As someone who makes music I have been inspired by so many artists; I wanted to write about my inspirations and favourite musicians.
Find a link to all the music on the TLSR Spotify at the end of the article!
Fairuz
The mother of Arab Music. Fairuz is the mythical icon who is considered a motherlike figure to all Arab people; everyone has their own relationship to her. Her music pours out from all corners, especially in her native country of Lebanon. Fairuz is a symbol of connection, memory and resilience. Just walk along streets to hear music emanating from radios along the beach and taxis driving around streets of Beirut. Many of my friends remember her music whilst growing up in their childhood homes. Fairuz's voice is like no other; she began singing when she was a little girl in a music conservatory, and people quickly took notice of her talent from a young age.
` Fig.1 Fairuz
The music Fairuz made, mostly with her composer and producer husband Assi Rahbani, is omnipresent in the Arab world. When I listen to her music, sometimes not even knowing what she is singing about, I know I am tuning into art that comes from a different frequency altogether, so ethereal and meaningful it hits you immediately. There’s such weight to
her art you can’t ignore it, and you feel emotion without needing to understand her words.
You know and feel in your heart immediately the reverence her music has. I remember watching the Jack Janssen documentary, We Loved Each Other So Much, which highlights what Fairuz means to the Arab People. One scene that struck me and made me teary was the story of Lebanese doctor. He talked about being captured and taken into solitary confinement whilst travelling trough Syria, imprisoned there for over 300 days. When he was finally free, his first request was to listen to Fairuz’s music. That’s how much she
means to people. Her powerful and voice transcends all truly, carrying melodies of despair, love and war. She cries for her city and country on songs such as Li Beirut and talks about bumping into an old lover on my favourite Kifak Inta. I recently have been listening to Sanarjiou which is a song written for the people of Palestine returning back to their homeland one day, taken from her album Jerusalem in my Heart written for the Palestinian struggle.
Fairuz's extensive catalogue of over 80 albums and 1500 songs encompasses so much it’s hard to pick the best. However, my personal recommendations are:
Sabah Wu Massa,
Ana La Habibi,
Saalouney El Nas,
Konna Netlaka,
Kifak Inta,
Le Beirut, and
Sanarjiou
M.I.A
M.I.A is the artist that made me feel as though I could make music and art. Most know her from her biggest hits Paper Planes and Bad Girls but I recommend you to take a listen to her first album, Arular named after her father. M.I.A's father plays a big role in her story; he founded the revolutionary group, the Tamil Tigers, fighting against the Sri Lankan government and the persecution of the Tamil people, so M.I.A spent the first 10 years of her life in war torn Sri Lanka before coming to England. Like Fairuz, I connected further with M.I.A through the documentary of her life. M.I.A is a brown person, and a child of refugees, two traits I can personally relate to, and I witnessed her taking a D.I.Y approach to her art. Crafting beats in bed and creating artwork influenced by her war background, using stencils she created from cereal boxes. It came from a real place of personal expression, and you feel it when you listen to Arular, and I mean it when I say there isn’t much music like it.
Dance music that is political, a 21st Century trojan horse.
Singing about revolution on Carioca beats and talking about Prisoners of War on a beat that
makes you want to dance. M.I.A is just so cool and brazen in her approach to music, not caring what others think. She raps and sings about her life, comments on politics, and also observes the youth culture of the late 90s/early 00s. Making sense of the world around her through art. She made me feel like I could pick up a mic and make music. Creativity isn’t about having a huge budget it just has to come from a real place of emotion. From Arular she went on to release multiple subsequent successful records. Being nominated for an Oscar and GRAMMY in the same year, as well as being recognised as one of Time Magazine’s most influential people in the world.
Tracks of M.I.A that I recommend are:
Sunshowers,
Galang,
20 Dollar,
Born Free,
Boyz, and
Hussell
Sade
Sade is the biggest mystery in music. Sade is actually the name of the band fronted by Sade Adu, the Britsh-Nigerian singer songwriter who sings with a cool ache in her voice as she explores her artistry.
Sade is the highest selling British Female Artist, a record only recently broken by Adele.
Most know her from Smooth Operator, her breakout single in the early 80’s. A song she wrote as a spoof James Bond song and the one she dislikes most in her discography; she states that it’s least representative of what her catalogue truly is, something I agree on. Sade is the antithesis of singers in the 80s, most taking a synth heavy approach, machine- programmed Rock or Pop made for the decade most obsessed with wealth and materialism. The complete opposite of the other biggest artists of the time such as Prince and groups such as Depeche Mode, she chose to take note from the Jazz
and Soul she grew up listening to such as Bill Withers, Nina Simone and Donny Hathway.
