Abdel Ali Slimani - "Moi Et Toi"

Featured on the Putumayo collection "Arabic Groove." Originally released on June 12th, 2001. From the liner notes: Abdel Ali Slimani was born in the cosmopolitan Algerian port city Algiers. He was surrounded by music as he grew up, and as he witnessed the explosion of rai music in the 80’s he dreamed of someday being a singer. Slimani traveled and worked in Europe for sometime before making England his home. His early work involved being a DJ at weddings and parties where he got the chance to sing and play in impromptu sessions. In 1991, he met Jah Wobble of Invaders of the Heart who was looking for a singer. In less than three weeks, Slimani was leading the band at the WOMAD Festival in Toronto. He stayed with the group for three years before pursuing his rai music career and releasing his first solo album, Mraya (Mirror), on Peter Gabriel’s Real World imprint. A combination of Algerian rai roots and trance-like grooves, Mraya was co-written and produced by members of the Invaders of the Heart team. “Moi Et Toi (Me and You)” is an unreleased single that is available for the first time on this compilation. It speaks of the dilemmas which northern African immigrants face when living abroad. It tells the tale of a man who falls in love with a woman from outside of his community and faces rejection by his friends and family. “I have given up my family for you / And I am now fed up with how you treat me / I haven’t slept for days / You don’t even know what you are doing wrong / You never give me any of your tender love.” The song’s fast opening rhythm is typical of the mawlawi (sufi) order, and its abrupt change into the driving 4/4 beat is a musical reflection of the song’s theme of the clash of two cultures.