In 1962 during a tour of Europe, Duke Ellington heard “The Dollar Brand Trio” playing in Zürich's “Africana Club”. As a result, a recording was set up with Reprise Records; “Duke Ellington presents The Dollar Brand Trio”. The Dollar Brand Trio (with Johnny Gertze on bass and Makaya Ntshoko on drums) subsequently played at many European festivals, as well as on radio and television.
He briefly returned to South Africa in the mid-1970s after his conversion to Islam (and the resultant change of name from Dollar Brand to Abdullah Ibrahim); however, he soon returned to New York in 1976, as he found the political conditions too oppressive. While in South Africa, however, he made a series of recordings with noted Cape Town jazz players (including Basil Coetzee and Robbie Jansen). This included Coetzee's masterpiece, "Mannenberg", acknowledged by most as one of South Africa's greatest musical compositions; the recording soon became an unofficial soundtrack to the anti-apartheid resistance.
Abdullah Ibrahim has written the soundtracks for a number of films, including the award winning Chocolat and, more recently, No Fear, No Die. Since the end of apartheid, he now lives in South Africa and divides his time between his global concert circuit, New York, and South Africa.
Abdullah Ibrahim is a towering figure in South African music, an artist who brings together all its traditions with a deeply felt understanding of American jazz, from the orchestral richness of Duke Ellington's compositions for big band to the groundbreaking innovations of Ornette Coleman and the 1960s avant-garde.
Ibrahim has worked as a solo performer, typically in mesmerising unbroken concerts that echo the unstoppable impetus of the old marabi performers. He also performs regularly with trios and quartets and larger orchestral units. Since his triumphant return to South Africa in the early 1990s, he has been feted with symphony orchestra performances, one of which was in honour of Nelson Mandela's installation as President. He has also founded a school for South African musicians in Cape Town.
With his wife, the jazz singer Sathima Bea Benjamin, he is father to the New York underground rapper Jean Grae, as well as to a son, Tsakwe.
Blue Bolero
Abdullah Ibrahim Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
ملاگ النشل موجود . ف الموت مارح يسأذن
بتطلع ع حياتك كنك بوصلة عم تنشد
ب اتجاه نفس الذكرى اللي مابترجع لو روحك بتأدن
.كذاب اللي بيقلك فقير بس عيني شبعانة
٢٣ مليون سوري دمر البلد لانو مخزن
. الحقد والكره والقلة
ف المخرج . كان الدم او الغربة للابد
متل . بنطلون سلت ف رفعت شكوى ع البلد وضعي موزن .
الدنيا مصنوعة ف الدنيا اصطنعت
. البشر والشر علاقة حب قديمة بشيطان مستوطن
. ابتعرف ؟ عندي قوة قلب لاحكي بجرأة
ف شعلت سيجارتي ع باب حبل مشنقتي عما دخن
هه . مين بيعرف مين محمد ؟
لما تحكي معي حط ببالك عم تحكي وجع معفن
. طلعت من البلد لانو بدون راسي
لاني حكيت انو حب الوطن مانو موقف سياسي
نحنا بزمن التطب ي ل للباطل تهليل
. منهل لكل عرصا كان زبال اشتغل بالتحليل
ع حساب . وجودي . ف جودي يا اوجاعي
كنا ننكش بالتبن طلعوا عرصات بدل افاعي
هه . لحتى دافع عن حالي بالصوت والصورة
اول ما وصلت ع الغربة تعلمت دين يافلا هورا
...
متل هيك ايام كنت . عما دّخن كينيت
. عايش متل ما بدي مبسوط لو انخنت!
. ١٠ كيلو انحفت او اتخنت ...
المهم اني ما بعمري مشيت بطريق ورا طيز بنت
شي بيخري لما رفيقي . يقلب ضدي عرصا
او رفيقة مشيت معي كرمال تاخد مني مصة
كان قاعد جنبي عما يقلي حكيلي و امن فيني
عطيتو سري فتحول ب ايدو سهم ليرميني
ههه . التعليمة بعمرا ما بتأبد
عم تواجه اسطورة ما انحنى ضهرو الا بمسجد
. اتعلمت من غباء وسلبيات الدنيا حكمة!
لرصاصة ما بتقتل كلمة كل بعصة وراها بسمة
. ف ب اسمي . عم حيي من كل شعب و من كل كرسي
. انا عالغربة ماشي وهستيريا علمتني امحي
. قلت لحالي بسكرة ماعاد في شي حتى قولو
من بعدا بشيل نضاراتي مافي شي بيستاهل شوفو
The lyrics of Abdullah Ibrahim's song Blue Bolero (Fragment 2) describe the scattered emotions and continuous struggle of love, along with the constant presence of danger during any moment of life. The song talks about the feelings of nostalgia for memories that can never be brought back, and the frustration of living in a country torn apart by war, corruption, and hatred. Ibrahim emphasizes the destructive power of greed and the struggle of people to keep their head high in the face of an uncertain future.
The lyrics also offer a glimpse into the personal struggles of the singer, who left his home country and faced the difficulties of living in a new place. The song speaks of the choices that had to be made and the price that had to be paid, of learning from the wisdom of the world and the importance of standing up for oneself. Overall, Blue Bolero (Fragment 2) is a haunting and evocative snapshot of the human experience in all its complexities and contradictions.
