Thievery Corporation is on the Eighteenth Street Lounge record label named after the DC club owned by Eric Hilton, but several of their singles and EP's appear on the 4AD and !K7 labels.
Formed in the summer of 1995 at D.C.’s Eighteenth Street Lounge. Rob Garza and Lounge co-owner Eric Hilton bonded over club life, dub, bossa nova and jazz records, then decided to see what would come of mixing all these in a recording studio. From this, the duo was born and their self started label Eighteenth Street Lounge Music began to emerge on an international level.
The duo caught the ears of underground DJ’s with their first two 12" offerings, Shaolin Satellite and 2001: a Spliff Odyssey. Their 1997 debut LP, Sounds from the Thievery Hi-Fi began to both define a new genre of electronic music and connect with an international community of like-minded souls. Though the terminology has varied (downtempo, chill out, left field and a myriad of other permutations), they have maintained their unique musical standards for the duration of their popularity.
In 2002, they released The Richest Man in Babylon on their ESL label. This fifteen track album is similar in sound and timbre to their earlier 2000 release, The Mirror Conspiracy, and features performances by vocalists Emiliana Torrini, Pam Bricker, and Loulou.
In 2005 they released The Cosmic Game, which has a darker, more psychedelic sound than The Richest Man in Babylon. The album also featured more high-profile guest singers on it, including Perry Farrell, David Byrne, and Wayne Coyne of The Flaming Lips.
In 2006, the group released Versions, a selection of remixes done by Thievery Corporation for other artists and toured the United States, playing at Lollapalooza.
The group released their fifth studio album, Radio Retaliation, on 23 September 2008.
The language of the group's lyrics are as diverse as English, Spanish, French, Persian, Portuguese, Romanian and Hindi. This reflects the group's global feel and collaborative structure.
They were the opening act on August 1, 2009 for Sir Paul McCartney at FedExField in Landover, Maryland.
On July 27, 2010, Babylon Central, the cinematic directorial debut of founding member Eric Hilton, was released. Set (and shot) in Washington, D.C., the film follows tripwire events in the interconnected lives of its characters, each influencing power brokers' schemes to manipulate international currencies.
In June 2011, Thievery Corporation released their sixth album, Culture of Fear.
In January 2012, Thievery Corporation launched a remixes contest in conjunction with Dubspot.
Safar
Thievery Corporation Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Delam baraye to tang shode
Chera cheshato vaz nemkoni
Delam baraye to tang shode
Chera delam barat tang shode
Delam baraye to tang shode
Chera cheshato vaz nemikoni
Raftin
Dast be dast
Koja raftin
The lyrics of Thievery Corporation's Safar are sung in Farsi and invite listeners into a journey of emotions. The repeated phrase "Chera cheshato vaz nemkoni, Delam baraye to tang shode" roughly translates to "Why don't you look at me, my heart aches for you". The singer is longing for someone's attention and affection, feeling restricted and limited without it. The following line "Bacheha koja raftin, Raftin" translates to "Where have the children gone? They have gone." This suggests feelings of emptiness and loss, emphasized by the repeated plea for attention and closeness.
The second verse repeats the same words, adding the line "Dast be dast, Koja raftin" which means "We held hands before, where have you gone?" This line adds depth to the longing present throughout the song, questioning a deeper relationship that has perhaps disappeared or ended. The repeated lyrics create a sense of circularity, suggesting that the singer is stuck in a cycle of longing and loss.
Line by Line Meaning
Chera cheshato vaz nemkoni
Why won't you look me in the eye?
Delam baraye to tang shode
My heart is longing for you
Chera delam barat tang shode
Why has my heart become so attached to you?
Chera cheshato vaz nemikoni
Why won't you look at me?
Bacheha koja raftin
Where have our childhood memories gone?
Raftin
They're gone
Dast be dast
Hand in hand
Koja raftin
Where have you gone?
Writer(s): Roberto Manuel Garza, Richard Eric Hilton
Contributed by Brayden S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@shabl68
very cool, love the persian voice!
@tsilimidridis
yessir,track is my best from the album
@bshafiee
very nice!
@odedfried-gaon2880
what a Corp!
@salihmojo
My heart is cold where did you go....
@kimmoye-reyes3372
Lovely
@SMAr2wo
Fantastic! (vocal = LouLou)
@SMAr2wo
Why don't you open your eyes? I miss you.
Why do I miss you? I miss you.
Why don't you open your eyes? Where did you go kid? Did you go?
Where did you go kid?
@rogerthat5176
what language is this?
@SMAr2wo
+Rog crotch Farsi (Persian)