The Town may refer to:

Cities and towns[link]

• Oakland, California
• Seattle, Washington

Art and entertainment[link]

• The Town (1945 film), a World War II propaganda film
• The Town (2010 film), a crime thriller film directed by and starring Ben Affleck
• The Town (1950 novel), by Conrad Richter
• The Town (1957 novel), by William Faulkner
• The Town (newspaper), published in London from 1837 to 1840
• Longford Town F.C., an Irish association football club

See also[link]

• Town (disambiguation)

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

Octavia Nasr (Arabic: اوكتافيا نصر‎‎) is a journalist who covers Middle East affairs. She served as CNN’s Senior Editor of Mideast affairs until her dismissal in July 2010 over her public statement of respect on Twitter for the Lebanese cleric Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah, who she considered "one of Hezbollah's giants I respect a lot."

Biography[link]

Octavia Nasr was born in Hadath Baabda, Lebanon to Lebanese Maronite Christian parents.^{[citation needed]} She studied in Beirut between 1968 and 1978; primary and middle school at the Sœurs des Saints Cœurs in Hadath. She completed her high school studies at the Collège des Pères Antonins in Hadath Baabda, Lebanon. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the Lebanese American University (LAU). She has started her graduate studies in Middle Eastern affairs at Georgia State University (GSU), in Atlanta, Georgia.

Nasr is married and has two daughters. She lives in Atlanta, Georgia, and is fluent in Arabic, French and English.^{[citation needed]}

Career[link]

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Nasr began her career as an assistant News Director at the Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation (LBC) in Lebanon. She later became Executive Producer of the channel's main news bulletin and then turned to reporting. As a war correspondent at LBC she covered the Lebanon Civil War and interviewed political figures from the different warring factions from 1988 to 1990. Lawlessness and a rise in journalists' kidnapping drove western broadcasters to close down their operations during that time. On behalf of LBC, Nasr contributed reports and filed live updates to CNN's World Report program during that period.

In 1990, Nasr moved to CNN and worked there in various capacities until 2010. She coordinated CNN's coverage of the Gulf War as part of the international assignment desk in 1991. She also ran the news gathering operation for the CNN World Report program before she became the program's anchor and Editor. After 9/11/2001 her role changed to Senior Editor of Arab affairs coordinating coverage with various Arab networks and providing on air and behind-the-scenes analysis of breaking news with a focus on the war on terrorism, al Qaeda, Taliban, Osama bin Laden and the Afghanistan-Pakistan region. Most recently, she served as the Senior Editor for Middle East affairs across all of CNN's platforms. In this capacity she appeared on CNN shows as an analyst of breaking news and developing stories in the Middle East and how they pertain to the United States and the world.

An early adopter of digital media, Nasr is considered one of the pioneers of bridging the gap between traditional and social media. She played a pivotal role building and running the social media international news gathering strategy at CNN. The peak of her work in this capacity was the Iranian elections of 2009 and their aftermath. She now runs her own company, Bridges Media Consulting. Its main aim is to help businesses employ social networks to enhance their image and deliver their message. She is a lecturer and columnist on Middle East issues. Most recently, she spoke at the Harvard Business School about the importance of social media in the Arab world. At the University of Warsaw in Poland she discussed the similarities between the ongoing uprising in the Middle East with Eastern Europe of the late 1980s and early 1990s.

Nasr is the recipient of many awards including: Edward R. Murrow for Continuing Coverage: CNN, Coverage of the Middle East Conflict; the 2006 Lebanon War. Golden Cedar Award for Excellence in Journalism from the Lebanese-American Chamber of Commerce as well as CNN World Report's Achievement Award.

Fadlallah comments and CNN dismissal[link]

Following the death of Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah on July 4, 2010, Nasr tweeted on the same day that she was "Sad to hear of the passing of Sayyed Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah.. One of Hezbollah's giants I respect a lot..."^[1][2]

Nasr was criticized for this perceived show of sympathy and support for Hezbollah, an organization which the U.S. government designates as a terrorist group, amid claims that her stated position was incompatible with her role at CNN as editor of news on the Middle East.^[3][4][5]

In response to reactions to her comment, Nasr wrote on July 6 that the tweet was "an error of judgment". She noted Fadlallah "regularly praised the terror attacks that killed Israeli citizens. And as recently as 2008, he said the numbers of Jews killed in the Holocaust were wildly inflated." She also noted "In 1983, as Fadlallah found his voice as a spiritual leader, Islamic Jihad - soon to morph into Hezbollah - bombed the U.S. Marine barracks in Beirut, killing 299 American and French peacekeepers."

