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LP
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WWSLP 086LP
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Wewantsounds announces the reissue of Ziad Rahbani's cult album Amrak Seedna & Abtal Wa Harameyah, one of his praised albums from the '80s, released on the sought-after Lebanese label Relax-in in 1987. This release is an event as the album, recorded at Rahbani's By-Pass studio, was only released in Lebanon at the time. Mixing Arabic music with funk and fusion jazz and hints of boogie, it's a bonified Rahbani classic, sought after by Arabic groove DJs and collectors around the world. The reissue features audio remastered by Colorsound Studio in Paris and a two-page insert with a new introduction by Mario Choueiry from Institut du Monde Arabe in Paris (English/French). Ziad Rahbani is a living legend of Arabic music and a cultural icon in Lebanon where he was born. His father was the famous composer and musician Assi Rahbani, of The Rahbani Brothers' fame and his mother is the legendary Lebanese Diva Fairuz, whom he produced in the late '70s and '80s with such classic albums as Wahdon and Maarifti Feek, that have become highly sought after among Arabic music DJs and collectors over the years. The album Amrak Seedna & Abtal Wa Harameyah was released in 1987 on the Beirut-based label Relax-in' and is the soundtrack to two theatre plays written by famous Lebanese playwright and actor Antoine Kerbaj (born 1935). These two plays were released in the middle of the Lebanese civil war and although Rahbani (who is also an actor) doesn't act in these, he masterminded the soundtrack, composing and recording them at his By-Pass recording studio in Beirut. The album alternates between instrumentals, short interludes and songs sung by his regular fellow singers, Sami Hawat, Abbas Chahine, and Nabil Qazan, among others, mixing Arabic music with Rahbani's usual blend of jazz-fusion, funk and groove.
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WWSLP 050LP
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2024 repress. Wewantsounds present the first ever vinyl release of Ziad Rahbani's Houdou Nisbi recorded in 1985 and only released on cassette and CD in 1991. One of Rahbani's most praised albums, released on the sought-after Lebanese label Relax-in. Mixing Arabic music with funk, jazz, boogie and a touch of Brazilian music, it is considered a classic among Oriental groove fans, DJs and collectors around the world. Curated by Lebanese DJ and Journalist Ernesto Chahoud. Ziad Rahbani is one of the giants of Arabic music and a cultural icon in the Middle East. The musician, pianist and producer is also a celebrated playwright and a political activist. Coming out of an illustrious artistic dynasty (his father, famous composer and musician Assi Rahbani, was in The Rahbani Brothers and his mother is the legendary Lebanese diva, Fairuz), Ziad Rahbani released a string of key albums in the '70s that have since become cult among DJs and collectors. Heavily influenced by Western music, Rahbani brought these influences to traditional Arabic music early one. 1978 saw the release of two key Rahbani albums, the disco 12" Abu Ali and Bennesbeh Labokra... Chou? (WWSLP 044LP). Serving as musical director to his mother Fairuz, he produced some of her best albums including Maarifti Feek recorded in 1984 at his Beirut studio, By Pass, bringing his blend of modern influences to her traditional sound. At the very same time, Rahbani started recording his own album at By Pass with the cream of Lebanese musicians including saxophonist Tewfic Farroukh, guitarist Paul Dawani, and percussionist Emile Boustani. Bringing funk, boogie, jazz funk fusion and Brazilian music to the mix, Rahbani created a landmark album, Houdou Nisbi now considered one of the best jazz funk albums from the Middle East. Featuring such cult tracks as "Rouh Khabbir", a remake of the Crusaders' "Soul Shadow" sung by Rahbani himself, the modern soul of "Bisaraha" and the Brazilian flavored "For Sure", the album is both effortlessly groovy and steeped in Oriental music. Houdou Nisbi, which means "relatively calm", an expression used by news anchors on Lebanese TV to describe the mood during cease-fire in the civil war that went on between 1975 and 1990. The cassette artwork has faithfully been reproduced for vinyl release. Remastered. New liner notes by Lebanese DJ and curator Ernesto Chahoud in English/French.
