Saturday, June 28, 2025

Moroccan Songs for Palestine from the Cassette and Vinyl Era

An article entitled “Odes of Solidarity”: Moroccan Artists Amplify Palestine was published in December 2024 in the recently resurrected journal Souffles. Written by Aomar Boum and Brahim El Guabli, it discusses the topic of Palestine in Moroccan popular song. The article is worth checking out, as is the entire issue, Morocco's Palestine, dedicated to the history of Moroccan people’s engagement with Palestine since the 1920s.

The article lists more than 30 songs, most of them from artists working in the Ghiwani style (the acoustic folk-based style pioneered by the group Nass el Ghiwane). I found a few additional songs mentioned in articles on Megazine and Al-Quds Al-Arabi, plus I knew that Nass el Ghiwane's "Sobhane Allah" contained a Palestine reference as well. And I went hunting on YouTube to find them. Here's the playlist I put together, limiting the list to songs/styles from the vinyl and cassette era:

Below is a list of the individual songs and links to each one on YouTube. The titles and images found in YouTube videos are wildly inconsistent, so I've searched for the "correct" spellings and names of songs as best as I could, linking to Discogs where possible for info on the original releases. Additionally Aomar has translated the lyrics to several songs into English at Souffles, so I've linked to those as well. I do urge you to have a look at the article - it's quite short but makes some important points that situate this era of Moroccan musicking within the larger context of postcolonial nationhood and identities. Props to the team at Souffles for their great work and to the artists who continue to bring attention to the injustices suffered by the Palestinian people.

  • Artist: Jil Jilala جيل جيلالة
  • Song: Palestine فلسطين
  • Date: 1973
  • Notes: not sure if this is the 1973 Cléopatre album version or the 1974 Polydor album version ("Kouds") 
  • Lyrics translation by Aoumar Boum
  • Discogs link 
  • Artist: Nouas واس
  • Song: Qods القدس
  • Date: 1974
  • Discogs link 
  • Artist: Batma & Larfag باطمة و لرفاك
  • Song: Palestine فلسطين
  • Date: 1976
  • Discogs link 
  • Artist: El Farka Chaabia الفرقة الشعبية
  • Song: El Koudsse القدس
  • Date: 1976
  • Discogs link 
  • Artist: Nass el Ghiwane ناس الغيوان
  • Song: Sobhane Allah سبحان الله
  • Date: 1976
  • Discogs link 
  • Artist: Lemchaheb لمشاهب
  • Song: Talit El Haramain ثالث الحرمين
  • Date: 1980
  • Notes: aka "Palestine"
  • Lyrics translation by Aoumar Boum
  • Discogs link 
  • Artist: Izenzaren إزنزارن
  • Song: Touzzalt توزالت
  • Date: 1981
  • Notes: aka "Sahiyoun"
  • Discogs link 
  • Lyrics video in Tachelhit with translation to Arabic
  • Artist: Nass el Ghiwane ناس الغيوان
  • Song: Alkassam القسم
  • Date: 1981
  • Notes: aka "Palestine"
  • Lyrics translation by Aoumar Boum
  • Discogs link 
  • Artist: Larsad لرصاد
  • Song: Kafr Kassem كفر قاسم
  • Date: early 1980s?
  • Lyrics translation by Aoumar Boum
  • Discogs link 
  • Artist: Shuhub الشُّهُب
  • Song: Abria' Filastin أبرياء فلسطين
  • Date: early 1980s?
  • Notes: interesting harmony vocals at start and end, bouzouki chords in final section
  • Discogs link 
  • Artist: Nass el Ghiwane ناس الغيوان
  • Song: Sabra et Chatila صبرا و شبيلا
  • Date: 1983
  • Notes: aka "El Majzara"
  • Discogs link 
  • Artist: El Jouda مجموعة الجودة
  • Song: Ouraq Khrifek أوراق خديفك
  • Date: 1984 (according to YouTube comments)
  • Artist: Jil Jilala جيل جيلالة
  • Song: Koun M'â Allah كون مع الله
  • Date: 1985
  • Notes: aka "Ya Ârbi, Ya Muslim"
  • Discogs link 
  • Artist: Muluk El Hwa ملوك الهوى
  • Song: Sahiyoun الصهيون
  • Date: mid 1980s?
  • Discogs link 
  • Artist: Larsad لرصاد
  • Song: Anti Lana انتي لنا
  • Date: mid 1980s?
  • Notes: sung in Fus'ha (Standard Arabic, not Moroccan dialect)
  • Lyrics translation by Aoumar Boum
  • Artist: Alouane مجموعة ألوان
  • Song: Ân Insan عن إنسان
  • Date: mid 1980s?
  • Notes: This is a setting of a poem by Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish
  • Artist: Essiham السهام
  • Song: Fine el Haqiqa فين الحقيقة
  • Date: late 1980s?
  • Discogs link 
  • Artist: Nass el Ghiwane ناس الغيوان
  • Song: Intifada انتفاضة
  • Date: 1992
  • Discogs link 
  • Artist: Mohamed Rouicha محمد رويشة
  • Song: Ida Zzman Ighoudan إدا الزمان إغودان
  • Date: 1990s?
  • Notes: Wow - it's Rouicha!
  • Discogs link 
  • Artist: Malak ملاك
  • Song: Wa Hasratah واحسرتاه
  • Date: early 1990s?
  • Notes: Notes: Sung in Fus'ha. This sounded like it was gonna be boring, but when the beat drops in, wow - also some vocal harmonies!
  • Discogs link 
  • Artist: Essiham السهام
  • Song: Bi Kulli L-Asi ou Asaf بكل الأسى والاسف
  • Date: 1998
  • Notes: aka "Al-qawmiya al-‘arabiya ayna hiya"
  • Lyrics translation by Aoumar Boum
  • Discogs link 
  • Artist: Bnat El Ghiwane بنات الغيوان
  • Song: Ktir el Khouf كثر الخوف
  • Date: 2000
  • Artist: Chourouk شروق
  • Song: Ana Filastin أنا فلسطيني
  • Date: 2004
  • Artist: Ikabaren مجموع إيكبارن
  • Song: Sahiyoun صهيون
  • Date: 20??
  • Artist: Nass el Ghiwane ناس الغيوان
  • Song: Ya Sellom يا سلام
  • Date: 2007
  • Notes: aka "Ya Quds"
  • Discogs link 
  • Artist: Jil Jilala جيل جيلالة
  • Song: Kouds لاقدس
  • Date: 1974
  • Notes: not sure if this is the 1974 Polydor album version or the 1973 Cleopatre album version ("Palestine")
  • Discogs link 