Line by Line Meaning
العواطف عم تتشتت الحبُ عما يسترسل
Emotions are scattering, love is getting intense
ملاگ النشل موجود . ف الموت مارح يسأذن
Death is inevitable, there is no escape from it
بتطلع ع حياتك كنك بوصلة عم تنشد
You look at your life like a compass searching for the same memories that won't come back
ب اتجاه نفس الذكرى اللي مابترجع لو روحك بتأدن
Towards the same memories that won't return even if your soul hurts
.كذاب اللي بيقلك فقير بس عيني شبعانة
He's a liar who says he's poor, but he's well-off
٢٣ مليون سوري دمر البلد لانو مخزن
23 million Syrians destroyed the country because they're a warehouse of hatred and anger
. الحقد والكره والقلة
Hatred, animosity, and scarcity
. بتطلع الف علة بالبلد لتظهر سياسة المَخزَن
A thousand reasons for the country's evils to reveal the warehouse's policy
ف المخرج . كان الدم او الغربة للابد
In the end, whether it's blood or exile, it's forever
متل . بنطلون سلت ف رفعت شكوى ع البلد وضعي موزن .
Like old pants that are too tight, I raised a complaint about the country and my life's imbalance.
الدنيا مصنوعة ف الدنيا اصطنعت
The world is created by the world
. البشر والشر علاقة حب قديمة بشيطان مستوطن
People and evil have an old love story with a resident devil
. ابتعرف ؟ عندي قوة قلب لاحكي بجرأة
You know? I have the courage to speak boldly from my heart
ف شعلت سيجارتي ع باب حبل مشنقتي عما دخن
So I lit my cigarette at the door of my hanging rope while smoking
هه . مين بيعرف مين محمد ؟
Ha ha, who knows who Mohammed is?
لما تحكي معي حط ببالك عم تحكي وجع معفن
When you talk to me, keep in mind that you're talking about rotten pain
. طلعت من البلد لانو بدون راسي
I left the country because I felt lost
لاني حكيت انو حب الوطن مانو موقف سياسي
Because I said that love of the homeland is not a political stance
نحنا بزمن التطب ي ل للباطل تهليل
We live in an era where falsehood is glorified
. منهل لكل عرصا كان زبال اشتغل بالتحليل
A source of income for every jerk who worked in analysis or garbage collection
ع حساب . وجودي . ف جودي يا اوجاعي
At the expense of my existence, oh my pain.
كنا ننكش بالتبن طلعوا عرصات بدل افاعي
We used to dig in the straw, and snakes appeared instead of mice
هه . لحتى دافع عن حالي بالصوت والصورة
Ha ha, so I defend myself with voice and image
اول ما وصلت ع الغربة تعلمت دين يافلا هورا
As soon as I arrived in exile, I learned a religion of endless hypocrisy
...
...
متل هيك ايام كنت . عما دّخن كينيت
Those were the days when I smoked, and I was myself
. عايش متل ما بدي مبسوط لو انخنت!
I'm living the way I want, happy or not.
. ١٠ كيلو انحفت او اتخنت ...
Lost or gained 10 kilograms...
المهم اني ما بعمري مشيت بطريق ورا طيز بنت
The important thing is that I never walked behind a girl's butt
شي بيخري لما رفيقي . يقلب ضدي عرصا
Something bothers me when my friend turns against me
او رفيقة مشيت معي كرمال تاخد مني مصة
Or a female friend walked with me just to get a favor
كان قاعد جنبي عما يقلي حكيلي و امن فيني
He was sitting beside me, saying to me to talk and trust him
عطيتو سري فتحول ب ايدو سهم ليرميني
I gave him my secret, and he turned it into an arrow to shoot me
ههه . التعليمة بعمرا ما بتأبد
Ha ha, the instruction never lasts
عم تواجه اسطورة ما انحنى ضهرو الا بمسجد
You're facing the legend that didn't kneel except in a mosque
. اتعلمت من غباء وسلبيات الدنيا حكمة!
I learned wisdom from the foolishness and negativity of this world!
لرصاصة ما بتقتل كلمة كل بعصة وراها بسمة
A bullet doesn't kill a word, and each step behind it has a smile
. ف ب اسمي . عم حيي من كل شعب و من كل كرسي
So in my name, I greet every nation and every chair
. انا عالغربة ماشي وهستيريا علمتني امحي
I am walking in exile, and my madness taught me to erase
. قلت لحالي بسكرة ماعاد في شي حتى قولو
I told myself in a drunken stupor that nothing is worth seeing anymore
Writer(s): Abdullah Ibrahim
Contributed by Jeremiah B. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@faizelpet
During 2003 I visited Abdullah Ibrahim at his M7 studio, on the 1st floor of the Cape Town City Hall. He spoke about the good old days from when he and my late father used to grow up in Kensington, and the fond memories he has from those days. He then sat down at his grand piano in the middle of the studio, and started playing this piece.... It will always be a special piece to me 🙏🏻
@ldred2604
Highly underestimated pianist. Listen to his albums, some pure gems
@amywas1
One of my favourite artists in all the world.
@ch.keller3859
My alltime favourite - to die for.
It's a shame that it ends so abruptly here.
@jamesmethu9948
Thank you Mr Ibrahim
@PamelaMacCarthy
Absolutely beautiful.
@winesnout
Soooooooo incredibly beautiful
@lindawentink2725
So evocative. 🥰
@saidtaha1906
Awesome. Peace of mind.
@josephphillips9376
Wow