Nasr concluded her statement by saying that Fadlallah was "revered across borders yet designated a terrorist. Not the kind of life to be commenting about in a brief tweet. It's something I deeply regret."^[6] A CNN spokesman responded saying that "CNN regrets any offense her Twitter message caused. It did not meet CNN’s editorial standards."^[7] The following day, on July 7, CNN fired Nasr. In an internal CNN memo announcing Nasr's departure, CNN International’s senior vice president for newsgathering, Parisa Khosravi, wrote, "We believe that her credibility in her position as senior editor for Middle Eastern affairs has been compromised going forward."^[8]

Reaction[link]

Articles and commentaries following Nasr's sacking have been divided. Mediaite's Dan Abrams asked "Can you imagine what would happen to an American journalist expressing admiration for an Al Qaeda leader who had other, better, attributes?"^[9] Others expressed concern over what they viewed as similar incidents, most notably Hearst syndicated columnist Helen Thomas retiring under criticism one month earlier.^[10][11][12]

Those who agreed with CNN's decision stated that it had a right to enforce standards of objectivity in its reporting.^[13][14] Those who supported Nasr felt her firing constituted a new trend in the political climate for journalists and journalism covering politically sensitive issues in general,^[15][16] and the Middle East in particular.^[17][18]

Orthodox rabbi Shmuley Boteach wrote "For people like...Nasr..., an imam like Fadlallah who wants to kill Americans and Israelis but who is unexpectedly nice to women has taken a giant leap forward from the Dark Ages, deserving respect and praise. This attitude is, of course, not only deeply amoral and patronizing nonsense but historically false."^[19]

Expressing a contrary opinion, Robert Fisk derided CNN and its credibility over the firing, saying "Poor old CNN goes on getting more cowardly by the hour. That's why no one cares about it any more."^[20]

Thomas Friedman was also among the many who were troubled by the decision, saying that the decision undermined the network's credibility and sent the wrong signal to young people entering journalism.^[21]

See also[link]

• CNN controversies

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Octavia Nasr

• Octavia Nasr's CNN Videos
• Octavia Nasr's Twitter

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Phil Coulter (born 19 February 1942) is a musician and producer. His career has spanned four decades and he is one of the biggest record sellers in Ireland.^{[citation needed]} The Derry composer was awarded the Gold Badge from the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors (BASCA) in October 2009.

Coulter has won 23 Platinum Discs, 39 Gold Discs, 52 Silver Discs, two Grand Prix Eurovision awards; five Ivor Novello Awards, which includes Songwriter of the Year; three American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers awards; a Grammy Nomination; a Meteor Award, a National Entertainment Award and a Rose d’or d’Antibes.^[1]

Early years[link]

Coulter is from Derry in Northern Ireland where his father was a Royal Ulster Constabulary police officer, one of the 10% Catholic constables in the force.^{[citation needed]} He grew up with his two brothers and two sisters.

Coulter's father, also called Phil, encouraged music in the house. He played the fiddle whilst his wife played the upright piano. The younger Coulter recalls this piano, made by Challen, as "the most important piece of furniture in the house". “I always stayed away from the fiddle, having inflicted enough pain on my family with the piano,” he laughed. Coulter confesses that he came close to abandoning the piano at an early age. “The truth is I hated the piano at first. I’d love to say I was a natural but I wasn’t. I hated playing it and I hated my music teacher. My father, who was a canny man, told me, ‘We have to scrimp and save to pay for these lessons, you might as well give them up.’ “It wasn’t long before I gravitated back to the piano, trying to play the songs that I was listening to on the radio. I always wondered what my left hand was supposed to be doing though. But after two or three years at St. Columb’s College I began thinking of the piano as an extension of myself.”^{[citation needed]}

One of Coulter's most popular songs, "The Town I Loved So Well", deals with the embattled city of his youth, filled with "that damned barbed wire" during the Troubles. 'It is the one I anguished most over, the one which had to earn respect and perhaps the most auto-biographical tune I have ever written’ “The roots of that song go very, very deep, it took time for it to win respect and integrity. That song defines an era and a place that is very dear to my heart.”^{[citation needed]}

Education[link]

Coulter spent his secondary school years at St. Columb's College. He later studied music and French at the Queen's University of Belfast (QUB). Coulter has received honorary doctorates from the University of Ulster and Dublin Institute of Technology.

