Libyan disco pop anno 1983. Taken from the album "Mots D'Amor"

Visit my blog, Jo/No's Audio Delights for more info as well as agreat modern remix of this tune made by Prince Language:

http://jonosaudio.blogspot.com/2009/10/libyan-disco.html 

Ahmed Fakroun - Soleil Soleil (1983)

William Onyeabor - Fantastic Man

Ibrahim Hesnawi crafts restless grooves with evident buttressing from a reggae foundation. Highlighted across the LP is how Hesnawi essentially pioneered such an effortless synthesis between traditional Libyan music and Jamaican reggae stylings, plus the endlessly disparate funk, jazz, and disco accents which firmly situate Hesnawi in a league of his own. 

In many countries, reggae was a widespread fad before its popularity gradually subsided. In Libya, however, the genre remained popular since its initial introduction in the late 1970s. Reggae’s thematic throughlines like references to Pan-Africanism, liberation, and the end of oppression and exploitation resonated—and continues to resonate—forcefully amongst a Libyan audience. To this day, you will find countless bands playing variations of the genre as are there Facebook groups with predominantly Libyan members sharing old and new reggae tracks with ten-thousands of members. And no matter who you ask, chances are high that the genre’s popularity in Libya will be largely attributed to one man: Ibrahim Hesnawi. 

Born and raised in Tripolis, the capital of Libya, Hesnawi initially was not interested in music, however he credits Bob Marley as foundational to changing his life after having listened to his music in a electronics shop a friend of his was working at. 

Reggae is instantly recognizable from the counterpoint between the bass and drum downbeat and the offbeat rhythm section. This very particular rhythm is part of the story of why the genre became so popular in Libya as Hesnawi explains: 

"The Libyans are inclined to Reggae for a reason, I think due to our traditional musical rhythm known as Darbuka “Libyan Drum” or Kaska, its rhythm is very similar to the one of Reggae therefore the society got closer to this music and the the nation loved the reggae style and embraced it“ 

There is a handful songs Ibrahim Hesnawi sings in English but the 95% of his output is sung in Libyan Arabic. A conscious choice as this is not only the language that came natural to him but also it allowed him to convey the message of his songs that is so close to his heart in the best way to the young generations of Libya listening to his music. 

The album was licensed from Ibrahim Hesnawi. We pay 50% of the profits of this release. Only project related costs are deductible from the gross income, research and travel costs come out of our own share. Publishing rights were not included in our agreement.

The Father of Libyan Reggae

Habibi Funk 024: Ibrahim Hesnawi - Never Understand

Pre-Order: https://habibifunkrecords.bandcamp.com/releases

Habibi Funk will be a new sub label of Jakarta Records, dedicated to re-releasing arabic music from the 1970s and 1980s. It's a label and platform for funky/soulful and/or psych influenced music from the Arab world of the 70s and 80s.

https://www.facebook.com/habibifunk

Dalton was a band from Tunis, the capital of Tunisia. They came together as a band around 1968 when most of the members studied together at the University of Tunis. The band had five members. Faouzi Chekili on guitar, piano and vocals, Ridha Kouhen on bass guitar, Mustapha Rehouma and sax and percussion, Sadok Gharbi on trumpet and vocals and Skaner Alim on drums and vocals. They were active in the local scene, playing music that was heavily influenced by American soul and funk and at the same time regional musical traditions. In the early 70s the band got a regular gig at a beach hotel called Sahara Beach Resort on the coastline of Tunisia. They had six month contracts for a couple of years in the early 70s and during that time they would play every single night of the tourist season. While the hotel gig required the band to play sets leaning      towards tourist entertainment, the regular work helped put some money into the band's accounts. Using those funds the band was able to travel to Rome to record their one and only 7“ single release "Alech" around 1971/1972. The band eventually dismantled in the mid 70s and returned briefly as a new group with new members in the late 1970s under the name Carthago but that is a different story…… 

"That "Soul Brother" is my jam…. !!!!" 
Lefto 

The single itself impressed us heavily when we first stumbled upon it through French collector Victor Kiswell. While the b-side "Soul Brother“ sounds like a Tunisian version of modern soul / AOR with it’s English lyrics and lush arrangements, the title track "Alech“ is the one that will get every party started. An infectious 3/4 rhythm, a great horn arrangement and brillantly layered vocals that made us think of Brazillian music or the Georgian groove band Gaya. Luckily Faouzi Chekili, the former band leader and composer uses social media communication so he was easy to track down. He is still active as a renowned musician in the Tunisian jazz scene and remains active recording and playing concerts both in Tunisia and internationally.
credits

