Souad Massi - Deb (Heartbroken) (2003) RELOADED [World][mp3 320][h33t][schon55]

RELOADED - #3,4,5 7 Didn't make it !!



Souad Massi - Deb (Heartbroken)

Year: 2003

Label: Island

Total time: 49:32

Bitrate: 320 kbps



The sophomore album from the "Arabic Tracy Chapman." While that would imply a deep folk-guitar base for her music, that's



really not the case. What the album is made of is an extremely eclectic mix of sounds. The base for it all is in Algerian and



Andalusian musics, with rai, flamenco and Arab classical music being the main keystones. On top of that, though, is layer after



layer of other genres. Western folk is certainly one of the top factors in some of those, as well as hints of Western classical music



in the backing violins and cellos that show up from time to time. East African jive and West African juju both seem to make



appearances for a time, and hints of tabla from the subcontinent also creep in when you're not paying attention. The main



highlight of the album isn't so much the eclecticism though, as it is Massi's abilities in songwriting, singing, and on the guitar. Her



voice projects the proper emotion for powerful flamenco vocal runs, and soft French songs alike. Equally versatile, her guitar can



make flamenco solos and folk-rock runs easily, along with more careful ballad picking. It's a very versatile album, with some



top-notch musicianship from Massi, as well as some top-notch songwriting. Pick it up for a nice relaxed listen. - by Adam



Greenberg, AMG





San Francisco Chronicle, July 12, 2004

By A Customer



In the early 1990s, Algeria had become a desperate country. Killings and disappearances, sparked by the military government's



"dirty war" with Islamists, instilled fear everywhere, including its capital, Algiers, where Souad Massi was trying to establish



herself as a singer, songwriter and guitarist.

Even walking the streets with her guitar case was a challenge in a country where fundamentalists frowned upon anything they



deemed too Western. A low point came in 1997 when Massi -- by then, playing in a hard-rock band called Atakor -- received



anonymous death threats. By 1998, she had essentially given up performing.

"Being a woman in such an environment and choosing to pursue such a career wasn't regarded as a good thing at the time,"



Massi said in a phone interview from Paris. "Now that I have experienced success, I'm happy."

Massi's success has been one of world music's most riveting stories. After moving to Paris five years ago, she recorded "Raoui,"



an album that sold more than 100,000 copies. Her latest release, "Deb (Heart Broken)," which received airplay on many U.S.



stations -- and her current American tour, which brings her to San Francisco on Sunday -- are further indications that Massi has



established an international audience for her music, which critics have compared to Tracy Chapman's, Joni Mitchell's and Joan



Baez's.

The truth is that Massi is a musical chameleon. On a recent single she did with Senegalese singer Ismael Lo, a stunning remake



of Bernard Lavilliers' "Black and White," she sounds like a pop diva. With other musicians, she'll emphasize a more Arabic sound



that's driven by oud (lute) and derbouka (drum). But then, she'll play with Indian tabla players, or she'll do an acoustic number



where she slips into being "an Arabic folkie," as some people have called her.

Just by appearing on stage, Massi defies the prevailing image of Algeria, a Muslim country that has experienced relative political



calm in the past few years. With her good looks, playful demeanor and low-key yet fashionable dress -- not to mention her



outspoken lyrics about love and romance -- Massi evokes a certain rebelliousness and cosmopolitism. At age 31, Massi, who



sings in French and Arabic, is really just starting her professional career.

"I never thought I'd go this far," she said in words that are translated into English from French.

Perhaps the strangest aspect of Massi's musical biography is her affinity for Kenny Rogers and other country stars who were



popular in the 1970s and '80s. Massi first began listening to country and folk music after she became fascinated with Western



movies such as "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly." Massi's siblings made fun of her tastes, but Massi has said her youthful



interests stemmed from a desire to be a tomboy in a country that doesn't value women.

"I was scared to really be a woman because the status of women in Algeria frightened me," she told the publication fRoots. "Ever



since I was young, I saw that women weren't valued, so I said to myself, 'I'll become a boy and save myself from all these



problems.' So I loved Westerns."

Massi's life changed completely in 1999, when a French Algerian promoter invited her to perform at a "Women of Algeria" concert



in Paris. The acclaim and positive reaction she received at that January concert were so moving that she decided to stay in



France. Massi returns to Algeria on occasion, but she hasn't performed there since leaving Algiers. In previous years, Massi said



it wouldn't be right to play in a country that was still experiencing scores of slayings. But now that Algeria is no longer the "living



hell" that Massi said it was, she's looking forward to doing a concert there.

Though Massi's songs are often about love and relationships, some can be interpreted as commentaries about her native land.



"Houria (Freedom)," a Flamenco-tinged lament on her album "Deb," features such lines as "I'm afraid of the future" and "Outside



it's summer. And people sing their happiness. Here the fall follows me." Massi practically bursts into tears on the number, and yet



on "Yawlidi (My Little Boy)," which is also on "Deb," Massi laughs infectiously as she orchestrates a hypnotic (and happy) dance



tune that sounds like a Congolese rumba.

That's what Massi's fans really like about her. She puts all her feelings into her music, unafraid to show just one side of herself or



to reach out to seemingly strange musical genres. Massi is Amazigh (more commonly known as Berber) and Muslim, but she



defies classification.

"My music comes from different horizons," said Massi, who was first inspired to pick up a guitar because of an uncle who played



jazz and flamenco. "I wouldn't like only to be doing one sort of thing, or having one sort of influence in my music."



Personnel:

Souad Massi (Guitar and Vocals)

Jean-Francois Kellner (Guitar) - 1-9,11,12

Jean-René Zapha (Bass and Backing Vocals) - 1,3-5,7,8,12

Daniel Manzanas (Flamenco Guitar and Guitar) - 2-10

Rabah Khalfa (Percussion and Vocals) - 5-8,11,12

Hamid Djouhri (Oud) - 3,5-7

Mohamed Bennis (Oriental Violin) - 3,5,7

Eduardo Lubo-Lozada (Violoncello) - 3,9

Christopher Henry (Drums and Vocals) - 1-3,5,6,8

Thomas Ostrowiecki (Percussion) - 1-3,5,12

Edouard Prabhu (Tabla and Vocals) - 1,6,7

Jose Luis do Nascimento (Percussion) - 1-3,5,12

Reyn Ouwehand (Programming) - 1,3,4,6,8,11,12

Erwin Autrique (Programming) - 1-3,5,8

Samir Toucourt (Vocals) - 6-8,11

David Fall (Drums) - 5,6

Farid Saadna (Flamenco Guitar and Vocals) - 6

Amar Bruno Saadna (Flamenco Guitar and Vocals) - 6

JP Dessy (Violin) - 4

F. Van Lieff (Violin) - 4

Semenoff (Violin) - 4

Gerard Geoffroy (Flute) - 11

David Auballe (African Flute) - 12



Souad Massi - Deb (Heartbroken) Tracks:

01 Ya Kelbi (Oh My Heart) 4:21

02 Ghir Enta ( I Only Love You) 5:07

03 Ech Edani (I Shouldn't Have Fallen In Love With You) 4:47

04 Yemma (Mummy, I Lie To You) 5:10

05 Yawlidi (My Little Boy) 3:24

06 Le Bien Et Le Mal (Good And Evil) 2:55

07 Houria (Freedom) 3:11

08 Deb (Heart Broken) 5:04

09 Moudja (The Wave) 3:28

10 Passe Le Temps (As Time Goes By) 2:43

11 Theghri (I Send An S.O.S.) 4:07

12 Bel El Madhi (The Gate Of The Past) 5:09

All compositions - by Souad Massi