Beginnings of a career in music[link]

He started his first band at Queen's University, playing early rock and roll music despite studying classical music. Coulter was also founder of the Glee Club, which staged music events for the university. By 1964, his final year at university, Coulter had already written a couple of hit songs in Ireland and he moved to London, where his first job was as an arranger/songwriter with a music publisher in Denmark Street. From here he was hired to work with name acts including Billy Connolly, Van Morrison, Jerry Lee Lewis and Tom Jones.

Songwriting partnership with Bill Martin[link]

In the late 1960s Coulter formed a long-lasting writing partnership with Bill Martin. They wrote Sandie Shaw's 1967 Eurovision-winning entry, "Puppet on a String", which would go on to become an international hit with more than 100 cover versions. They had a second hit the next year with a song for Cliff Richard called "Congratulations", which finished second at Eurovision. A Spanish documentary in 2008 however revealed that Cliff Richard had been robbed of victory after General Francisco Franco fixed the vote.^[2] Seven years later Coulter found himself back on the Eurovision stage when he co wrote, together with Pierre Cour, the song "Toi" for Luxembourg: the song, which was performed by Coulter's future wife Geraldine, came fifth in Stockholm. Coulter and Martin later wrote the song "Shine It On", which would finish third in the 1978 heat of A Song for Europe, performed by the Glaswegian performer "Christian".

The duo wrote numerous hit songs for a variety of popular singers in the 1960s and 1970s, including "My Boy" for Elvis Presley and many of the Bay City Rollers' hits: they also contributed incidental music to the 1967 Spider-Man television series.

Sideman and producer[link]

As well as writing hit singles, Coulter produced three ground-breaking albums with Planxty, which would have an influence on modern Irish music. Christy Moore wrote:

"With no competition he gave us a shite contract and we signed everything away. All that said, 30 years on this album sounds good. He produced it well and ... (he had) the foresight and wherewithal to record the band at a time when no one else was listening.^[3]

In addition to writing hits for the Bay City Rollers, Coulter also wrote songs for several other teenybop bands of the 1970s, including Kenny and Slik, and appeared as a production credit on "Automatic Lover" by Dee D. Jackson.

Coulter produced, arranged and wrote most of the late Joe Dolan 1983 album, Here and Now. The album featured several hit singles, including the Irish Top Ten hit "Deeper and Deeper" which remained a staple in Dolan's live sets and was also one of the last songs he performed before he became ill on stage during what turned out to be his last ever show in Abbeyleix. The album was released in South Africa as "Yours Faithfully" where it went to number one within one week of release.^{[citation needed]}

In 2007, Coulter joined with Sharon Browne, one of the originators of the successful Celtic Woman production, to collaborate on formation of a male version of that production called "Celtic Thunder". A stage production at The Helix in Dublin was released on DVD as Celtic Thunder: The Show and went to the top of the Amazon and Billboard Top World Albums chart in 2008. Many of the tracks in the show, such as "That's a Woman" and "Heartbreaker", were written by Coulter.

Solo success[link]

In 1984 Coulter launched himself as an artist in his own right and began by releasing a solo instrumental album called Classic Tranquility. His follow-up, Sea of Tranquility, became the second-best selling album of all time in Ireland.^{[citation needed]} It peaked at #46 in the UK Albums Chart, and remained in the chart for fourteen weeks.^[4] The follow-up album, Phil Coulter's Ireland reached #86 in the UK.^[4] He moved from London back to Ireland, where he established his music publishing company on the grounds of his house in Bray, south of Dublin. Coulter's official website notes that he has some 23 platinum records, 39 gold and 52 silver albums. He also keeps one of the walls of his office blank, "to remind me that there’s still room for a lot more."^[5]

In 2001 he was nominated for a Grammy Award in the "New Age" category for his album Highland Cathedral. At the age of 67, he continues to be a popular performer in his native country and around the world in places such as The White House and Carnegie Hall.

