Lemchaheb

Lemchaheb, or The Torches, were along with Nass El Ghiwane and Jil Jilala, one of the founding groups of Moroccan Chaabi, a popular musical form that sought to blend traditional Moroccan folk music styles with Western pop styles to create an idiosyncratic sound. By the late seventies, Lemchaheb's music was charecterised by their use of the electric guitar, but that's nowhere to be heard on this beautiful early recording which instead features the gorgeous vocals of Saida Birouk, the female band member who was part of the group until 1978.

Lemchaheb's sound on these recordings is very melodic and quite gentle, in contrast to some of the other Moroccan music I've posted in the past, which might make it a good point of entry for the wary. The group are still well loved in Morocco and you may hear some of their songs being played by the groups of musicians that congregate in the Djemaa el Fna.

Here's a track from their 1978 album:


Tracklist:

Side 1:
Lkhyala
Amana
Alwad
Attalab

Side 2:
Wana A Ommi
Lalla Lakbira
Kif Nghanni Ya Sah

Get it HERE.

Izanzaren! Izenzaren!! Izenzarn!!!

Ok, I'm back from a quick trip to Marrakech and I come back bearing some musical goodies. I thought we could begin with some more beguiling music from Snap, Crackle and Pop favourites, Izanzaren. Anyone who visits regularly may have heard some of the music posted back in 2009 by this important group, if you haven't then there's about 3 hours of songs to be found here, here and here.

I was further impressed when I discovered that Izanzaren (or Izenzaren, Izenzarn) translates as Sunbeams, which strikes me as a particularly sublime moniker for a musical combo.



Tracklist:

1a)Ddunit tga Izmaz
1b)Imhdan
2a)Imrjan n Rbbi
2b)Tassutad

Thanks to Tim for translating the songtitles. You're work is much appreciated.

Get it HERE.

Los Corraleros de Majagual - !Grito Parrandero! (1966)

This is some glorious, itchy Colombian dance music from way back in 1966 that I picked up at a boot sale a couple of weeks back. I'm just back from a few days in Marrakech and I thought I'd post this in the name of variety before the deluge of Morrocan music begins.

The album contains a song called 'My Burrito' - Ween have nurtured in me a love of songs about food, and this one is great.

Hope you enjoy!

Tracklist:

01 La Gustadera
02 Mi Sombrero Viejo
03 Grito Parrandero
04 La Vieja Pancha
05 No Como Eso
06 Al Ritmo Corralero
07 Rrrriapatopo
08 Swing Bailable
09 Mi Burrito
10 Merengue Bonito
11 El Carrito Viejo
12 La Gaviota

Get it HERE.