How the songs of Mohammad Jamal became the timeless anthems of our youthhttps://en.majalla.com/node/292561/culture-social-affairs/how-songs-mohammad-jamal-became-timeless-anthems-our-youth
How the songs of Mohammad Jamal became the timeless anthems of our youth
The Lebanese popstar’s recent passing sheds light on his huge influence on the Arab music scene where his songs which were recorded 50 years ago still dominate the nightlife scenes of today
Lebanese popstar Mohammad Jamal
How the songs of Mohammad Jamal became the timeless anthems of our youth
Beirut: In the wake of Lebanese artist Mohammad Jamal’s death on 26 May, his cousin Faek Homaissi, the actor and pioneer of mime in Lebanon, penned a eulogy that read: “His musical talent knew no limits: composing and performing duets with Taroub, Muwashahat, classics, music inspired by our grandmother’s Greek origins, and youthful tunes.”
It is still hard to believe that these words pay homage to the man whose image in most people’s minds will forever be etched as the spirited young man who pioneered the youthful song genre in the 1970s.
Many would later follow in his footsteps, albeit with different tools and musical visions, but always keeping in mind the foundations that he helped establish.
Growing up in a musical household
Born in the Lebanese city of Tripoli in 1934, Jamal grew up surrounded by music. His father was a music teacher who owned and ran a factory in Tripoli that manufactured and repaired musical instruments.
Jamal would observe the oud lessons his father would give his students and then practice what he learned alone until he mastered it.
Jamal’s father saw potential in his son’s talent and voice, so he took him to the radio station, where he sang “Salu Qalbi” when he was just shy of 10 years old. But throughout his childhood, singing and music remained a mere hobby. Once in a while, he would be asked to sing popular songs or recite verses from the Quran at school.
Jamal's father saw potential in his son's talent and voice, so he took him to the radio station, where he sang "Salu Qalbi" when he was just shy of 10 years old. But throughout his childhood, singing and music remained a mere hobby.
His father invested in both him and his sister, Faten, who also entered the musical scene for a short time. Jamal had received training in singing and maqamat when his father moved in 1949 with his two children to Iraq, where they stayed for two years during which they were exposed to different types of music.
Musical career launch
State employees were highly regarded at the time, which is why Jamal sought upon graduating with a degree in electrical engineering to land a job at the public electricity company.
When this endeavour failed, Jamal's life took a major turn. He applied to the Lebanese radio station as a singer and composer and launched his musical career with two songs he composed, "Alouli Ahl el-Hawa" and "Asmar Ya Shaghel Albi."
When Jamal failed to land a job at the public electricity company, his life took a major turn. He applied to the Lebanese radio station as a singer and composer and launched his musical career with two songs he composed, "Alouli Ahl el-Hawa" and "Asmar Ya Shaghel Albi."
During this period, he met the great late composer Halim El Roumi, who tried to push him to become a professional composer and leave singing behind, perhaps since the young singer had not yet mastered classic singing, which was the standard to evaluate singing capacities.
But refusing to abandon his bold ambitions, Jamal insisted on pursuing a career in singing along with composing and began to carve out his identity as an artist.
At the time, the opinion of an artist of Halim El Roumi's calibre could shape the career of aspiring musicians on the receiving end of his advice — so mighty was his influence on the music scene.
Lebanese popstar Mohammad Jamal
This should have deterred Jamal from pursuing his singing ambitions, but his strong desire to prove himself a capable composer and singer proved stronger even than El Roumi's advice.
Egyptian experience
When Egyptian producer and film director Helmy Rafla heard Mohammad Jamal's singing at Casino Ajram, he cast him in his upcoming movie, "The Merry Widow" ("El-Armala el-Taroub"). Jamal travelled to Istanbul and Egypt to shoot the movie, which featured the elite of Egyptian cinema, like Abdelsalam El-Nabulsy, Kamal El-Shennawi, Layla Fawzy, Hassan Fayek, and Zeinat Sedki.
