History of Music in Lebanon Podcast

From Ottoman History Podcast

Lebanon is a country of just a few million, but its musical output has historically rivaled its much larger neighbors in the Arab world. This episode of the Ottoman History Podcast provides an overview of the the history of music in modern Lebanon as well as an overview of the history of modern Lebanon through music. We discuss topics such as nationalism, war, migration, and gender, all while listening to some of the most memorable and beloved songs and artists that the country has produced.

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Artists include:

Nasri Shamseddine, Wadih El Safi, Sabah, Fairuz, Mansour and Assi Rahbani, Zaki Nassif, Melhem Barakat, Samira Tawfik, Farid al-Atrache, Sami Clark, The Bandaly Family
Marcel Khalife, Ahmad Kaabour, Ziad Rahbani, Joseph Saqr, Julia Boutros, Makhoul Kassouf, Sami Hawat, Azar Habib, Majida El Roumi
Najwa Karam, Ragheb Alama, Nawal El Zoghbi, Wael Kfoury, Nancy Ajram, Elissa
Soapkills, Mashrou' Leila, Charbel Rouhana, Ziad Sakhab

Select Bibliography:

Stone, Christopher Reed. Popular Culture and Nationalism in Lebanon: The Fairouz and Rahbani Nation. London: Routledge, 2008.
ʻAssāf, Aḥmad. Fayrūz wa-dawlat al-Raḥābinah. Dimashq: Dār al-Rāʼī lil-Dirāsāt wa-al-Tarjamah wa-al-Nashr, 2008.
Reynolds, Dwight Fletcher. Arab Folklore: A Handbook. Westport, Conn: Greenwood Press, 2007.
O'Ballance, Edgar. Civil War in Lebanon, 1975-92. New York, N.Y.: St. Martin's Press, 1998.
Khater, Akram Fouad. Inventing Home Emigration, Gender, and the Middle Class in Lebanon, 1870-1920. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2001.

Sabah - Like Honeyصباح - زي العسلZay el Asel

المتصفح الذي لديك لايدعم مشغل الأغاني. دبر حالك و روح نزل البرنامج أو .<A HREF="http://www.mazika.in/go/?download=song&id=2925">اضغط هنا</A> لسماع الأغنية.

Sabah – Like Honey I've met many They've spread out silk for me to walk on And I've seen a lot But I've seen no prince like my beloved

I don't want, I don't want, I don't want anyone but him
There's no use, there's no use, except for him, there's no use

When he's far away I adore him, when he's near I adore him
His love is like honey to my heart
His love is like honey to my heart

Since we were young and building our nest together
The birds learned to love like us from our love
And we grew up and the love grew
Nobody in this world can keep us apart for even one night
This story of ours is a long story

If they brought me the moon from on high
And if they put the stars out before me
I would reject them and say so what
I can't leave my precious sweetheart

This moon is my beloved
And these stars is my beloved's eyes
And this world is my beloved

صباح - زي العسل

قابلت كتير
فرشولي عشاني الأرض حرير وشفت كتير
وما شفتش زي حبيبي أمير

مانيش رايدة وما نيش رايدة الا هو ما نيش رايدة
وما فيش فايدة مافيش فايدة الا هو مافيش فايدة

في البعد عشقاه في القرب عشقاه
زي العسل على قلبي هواه
زي العسل على قلبي هواه

من صغرنا واحنا بنبني عشنا مع بعضنا
من حبنا يتعلم الطير مننا الهوى زينا
وكبرنا والهوى كبر ولا حد في الدنيا قدر
يفرقنا ولو ليلة
دي قصتنا قصة طويلة

لو جابو القمر من العالي العالي
والنجوم حطوها على شاني
رح رد واقول وانا مالي وانا مالي
ما أقدرش اسيب حبيبي الغالي

دا القمر هو حبيبي
والنجوم دي عيون حبيبي
الدنيا ديا هيا حبيبي

Sabah - Dance Me Like Thatصباح - رقصني هيكRaqasni Heek

I don't think that "dance me" is a word in english but it is in Arabic, its the idea of dancing with a girl except like you are the one who is leading her. I think it makes sense in English.

المتصفح الذي لديك لايدعم مشغل الأغاني. دبر حالك و روح نزل البرنامج أو .<A HREF="http://egyptian.salmiya.net/songs/ehab/rm/ehaab50.rm">اضغط هنا</A> لسماع الأغنية.

