Kenza

I have no frame of reference from which to judge this. And yet I love it. It loses an entire star because of Imagine.

wow, this guy managed to inject a bit of life in to imagine. The point of this whole list is to go out of your comfort zone and listen to some stuff you wouldn't choose to and this definitely fits the bill. however weirdly i've probably heard this album more than most as it seems this is a standard issue CD for taxi drivers.

1001 calls him the "king of Rai", Rai being a genre coming out of Algeria. Distinctly melodic with Arabic influence, Khaled shines when he doesn't sound so goddamn poppy. This is made distinctly worse by a cornball-cover of John Lennon's Imagine, though it'll be hard to top that one cover done by all the celebrities at the start of the pandemic. I do appreciate Khaled's Algerian background, I really do, but this is too commercial, too pop to retain many good qualities. The opening track, Aâlach Tloumouni, is the obvious standout here for being the closest to standard Rai music, but the rest is watered down. It's also a half-hour too long.

I coudn't figure out any way to listen to this album, so instead, I'm going to leave notes for Want One by Rufus Wainwright. Only because I saw that this list already offered up Want Two and I'm like "Want Two? The fuck is wrong with this list?" Because Want One is every good part of Rufus Wainwright in one album. If you're not won over by the first two tracks of Want One, then... then you probably wouldn't like the rest of it. But it's one the perfect albums and I would give it 5 stars. Maybe Khaled's Kenza is exactly the same way.

Pretty nice album and definitely not something you hear every day. Also, why couldn't the many people complaining about it listen to it on Spotify? I found it immediately and it worked fine.

Thought this was a fun album and nice change of pace from the other albums we have heard so far. Unfortunately with this album not being on Spotify I listened on YouTube and it became a major distraction - the ads, a playlist with the tracks out of order, and skipping audio (at first I thought this was my wifi but upon further investigation it seemed to be the source files). In any case I enjoyed the singing, including the duets, and the music was lively and exciting. Would listen again if I find another way to listen and enjoy it more.

Extremely enjoyable to listen to. Put me in a good mood and got me to listen to Middle Eastern music all day which made me feel good. The version of Imagine was pleasant too. I heard all kinds of influences, French, Caribbean, Latin. Or did those genres pull inspiration from artists like him?

I have no frame of reference or culture context to evaluate this by. However, it is - objectively - an enjoyable album.

kinda cool, never heard of an Algerian artist before. straight ahead pop with a mix of this almost bollywood style vocal sound. But then C'est La Nuit is a totally different vocal texture. Kind of a straight up cover of Imagine, but sure it's nice. Trigue Lycee is a fucking bop. This album goes a lot of places sonically. Goulalah - Dji is a prefect example. Wow what a great listen!

I was not expecting an Egyptian/Arabic sound but I'm so into this. I never hear this style outside of like, the Prince of Egypt soundtrack (which I do love). The lush strings, cool melodies, and joyful beats make me want to dance.

There’s a whole world out there eh? This guy sold 80 million records and I never heard of him until now! This is good and cool, except for the Imagine cover. Can’t get away from that song.

Such a diverse album. I had zero expectations, but this album has everything from chanson to disco. Sounds fresh even today.

Trigue Lycée Honestly easier to listen to than other albums on this list. Never listened to something like this before. Very cultural and educational. Enjoyed it but I don’t know when I’d listen again

Way too poppy, way too long, way too much imagine

From the album cover to the production and the 70’s throwback vibes, this definitely feels like 1999.

Cover aus der Reihe „Ein Schöner Mann“. Hab mich auch gefreut, etwas anderes zu hören, aber Arabisch hört sich für mich leider häufig rückwärts gesungen an. Im Vorwärtsgang und auf Deutsch wäre dies schlimmer Schlagerpop. Satter Sympathie Punkt für seine sonst weltoffene Haltung wurde durch gefährliche Homophobie (Ansteckungsgefahr seiner Kids durch Frankreichs Legalisierung der Homo-Ehe) gecancelt. Schwör 0.5

Super funky and interesting. Already saved it.

