Saleh Ramadan and Fariha Al Abdullah
Damascus 96
SIDE A
- Arab
- Hawara
- Dalona
- Mawal Haram Lkhel Yekhon (It's Sad For the Lover to Cheat)
SIDE B
- Bas Walatni Bl Hawa (But You Set Me On Fire With Your Love)
- Shebakhom (Their Window)
- Matwata
- Mawal Al Galb Sakarta Beyedek (You Closed the Heart With Your Hands)
Label
Sallama
Location Issued
Aleppo, Syria
Artist Origin
Homs, Syria
Semmaqiyeh (Homs), Syria
More Info
An iconic meeting bringing together one of the most prominent female shaabi singers in the history of Syrian music, Fariha Al Abdullah, with one of the most prominent zajal and mijwiz poets, Saleh Ramadan. The duo possesses strong chemistry, where Fariha fills Ramadan's energy deficit, and Ramadan adds the slow, melodious singing that she lacks. A tape capable of entering and residing long-term in the favorites list of any Syrian shaabi music lover. Before Saria Al-Sawas became the first lady of Syrian shaabi song, the throne belonged to another mighty voice – that of Fariha Al Abdullah. Fariha is still present today, but she lived a golden age in the 1990s, when she was abundantly present at weddings, private parties, and nightclubs. She collaborated with a wide spectrum of voices and musicians, and shaped the features of the Syrian shaabi singer with her highly dynamic voice, adorned with a hoarseness that adds a layer of sadness. At the beginning of her career, Fariha carried the classification of Al Hajiat or Al Sheikhat, a title given by the people of Homs to female Syrian shaabi singers from their region who suffered rejection from their conservative societies. However, Fariha today carries another title, which she deservedly earned through her sprawling career: Singer of the Badia. Saleh Ramadan hails from the town of Al Semmaqiyeh in rural Homs on the Syria-Lebanon border. He began singing and composing poetry since his early youth, and spent the beginning of his career traveling to perform in small villages in western rural Homs adjacent to the Lebanese border, where influences from Lebanese Zajal poetry seeped in. Saleh Ramadan continued climbing the ladder of fame in shaabi poetry and attaba until he reached its highest rungs during the last three decades, becoming one of Syria's most famous shaabi poets until his death at an unknown date during the past few years.