Cabdi Cabdullaahi Maxamed ("Shiikh Cabdi") sadly passed away a few weeks ago in Denmark, where he's been ill for sometime. He started his career with the band Malkad in Mogadishu in 1973. After a short stint with Bakaaka in Kismaayo, a port city in the South of Somalia, he joined Iftin in 1977 and played on many of their albums till the onset of the civil war in Mogadishu in 1991. With the death of Shiikh Cabdi, Somali music has lost a self-taught, talented, versatile, innovative and intuitive guitarist and a warm, engaging and friendly personality. A.U.N../R.I.P.!
I've quite a few Iftin tapes on which Shiikh Cabdi has played lead but the sound quality has, unfortunately, disintegrated. Here is a compilation of tracks which have slightly or reasonably defied the warped static teeth and the wrath of the times.
1. Xuduud Ma leh Xubigaan
2. Wacad Beena Ma Roonee
3. Hab Isii
4. Cantar iyo Ceebla
5. Naf Jacayl Haleelay
6. Ma Hurdee Habeenkii
7. Ul iyo Diirkeed
8. Xubi Xoog Magalee
9. Dalxiis
10. Xariir
The tracks above and others can be downnloaded here.
PS. I've just added the two live tracks below. They are only individually downloadable.
Daaadba Daadkii Ka Ween Waa La Duulaa (Live)
Shukri I Shumi Shooblow Ka Shiix (Live)
I've quite a few Iftin tapes on which Shiikh Cabdi has played lead but the sound quality has, unfortunately, disintegrated. Here is a compilation of tracks which have slightly or reasonably defied the warped static teeth and the wrath of the times.
1. Xuduud Ma leh Xubigaan
2. Wacad Beena Ma Roonee
3. Hab Isii
4. Cantar iyo Ceebla
5. Naf Jacayl Haleelay
6. Ma Hurdee Habeenkii
7. Ul iyo Diirkeed
8. Xubi Xoog Magalee
9. Dalxiis
10. Xariir
The tracks above and others can be downnloaded here.
PS. I've just added the two live tracks below. They are only individually downloadable.
Daaadba Daadkii Ka Ween Waa La Duulaa (Live)
Shukri I Shumi Shooblow Ka Shiix (Live)
Thanks for the tracks. When did he die? I can't find anything on the web. I saw him a few years ago in london, a realy nice guy. RIP.
ReplyDeleteI couldn't find much either, but I saw a couple of condolences + a vid according to which he passed in the last week of March.
Deletethank you very much. please who is singing Hab Isii? i'd be eternally grateful if you can give me the lyrics in somali. my parents used to listen to it a lot when I was a child and I searched everywhere for years. no luck till now. i spontaneously started crying from the first sentence. saynab.
ReplyDeleteThe singer is Maryan Mursal on an average day. This is OK but imo she can sing much better, even now that she's a sexagenarian and circa 30 years after this song was recorded.
Delete- 2011: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HCW_1-b7Jxg
- 1980s: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oiTsUi5lcKg
Take care!
Lyrics
Hab isii horaadka isoo saareey
isoo saar
hamigayga yeel igu soo haadee
isoo haad
i hogaami waan kula hayaayee (2x)
CHORUS (4x)
Hambalyeysta heestaan macaan
ila soo heeesa
heelee soo hoosha isoo hooshay
Har iyo habeen aan hortaa joogaa
hortaa joogaa
ha i hiifin waan kugu soo hoobtee
soo hoobtee
hagar iga dhaaf kuma hilmaamaayee (2x)
CHORUS (4x)
Hubsi la'anta waalagu habaabaayeey
habaabaa
hudhudaa jiraa naa kala heeraayeey
heeraaye
an heeshinno waan isku hareynaayee (2x)
CHORUS (4x)
FINAL REFRAIN (3x)
hoosha hoosha hoosha
isoo hooshaay
heelee soo hoosha
isoo hooshaay
(Waa hambalyadii Shankar Foon (with compliments of Shankar Phone [the recording studio])
WOW, WOW, WOW! fantastic! i can now sing along, i owe you 1. thank you so much. rip Shiikh Cabdi.
DeleteThanks. The first song hits me hard, it's sad and delightful simultaneously. What's it about?
ReplyDeleteIt's a dirge and the title means "This Love Has No Boundaries". He's lamenting the loss of his girl who sings back that death is a natural part of life's cycles and that he'd get on with his life and let her rest in peace.
DeleteCan you plse translate hab isii? I'm of somali-english descent and i speak a bit of somali but i don't understand most of the words. Thanks in advance and all your efforts and great writings here and elsewhere are highly appreciated. -- Suzanne
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome! I'm neither a translator nor an English native speaker. I can, thus, only offer an amateurish and quick translation.
DeleteTake me in your hands, put your chest on mine
put it on mine
fulfill my burning desires, fly to me
fly to me
take the lead, I'm in love with you
CHORUS
Congratulate yourself/ves, this sweet song [is for you]
sing it along
bring the heelee* home, let me in (the backing vocalists sing: let her in)
Day and night, I stand before you
stand before you
don't blame/disrespect me, I surrender to you**
surrender to you
don't mistreat/cheat me, I won't forget you
CHORUS
Lack of certainty, makes one lose direction
lose direction
There're hoopoes [foul players], trying to drive us apart
drive us apart
let's reach an agreement, we'll [ultimately] be left alone
CHORUS
FINAL REFRAIN
Bring it home bring it home bring it home
let me in
Bring it home bring it home bring it home
let her in
* This song is based on the notes of a traditional dance and music genre called heelee/heelley. It's used to ritualistically enchant Heelley, believed to be the ancient Somali Goddess of love; her sister Hoobaal is the Goddess of art/music. She's, thus, conjuring these deities to serenade/aubade the man she loves
** In Somali culture, a surrenderer gets the status of a guest/protegé. Disrepecting or maltreating such a person is one of the most disgraceful acts one can commit and one of the heaviest punished crimes in Xeer (Somali customary law).
What a beautiful song and the translation is much more than i expected. The footnotes clarify why my somali friends often have difficulties in understanding somali lyrics. Thanks a lot!
DeleteAlla haw naxariisto Sh. Cabdi, waxaan ahayn deris Muqdisho 1970-nadii. Adiguna waad ku mahadsan tahay wargalinta. Waxaan ku waydiinaa fidiyowga tacsida halkee ka heli karaa?
ReplyDeleteAdaa mudan!
Deletehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X1nUip-qJ0A
Wow, I can't believe my luck. Iftin was a real badass band, many thanks.The track 'Xubi xoog magalee' brought me here. It's audio was on youtube but the channel was deleted by the owner. Was that your channel and if yes, why did you delete it? It's teeming with great music.
ReplyDeleteNo, it wasn't my channel.
DeleteWho of the original/founding Iftin Band members is still alive? Thanks
ReplyDeleteI don't know who were the founders. Try to contact Said Salah Ahmed, their artistic and managing director for many years. He now lives in Minnesota and this is his son: https://www.youtube.com/user/dhahar77
Deletesearching for Iftin Band through Google brought back to the your blog and what a treasure. Mahadsanid!!!!. the recent compilation albums from Analog Africa and Ostinato records have rekindled my passion for somali music and happy to see recent production of new/old music from Durdur band international. no doubt I barley the surface of the content that is hosted on your blog and it's making my Friday night very entertaining. and educational. Mahadsanid Idiris
ReplyDeleteAdaa mudan! GTBOS!
Delete