Edit: this is just a little "recorded straight from the wax" preview. The final release will be properly remastered by the homies from Audiomoto Berlin 


Habibi Funk 001: Dalton - Soul Brother (Tunisia, 1972 pre-order link in description)

Pre-order:  https://habibifunkrecords.bandcamp.com/releases

Habibi Funk will be a new sub label of Jakarta Records, dedicated to re-releasing arabic music from the 1970s and 1980s. It's a label and platform for funky/soulful and/or psych influenced music from the Arab world of the 70s and 80s.

https://www.facebook.com/habibifunk

Dalton was a band from Tunis, the capital of Tunisia. They came together as a band around 1968 when most of the members studied together at the University of Tunis. The band had five members. Faouzi Chekili on guitar, piano and vocals, Ridha Kouhen on bass guitar, Mustapha Rehouma and sax and percussion, Sadok Gharbi on trumpet and vocals and Skaner Alim on drums and vocals. They were active in the local scene, playing music that was heavily influenced by American soul and funk and at the same time regional musical traditions. In the early 70s the band got a regular gig at a beach hotel called Sahara Beach Resort on the coastline of Tunisia. They had six month contracts for a couple of years in the early 70s and during that time they would play every single night of the tourist season. While the hotel gig required the band to play sets leaning      towards tourist entertainment, the regular work helped put some money into the band's accounts. Using those funds the band was able to travel to Rome to record their one and only 7“ single release "Alech" around 1971/1972. The band eventually dismantled in the mid 70s and returned briefly as a new group with new members in the late 1970s under the name Carthago but that is a different story…… 

"That "Soul Brother" is my jam…. !!!!" 
Lefto 

The single itself impressed us heavily when we first stumbled upon it through French collector Victor Kiswell. While the b-side "Soul Brother“ sounds like a Tunisian version of modern soul / AOR with it’s English lyrics and lush arrangements, the title track "Alech“ is the one that will get every party started. An infectious 3/4 rhythm, a great horn arrangement and brillantly layered vocals that made us think of Brazillian music or the Georgian groove band Gaya. Luckily Faouzi Chekili, the former band leader and composer uses social media communication so he was easy to track down. He is still active as a renowned musician in the Tunisian jazz scene and remains active recording and playing concerts both in Tunisia and internationally.

Restored and mastered by Roskow at Audiomoto Studios.


Habibi Funk 001: Dalton - Alech (Tunisia, 1972, pre-order link in description)

Mam Yinne Wa

pre-order: https://habibifunkrecords.bandcamp.com/album/habibi-funk-007-an-eclectic-selection-of-music-from-the-arab-world

"Without Fadoul we would have never started Habibi Funk. I vividly remember  nding a copy of his now classic James Brown cover „Sid Redad“ in a dusty old shop, run by a man who once owned a record distribution and label called Mekauiphone in Casablanca. It took us around six trips to Morocco over the course of more than a year to  nd his family as Fadoul himself unfortunately died in the early 1990s. Over the course of time, we kept on  nding new records by him that were unknown to us (and recently also two studio tapes from two sessions at Boussiphone studios full of alternate takes and demo versions) and they all added to the picture of a wild heart, full of energy, creativity, yet no stranger to the inner demons a lot of artists struggle with. Fadoul was more than just a singer. He spent some time in Paris playing theatre, he painted, he worked as a circus clown for four years in the Netherlands, he recorded and also composed a single for a famous orange juice brand from Morocco.
His lyrics dealing with topics such as drugs and depression but also having good times paired with a musical backdrop that is always funky yet dirty and played with a real punk attitude. “Bsslama Hbibti is taken of a hardly known 7“ he recorded for Atlassiphone and picks up where the recording on Fadoul’s album on Habibi Funk left off. A raw sound aesthetic, an energetic performance, a mighty voice and a very lively atmosphere that was pre- served in the recordings. So far only the copy used for this release has surfaced. We have also started to work on a second album exclusively dedicated to Fadoul with a partial focus on his 1980s output consisting of his very unique takes on hiphop and reggae. This song, just like the “Al Man Saib” album, was licensed from Fadoul’s family."

order

Fadoul - Bsslama Habiti (Habibi Funk: An ecclectic selection of music from the Arab world)

Hada Wagty

Najib Elhouch - Ya Aen Daly

Rogér Fakhr - Had To Come Back Wet (Lebanon, Habibi Funk 016)

label, dj and platform for a wide range of underappreciated music from north africa and west asia

Rogér Fakhr - Had To Come Back Wet (Lebanon, Habibi Funk 016)

habibi funk - حبيبي فنك

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