Sources consulted:

Note: Undoubtedly there are additional Moroccan songs from this era that touch on the theme of Palestine. Boum and El Guabli identify the following Nass el Ghiwane songs as mentioning the issue:

  • M'zine M'dihek مزّين مديحك
  • Ya Sah يا صاح
  • Ghir Khoudouni غير خدوني
and Metwally identifies these as doing the same:
  • Daïyne (aka "Ya Ahli Lhal") ضايعين
  • Narjak Ana La M'Chite نرجاك انا لامشيت
  • Echams Ettalâa الشمس الطالعة
  • El Oumma الامّة
but I haven't scrutinized the lyrics deeply enough to find the references, and there's plenty of Nass el Ghiwane in the playlist already. 🎵 بَحْرَ الْغِيوَانْ مَا دْخْلْتُ بَلْعَانِي  🎵

Saturday, June 14, 2025

Noujoum Eddiwane Quartet - live on KPFA

Something different this week. This is a recording of four members of the Algerian group Noujoum Eddiwane who spent a couple months in the San Francisco area (the East Bay - Richmond, specifically) in the summer of 1997. In addition to a handful of live performances, they performed this short set on KPFA radio's "Majoun Traveler" - a program that aired Mondays at midnight (technically Tuesday mornings) and was hosted by the dearly missed DJ Cheb i Sabbah. 

Noujoum Eddiwane (The Stars of Diwane) hail from Sidi Bel Abbès. They are formed as a cultural association dedicated to the preservation of diwane. The Algerian diwane ritual/musical tradition is analogous to that of the Moroccan Gnawa. The instruments are the same (guinbri and qarqaba), nightlong ceremonies invoke a sequence of suites dedicated to different groups of saints and spirits, and the traditions are understood to have roots in sub-Saharan African cultural groups. Some songs of each repertoire are clearly related to each other; others are unique to regional repertoires. The term diwane is short for Diwane de Sidi Bilal, a reference to Bilal, a companion of Prophet Muhammad, whom both traditions hold in reverence as a spiritual forbear.

In California in the 1990s, we were able to hear Moroccan Gnawa music via CDs and the occasional touring group (Hassan Hakmoun came from New York sometimes, and even Hmida Boussou performed once in Berkeley.) But there was no absolutely no information about diwane and no way to hear this music (other than a single OCORA album), so it was an unexpected pleasure to have Noujoum Eddiwane spend some time in our area to give us a taste of this deep tradition. 

In the ensuing years, YouTube has made it easy to search, click, hear and see diwane musicians. (Dig this channel!) And some outstanding scholarly work has been done on diwane - Dr. Tamara Turner has published several articles and book chapters, and her book will be coming out next year! Yet high-quality audio recordings remain few. This one is a bit rough (live radio broadcast), but the energy and music are great. Hope you enjoy.

Noujoum Eddiwane
"The Majoun Traveler" KPFA 94.1 FM, Berkeley, CA, USA

August 19, 1997

1. DJ Cheb i Sabbah intro
2. Salaamu Alaykum intro
3. Lâfu ya Mulana (Salaamu Alaykum)
4. Ya Bulali Ba Dawi
5. Wayna Zuru ya Kama
6. DJ Cheb i Sabbah outro

Youssef Mazouzi - goumbri, solo vocal
Ada Belamri - derbuka
Abdellah Benhada - karkabu, vocal
Mustafa Elbordji - karkabu, vocal 

FLAC | 320

Sunday, June 8, 2025

Najat Aâtabou - Bnate Alhouma

Yes! Here's another vintage Najat Aâtabou tape! 

Judging from Edition Hassania catalog numbers, and unless there are some additional Najat releases from this period that I haven't found, I believe this is her final album to feature only plucked strings and percussion. This album expands her standard previous ensemble to include a second plucked-string instrument (perhaps a lotar or a low-pitched oud, also heard on Koun Mâaya - now upgraded to FLAC). Also heard here is a mixed male and female group of response singers, anticipating the large choral ensemble heard on her orchestral album EH 1410, also now upgraded to FLAC).

Enjoy! 

Najat Aâtabou نجاة اعتابو
Bnate Alhouma بنات الحومة
Edition Hassania cassette EH88 1380

1988

A1 Bnate Alhouma بنات الحومة
A2-B1 Elli Tedwiyou Fiya اللي تدويو فيا
B2 A Ya Men Jralha أيا من جرائها
B3 Wellah Ma Achkite والله ما اشكيت 

FLAC | 320