In an attempt to prove his worth as a composer and singer, Jamal sang his "Ahein Ya Nas" in the movie, as well as "Ashraqat al-Anwar".
At the time, the young star was still trying to find his feet in his musical career, and "Ahein Ya Nas" was in harmony with the light cinema music genre that was popular at the time, especially in the voice of Muhammad Fawzy.
The film was released in conjunction with Abdel Halim Hafez's cinematic debut. In 1955, Abdel Halim released four widely successful musicals: "Melody of Loyalty" ("Lahn el-Wafaa"), "Our Beautiful Days" ("Ayamna el-Helwa"), "Ayyam wi-Layali" ("Days and Nights"), and "Layali al-Hobb" ("Nights of Love") by Helmy Rafla.
In 1956, the release year of "El-Armala el-Taroub", Abdel Halim had two more films: "Maw'id Gharam" ("Appointment of Love") and "Dalila".
This torrent of Abdel Halim Hafez movies seemed to have taken over the musical film genre, especially since he was nabbing lead roles and many offers from the great composers of his time.
Yet Jamal was able to prove his capabilities and skills despite the overwhelming presence of great artists like Abdel Halim, which led him to move on to the next stage of his life, which he created with his wife Taroub, becoming the most famous duo in the Arab world.
Jamal and Taroub: Most famous duo in the Arab world
In 1957, Jamal fell in love with the singer Taroub and married her. The young singer began to forge his own path and created — along with his wife — the 1960s' most famous duo, singing about love and relationships in two harmonious voices.
Jamal and Taroub infused a remarkable spirit into the duo genre, capturing the intricacies of the day-to-day lives of couples. Apart from singing about love, they also captured the mundane realities of life, singing about things like household expenses and social and class inequality — something that the musical scene at the time didn't offer.
Musically, the duo's songs were simple and unsophisticated, but they didn't break with music folklore traditions or deviate from the norms of established musical practices.
As for lyrical content, and to the delight of Arab masses, the duo launched their trademark theme of flirtatious reproach, which earned them recurring appearances in the famous Cairo festival "Adwaa Al Madina" alongside a host of top Arab stars.
The husband-and-wife duet marketed believable narratives to which the masses could easily relate. There were no fairytale monologues waxing lyrical about love and desire; instead, their songs were lively, realistic conversations that resonated with audiences.
The husband-and-wife duet marketed believable narratives to which the masses could easily relate. There were no fairytale monologues waxing lyrical about love and desire; instead, their songs were lively, realistic conversations that resonated with audiences.
Singing in both Lebanese and Egyptian accents, the duo released several widely popular tracks, such as "Ana Darwish," "Tlobi Tmanni," "Ya Albi w Ayni," "Nawwer Ya Fanous," "Men Fadlek Ya Sett el Bayt," "Khabberini Konti Fein," "Asmar w Samara," "El Rez' Ala Allah," "Hobbik Bi Albi Nar," "Ouli La Emmek," "Yakhti Aleih," and "Ana Shoftek Fein."
The huge popularity of their duet "Oul Kaman" set an example of how the audience's tastes could supersede the opinions of professional music masters. The musical department of the Egyptian radio station rejected the song, believing it to be incomprehensible, but the song proved widely successful.
When Jamal and Taroub sang it at a party at the Alexandria Officers' Club in the presence of Muhammad Abdel Wahab, Abdel Halim Hafez, and Kamal el-Tawil, the song was met with praise and applause and the duo performed several encores.
The collaboration between Jamal and Taroub lasted for over seven years until the couple separated in 1964.
The "Emm Hamada" craze
In the early 1970s, Jamal serendipitously stumbled upon the Greek folk hunters' tune "darla dirladada."