Politics[link]

In 2002, Coulter was encouraged by the Save the Swilly organisation to run for Dáil in order to protect Lough Swilly from aquacultural destruction. After some deliberation, he concluded that work and family commitments would not allow him the time necessary to fill the political position. Some^[who?] say that the passing of his priest brother Joseph at that time had a significant influence on his decision.^{[citation needed]}

Sport[link]

Coulter is a former president of Derry City Football Club and is known to be a supporter of the club, having attempted to help the club with its financial problems in the early 2000s. He has also helped Derry City's local rivals, Finn Harps, in their time of need.

In 1995, the Irish Rugby Football Union commissioned Coulter to write a politically neutral anthem for the Ireland national rugby union team, which represents both Northern Ireland and Ireland. The result was "Ireland's Call", which is played alongside of, and in some cases instead of, Amhrán na bhFiann. As well as being used by both the Ireland national rugby union team and the junior national teams, "Ireland's Call" has since also been adopted by the Ireland's national hockey, cricket and rugby league teams.

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• Phil Coulter discography at Discogs

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Luke Kelly
A portrait of Luke Kelly
Background information
Born	(1940-11-17)17 November 1940
Origin	Sheriff Street, Dublin, Ireland
Died	30 January 1984( 1984-01-30) (aged 43)
Genres	Folk music of Ireland
Occupations	Musician
Instruments	Vocals, banjo
Years active	1962–1984
Associated acts	The Dubliners

Luke Kelly (Irish: Lúc Ó Ceallaigh; 17 November 1940 - 30 January 1984) was an Irish singer and folk musician from Dublin, Ireland, notable as a founding member of the band The Dubliners.

Early life[link]

Luke Kelly was born into a working class family in Lattimore Cottages, 1 Sheriff Street, a quarter of a mile from Dublin's main thoroughfare, O'Connell Street. His grandmother, who was a McDonald from Scotland, lived with the family until her death in 1953. His father worked all his life in Jacob's biscuit factory and enjoyed playing football. Both Luke and his brother Paddy played club Gaelic football and soccer as children.^[1]

He attended the Laurence O'Toole School as a child, and achieved very good grades in most subjects. In 1953 the Dublin Corporation moved the family to Larkhill near Whitehall when their flat was destroyed in a fire, but he continued to attend O'Toole's by taking a bus there every day. Luke left school at thirteen and after four years of odd-jobbing, he went to England in 1958. Working at steel fixing with his brother Paddy on a building site in Wolverhampton, he was sacked after asking for more money. He worked odd jobs from oil barrel cleaning to vacuum salesman.

Musical beginnings[link]

The first folk club he came across was in The Bridge Hotel, Newcastle upon Tyne in early 1960^[2]. Having already acquired the use of a banjo, he started memorising songs. In Leeds he brought his banjo to sessions in McReady's pub. The folk revival was under way in England: at the centre of it was Ewan MacColl who scripted a radio programme called Ballads and Blues. The skiffle craze had also injected a certain energy into folk singing.

Luke started busking. On a trip home he went to a fleadh cheoil in Miltown Malbay on the advice of Johnny Moynihan. He listened to recordings of Woody Guthrie and Pete Seeger. As he sought out the musician in himself, he also developed his political convictions which, as Ronnie Drew pointed out after his death, he stuck to throughout his life. As Ronnie also pointed out, he learned to sing with perfect diction.

He befriended Sean Mulready in Birmingham, Luke lived in his home for a period, a teacher who was run out of his job in Dublin over his communist beliefs, he also had strong music links. A sister, Kathleen Moynihan was a founder member of Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann. He was related by marriage to Festy Conlon, the Co. Galway whistle player. His wife's brother, Ned Stapleton, taught Luke "The Rocky Road to Dublin".

Luke bought his first banjo, which had five strings and long neck(like the one of Pete Seeger and Tommy Makem), started a lifelong habit of consummate reading and even took up golf - on one of Birmingham's municipal courses. He got involved in the Jug O'Punch folk club run by Ian Campbell. He befriended Dominic Behan and they performed in folk clubs and Irish pubs from London to Glasgow. In London pubs like The Favourite he would hear street singer Margaret Barry and musicians in exile like Roger Sherlock, Seamus Ennis, Bobby Casey and Mairtín Byrnes.

