Tragedy of a Music Icon and the Shame of a Nation. By Bashir Goth
Tragedy of a Music Icon and the Shame of a Nation
By Bashir Goth
ADDUUNYADA NIN DHOOFIYO
Adduunyada nin dhoofiyo
Ninkii deggan dhulkii hooyo
Nin dhergiyo nin dhawr qaday
Aan dheef hayan
Dheddig iyo laboodbaa
Hawli kama dhammaatee
Qof waliba wixii dhibay
Dhafoorkay ku taallaa
***
(Whether you be a migrant
Or you stay back at home
Whether you live in affluence
Or you sleep on empty stomach for days
Whether you are a male or a female
The world never spares anyone of suffering
And everyone’s own misery and hardship
Can be noticed easily on one’s temples…
Widely known as the Somali King of Melody, Maxamad Saleeban Tubeec’s unique, modulate and soaring
voice spoke prophetically of the fate that would befall the Somali nation and with it Somali culture of which
music is its crown jewel.
After more than half a century of fame during which Tubeec has entertained, mesmerized, and moved the
passions of the Somali people with his magical and inimitable voice in defiance of the ugly tyranny of the
Somali people against his rights as a human being and a native citizen, he is now lying in a hospital bed
far from home. He said the doctors in Germany where has been taken for treatment confirmed to him
that he needs a surgical operation, an operation that he cannot financially afford. The painful news came
through a desperate appeal he made through a Somali TV channel, asking Somali people and the Somali
government to assist him in meeting the hospital expenses so he can undergo this life giving surgery.
In any world, other than this surrealistic situation of Somalia, Tubeec would have been not only a
source of national pride for his contribution to Somalia’s music heritage but also a wealthy man from the
copyright and sales of his works. But is it no wonder that within the Somali context where there is no
copyright and no respect for intellectual property that artists, no matter how significantly they contribute to
the collective national memory of the people, would remain on the lowest rung of the economic ladder.
As a person who grew up in the heyday of Somali music and literature in the 1960s and 70s when music
rocked people’s passions with its magical melody, its powerful poetry, and its appeal to the ambitions and
dreams of the young Somali nation, I could never have envisioned the day when the whole nation would
collapse and Somali musical icons would suffer and die of negligence and anonymity in their old age.
Hearing Tubeec’s pathetic condition, I travelled down memory lane and with the help of like minded
people who preserved his music on YouTube, tried to relive the golden age of his music when he
breathed the beauty of life into the hearts and souls of people who loved his music but wouldn’t otherwise
treat him as an equal human being due to his clan. The days when his melodies symbolized everything
beautiful in life and through it we all felt to be immortal.
It was ironic that I encountered his famous lyrics which Somalis have through decades sang and may
continue to sing even centuries to come to ring in every New Year. As we stand at the beginning of a New
Year, 2014, it is painful and somewhat apocalyptic to hear Tubeec singing the powerful words of Hussein
Aw Farah:
KII NOO HAGAAGEE NOQO LOO HANWEYNYAHAY
Waan heesayaayee
Sannad waliba hoodiyo
Hawl iyo dhibaatiyo
Wuxu hadimo leeyahay
Waa laga helaayoo
Hadhaw lagu xusuustaa
Kii noo hagaagee
Noqo loo hanweynyahay…
***
(I am going to sing
That every year
Brings with it what
It has to offer
In affluence and in misery
And it is remembered
In what it gives
O New Year
Be one that brings us
Good tidings
To earn our admiration…
One couldn’t miss, however, and might even remember it with a nostalgic feeling how Tubeec spoke to
our hearts and made us live life to the full with his song Waqti (Time) in which he admonished Time to
stay away from him and let him enjoy his youthful days.
WAQTI
Hawshiyo dhibaatada
Dhallinyaro intaan ahay
Ha ii soo dhaweynine
Waxan ii dhammaynayn
Sharaftayda dhawrooo…
***
(While I enjoy my youthful days
O Time
Spare me
From your miseries and sufferings
Let me enjoy my youthfulness to the full
Dare you not harm my dignity…)
Well indeed, Tubeec had a productive and beautiful youth as one of the most loved singers of his
generation and a man crowned by the Somali people as the King of Melody. Tubeec was a born singer
in every genre he under took. But there is no doubt that he first captured the heart and minds of the
Somali people all over the Somali peninsula with his patriotic songs at the time of independence. It was
Tubeec’s lyrics that dominated the airwaves during the celebrations for Independence anniversaries. I
can recall how the feeling of the people soared with the hearing of Tubeec’s “Dharaartaan waxyeeladay
Dhaqdhaqeen” (The Day I Cleansed Myself of Shame) which had become one of the indelible symbols of
Somali independence:
DHARAARTAAN WAXYEELADII DHAQDHAQAY
Dhaaxaan gunimiyo
Dhibaato mutoo
Dhomaha la iga saaray
Dhinacyada ee
Dharaartaan waxyeeladii
Dhaqdhaqnee
Calanka dhidbay
Sow ma soo dhicin…”
***
The Day I Cleansed Myself of Shame Day
(“Many a time, I had suffered
Ignominy and harshness
And have been loaded
On both sides
Like a beast of burden
O hasn’t the day
Has come
When I cleansed myself of shame
And I hoisted the flag…”)
I can only imagine how much the words of this song rang bells in Tubeec’s inner soul for while he was
passionately singing about the removal of the yoke of colonialism and oppression, he knew in the deepest
parts of his heart that he and his family were still carrying the yoke of centuries old societal heinous
discrimination and oppression that his voice couldn’t erase. But he still sang for the promise of the day
with a great degree of patriotism and optimism.