Jamal decided to adapt it into Arabic and asked the poet Michel Tohme to come up with the appropriate lyrics for the melody. Thus, was born "Ah Ya Emm Hamada," which earned a timeless popularity that paved the way for Arab dance tunes.
"Emm Hamada" is significant in that it captured the mood that reigned during its era.
The song's playful, mischievous, quick, and easy rhythm unleashed waves of dancing and fun, but also of boldness to oppose, object, and rebel. Soon after, "darla dirladada" was incorporated into protest chants, among other adaptations.
"Emm Hamada" is significant in that it captured the mood that reigned during its era. The song's playful, mischievous, quick, and easy rhythm unleashed waves of dancing and fun, but also of boldness to oppose, object, and rebel. Soon after, it was incorporated into protest chants.
The song was released on 45 RPM records with a steep $10-dollar price tag. Its massive popularity pushed the singer to personally handle its production and marketing. He would later repeat that the song was his lucky strike, as its popularity helped him breach new paths.
Musical success on the back of commercial film flops
Indeed, Jamal was soon cast in several commercial films, including "Women for the Winter" ("Nisaa lil Shitaa"), "El Kull Yhib" ("Everybody Loves"), and "The Clown's Love" ("Gharam el-Moharreg").
Despite not achieving commercial success, the movies helped Jamal launch several songs that earned recognition beyond the movies themselves. As such, he gained further popularity without losing much from the failure of his movies.
Jamal went on to record several successful songs with poets Michel Tohme and Chafik el-Moghrabi. He released several muwashahat, classic, and folk songs as well, but none of them was as successful as those songs he composed himself, such as "Mazzika Ya Mazzika," "Siyartou Akbar," "Baddi Shoufak Kell Yawm," "Ma 'indi Mal," "Assim Shar'i Baladi."
In the late 1970s, he began collaborating with the Rahbani brothers as part of the "Sa'a w Ghinniye" TV show and presented several songs like "Kinna Ana w Enti," "El Matarat," and "Eja el-Sayf." Yet the success of these songs was attributed to the Rahbanis rather than Jamal.
The Rahbani brothers sought to incorporate Jamal into their musical project, but his work with them did not leave a mark that distinguishes him specifically.
Most of the tracks he sang as part of that collaboration were similar to the songs that the Rahbanis gave other artists they were collaborating with, such as Melhem Barakat, Issam Rajji, Raja Badr, and others.
Certainly, collaborating with the Rahbani brothers was hard to resist at the time for any artist, which is why Jamal's experience with the brothers is understandable. However, his most successful, popular, and timeless songs would prove to be the ones he composed himself, especially in the youthful music genre.
Later life and lasting legacy
Amid the chaos of the Lebanese civil war, Jamal left his native Tripoli and Lebanon in 1981 to Los Angeles in the United States, which became his home for the rest of his life.
He came back to Lebanon for a short while and released his record "Allimni el-Hobb" in 1985. The album achieved reasonable success, but it did not compare to his previous successes in the 1970s.
For all the diversity in his musical repertoire, Jamal left his greatest impact on Arab audiences through two of his musical experiences: his short-lived but widely popular duo with Taroub, and his youthful songs which created a new genre in the Arab world.
Mohammad Jamal was a cherished popstar whose songs became the anthems for the joyful and wild youth of his audience.
Mohammad Jamal was a cherished popstar whose songs became the anthems for the joyful and wild youth of his audience. No other Arab star is as big of a nightlife favourite. Once the effect of contemporary music wears off, nothing reignites partygoers like his songs, even decades after their release.
No other Arab star, in my opinion, is as big of a nightlife favourite. Once the effect of contemporary music wears off, nothing reignites partygoers like his songs, even decades after their release.
The joyful spirit they evoke seems to be timeless, easily enjoyed even by a generation born after his days of stardom.
"I don't know what it is exactly about him, but I feel like he is my friend," a teenager told me when I asked why a song like "Emm Hamada" has been a favourite on the dance floor for over 50 years.