Again, loved the sound and instruments on this but fact it kept me from fully getting into the music. When the English verse of Imagine came on, it really showed the power of his voice and Noa (the female vocalist). The English and my knowledge of the song helped ease me into the rest of the album and I ended up enjoying it a lot. Great use of horns on Trigue Lycee and Ya Aachkou is an absolute bop. Total surprise for me, especially enjoyed the second half of the album. Really a 4.5 for me but going to round up

Restaurant music Reminds me of a banging kebab

Synes det var pænt ringe. Det er bedst når det lyder mest ""etnisk"", men selv der lyder det pænt meget som sådan noget kan finder til 10 kr i en kurv med cd'er. Sikker på det var meget populært, men jeg kunne ikke ryste følelsen af at jeg lytter til Algeriers Hansi Hinterseer eller sådan noget, bare pissegenerisk. Coveret af "Imagine" er nok det værste der har været på den her liste inkl alt det på Kid Rock albummet, wtaf

Allahu akbaaaaar

Tego akurat sie czlowiek nie spodziewal, bo wylosowac arabskie disko polo jest prawdziwa sztuka, Kenza to album z 99 z gatunku muzyki rai, ktory oznacza algierska muzyke folkowa, ale tutaj wysteuje ona w odslonie dosc zmodernizowanej opierajacej swoje brzmienie na roznorakich gatunkach muzyki popularnej, soula, funku, czy nawet reggae, ale gdzies wplata te elementy typowe dla arabskiego folka, wiec tamburynowanie czy charakterystycznie drumowanie, ciezko napisac cos wiecej, bo praktycznie kazdy song ma inny sklad instrumentalny do tego to polaczenie tradycyjnego brzmienia z synthowymi klawiszami, skreczami i innymi nowinkami lat 90 daja czlowiekowi kociokwik, a to wszystko podane w bogatej opcji, bo az 78 minutowej, gdzie zmiescilo sie 15 trakow, ktorych rozszyfrowac nie jestem w stanie, bo oczywiscie po arabsku, prawie, bo pojawiaja sie takze dwa francuzkie utwory, pewnie covery, no i na dobitke czleka zaserwowany zostaje arabsko angielski cover imagine, moze przemawiaja przeze mnie uprzedzenia, ale arabski jedynie do piesni religijno folkowych, w muzyce rozrywkowej budzi jedynie skojarzenia z danzo kuduro czy helikopterowymi songami, wiec na plejke nic sie nie przekradnie tym razem

This really scratches my brain nicely, Trigue Lycee will be on loop for a while

Very cool to have this mash of cultural music

5 stars

Modern Arab music with a mix of traditional style and more modern elements like drum machines. Beautiful music and vocals - both male and female. Includes a great cover of Imagine.

So good! Not sure if I got all the songs on it or in order due to having to listen on YouTube. But loved every minute of it

I'm not actually sure I loved this album five stars much, but it's at least a 4 and I'm excited to discover this genre of music! I didn't love the ballads but found it interesting how close to salsa some of them were. Interesting instrumentation and really fun.

Unfortunately most of the album wasn’t accessible but I really enjoyed what I did hear.

Man möchte einfach nur lostanzen und nicht mehr aufhören....

Quintessential Arabian sound. This is basically the soundscape Hollywood uses as shorthand for the middle east and it sounds amazing. Khaled's classically beautiful baritone is absolutely accentuated by the backing instrumentation. I wish I understood the lyrics, but that by no means detracts from the soundscape

This was a ton of fun.

Fun listen! Warmed up to it as the album progressed

Not something that I thought I would enjoy but it was really good.

This is different, new, and fun. There were a few moments for me when, even though I didn't know what message the lyrics were conveying, the music did have a slight hint of cheese in the delivery. But, I suppose pop music often does.

Very enjoyable. Wish the whole thing was available in the US.

