3/09/2012

Lebanese 80's Pop - Part I: The Two Hirsute Hannahs - سمير و طوني حنا - لبنانيات الثمانينيات.

Howdy, 'gain!

Give me one word that describes perfectly what is it to be epic cool... an epicool person all-time reference, and you'd get 'Lebanese'. Lebanese people are a hard nut to fuckin' crack, and a crackin' bowl of fuckin' nuts! Through years and years of endless war they've miraculously  managed to keep their cool intact through hardships and a charging geo-political Mid-Rim region.

First, it started with the gay-o Frenchies, then after getting their collective asses freed from these cunt-dodgers, Lebs went bonkers with the Palestinian vs. Christian-Maronite militia gang wars taking over the streets of Beirut turning its buldings to standing cheese slabs, then Israel in the early 80's trying to eh, invade the country as-if, fer puke's sake even Ame-HURR-ica tried to station its dupe-troops there only to get them back in bits and tiny pieces, scroll back again at Hezbollah's Shii'te fools wading through the populace like a vaginal cancer... wanker-diddle-doo on tiptoes all the way again to Israel experimenting with its war machinery and jet-fighter gunships... Blow me runnin'! There shouldn't be any 'Lebanese' left in Lebanon if one talks logic here. Ugh!

How have they managed to keep this 'cool'... frozen solid-cool?!
One answer: one word. Music. Point.

Popular Lebanese music is known as the ship that begot the Arab world its first 'mega-stars', and 'mega-starlets'. To put this in more simpler English wordings: Lebanese people are the best business people in the entire world. You might think that I'm sucking way too much air right through my passive ass, but naw I ain't: Today... No... TWO HOURS ago the world's richest man for the third consecutive year is still... Carlos Slim Helú
! A Lebanese-Mexican cunt-scratch whose face resembles dropped custard pie on the floor licked by a one-eyed dog. This git owns a fistful of bils (No, not bills, as in dollar bills but billions, babes), 69-ing his 69 billion US-fuckin'-Ds, hogging the top-spot at the Rich-List again on the Forbes-500 magazine. Whews! Them thar Lebbos know how to enjoy life, because they know how to enjoy music. 'Music' equal-signs 'Life'.

Lebanese music started as part of the rich Turkish Sultanat music heritage left by still-richer Turkish people. No doubt about it. The Turkish Empire (or, Ottoman), gave Arabs their nowadays ethnic food, music, architecture, clothes etc. Sure thing that's why the faggoty Brits were so adamant at toppling down the whole thang.

Leaving this behind (at least for you wanting to read something about music, and/or download it)...

I have here two special ups by some of the best-known Lebanese eighties singers. One is for Sameer Hannah (Arabic: سمير حنا), and the other is a Various-Artists comp featuring musicians from that 'golden' era as it's often called. Let's begin then with Hannah.


Part I: Sameer Hannah - سمير حنا:

Sameer Hannah's mission was to become famous (and, rich) among the 50 or so singers who ruled the airways back in the early 70's. What to do? He joined forces with the best of them: composer numero-uno Elias Rahbani. This name alone means a heck of a lot to DJs around the world. His music (even if the sound is so basic, primitive, and very skeletune-ic), is now like the holiest of all lost Ali-Babba's caves of wonders. I have to admit here, that some people in the west are pretty much dumb, and are very contriving, too to understand the first molecules of Middle-eastern  music. People here do not just listen to music per se: they live it. As for normal life, well... The eastern people live (or try to anyway fanks to an 'Englamerican' hyper-power trying to rebuild the Roman Empire from its Neronian ashes once again calling it "Empire Lite"). Oh, sheesh y'all!

Sameer (Also spelled as Samir), was one recidivist somnabitch singing in clubs and bars around the capital Beirut in the late 60's. His singing in broad-brush terms is the same with all other Lebanese singers: Mawawil, Attabah, and something allegedly called 'Jabali': mountainous music. His voice is a raspy, groan-tacular hmm... hush-like voice full of manhood and macho. One look at his handle-bar mustache can easily certify this. His is maybe, the neatest-brushed 'tache this side of the Middle-east.
Sameer's extra-long muff-tache!
His very last song released earlier this year, is a testament to this very fact, named rather aptly 'Wihyat Shababi': (I Swear)By My Youth. Some Lebanese musicians went to crazy manscaping extremes in growing their mustaches, but no-one could beat Tony Hannah's. (Note to reader: I am sure some who're reading this know what I'm talking about here: the mustache if shaved a man would be disfigured. So, yeah go figure).