Sabah - Dance Me Like That Dance me like this, dance me like this, dance me my darling Dance me dance me like this like this and hold me, hold me in your arms May I be in your heart for ages, and let them explode and die from grief (not literally, just she wants the other girls to be jealous out their minds)

They waited, they waited, they waited for me and when we danced the were jealous of me
Tell me I beg you a word, say it, say it, I love you my darling forever
Swing me, make me fly, and let whatever will happen happen
They danced, they danced, they forgot me
They all danced and finished before me (maybe meaning they tired of dancing before her, because they weren't having as much fun as her)

صباح الشحرورة – رقصني هيك

رقصني دخلك يا حبيبي خليني حدك يا حبيبي
رقصني هيك رقصني هيك رقصني دخلك يا حبيبي
رقصني رقصني هيك هيك وغمرني وغمرني بايديك
وخليني على قلبك دهر ويطقوا ويموتوا من القهر
ناطرو ناطرو ناطروني لما رقصنا حسدوني
قللي دخلك كلمة قول قول بحبك يا حبيبي على طول
مرجحني خليني اطير واللي بده يصير يصير
رقصو رقصو نسيوني كلهن رقصو سبقوني

Sabah - Oh Me Oh Myصباح - يانا ياناYana Yana

Sabah recently did a remake duet of this song with Rola



Sabah - Oh Me Oh My

Oh me oh my oh me oh my I'm dying for my darling I'm dying for my darling And I'm dying in my flames and torment for my darling And my darling is unaware of me I'm dying because of him

Oh me oh my oh you who is tiring me
Oh me oh my oh you who is leaving me for torment keeping me awake
And staying up diverts me
If it's true you are unaware of me how come you keep looking at me from the corner of your eye
And when our eyes meet, my beauty
You evoke pity in me (that's what it says but I'm not sure that's what it means here, but some sort of feeling who knows)

صباح - يانا يانا

يانا يانا يانا يانا بحبيبي اموت انا اموت انا بحبيبي
واموت انا بلهيبي وعزابي لحبيبي وحبيبي ما داري بي
علشانو اموت انا

يانا يانا يا تعبني يانا يانا يا سايبني للعزاب يسهر علي والسهر يتسلي بي
لو صحيح مش داري بي ليه بتتلفت علي واما بتقبلك عيني يا جميل تصعب علي

واموت انا بلهيبي وعزابي لحبيبي وحبيبي ما داري بي
علشانو اموت انا

لو تشرق او تغرب مهما تبعد رح تقرب رح تجرب ناري بي يا جميل تصعب علي
نار تخلي تلج يعلي رح تسرق منها قلبي وللي حينجيك عيني يا جميل تصعب علي

واموت انا بلهيبي وعزابي لحبيبي وحبيبي ما داري بي
علشانو اموت انا

يانا يانا يانا يانا بحبيبي اموت انا اموت انا بحبيبي
واموت انا بلهيبي وعزابي لحبيبي وحبيبي ما داري بي
علشانو اموت انا

Lyrics transcription from La7oon.com

Rola and Sabah - Oh Me Oh Myرولا وصباح - يانا ياناYana Yana

There are a lot of songs with the title "yana yana," also by fairouz and nawal el-zoghbi. Sabah also performed the original like 50 years ago.

Rola and Sabah - Oh Me Oh My Oh me oh my oh me oh my I'm dying for my darling I'm dying for my darling And I'm dying in my flames and torment for my darling And my darling is unaware of me I'm dying because of him Oh me oh my oh you who is tiring me Oh me oh my oh you who is leaving me for torment keeping me awake And staying up diverts me

If it's true you are unaware of me how come you keep looking at me from the corner of your eye
And when our eyes meet, my beauty
You evoke pity in me (that's what it says but I'm not sure that's what it means here, but some sort of feeling who knows)

رولا وصباح - يانا يانا

يانا يانا يانا يانا بحبيبي اموت انا اموت انا بحبيبي
واموت انا بلهيبي وعزابي لحبيبي وحبيبي ما داري بي
علشانو اموت انا

يانا يانا يا تعبني يانا يانا يا سايبني للعزاب يسهر علي والسهر يتسلي بي
لو صحيح مش داري بي ليه بتتلفت علي واما بتقبلك عيني يا جميل تصعب علي

واموت انا بلهيبي وعزابي لحبيبي وحبيبي ما داري بي
علشانو اموت انا

لو تشرق او تغرب مهما تبعد رح تقرب رح تجرب ناري بي يا جميل تصعب علي
نار تخلي تلج يعلي رح تسرق منها قلبي وللي حينجيك عيني يا جميل تصعب علي

واموت انا بلهيبي وعزابي لحبيبي وحبيبي ما داري بي
علشانو اموت انا

يانا يانا يانا يانا بحبيبي اموت انا اموت انا بحبيبي
واموت انا بلهيبي وعزابي لحبيبي وحبيبي ما داري بي
علشانو اموت انا

Lyrics transcription from La7oon.com