Tag Archives: Arab music
My All Time Favourite International Songs (9): Kalimat (Words) by Majida el Roumi (Arabic)
Majida el Roumi (Arabic: ماجدة الرومي‎) is one of the most famous Arabic singers of the modern day. She was born in Kfarshima, Lebanon, on December 13, 1956. Her song Kalimat (words) is her trademark song. This song is sung so elegently and the meaning of the lyrics is also so romantic. Kalimat is written by the legendary Syrian poet Nizar Qabbani. Kalimat, which was reelased in 1991 was her first pan-Arab hit.
Translation:
ماجدة الرومي – كلمات (Majida el-Roumi – Words)
ÙŠÙسمعني.. Øـينَ يراقصÙني
Yosmi3oni 7ina yoraqisoni
He tells me,When he dances with me
كلمات٠ليست كالكلمات
Kalimatin laisat kal-kalimat
Words that aren’t like words
يأخذني من تØـت٠ذراعي
Ya2khothoni min ta7ti thira3i
He takes me underneath my arm
يزرعني ÙÙŠ Ø¥Øدى الغيمات
Yazra3oni fi a7dal ghaimat
And plants me in a cloud
والمطـر٠الأسـود٠ÙÙŠ عيني
Wal-matarol aswado fi 3aini
And the black rain in my eye
يتساقـط٠زخاتÙ.. زخات
Yatasaqato zakhatin zakhat
Pours down… pours
ÙŠØملـني معـهÙ.. ÙŠØملـني
Ya7miloni ma3aho ya7miloni
He carries me with him… he carries me
لمسـاء٠وردي٠الشÙـرÙـات
Li masa2in wardi shorofat
To a night on a rose-filled terrace
وأنا.. كالطÙلـة٠ÙÙŠ يـدهÙ
Wa ana kal-tiflati fi yadihi
And I am like a child in his hand
كالريشة٠تØملها النسمـات
Kal-rishati ta7milohal nasamat
Like a feather carried on the breeze
يهديني شمسـاً.. يهـديني صيÙاً
Yohdini shamsan ..yohdini saifan
He gives me a sun… he gives me a summer
وقطيـعَ سنونوَّات
Wa qate3a snownowat
and a flock of swallows
يخـبرني.. أني تØÙتـهÙ
Yokhbironi anni to7fatoho
He tells me… that I am his masterpiece
وأساوي آلاÙÙŽ النجمات
Wa osawi alafa najmat
And I am equal to thousands of stars
Ùˆ بأنـي كنـزٌ… وبأني
Wa bi anni kanzon wa bi anni
And that I am a treasure… and that I am
أجمل٠ما شاهدَ من لوØات
Ajmalo ma shahada min law7at
More beautiful than any painting he’d ever seen
كلمات كلمات كلمات
Kalimat kalimat kalimat
Words words words
يروي أشيـاءَ تدوخـني
Yarwi ashya2a todawikhoni
He tells me things that make me giddy
تنسيني المرقصَ والخطوات
Tonseni al-marqasa wal-khatawat
That make me forget the dance hall and the steps
كلمات٠تقلـب٠تاريخي
Kalimatin taqlibo tarekhi
Words that upturn my history
تجعلني امرأةً ÙÙŠ Ù„Øظـات
Taj3aloni imra2atan fi la7athat
That make me a woman in seconds
يبني لي قصـراً من وهـمÙ
Yabnili qasran min wahmin
He’s builds me a castle of illusion
لا أسكن٠Ùيه٠سوى Ù„Øظات
La askono fihi siwa la7athat
I don’t live in it except for a few moments
وأعودÙ.. أعود٠لطـاولـتي
Wa a3oudo li tawilati
And I return, I return to my table
لا شيءَ معي.. إلا كلماتْ
La shai2a ma3i illa kalimat
With nothing with me… except words
كلمات٠ليست كالكلمات
Kalimatin laisat kal-kalimat
Words that aren’t like words
My All Time Favourite International Songs (8): “Elsood Eyouno” by Mustafa Amar (Arabic)
Mustafa Amar (or Qamar) is a famous Egyptian singer. His song “Elsood Eyouno” (black eyes) is one of his hit songs.