Fig.2 Sade
Inventive production punctuated by striking lyricism. Ushering in the quiet storm genre she has become synonymous with. Her music stands tall as classic and timeless as she pours her heart on soul on songs of love, heartbreak and pain. Sade's music quickly became a familiar friend to me. Listening to one album after the other. With incredible track lists that come together to tell stories. I can’t begin to put into words what her music means to me.
With only 6 albums released in a highly successful, 40-year career she lives life away from the spotlight, rarely granting interviews. My favourite album of her is Love Deluxe released in 1992 which serves as a template for most R&B and Soul records of the 90s.
Monolithic and cool in it’s sound, flitting from the pain in her heart from previous
lovers, to singing of the struggles of a soldier she met in a bar, as well as a woman in Somalia trying to take care of her child.
The most moving tracks I recommend are:
Is it a Crime?,
War of the Hearts,
Paradise,
Feel No Pain,
Cherish the Day,
King of Sorrow and
Love is Found
Jeff Buckley
Jeff Buckley’s Grace is a record I listen to the whole way through, almost daily. His raw vocals and powerful penmanship has garnered him legions of fans. Sadly it is the only album he released before his unfortunate death aged 30. The son of music icon, Tim Buckley, who sang the haunting Song to the Siren. He began singing in bars and cafes across New York City gaining a cult following. I love Grace, Buckley's delicate vocals reaching highs and lows, exhibiting heartbreak and yearning, coupled with some of the most complex guitar lines and emotive songwriting which hits me every time. You feel his pain, and can feel that the music is coming straight from his heart onto the record. Surprisingly honest especially from a male artist in the 90s.
Such a haunting record, it reminds me each time of an artist who mastered their craft so much so that one record is enough for us to listen to our entire lifetime.
With a limited discography, I recommend you listen to the entirety of Grace to understand the genius that is Jeff Buckley.
Massive Attack
Massive Attack are a group from Bristol who have become one of the most forward pushing music acts of all times. I remember the first time I listened to Unfinished Sympathy by Massive Attack, I was so moved by the performance and production. I knew it was the song I wanted to be played at my funeral. The song I imagine playing as my soul moves on to the next world.
I went on to listen to their first album Blue Lines in it’s entirety, it felt and sounded like nothing I had heard before. I could feel the trio's pure devotion to their craft whilst listening to this record. Each of them bring their own influences to the table to forge an entirely new genre which emerged as Trip-Hop, shared by other great acts of the 90s such as Portishead. Both of whom were nurtured by one of my other favourite artists Neneh Cherry and her husband Cameron McVey.
Their songs are in a complete league of their own experimentally, often not even having choruses; its very atmospheric and has some of the highest quality production I’ve heard in my life. Their commitment to the quality of their music was evident even in the beginning when the trio had no label backing or money, they sold their car to pay for the studio sessions and strings playing throughout Unfinished Sympathy. I quickly listened to their entire catalogue and was hooked by the powerful vocal performances from guests such Elisabeth Fraser, Hope Sandoval and Shara Nelson, and the unique visuals in videos such as Teardrop.
Fig.3 Massive Attack
Massive Attack have constantly pushed the boundaries of what music can be, with many of the greats taking stock, such as Madonna who had asked the group to collaborate. The thing I like most about Massive Attack is that they resist following trends or playing into the music industry game for the sake of success, instead they have carved out their own path.
They have created new sounds so powerful there was no other choice but for people to take notice and in effect steer the way music is made. They set a bar so high in the 90s
others had no choice but to try and get to their level. Their music is so bold and brave it makes most other music look like child’s play. The group have also used their music and platform to talk at human rights, war and environmentalism which I greatly admire, especially when group members personally called out Tony Blair on his invasion of Iraq in the 2000s.
My final recommendations are:
Unfinished Sympathy,
Teardrop,
Angel,
Safe from Harm, and
Paradise Circus
Listen to all the songs here!
Photo Credits:
Cover: My Influences: Munir Ahmadi on The London Sound Review Spotify
Fig.1: Last FM
Fig. 2: TrenchTrenchTrench.com
Fig.3: NME.com
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