Why I learned "Al-Layel Al-Hady / The Calm Night"

The song "Al-Layel Al-Hady" which translate to "The Calm Night" is a very dear song to my heart for a couple of reasons.

Reason One:
It was one of the VERY first songs I learned on the guitar when I was learning how to play the instrument. Due to its 3 chord progression & also the fact that its such a beautiful Sudanese tune.
I wanted to learn to play this song because of reason number two.

Reason Two:
In between 1997 -1998 an album was released by an Egyptian singer called Mohammed Fouad, this singer was known to "borrow" western tunes, change it up a little, add Arabic lyrics to them, and present them as his own. He then released one of his albums, and the last song was "Al-Layel Al-Hady", and he only credited it as "Nubian Folklore". He didn't give the name of the original artist who wrote and sang the song, which is Mr. Sharhabeel Ahmed.
This pissed me off greatly, this singer heard this song somewhere, most likely a wedding or gathering, & without hesitation, stole it for his album without even giving credit to the Sudanese Artist who created it.

So I sat down with my guitar teacher, Mr. Bani Wani, & he helped me learn how to play the song. Through my good friend Fareed, I was able to perform at an event at The Fencing Club in Alexandria. The show was terrible, almost everything went wrong! But as I was about to leave the stage in frustration, the small crowd of listeners at the foot of the stage demanded that I sing "Al-Layel Al-Hady" because they heard me sing it at rehearsal and "liked it better than the version in the album"...So I made to let them know that its a song by a Sudanese artist called Mr. Sharhabeel Ahmed, and ended the night with that performance.
I would say that "Al-Layel Al-Hady" was my first step towards being a Sudanese singer outside of Sudan, so I would like to thank Mr. Sharhabeel Ahmed for creating the song that has paved the path in which I walk on today.

Shukran :)


I hope you enjoy my cover of "Al-Layel Al-Hady".
Originally by Sudanese Legend, Mr. Sharhabeel Ahmed




Much Love
Mosno

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