In the 70s when belly dancing became a crazy my mother added numerous 1950s-era albums from Mohammed El Bakkar & His Oriental Ensemble to our family collection. I became an instant fan and still enjoy these albums to this day. I very much enjoyed listening to this much more modern Algerian album. Some of the songs hinted back strongly to those 50s albums, while others were entirely modern and enjoyable. My only complaint was that this was not available on Apple Music in the US so I had to get creative to find the songs. It was a surprise to be listening along then come upon a modern dance track like E’dir E’sseba. That had me grooving on personal dance floor! I guess it speaks to the insular nature of living in the United States to discover that since the 80s Khaled has become a world pop phenomenon and I had no inkling of him before now. I love this!

I doubt that I ever would have heard this if I hadn’t joined this program. And it’s produced by Don Was, one of my favorite musicians and producers. The one false note was “Imagine,” which has been done so often. But I loved the rest!

tri massa o sonzao indiano, instrumentos e melodias agradáveis

A wonderful surprise, from an artist I had never heard of before, and a genre I had never listened to. Makes me more determined by than ever to visit francophone north Africa - perhaps the only place where Albert Camus and Andy Mcnab both set books!

very cool

I really liked this! Just a lot of cool sounds and rhythms, plus I totally fell for the sapiness of him and an Israeli singer alternating verses of Imagine in Hebrew and Arabic.

Długo kminiłem co dać. Niesamowicie wciągające rytmy, przyjemne partie instrumentalne, pomaga fakt, że arabski i francuski to ładne języki. No i, co ważne, vibe jest mega przyjemny. Po prostu świetnie się tego słucha. Chętnie wrócę do niektórych kawałków. Kusiło dać 4, ale z drugiej strony, zapewne nie będzie takiego albumu już na liście 1001, więc co mi tam!

I don't really have any context for how to judge this but it was definitely a good time. Very lively and upbeat.

Not sure how I feel about this version of Imagine. I didn't like Derwiche Tourneur very much, but the rest of the album is quite solid. Good mix of styles.

Awesome stuff.

I quite enjoyed this album - the arabic songs have a really exotic feel, and it's good to have an album on this list that's not English language. The downside is that I've no idea what the songs are about. Except the cover of Imagine. That's a bit dull and doesn't seem in keeping with the rest of the album. At 78 minutes, they could have omitted it. So, a nice record, but not one I think I'd play frequently.

Altijd leuk, die wereldmuziek in de lijst. Vandaag de bijdrage uit Algerije van Khaled, ook bij ons bekend van een paar hitjes die dus niet op dit album staan. Fijn dat er ook uit de Arabische wereld leuke dingen tot ons komen. Op een bepaalde manier zal een plaat als deze ook wel bol staan van de westerse invloeden, niet in het minst in de vorm van een maffe cover van Imagine. Het luistert prettig weg allemaal, al zou ik dit genre niet de hele dag opzetten.

The worst part about this album was the lengths I had to go to actually listen to the damn thing. Once I found it,I found an entertaining album that had me tapping my feet. It had range, evoked emotion and was a treat to listen to.

The music is a great blend of Algerian and Western sounds.

Cest la unit was a classic!!!

I'm a sucker for world music. I picked up a Rai Rebels CD in the mid 90s and Khaled was on it. I like the driving intensity. The lilting lyricism. Listening to this album, I am surprised by the diversity. Great cover of Imagine--I'm sure that pissed off the fundamentalists. His voice the real instrument here, forcefully intimate. Gets my vote.

Gosh - this was so poppy and upbeat, it was really easy to get swept up in it! I was indeed Desk-dancing and singing along as best I could. Really fun and a mix-up of genres although I could have done without that version of Imagine. That added nothing to the vibe.

I don't have the cultural background or language to really get this but I enjoyed listening to it.

I really loved this guy. I listened to him the rest of the day

Alright this funky as hell. As much as it's gun to shit on the French, i loved the blend of North African and French sounds. I WILL NOT pay forward their version of imagine because i hate that song. I did also get some disco vibes and I'm a pretty big fan of that so bonus points. Pretty long album and some of the songs sounds pretty similar so just feels a but stretched out. This is definitely something i wouldn't have listened too without this list and glad i did. Gonna lock in a 4/5 for this one.

