Lissa Fakir

One of my favorite Umm Kulthum songs, not least for its mix of sweet melody and bitter lyrics... catchy tunes with dark emotional exploration. The first three verses fully explore Maqam Ajam as it was in Egypt by mid-20th century, with the characteristic Secondary Saba of the 2nd verse. All of these moves, in fact the whole profile of Ajam, was new; a complete change from the older version of Ajam. See the full discussion on the Ajam Pathways page.

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See the following analyses: Jins Ajam, Jins Secondary Ajam, Jins Hijaz, Jins Secondary Saba, Jins Bayati, Jins Nahawand, Jins Ajam Baggage