Luke Kelly was by now active in the Connolly Association, a left-wing grouping strongest among the exiles in England. His political development was significant. It gave edge and conviction to his performance and lent weight to The Dubliners' repertoire at a time when the youth in Ireland were breaking away from Civil War politics. He was also to start frequenting Ewan MacColl and Peggy Seeger's Singer Club in London.

The Dubliners[link]

This unreferenced section requires citations to ensure verifiability.

In 1961 there was a ballad boom in waiting in Ireland. The Abbey Tavern sessions in Howth were the forerunner to sessions in the Hollybrook, Clontarf, the International Bar and the Grafton Cinema. Luke Kelly returned to Dublin in 1962. O'Donoghue's Pub was already established as a session house and soon Luke was singing with, among others, Ronnie Drew and Barney McKenna. Other early people playing at O'Donoghues included The Fureys, father and sons; John Keenan and Sean Og McKenna; Johnny Moynihan and Mairtin Byrnes.

A concert John Molloy organized in the Hibernian Hotel led to his Ballad Tour of Ireland with the Ronnie Drew Ballad Group. (Billed in one town as the Ronnie Drew Ballet Group). The success trail led to the Abbey Tavern and the Royal Marine Hotel and then to jam-packed sessions in the Embankment, Tallaght. Ciaran Bourke joined the group, followed later by John Sheahan. They renamed themselves The Dubliners at Luke's suggestion, as he was reading James Joyce's book of short stories, entitled Dubliners, at the time.

In 1964 Luke Kelly left the group for nearly two years and was replaced by Bobby Lynch and John Sheahan. Luke went with Deirdre O'Connell, founder of the Focus Theatre, whom he was to marry the following year, he went back to London and became involved in Ewan MacColl's "gathering". The Critics, as it was called, was formed to explore folk traditions and help young singers. Luke Kelly greatly admired MacColl and saw his time with The Critics as an apprenticeship. "It functioned as a kind of self-help group to develop each other's potential," said Peggy Seeger. In 1965, he sung 'The Rocky Road to Dublin' with Liam Clancy in his first, self-titled solo album.

Bobby Lynch left The Dubliners, while John didn't. Luke rejoined, and he started singing with Ronnie, Barney, Ciaran and John. They recorded an album in the Gate Theatre, Dublin, played the Cambridge Folk Festival and recorded Irish Night Out, a live album with, among other, exiles Margaret Barry, Michael Gorman and Jimmy Powers. They also played a concert in the National Stadium in Dublin with, to Luke's delight, Pete Seeger as special guest. They were on the road to success: Top Twenty hits with "Seven Drunken Nights" and "The Black Velvet Band", the Ed Sullivan Show in 1968 and a tour of New Zealand and Australia. The ballad boom in Ireland was becoming increasingly commercialized with publicans building even larger venues for pay-in performances. Ewan MacColl and Peggy Seeger on a visit to Dublin expressed concern to Luke about his drinking.

Christy Moore became a friend after they met in 1967. During his Planxty days he got to know Luke particularly well. "Mind you at that time I think his best singing days were over. I think Luke ran out of steam in The Dubliners as a singer. I've heard tapes of him singing as a younger man and he was wonderful" Luke took to the stage, surprising many with his performance as King Herod in Jesus Christ Superstar. In 1972 The Dubliners themselves performed in Richard's Cork Leg, based on the "incomplete works" of Brendan Behan.

The arrival of a new manager for The Dubliners, Derry composer Phil Coulter, resulted in a collaboration that produced two of Luke's most notable performances: “The Town I Loved So Well”, "Hand me Down my Bible", and “Scorn Not His Simplicity”, a song about Phil's son who was diagnosed with Down's Syndrome. Luke had such respect for the song that he only performed it once for a television recording and rarely, if ever, sang it at the Dubliners' often boisterous concerts.

His interpretations of “On Raglan Road” and “Scorn Not His Simplicity” were significant musical achievements and became points of reference in Irish folk music. His version of “Raglan Road” came about when the poem's author, Patrick Kavanagh, heard him singing in a pub in Dublin city then called the Bailey, and approached him to say that he should sing the poem (which is set to the tune of “The Dawning of the Day”). Kelly remained a politically engaged musician, and many of the songs he recorded dealt with social issues, the arms race and war, workers' rights and Irish nationalism, ("The Springhill Disaster", "Joe Hill", "The Button Pusher", "Alabama 1958" and "God Save Ireland" all being examples of his concerns). In the socially and politically conservative atmosphere in Ireland at the time, this was notable.