He was born in the Belaba'k, or Belaabak region to a poor family. Yearly, an International music festival takes place there among the Roman ruins of that old city. So, he grew up in a competitive atmosphere making it for him gravely important to reach the top, and reach it at that very fast instead of spending his life singing to pish-faced drunkards all night long.

Today's Sameer Hannah.

In 1977 he released his
first single 'Ma Kinti T'hini' (If Only You'd Miss Me). Something worth mentioning here about him is that his songs were so lewd even when they were being released, the whole population was neck-deep in smoking 'hasheehas', fornicating anything with a shadow, and getting drunk till they cry uncle. Themes didn't vary very much: love you, love her, loved you, love me ad nauseum. Noteworthy too is, how every Lebanese woman takes so much care of herself to the extent that they all want to be the next B-Arabie girl. Shit in my chest, babes but I also heard that Mexican cosmetic surgeries were a Pandora's box opened by one 40's expat Lebbo surgeon. Creasus Chrust!

Tony's a greatly respected icon in Lebanon after all. His music is funny, sarcasticool and enjoyable to the max. All the songs that I'm upping 'ere are from his album Dalloa'a (دلوعة: 'Playful Woman'). Please, funjoy.





The Two Hirsute Hannahs:

Right awn! Bonus? Fuck yeah, why the hell nawt. 8 more songs by Sameer Hannah just fer the sheer 'eck of it. Moar? Bang bang: Tony Hannah gets a guesting-seat here, and also some of his best.

A trax-list with all the Arabic titles translated can be seen here below. Ogle that 'Squigglish' whatchamajigs. (feh, I sometimes work as a Translator FYFI).


Download bonus tracks 'ere for Monsieur Sameer.

For the Roid Moustachioed Tony Hannah 'ere.

Trax on Wax:
Part I (
Dallou'a - Samir Hannah)
1- Ya Kamar - O'Moon-like.
2- Ya Mandeelah Ittaer - O'her Flying Headscarf.
3- Kont Bihbik - I Used to Love You.
4- Meen Dalak - Who Told You.
5- Min Balaabk - From The City of Balaabak.
6- Wadeeli Issourah - Send Me Back My Photograph.
7- Ya Helwe - You Pretty One.
8- Daloua - Playful One.

Part II (Sameer Hannah - Bonus Tracks)
1- Ma Badi Asbih Majnoun - I Don't Want to Go Crazy.
2- Mazal Bil Houb R'bina - We Still Grew With Love.
3- El-Layli Ya Wayli - Oh Woe Me This Night.
4- Min Dourah L'Dourah - From One Turn to Another.
5- N'ssina Houb El-Kil - We've Forgotten The Love of All.
6- Ba'saal Betou'li - I Ask And She Tells Me.
7- Kina Sawa - We Used to be Together.
8- Rizk Alah - God Gives.

Part II (Tony Hannah - Bonus Mini-Album)
1- Haya Haya - Let's Go, Let's Go.
2- Haday Hada'i - Near Me, Near Here.
3- Dakhlak Wel Hawa - Beseech You When The Wind's High.
4- Medayie Kalbi We Oumri - Wasting My Life And My Heart.
5- Men Sharadle El-Ghazalah - Who Dared Scaring My Gazelle.
6- Sheroual Jidak Ya Jidee - Your Grandpa's Under-pants, My Grandpa.
7- La Tehalfeeni Bil'Shanab - Do Not Swear Upon My Mustache.
8- Amarou Eiounik - Your Eyes Have Ordered Me.
9- Fina N'Hib - We Still Can Love.
10- Taht El-Ghourah - Under Her Hair Bangs.
11- Tal El-Sahar - The Nights of Fun Are Long.*

*With Salwa Al-Katrib.


'Sall folks! Dig.

 
H.H.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

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Anonymous said...

Please, please; reupload this material. Many thanks from México.