Qareeb

The album was produced by Bunt Stafford Clark and Iain Scott.[6] It was recorded in England, with Najma setting traditional ghazals to her own melodies.[4] Triple Earth envisioned a jazzy recording, while Najma fought to keep the emphasis on her voice and the poetic recitation.[2]

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[7]
Robert Christgau	A−[8]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music	[4]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide	[9]

Robert Christgau wrote that "the overall effect is twofold: gentle culture clash and sheer physical beauty."[8] The New York Times thought that "in [Najma's] lower and middle ranges, she commands the solid aim and tonality of a pop professional, yet she bounds off up the scale like a rock singer who wants to see how far she might go ... Najma's producers are right up-to-date in this era of digitally influenced recorded pop; in strongly etched strokes, they exaggerate the presence of a few instruments rather than accumulate a mesh of many textures."[6]

The Washington Post wrote that "sweetly insinuating tones waft above the lilting electronic keyboards and skipping percussion of the tablas on tracks like 'Neend Koyi'."[10] The Chicago Reader praised Qareeb's "rolling, funky bass, its circular violin figures, and its expressive saxophone," writing that Najma's "incredible" voice "never grew tiresome."[11] The Gazette deemed it "a unique and masterful release."[12]