Personal life[link]

Luke Kelly married Deirdre O'Connell in 1965, but they separated in the early 1970s. Luke spent the last eight years of his life living with his partner Madeleine Seiler, who was from Germany. An in-depth view of Kelly's life and work, written and directed by Michael Feeney Callan, called Luke Kelly: The Performer, was released on DVD in November 2005. In the film, which includes extensive archive footage, members of the Dubliners and contemporary artists like Donovan and Ralph McTell spoke to Callan about their experiences of Luke.

Final years[link]

This unreferenced section requires citations to ensure verifiability.

On 30 June 1980 during a concert in the Cork Opera House Luke Kelly collapsed on the stage. He had already suffered for some time from headaches and forgetfulness, which however had been ascribed to his alcohol consumption. A brain tumour was diagnosed. Although Kelly toured with the Dubliners after enduring an operation, his health deteriorated further. He forgot lyrics and had to take longer breaks in concerts as he felt weak. On his European tour in autumn 1983 he came off the stage in Traun, Austria and again in Mannheim, Germany. Shortly after he had to cancel the tour of southern Germany and after a short stay in hospital in Heidelberg he was flown back to Dublin. After another operation he spent Christmas with his family but was taken into hospital again in the New Year, where he died on 30 January 1984. His gravestone in Glasnevin Cemetery, Dublin, bears the inscription: Luke Kelly - Dubliner . Sean Cannon took his place. He had been performing with the Dubliners since 1982, due to the collapse of Luke's health.

Legacy[link]

Luke Kelly remains an Irish icon and his music is widely regarded as one of Ireland's cultural treasures. Kelly's music was pan-celtic . The influence of his Scottish grandmother was paramount in Kelly's help in preserving important traditional Scottish songs such as 'Mormond Braes', 'Peggy Gordon', Robert Burns' 'Parcel of Rogues', 'Tibbie Dunbar', Hamish Henderson's 'Freedom Come All Ye', and Thurso Berwick's 'Scottish Breakaway'

The Ballybough Bridge in the north inner city of Dublin has been renamed the "Luke Kelly Bridge" and in November 2004, the Dublin city council voted unanimously to erect a bronze statue of Luke Kelly.^[3] However, the Dublin Docklands Authority has since stated that it can no longer afford to fund the statue. Councillor Christy Burke of Dublin City Council has appealed to members of the music community including Bono, Phil Coulter and Enya to help build it.^[4]

Paddy Reilly has recorded a tribute to Kelly^[5] entitled The Dublin Minstrel This features on his Gold And Silver Years, Celtic Collections and the Essential Paddy Reilly CD's. The Dubliners recorded it on their Live At Vicar Street DVD/CD. The song was composed by Declan O'Donoghue, the Racing Correspondent of The Irish Sun.^[6]

References[link]

Bibliography[link]

• Luke Kelly: a Memoir, Des Geraghty, ISBN 1-85594-090-6
• Ar Bhruacha na Life, Des Geraghty, - 23-5-07 135585 www.tg4.ie - En sub.wmv (Déanann Des Geraghty, fear amhrán agus feadóige, ceiliúradh ar an lucht ceoil i mBaile Átha Cliath).

External links[link]

• Biography at "Ramblinghouse"
• 'Ahern lends support to Kelly memorial' 31 December 2004
• http://uk.youtube.com/kellyoneill
• http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-501647685464276780
• Luke Kelly at Find a Grave

This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. This biography of a living person needs additional citations for verification. Tagged since April 2010. It may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. Tagged since February 2008. It may not represent a worldwide view of the subject. Tagged since February 2008.

Ramy Ayach (Arabic: ‎رامي عياش) (born Ramy Abu Ayach, رامي ابوعياش, on August 18, 1980 in Baakleen, Lebanon) is a Druze Lebanese singer, songwriter, composer, and instrumentalist.

Early life[link]

Ramy Ayach is the oldest of two brothers brought up in the mountains of Lebanon in a town called, Baakleen. Soon after realizing his natural talent for singing and music, Ramy went on to become one of the leading Pop Stars from the Middle East.^[1]

Musical career[link]

1997[link]

Ayach released his first album in 1997, Ra'eh, with the single Bghanneela Webde'ellah, which led to his first international tour, playing over 50 concerts in Lebanon, Australia, UK, Italy, France, UAE, Kuwait, Jordan, Qatar, Egypt, Tunisia, Germany, and Syria. Ra'eh rose to the top of Lebanese charts, which increased his fanbase and led to televised performances.

