Petrophon Records: A Rare Arab American Record Label Releases Patriotic Songs at World War II's Beginning
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Abdulmunim Shakir: A Pan-Arab Political Activist and Educator Declares “I Am a Muslim” on a rare 78 RPM Record
Abdulmunim Shakir: A Pan-Arab Political Activist and Educator Declares “I Am a Muslim” on a rare 78 RPM Record Abdulmunim Shakir c. 1958. Courtesy iof Richard M. Breaux Collection. Few 78 rpm records have intrigued us as much as Dr. Abdulmunim Shakir’s “I Am a Muslim,” backed by “Related Passages from the Holy Quran." Released on a custom label in 1956, it reads for “Exclusive Domestic and Foreign Distribution of Record Through Copyright holder.” Most singers and musicians we’ve written about at Midwest Mahjar traced their ancestry to the so-called Levant but a few like Hana Rached and Mohammed el-Akkad trace their roots to North and northeast Africa. Abdulmunim Ahmed Shakir or Abdelmoneum Shaker was born to Ahmed Shakir and Nema Shadi on 19 May 1914 (some documents say 1924) in Atbara, Sudan, at the time under Anglo-Egyptian Condominium rule. Ahmed Shakir reportedly served as a brigadier general in the Egyptian military under King Fuad I. In reality, however, Great Britain m...
From The Derbecki Trio to the Derbecki Ensemble: The Group at the Heart of Cleveland’s Arabic Music Scene
From The Derbecki Trio to the Derbecki Ensemble: The Group at the Heart of Cleveland’s Arabic Music Scene The Derbecki Trio (Eddie Hakal, Eddie Shaheen, and Labbie George) with Laurice Peters. Hafla: Echoes of the Middle East album. Courtesy of Richard M. Breaux collection. Just over four years ago, back in 2021, we featured the singing of Cleveland’s Laurice Peters . Peters had recently passed away and we explored her music career beginning with her joining the Derbecki Trio in 1957. Over the years, however, between 1949 and 1980, the trio had two core members - Eddie Shaheen and Labbie George - and a host of accompanying singers and oudist who rounded out the band making it the Derbecki Ensemble . The only other musician, although not an original member, to remain with the Derbecki Ensemble for its entire recording career was Edward Hakal . We’ve back tracked to tell the story of the core members and those who came and went as time passed and other opportunities presented themselves....