Another of his unforgettable independence songs was “Way Ahaataye Maaanta” (Yes, today we have
done it”, a song with lyrics talking about the need for collaboration and cohesiveness in decision making
between the leaders and the people, a message that has lost its way to the heart of the Somali people.
WAY AHAATAYE MAANTA
Hadba kii arrin keena
Ka kale aqbalaayaa
Ilaahii ina siiyey
Isagaa ku abaale
Way ahaataye maanta
Si wanaagsan u iida
***
YES, TODAY WE HAVE DONE IT
He, whoever initiates an idea
And the one who listens and supports it
O Thanks to Almighty
Who bestowed on us such harmony
And unity of purpose
Yes, today we have done it
And we must celebrate it
With peace and gracefulness…”
Apart from his patriotic songs, Tubeec’s fame came from his dignified and serene voice, coupled with the
pure classical Somali music that represented the era before Somali music was adulterated with foreign
styles which is adopted wholesale by modern singers.
Among the most famous of his plethora of love songs was “Dhool Da’ay La Moodyeey” ( O You whose
beauty resembles that of a day after rain”
DHOOL DA’AY LA MOODYEEY
Dhool da’ay la moodeeyey
Waan kugu dhadhabayaayey
Dharaartaynu kullanaa
Dhulku ila wareegeey
Dhimasho iyo nolol
Ayaan kala dhex joogaa
***
“O You whose beauty resembles that of a day after rain
Since the day I met you
The earth seems to be spinning around me
And I stand between death and life…”
Yet another one of his memorable love songs is “Nayruus” (Nowruz) which he performs with Magool,
known also as the Queen of Melody, thus making them a heaven-made duet, and arguably the best two
voices of Somali music of all time.
NAYRUUS
Weligay kumaan nicin
Naagana kuma ag dhigin
Ka nixina ismaan odhan naruuroy
Ka nixina ismaan odhan nasteexooy…
***
“I never have ceased to love you
I never have compared you with other women
Never have it occurred to me to let you down
O my gracious deliverance
Never have it occurred to me to let you down
O my precious darling.
It was in Lagos in 1977 that Tubeec and Magool mesmerized the African audience with their magical,
authentic Somali voices. And one of the highlights of the night was“ “MINANKAYGII HADDAAD TIMI’ which
I recommend every reader of this piece to watch and enjoy these two artists’ stellar music and regal
performance.
The precious archives of Tubeec’s music is priceless and deserve more than a book to cover it, but to
throw a couple of more lines into the memory trove, I cannot miss to recall “Hanqaaro” (Urge)
NAFTAYDA ADAA HANQAAROO
Naftaydaa adaa hanqaaroo
Hablihii kale waan ka hadhayee
Anigu kaa helay hubaalee
Adigu mayla haysaa…
***
“O you have caused the urge in me
And I let go of all other women
My admiration for you is absolute
I wonder if have yours in return ..”
Definitely the list continues and includes Cimrigiiba Jacayl, AMAANADA ILAAHAY, Malyuun Hibo, and
of course the great song of Hooyo (mother).
This is not a eulogy as Tubeec is very much alive and I wish him quick recovery but it is an attempt to
remind the Somali people and the Somali government that our cultural icons and music legends like
Tubeec and Cabdi Tahliil who is also ill and in need of treatment should never have been allowed to meet
this fate.
It is almost a crime that we had the music of Tubeec and Tahliil to enjoy and took pride in the legacy
they left for us and then let them suffer and face life alone in their twilight years. Undeniably the tragedy
that befell Tubeec and other artists like him reflects the tragedy of a nation whose country, heritage, and
collective memory are all in ruins, but the Somali governments, no matter what, are duty bound to give
these artists the status and financial pension that they rightly deserve.
Finally, I would like to urge the Somali people and particularly the Somali government to extend their
support and welfare to Tubeec and Tahliil who unlike other artists cannot seek clan support and who
despite historical injustices always count the Somali people as a whole as their Tol.
It will only be befitting to end this peace with Tubeec’s following heart-wrenching song:
AMAANADA ILAAHAY
Ma ogtahay ayaantii
Ilmadu kaa da’aysee
Indhahaaga qoysaan
Inan yahay xasuustoo
Uurkaan ka ooyoo
Waan kaa ashahaatee
***
“O darling, don’t you know the day
When tears rolled down
And soaked your eyes
O darling, I do remember it well
As I cried my heart outA
And felt great empathy for you…”
Bashir Goth
bsogoth@yahoo.com
Email: bsogoth@yahoo.com
Source: https://Hanua.blogspot.com