1999[link]

In 1999, Ayach signed with Rotana and released his third album, Wel'ah, with the single Shta'tilak, written and composed by himself, arranged by Ehsan El Monzir, which occupied the top position on Billboard's National Sales in the National Airplay and International Arabic Airplay category. Two other songs were also released as singles, Sawad Elninny and Wel'ah. Ayach also filmed the music video for Shta'tilak in Turkey with the Lebanese-German director Said El Marouk.

2000[link]

Ayach released the album Diwan Al Hobb, which contained the singles Arfeeno, Khad Hareer and Allah Aleak The video for Khad Hareer was filmed in Germany exclusively for the German television network Deutsche Welle.

2002[link]

Ayach completed the album Albi Mal, which contained eight tracks comprising one continuous song, Albi Mal, written by Nabil Abu Abdo, composed and arranged by Jean-Marie Riachi, and the singles Alla Ykoun Ma'ak, Behwak, composed by Ramy Ayach and a cover of Allaylo Ya Layla, originally recorded by the Lebanese musician Wadih El Safi.

2004[link]

In 2004, Ayach released Ya msahar eyni, produced by Jean-Marie Riachi, which was their second collaboration and become his most successful album, topping music and video charts for months with the singles Ya msahar eyni and Khallini Maak.

2006[link]

Habbaytak ana, Ayach's eighth album, was released in December 2006. It was produced again by Jean Marie Riachi. The title track was released as single.

2009[link]

He joined Jean-Marie Riachi for the album Belaaks. The song Belaaks (On the Contrary) is a duetto with Abeer Nehme and is an oriental jazz arrangement of the famous song Quizás, quizás, quizás in Lebanese dialect.

Discography[link]

• 2006: Habbaytak Ana

Track listing

1. Habbaytak Ana
2. Khallik
3. Ya Bint El-Jirani
4. Aayni Aal Gharam
5. W Min El-Chebbak
6. Doummini
7. Dana W Ana
8. Khalli Indak Damm

• 2004: Ya Msahar Einy

1. Ya Msahar Einy
2. El-Hanan W El-Hob
3. Hobak Mehayarni
4. Khaleni Maak
5. Mabrouk
6. Ya Omry La
7. Habeeb El-Alb
8. Leeh

• 2002: Albi Mal

1. Albi Mal
2. Al Laylo ya Layla
3. Behwak
4. Heyya Heyya
5. Allah Yekon Maak
6. Hababteni feek
7. Keef Tarikne

• 2001: Dewan El Hob

1. Aarfeno
2. Allah Aalaik
3. Bakrahak
4. Khad Harer
5. Hatha Lotf Mennek
6. Men Awal Nathrah

• 2002: Wel'ah

1. Wel'ah
2. Ahl Lhawa
3. Ahlamak
4. Alby Elyk
5. Shtaktilak
6. Sawad El Ninny

• 1999: Mou`jiza

1. Mou'jiza
2. Elli Shobbaik W`lobbaik
3. Al-Soura
4. Beechak Mn Ben El Aynayn
5. Albi W`albik
6. Zghayar Oumry

• 1998: Rae'h

1. Rae'h
2. Laayounik
3. Khidni
4. Ghanni Ya Bolbol
5. Torkos A' la Daffi
6. Bghanilha

Recent News[link]

The pop star Ramy Ayach finished lately^[when?] recording a duet with the Egyptian singer Ahmad Adawia entitled “Annas Al Rayaa”. Ramy said that the idea was a coincidence, since he was meeting the song’s composer to discuss his new album’s songs and he found the song’s incomplete version which he liked a lot. When he listened to it later in its full version, he felt that it would be very suitable for him to sing it with Adawia. So they called him and he was very excited for the duet the moment he listened to it. Ramy added that he is a big fan of Adawia, who is considered one of the most important singers in Egypt.^[1]

Pop star Ramy Ayach ended recently his contract with Rotana company to join Melody. He had met with the company’s CEO Jamal Marwan and he was satisfied with the package he offered to him.^[1]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Ramy Ayach On Facebook
• Ramy Ayach Official Website
• Rotana Records Arabia