Monday, December 3, 2012

Nass el Ghiwane | 2000 CD



Listen to track 5 

Get it all here.


Even before discovering the real significance of these guys via Tim Abdellah's thrilling Moroccan Tape Stash,  I knew there was something special about this band on first listen. They just didn't sound quite like any other north African music I'd ever picked up--they were funkier, maybe even somehow more "knowing." I'm almost certain I found this in the Nile Deli on Steinway Street, but exactly when, I'm no longer sure. I do have a vague recollection of my thought process, which was something like: "Are those supposed to be guitar picks? This album must totally rock. ..."


Forgive me for the lack of song titles, but here is what looks like a track list on the CD itself:




2 comments:

Hammer said...

Hello, Gary

This CD album is taken from a live concert that was held at Agadir Music Festival (The title of the CD reads in Arabic asسهرة حية بأگادير), somewhere in 1979.

This is not the full concert, by the way. The Moroccan film-maker Ahmed Al Maânouni - أحمد الماعوني took some of that concert's footage and released it as a film-autobiography in the well-known 'Le Transe - Al-Hal' DVD.

This is an old photograph of the band at that concert:
http://i1147.photobucket.com/albums/o560/HythamHammer/NassEl-GhiwaneLive.jpg


Here's the Track-List:
01. L'Btanah (لبطانة - The Entourage).
02. Subhan Allah (سبحان الله - Glory Be God's).
03. Zad El-Hamm (زاد الهم - Chagrin Has Grown).*
04. Wa Sqina, Wa Rweina (واسقينا, واروينا - Pour; Let Us Drink).
05. Joudi B'Rdaki (جودي برضاكِ - Give Us, Willingly (O'Heaven)).

(*Note: The song starts at the middle as the band takes on the stage singing only the latter verses of this wonderful song 'Zad El-Hamm'. Here they are for those interested:
"ندمني غير المسجون بلا عـــذر كفَر لغدر قاومه ب لقســــــاوة
ف الدنيا تاگو شطاين لعمــــــــر الواعي گلبه ما سمع وطــــــاع
تبع هوى الفانية وخدايع لحصر بلسانـه طمـاع جـاري لعـــداوة
Encore:
هــا هــو ليــك مــا بقـات إفـادة
هــا هــو ليــك الجهــــل تمـادي
هــا هــو ليــك الســرقة عــادة
هــا هــو ليــك منيــــن جـــــاك
هــا هــو ليــك طــــاح الــــــذل
هــا هــو ليــك الغنــي فرحـــان
هــا هــو ليــك معري قومــــان
هــا هــو ليــك آه يـــــا ليـــــام."

H.H.

tim abdellah said...

Sweet! Thanks Gary - never heard this recording before. NG in their prime! (PS, Track 3 segues from Zad Alhame into the song "Lahmami")