people to other places and, when they finish, to want to play them all over again.”