Translation:
Black Eyes
can’t handel her love or her pain or her fire
god forgive her (x2)
her black eyes her black eyes
her black eyes melted me
and her love mad me tired
and the nights kept me up what can i do
i will give her everything expensive i even steal the stars from the sky
that’s it she is wirtten for me what can i do
iwoke up with the pain air
and what throw me to love air
can’t handel her love or her pain or her fire
god forgive her (x2)
her cheeks are like grabes if i come closer i have to buy
if i come closer to her will she give me to drink
i left her and she called me and i came bake why why
iam diying for her eyes and this beautiful women is draving me carzy
her black eyes her black eyes
her black eyes melted me
and her love mad me tired
and the nights kept me up what can i do
My All Time Favourite International Songs (7): “Didi” by Khaled (Arabic)
“Didi” is one of the most famous songs of the Algerian singer Khalid. Khaled Hadj Ibrahim (Arabic: خالد Øاج ابراهيم, born 29 February 1960), better known as Khaled, is a raï singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist born in Sidi El Houari in Oran Province of Algeria. He began recording in his early teens under the name Cheb Khaled (Arabic for “Young man Khaled”) and has become the most internationally famous Algerian singer in the Arab Worldand across many continents. His popularity has earned him the unofficial title “King of Raï”.
Did is his signature song and became extremely popular in the Arabic-speaking countries and also in several other countries, including Indiaand Pakistan. The song was used also used in a Bollywoodfilm titled Shreeman Aashiq. He also performed the song “Didi” at the opening ceremony of the 2010 FIFA World cup.
Translation of the lyrics of Didi
ena bhar aaliya ou entia la
(I’m burning in the fire of love but you’re not)
ma ndeerik ba’eeda ma nebki aalik
(I will not make you away from me so I don’t cry later i.e. he wants to be always close from her)
la zhar la memoon la aargoob zine
(but I just have a bad luck and destiny)
CHORUS:
didi, didi, didi, didi, zin di wah
(take take, take take, take take, take take the beautiful girl away)
didi wah, didi, didi di hazzine daaayyeeeah
(take take, take take, take take take this beautiful girl away)
ma ndeerik ba’eeda ma nebki aalik
(I will not make you away from me so I don’t cry later)
ma ndeerik ba’eeda ma nsaksi aalik
(I will not make you away from me so I don’t ask about you later i.e. because she’ll always be close from him he’ll know everything about her and won’t need to ask people about her)
la zhar la memoon la aargoob zine
(but I just have bad luck and destiny)
[CHORUS]
la baadouk aali l’jbal l’ghamqa
(even if they take you to the top of the highest mountain…)
derna l’melqa fil’jbal l’ghamqa
(I will still come to see you)
hzamt l’meryoula aala men darga?
(This literally means “who doesn’t know her belt?”. It’s a metaphor that means “everybody knows her” or possibly means that she’s known well by other men because she always hangs in bars, or maybe he’s just saying “just like a woman that hangs in bars is known very well to other men, it’s also very clear how I feel towards you (e.g. I love you)”. This last one makes more sense to me and it’s probably what Khaled is trying to say)
[CHORUS]
la zhar la memoon la aargoob zain
(I have a bad luck and destiny)
la zhar la memoon la qassam zain
(I have a bad luck and destiny)
qees el-shebka fil’bhar ou ebki aal’zhar
(drop the fishing net in the sea and cry on the bad luck — this is another metaphor, he’s describing his bad luck just like a fisherman who drops his fishing net in the sea and gets no fish)
[CHORUS]
hzamt l’meryoula aala men darga?
