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their fans to a preview of their soon-to-be-released new album, as well as old favourites. Donna Simpson had everyone in stitches by forgetting the words to the big hit London Still', and came in for plenty of stick the following night so she got the audience to sing it. Circle Of Rhythm, was without Greg Sheehan, whose lady had just given birth, but Ben Walsh and Bobby Singh handled their rhythm making with aplomb, and involved guest sitarist Sarangan Sriranganathan plus multi-instrumentalist Matt Ostila. The Backsliders cranked out some fine bluesy tunes, while Deborah Conway & Willy Zygier shone with sharp lyrical numbers and tasteful guitar-work. Introducing his new band Lior regaled his devoted youthful crowd with sensitive Middle Eastern flavoured songs. Adelaide's Emily Davis & The Sunday Brides and Sweet Baby James & Rob Eyers were well received at their premier appearances at WOMADelaide, with low-key but proficient sets. Augie March took the Main Stage with professional ease, carving out sophisticated melodies around Glenn Richards' evocative words. San Lazaro is a Melbourne-based 9-piece Cuban style group which fused hip hop with cumbia and featured power percussion with a sexy horn section. Greek-Australian Rebetiki have been together for over two decades and played the Hellenic blues' with the comfort of long association.

Women singers were a major highlight and included South Africa's Mahotella Queens, Asha Bhosle of India, Emma Donovan and Emily Davis representing Australia, diminutive Mexican-American Lila Downs, Spanish-Jewish diva Yasmin Levy and the exotic Mozambique-Portuguese Mariza. The latter three displayed their various mixed heritage and educated as well as entertained with languages and songs in danger of being lost. Lila Downs with her waist-length pig-tails and short skirt looked childlike as she delighted all with earthy songs about love, food and the mystical mescal. Yasmin Levy was intriguing as she performed Ladino, an ancient song-style repertoire collected by her father and her own take on flamenco. Latin diva Mariza loomed tall and elegantly thin as she broke the static, moody Fado tradition and skipped across the boards, her voice a passionate cry. "The grooviest grannies in the world" was how Stage One MC and WOMAD artistic director, Thomas Brooman introduced the Mahotella Queens trio, much to the amusement of singer Hilda Tloubatla. At WOMADelaide 1993 they performed their energetic and vibrant show, and despite each being

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