The Multi-Talented Munir Khauli - Lebanon's Best Kept Secret

Munir Khauli is an example of the true artist. An artist who has gone practically unnoticed over a 25 year career as a composer/musician/satirist/social commentator because of his refusal to compromise his work in favor of the detestable commercialism that dominates the Lebanese music industry. A true innovator, he was the first Lebanese composer to incorporate Arabic lyrics into rock, blues, R&B music and Funk with his first album "Heik 7a Nishtighil?" in 1986. 2001 saw the release of his third album "Bil #arabi el Mushabra7". Click on the following link to listen to his song Mouterbeen or download the mp3 by right clicking it and choosing "save target as".

Long before Ghassan Rahbani, Soap Kills and Mashrou3 Leila, he was writing and recording Rock and Blues influenced songs with Arabic lyrics. Imagine how he must have felt everytime a tv interviewer would assume that he was inspired by Ghassan Rahbani. Ziad Rahbani is the only artist before him who was fusing elements of Arabic music with Western influences. Unlike Ziad, who was more into jazz and Latin music, Munir grew up with Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin, Frank Zappa, Robin Trower, Carlos Santana and Eric Clapton to name just a few. His most recent CD was released in 2003 under the title "Tannin el-Tarab". Apart from recording his own music, Munir has worked both as a session musician and in live concerts with Ziad Rahbani, Fairuz, Tania Saleh, Ghazi Abdel Baki, my CD "Where I Wanna Be" and many others. He has also composed dozens of TV and Radio jingles for commercials and TV series. For more on Munir Khauli, click on the following links:


http://www.munirkhauli.net/
http://www.myspace.com/mkhauli
http://www.youtube.com/user/munirkhauli
http://www.youtube.com/user/lowando


At these sites, you will have access to a biography, a photo gallery, a diary (blog), downloadable mp3's and many video clips. Munir deserves much more recognition for his achievements.

Watch this live version of the song FM recorded in Beirut at the Hamra Festival on July 26 , 2010




Click on the following link to listen to his song Mouterbeen or download the mp3 by right clicking it and choosing "save target as". "Mouterbeen" means "singers" and talks about the so called "singers" who dominated the Lebanese pop world at that time. The Frank Zappa influence is very evident here. There is awesome guitar playing on it.

Click on the following link to listen to his song Ma Kbeer Illa el Jamal or download the mp3 by right clicking it and choosing "save target as". The literal translation of the title of this song is "NOTHING IS BIG EXCEPT THE CAMEL". This expression was designed to reduce the gravity of one's problems by comparing them with something much bigger (in this case, the camel).

Click on the following link to listen to his song Na3am or download the mp3 by right clicking it and choosing "save target as". In this song he is introducing himself to the the public. Check out the amazing guitar soloing on it.

Even though his more widely known songs are sung in Arabic, Munir, who has a B.A. in English literature, is one hell of an English language writer. You will find that out for yourself when you read his diary. Most of his "fans" are not even aware of the existence of a huge repertoire of English language songs that he has written over the years. In fact, the number of these English language songs is at least 5 times the number of songs in his Arabic repertoire. Hopefully soon some of his English language songs will finally see the light and a whole new audience will discover him.

I would like to include here a small excerpt from his diary (blog) written after the Israeli war on Lebanon in 2006. Anyone who has lived in Lebanon during the different wars that this country has been through will be able to identify with this excerpt that deals with the long electricity cuts. I have read this paragraph over a hundred times and I have found myself laughing out loud every single time!:

"I dream of a simple life, coexistence with my fellow man (a fellow woman would be even more preferable, or a cat, for that matter), and the ability to pursue my goals unhindered. And war, for some reason, always proves to be a major hindrance."

"For those of you who have not been in one, there are unforgettable experiences to be had during times of war. Attempting to read by candlelight and inadvertently getting a wax job is one such experience. I am missing a whole batch of hair from my chest (barrel chest, may I add), where I had propped up the candle holder, with the book right behind it (an Alfred Hitchcock paperback, for real bedtime horror). Spending the day lined up behind long queues of cars at several gas stations, just to get the tank half filled, is also worth trying. But the cream of the crop has to be this: walking through the streets when electric power is out in the whole neighborhood. If you've tried floating motionless in a dark, silent pyramid, and come out needing just a little bit more, this is custom made for you. It is definitely a once-in-a-lifetime experience (if you're lucky. For us it's a lot more frequent). In a small apartment with which one is fairly familiar, hazards to be avoided in total darkness are bumping a shin against the leg of a table, or dislocating a shoulder on a door frame. But in the wide open streets, you could walk straight into a parked car, or kick an unsuspecting football-sized rat, with no forewarning whatsoever. No way to avoid the numerous pits and crevices in the road, so baby steps are in order. And sidewalks are a menace to navigate, so walking has to be in the middle of the street. When a car approaches from afar, you must make the most of the illumination provided by its headlights and run as fast as you can, covering as much distance as possible. I swear, the total, undiluted darkness has to be seen to be believed. You have to rely on inner glow if you are to see an inch in front of you. I made many such nocturnal hikes and've died to tell about them. Naturally, I had a small flashlight on hand, but was afraid of using it for fear of getting rounded up on suspicion of signalling to jet fighters hovering overhead."

On his official website, only one English language song is available for download.Click on the following link to listen to his song Arab Blues or download the mp3 by right clicking it and choosing "save target as". In the aftermath of the September 11th. attack on New York and the resulting discrimination and hate of Arabs living in the US , his producer asked him to write a song in English dealing with this problem.