Honestly, this is a really great album, with the exception of the cover of Imagine, which sounds nice enough, but I can never get over how vacuous that sound is. Overall, it's a really solid album. Great production. The dueling male/female voices sound great together. The music ranges a lot, but it all fits together well 4/5

This is the kind of music I want to discover, even when I don't thoroughly enjoy it. I liked the mixture of styles. The version of "Imagine" was not offensive to me (although the song itself is already saturated). I liked the Algerian French accent in some songs. It's far from something remarkable to me, but its inclusion on the list is fair, and it was a good listening session, with more than a lot of British underground electronic music from what the list is falling in love with.

Fun change of pace. Really enjoyed a decent bit of these. Rating: 4.3

Dance music with middle eastern influence. I very much enjoyed the music, the vocals were less inspiring. Low point was an Arabic version of “Imagine”, which kind of put a stop to the whole groove, and loses the album one star. C’est la Nuit was one of my favorite tracks, probably because it is in French, which I can understand. But loved the first track as well. Good listen! It’s a shame it’s not on Spotify. Listened on YouTube and had to tolerate ad breaks. I’ll look for more of his music!

Nearly halfway into this challenge, I'm starting to encounter fewer and fewer surprises. There are only so many punk records I need to hear (though I like them enough). Occasionally I still get surprised by a new artist. Very rarely do I get to hear an entirely new genre. But that kind of find is what I love most about this challenge. Rai music is completely new to me. I can hardly call myself an expert after just one album and a handful of Wikipedia entries but it definitely sounds pretty interesting! From what I can gather, it emerged in poor communities in Algeria as a rejection of both traditional Arab values and French colonialism. The style appears to be characterized by political stances and incorporation of various other genres, most notably Western popular music. Though I'm mostly ignorant of this movement, I can see that Khalid is a major player in it and it's not hard to see why. The music definitely has its charm. It's varied and infectiously good. I can't help but put it on repeat despite having no background to it. The most memorable moment is also my least favorite, the cover of 'Imagine' which feels a bit gimmicky. But it doesn't prevent the rest of the album from being a great listen.

Had to cobble together a listen since it's not on Spotify, but YT has a playlist that is all but two of the songs. I had to seek out E'Dir E'Sseba & El Harba Wine separately but I'm glad I did, particularly for the former. A really fun peppy tune! Overall the album flows nicely, really good vocal sound and enjoyable instrumentation too!

Not on Spotify, but is on YouTube. I really like the more authentically North African tracks. The ballads and the cover are too generic to my ears. It’s the local flavor that is more exciting and interesting. Though, the dance song is a bop. Lots of variety here. Wish I could save some of this. This was fun and interesting. Wish there was more international representation on this list.

this was a surprise! a mix of so many different genres and styles and even languages. i really enjoyed it!

Diverse, interesting, well produced, round, accessible. Only imagine and c'est la nuit don't fit from my perspective.

fun middle eastern viby album with poppy arabic fusion sounds. Favorite track: trigue lycee other picks: c est la nuit, aalach, trigue lycee, melha, el herba vine, el bab

A world music powerhouse that required a bit of effort to find online but in the end, a worthy treat for your musical palette.

Surprised by the variety of the album. There's only 1 song available on spotify so I listened on youtube music.

Fun crossover album, and now I want to check out more Algerian music! This is why I love 1001albums! (But why on earth did they have to put Imagine on this album)

I felt this

The rendition of Imagine was awesome! Kinda poppy, but I'm really grooving to this one. Really liked El Bab, too. Has a Caribbean/reggaeton sound to it. A little long for my tastes, but the album was very solid to have on while working to tune out a bit while still jamming a bit.

this ate down

Excited any time I see non-anglo music on here. Could've done without the Imagine cover, but otherwise the album is fun and upbeat. 4* Not on spotify, and the youtube playlist I found had some skippy tracks, but that's not the album's fault.

Surprisingly good. Like an Arabic Lionel Richie in places. Cheesey 80’s production vibes but some proper bangers in there.

