The Champions

The Champions Of Post 5th June 1967

It was the year of the abyss 1967, when the apocalypse shamed all those at the front, and disillusioned those in the hind.

June 5th Inspire of all the Arab claimed might and mobilization Israel succeeded to launch a pre-emptive strike against Egypt on June 5, 1967 and captured the Sinai Peninsula and the Gaza Strip, Jordan attacked Israel and lost control of the West Bank and the eastern sector of Jerusalem. Israel went on to capture the fortress of Golan Heights from Syria. The war ended on June 10.

Desolation and shame proceed to haunt the Arabs, at the time none of the leaders did acknowledged the calamity, but shamefully continued to exist, business as usual.

The Arab world was in dismay, seeking refuge away from the bestowed inherited shame. This very period created my Arab Champions, to crown a legacy of individuals simple and spontaneous with the taste of the salt of earth that was the remedy and refuge of the millions. Those in writers wrote in a dialectal Arabic, in particular Egyptian dialect. This gave a deeper meaning of their strive.

Sheikh Imam
The Late Sheikh Imam, Creator of Modern Arabic Political Song
On last June 6 the great Egyptian musician and singer Sheikh Imam died at the age of 78, after a long illness. Sheikh Imam's final days were difficult. He lived alone, visited occasionally by either his neighbors or friends. Blind since childhood, few offered assistance to the Sheikh Imam, who nevertheless perhaps saw far more than those blessed with the power of sight. By all accounts, Sheikh Imam is a major pillar of the Arabic political song which motivated thousands of workers and intellectuals rebellious against decadent times and ambitious for better tomorrow.

Ahmad Fouad Najem
Sheikh Imam Attempts at song writing was not quite successful, but when Sheikh Imam met the poet Ahmad Fouad Najem the two formed a duo where it became difficult to refer to one without the other. Working patiently and under difficult conditions, Sheikh Imam and Ahmad Fouad Najem developed the popular political song which advocates the interests of the poor and working peoples, or in other words, gave birth to an avant-guard "hymn to justice." The 1967 War and the impact of Arab defeat brought the duo "Imam-Najem" even closer, whereby they moved from reacting to social and political events into being active participants. There songs were a "light of hope in the darkness that was shed by the 1967 defeat and its aftermath." That is why their revolutionary songs Misr Ya Bahia [Pretty Egypt], Shayid Kussurak [Build Your Palaces], Ghifara [Che Ghivara], El Fallahin [the Peasants] and Mur El Kalam [Bitter Talk] were the litanies of Arab students and workers during their strikes, sit-ins and demonstrations. Many remember Imam's song Rajiu al Talmiza [The Students Returned], which he composed during the student uprising in 1972.

Their activism led the Imam-Najem pair straight to prison in 1968, where they served three years. They were also frequent quests at Egypt's state prisons between 1972 and 1979... when the duo were in prison, Sheikh Imam used to get closer to Najem's cell to recite the latter's new lyrics and then return to his cell to compose the music.
Despite their longstanding personal and professional relationship, Sheikh Imam and Ahmad Fouad Najem parted in the mid 1980's,

The music of Sheikh Imam, and the words of Ahmad Fouad Najem was marked by a form of totality that made his political song travel beyond the geographical location of its origin. It addressed issues other than those of Egypt and the conflicts peculiar of that setting; Sheikh Imam's music appealed to non-Arab and Arab symbols like the Palestinian question.

There is a vast heritage left to us by those who acted as the conscious of the people.
Below some of the written works ,as for the songs they are available on cassettes .but all the works are in a one book that holds all the works of Najem.

Abd Al-Rahman Al-Abnoudi 1934
One of the few poets used the Egyptian colloquial dialect poetry; Alabnoudi could touch the hearts of the Arabic audience. He considered himself the guard of the Egyptian country side heritage. In writing Poetry, Al-Abnoudi uses the words and expressions derived from the Egyptian country side dialect. He created a special simple language that everybody can understand.

He again, was the after effect of 67 defeat, He is a very prolific writer, and most impressive in capturing the sprits of the poor and the under privileged to turn to us into a very vivid visor moments.

He wrote many songs for many Singers, and published all his poetry in books with recorded cassettes, to enable the reader to understand, the meanings of the dialect.
Al-Abnoudi has one very famous book/audio cassette it is called:
Jawabat Haraji Algket Le Zawjatiuho Fatima Abdul Gaffar, (the letters of Haraji Algket to his wife Fatima AbdulGaffar). This is a must to read, hear. as other works are numerous, but if I talk and describe or comment on his works ,I will do him injustice.

Salah Jaheen 1932-2001
Selah Jaheen has demonstrated his mutable talents very successfully and became an icon on the daily seen, with his Rubayat and the cartoons to reflect the pulls of the masses that roam the streets

Jaheen & Cartoon
Jaheen’s career in journalism started in the early 50’s. In 1955, he worked as an amateur cartoonist in Rose El-Youssef. One year later, when the first issue of Sabah el-Khair saw the light of day, he turned professional. Dealt with vital issues in Egypt and the Arab World as well. He is the founder of the modern Egyptian cartoon school. The brilliant success of Jaheen’s cartoons arose out of the fact that he done them in the best interest of the people. Among Jaheen’s remarkably innumerable cartoon series were Hashish Addicts, Vigor Coffee-house and the Government Departments.

Jaheen & Colloquial Poetry
Jaheen’s colloquial poetry bore many Jaheen introduced a wide range of vocabulary that was only used in political articles to songwriting. Among the songs that helped create the revolutionary awareness and stir the patriotic fervour were: "We’re the People", Jaheen’s first song written in 1956, "Oh Weapon, Be Ready", "Rebels", "Oh Freedom, Here’s Nasser", "Welcome Battles" and "Paradise is my Country" .

The simplicity and spontaneity of Jaheen’s songs which evoke echoes of that cherished epoch in Egypt’s modern history make them remembered for ever. The last song he wrote was" Those are the Egyptians".

Jaheen, Visual Arts
In the film industry, Jaheen was a producer, scriptwriter and actor as well. In December 1969, Jaheen produced five television musicals, all based on popular folk tales, such as "The Zoo" and "Hashim and Rawhiya". He also wrote the "Ramadan Riddles" for television for several successive years.

As an actor, Jaheen played a variety of roles in "No Time for Love", "The Thief and the Dogs", "The Martyr of Divine Love", "The Mamelukes", to name but a few.

He wrote the scripts of the television drama serial "He and She" and of many cinema films - "The Return of the Lost Son", "Be careful, she is Zozo", "Amira My Sweetheart" and "Shafiqa and Metwalli", giving only these as examples.

Jaheen also wrote for the puppet theatre. His first production "Hassan the Shrewd" written in 1958 was followed by "A Feddan of Freedom" and "The Devil’s Mill". As nothing succeeds like success, Jaheen, then, wrote his remarkably distinguished masterpiece "The Big Night" operetta.

He created most of the children’s television puppet serials favorite characters such as "Shehab el-Din’s Donkey" "Nono the Elephant" and "The Chatterbox". It is no wonder that, in September 1962, the Ministry of Culture assigned Jaheen the task of setting up a committee on children’s culture.