(who doesn’t knokw her belt? (explained above)
rofd ahta ya moul el-taxi
(he’s talking to the taxi driver but I’m not sure what he means by “rofd ahta”)
hzamt l’meryoula khait spylo
(her belt is made of “spylo”)
[CHORUS]
la zhar la memoon la aargoob zain
(I have a bad luck and destiny)
la zhar la memoon la qassam zine
(I have a bad luck and destiny)
qees el-shebka fil’bhar ou ebki aal’zhar
(drop the fishing net in the sea and cry on the bad luck)
[CHORUS]
aynik ki ayni aynik naymeen
(your eyes are sleepy — he’s describing her eyes, he says that they’re not wide open, they’re opened a little bit only. This is a sign of beauty (for him at least)
aynik ki ayni aynik mbalgeen
(your eyes are nice)
aynik ki ayni aynik shabbeen
(your eyes are beautiful)
[CHORUS]
derna el-melqa fil’jbal l’ghamqa
(I’ll come to see even if you’re on the top of the highest mountain)
derna el-melqa aand el-soosi jarha
(or I’ll come to see you in the neighborhood (i.e. wherever she is, he’ll do anything to see her)
rofd ahta aa moul el-taxi
(he’s talking to the taxi driver, but again, I don’t know what he means by “rofd ahta”)
My All Time Favourite International Songs (6): “Bitlomoni Leih” by Abdel Halim Hafiz (Arabic)
The song Bitlomoni Leih (Why do you blame me?) by Abdel Halim Hafiz is a breathtakingly romantic song. He is considered to be one of the Great Four of Arabic music (along with Umm Kuthum, Mohamed Abdel Wahab, and Farid Al Attrach). is known as el-Andaleeb el-Asmar (The Great Dark-Skinned Nightingale, Arabic: العندليب الأسمر‎). His music is still played daily throughout the Arab World. His way of singing, the popularity of his songs and his behavior made him a role model for almost every modern Arab singer.Halim is still remembered in the hearts of many people, even years after his death. The two composers Mohamed Abdel Wahab and Mohamed Al-Mougy both said, “Halim is the smartest person I ever knew”. Mohammed Al-Mougy also added, “Halim is very original in all of his work”. Abdel Halim died of liver failure on March 30, 1977 (few months before his 48th birthday) while undergoing treatment for Bilharzia in King’s College Hospital, London. His death brought sadness and shock waves to the entire Arab world as a result, His funeral (in Cairo) was attended by millions of people – more than any funeral in Middle East history other than that of President Gamal Abdel Nasser. He had many more dreams and goals that he wanted to achieve and surpass and could have, but his early death stopped him.
Also some people committed suicide once they heard Halim has died. It is reported that at least four women has committed suicide by jumping off the balcony during his huge funeral march. He was buried in Al Rifa’i Mosque (مسجد الرÙاعي) in Cairo. Abdel Halim Hafez’s song Khosara (خسارة) received notice in the Western world in 1999 when producer Timberland used elements from it for Jay Z’s recording ” Big Pimpin.” Two complete bars from “Khosara” were rerecorded, not sampled, and used without permission from the song’s producer and copyright holder, Magdi el-Amroussi. Jay-Z’s use of an interpolation, rather than an actual sample, may allow him to avoid paying royalties for the use of the song. Over 300 of his songs were recorded and he starred in sixteen classic films, including “Dalilah” (دليله), which was the Middle East’s first color motion picture.
Translation of this song:
My All Time Favourite International Songs (5): “Nour El Ain” by Amr Diab (Arabic)
The famous song “Nour El Ain’ (light of the eye) by the famous Egyptian singer Amr Diab is very nice. Amr Diab has sold over 50 million albums worldwide. He is currently the top singer in the Arab world, and considered a living legend by many of his fans in the Arab world.
Amr Diab is known as the Father of Mediterranean Music. He has created his own style which is often termed “Mediterranean Music” or “Mediterranean Sound”, a blend of Western and Egyptian rhythms.
Nour El Ain was released in 1996, becoming a tremendous success not only in the Middle East but throughout the entire world. The song was composed by Nasser el-Mizdawi, lyrics were written by Ahmed Sheta and it was arranged by Hameed Elshaery. The title track, and its English version “Habibi”, was an international phenomenon, becoming a massive crossover hit in countries such as Pakistan, India, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka (performed by Sangeeth Wickremasinghe) and Malaysia (Malay version sung by Datuk Sharifah Aini). The song was copied and remade with Malayalam lyrics, a south Indian language, in the Malayalam movie Chandralekha. In a style reminiscent of the Aldo (musician) Franco-Arabic style, the song was remixed by several top European arrangers and has become a big pull on the dance floors of Europe. The video clip, also produced by Alam El Phan for the song “Nour El Ain”, was one of the most lavish and expensive productions in the field of Egyptian song, and set a new standard for his contemporaries to aspire to. This album sold 3 million copies. In 1997, Amr Diab won three Awards at the Annual Arabic Festival (for Best Video, Best Song and Artist of the Year). In the following year, he received a Triple Platinum Award for the sales of Nour El Ain, and received a World Music Award in Monaco on 6 May 1998, under the patronage of H.S.H. Albert II, Prince of Monaco, and attended by Gloria Estefan, Céline Dion, Mariah Carey, The Backstreet Boys, Steven Seagal and others. This award was the first of its kind for an Egyptian artist, emphasizing that his appeal is not just confined to the Middle East unlike the majority of his contemporaries.
