Marhaba! A couple of weeks ago, Lebanon, the Arab world, and the entire world lost the great diva Sabah. You’ve been introduced to her life and work in a recent post and today I have decided to share one her most famous songs. This song is called ‘Zay el Asel,’ (زَيّ العسل)which literally translates to ‘Like Honey.’ Sabah of Lebanese origin sung many of her masterpieces in the Egyptian dialect. This excellent masterpiece is sung in the Egyptian dialect and has a beautiful message. As I have mentioned before, music is one of the most important ways to get fully immersed into an Arabic speaking environment. I have tracked down a live performance of this song by Sabah on YouTube. I have also added the lyrics in Arabic and I have translated them to English so that you can follow with the song. Enjoy this beautiful masterpiece.
http://youtu.be/lkKprFmkJHs
Sabah – Like Honey | صباح – زي العسل
قابلت كتير
I’ve met many
فرشولي عشاني الأرض حرير وشفت كتير
They’ve spread out silk for me to walk on, And I’ve seen a lot
وما شفتش زي حبيبي أمير
But I’ve seen no prince like my beloved
مانيش رايدة وما نيش رايدة الا هو ما نيش رايدة
I don’t want, I don’t want, I don’t want anyone but him
وما فيش فايدة مافيش فايدة الا هو مافيش فايدة
There’s no use, there’s no use, except for him, there’s no use
في البعد عشقاه في القرب عشقاه
When he’s far away I adore him, when he’s near I adore him
زي العسل على قلبي هواه
His love is like honey to my heart
من صغرنا واحنا بنبني عشنا مع بعضنا
Since we were young and building our nest together
من حبنا يتعلم الطير مننا الهوى زينا
The birds learned to love like us from our love
وكبرنا والهوى كبر ولا حد في الدنيا قدر يفرقنا ولو ليلة
And we grew up and the love grew and nobody in this world can keep us apart for even one night
دي قصتنا قصة طويلة
This story of ours is a long story
لو جابو القمر من العالي العالي
If they brought me the moon from high above
والنجوم حطوها على شاني
And if they put the stars out before me
رح رد واقول وانا مالي وانا مالي
I would reject them and say I don’t care
ما أقدرش اسيب حبيبي الغالي
I can’t leave my precious sweetheart
دا القمر هو حبيبي
This moon is my beloved
والنجوم دي عيون حبيبي
And these stars are my beloved’s eyes
الدنيا ديا هيا حبيبي
And this world is my beloved
Stay tuned for upcoming posts.
Have a nice day!
نهاركم سعيد