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WWSLP 044LP
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2024 restock; Wewantsounds present a reissue of Ziad Rahbani's cult album, Bennesbeh Labokra...Chou? released in Lebanon only and mixing Arabic music with jazz, bossa nova, and other western influences. Curated by Lebanese-born music expert Mario Choueiry from Institut du Monde Arabe in Paris, the album is reissued on vinyl for the first time since 1978. When Ziad Rahbani released Bennesbeh Labokra... Chou? he was only 22 years old. He had started to make an impression on the Lebanese cultural scene a few years before, while still a teenager, composing and releasing albums under his own name. Born into an illustrious musical family -- his mother is the legendary Lebanese Diva Fairuz and his father, Assi Rahbani, was a renowned composer and part of one of the most famous Lebanese groups, The Rahbani Brothers -- Ziad quickly gained exposure as a gifted composer and producer. When his father fell ill in the mid '70s, he took over as Fairuz's producer which led to a fruitful collaboration starting with the 1979 album Wahdon. Highly influenced by other genres of music, Rahbani had started bringing modern western influences to traditional Arabic music. 1978 saw the release of two key albums by the young musician, the disco 12" Abu Ali which went on to become one of the most sought-after Arabic albums on the international DJ scene and Bennesbeh Labokra... Chou?. A soundtrack to Rahbani's eponymous play, the album gathers all the musical interludes heard during the play, a social diatribe about the Beirut society underlining the difficulties of living in the tense social and political climate of the Lebanese civil war. Written by and starring Rahbani, the play follows the everyday life and problems of a young couple running a cafe in the heart of Beirut. The play underlying Rahbani's leftist sensitivity was an immense success and the album was released the same year (the complete play was also released over three LPs). Bennesbeh Labokra... Chou? is a skillful blend of Arabic music and bossa nova, groove with funky beats, and jazz. It's interesting to hear an early version of "Al Bosta" which would grace Fairuz's 1979 album Wahdon in a faster, funkier version. With a knack for cinematic orchestrations reminiscent of Lalo Schifrin, Rahbani also brings more complex arrangements to the album. Gatefold sleeve. Remastered audio. Two-page insert with a new introduction by Choueiry.
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WWSLP 027LP
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2024 restock. Following the success of the special Record Store Day Abu Ali edition (WWSLP 021LP), Wewantsounds are reissuing a standard version of Ziad Rahbani's mythical disco 12" which was originally issued in Lebanon in 1978. This reissue on black vinyl features the original artwork, with remastered audio. Wewantsounds is to announce the first-ever official vinyl reissue of Ziad Rahbani's mythical Lebanese Disco 12" Abu Ali, originally issued in Lebanon in 1978 on his label Zida Records. A highly collectible album, it will get reissued by Wewantsounds with its original artwork, remastered by Colorsound Studio in Paris. Ziad Rahbani is a cultural icon in Lebanon. The musician, pianist, and producer is also a renowned playwright and a political activist, one of the most important exponent of the Lebanese left-wing counterculture to emerge from the '70s. Coming out of an illustrious artistic dynasty (his father is the famous composer and musician Assi Rahbani, member of group The Rahbani Brothers and his mother is the legendary Middle East Diva, Fairuz), Ziad Rahbani started his music career during his late teens, composing music for his mother. Rahbani quickly spread his wings further. He started producing his own music co-founding the label Zida in 1978 at age 22 in the process and started releasing records under his own name. Among these was Abu Ali recorded in Greece at the EMI Studios in Athens with a full orchestra -- there he also recorded his mother's 1979 album Wahdon (WWSLP 022LP) -- and released it as a limited run EP for the Lebanese market. Legend has it that the album was only pressed at 500 unit hence its rarity. The result is a fabulous New York-meets-Beirut disco ecstasy, developing over two 13-minute tracks and one of the most collectible albums on the international dance and disco scene.
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WWSLP 021LP
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RSD 2019 release; yellow vinyl, last available copies... Wewantsounds is delighted to announce the first-ever official vinyl reissue of Ziad Rahbani's mythical Lebanese Disco 12" Abu Ali, originally issued in Lebanon in 1978 on his label Zida Records. A highly collectible album, it will get reissued by Wewantsounds with its original artwork, remastered by Colorsound Studio in Paris. Ziad Rahbani is a cultural icon in Lebanon. The musician, pianist, and producer is also a renowned playwright and a political activist, one of the most important exponent of the Lebanese left-wing counterculture to emerge from the '70s. Coming out of an illustrious artistic dynasty (his father is the famous composer and musician Assi Rahbani, member of group The Rahbani Brothers and his mother is the legendary Middle East Diva, Fairuz), Ziad Rahbani started his music career during his late teens, composing music for his mother. Rahbani quickly spread his wings further. He started producing his own music co-founding the label Zida in 1978 at age 22 in the process and started releasing records under his own name. Among these was Abu Ali recorded in Greece at the EMI Studios in Athens with a full orchestra -- there he also recorded his mother's album Wahdon (1979) -- and released it as a limited run EP for the Lebanese market. Legend has it that the album was only pressed at 500 unit hence its rarity. The result is a fabulous New York-meets-Beirut disco ecstasy, developing over two 13-minute tracks and one of the most collectible albums on the international dance and disco scene.
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