Sounds good

Can only Imagine what my review would look like if I knew what the song names meant…

- Khaled made my day! - Also ich glaube die folgende Erkenntnis wird niemanden verwundern, aber mit diesem Album hab ich nun wirklich nicht gerechnet - Und ich muss echt zugeben, dass ich von Sekunde 1 ziemlich hooked war, vielleicht ein bisschen zu doll :D - Hatte durchgehend eine richtig gute Zeit beim Hören, einfach feelgood (zugegeben das Imagine Cover hätte man sich zwar echt sparen können, aber irgendwie war das auch in all seiner cheesyness irgendwie doch ganz wholsome) - Ich finde ja türkischen Pop schon länger richtig geil, allerspätestens, seit dem wir letztes Jahr auf einer Hochzeit in der Türkei waren. Ich weiß, der Mann ist Algerier, aber die musikalische Welt ist definitiv eine ähnliche (was Tonleitern, Instrumentierung etc. angeht) - Schön einfach mal was zu hören, was einen aus seinen sonstigen Hörgewohnheiten so rausholt - Wat soll ich noch groß drumrum reden, es hat so Bock gemacht, 4 Punkte ab dafür (und ich hätte nicht gedacht, dass der Dude der „Aicha“ geschrieben hat, einen 4er bekommt) Rating: 4/5

- What did i just witnessed? - Erst war ich so "wtf?" und langsam aber sicher, aus welchen Gründen auch immer, hat sich mein Herz geöffnet und ich habs komischerweise ziemlich abgefeiert, vor allem zum Ende hin. - Dieser Mix aus verschiedensten Genres und Einflüssen hat auf dieser Platte wirklich reibungslos zusammengepasst. - Ich mag die arabische Sprache und auch für die nordafrikanische und arabische Folklore lass ich mich gerne erwärmen - Stellenweise wird es natürlich äußerst kitschig, aber die und auch die französischen zwischenstücke wirken leider etwas out of place. - Eine absolute Überraschung, hätte ich nach dem ersten Song nicht gedacht, dass mich dieses Album doch in der Form mitnehmen konnte :D 3,5/5

erste song jo schomol haaaard as fuck. schlagzüg geil striicher gönd dumm er singt meega geil. zweite song vrau singt easy höch chönt bitz unagnehm werde aber ihri stimme passed super. isch das album sehr e verwestlichung vo arabischer musig? ahaaa jean jacques gomdman isch debi alles klar. c'est la nuit sehr cute song. ok es imagine cover bruchts eig nie findi. oke sie singed uf arabisch und ändered d melodie ab und so dasch no cool. und vomne algerische sängerin undere israelische sängerin gsunge hittets bsunders hüt nochli andersch. het sini daseinsberechtigung. trigue lycee funky i like. trompete mega schööön, mir egal fallses verwestlichti musig isch. ha glern was rai musig isch dur das album das isch guet. e'dir e'sseba au ultra funky?? mega en banger??? anschinend isch rai musig scho immer en blend us verschiedne kulture gsi. seit wikipedia. melha au saugeile mix mit akkordeon striicher e gitarre funky drums und am khaled sini stimm mit arabische inflektione. raba raba het hert geili perkussion und de siech cha heeeert singe. el bab goht jo heeert los. seeeehr geil blöser sind super mellow. drums ultra geil. el aadyene goht jo mol uuultra hard. find de shit soo geil fuck. Gouloulha-Dji fitzt au insane ane, salsa horns synthi-perkussion? salsa klavier, akkordeon aaaalte. richtig hard. mele h'bibti findi s intro huere lang aber d melodies nocher gönd hard. chli zu akkordeon heavy, findi nöd immer geil. derwiche tourneur ihm drüllt. oke leili isch e reprise eig vo c'est la nuit. cute song. afoch die arabisch version hä.

My familiarity with rai music is... limited (read: none), but I can kind of gleen that this may be a more updated, poppier version of it. Overall, it's pretty solid. The genres switch up quite a bit to where it's a surprise what the next song will sound like, because genres range from trip-hop to something with a cumbia beat? Very cool. There are a few missteps, mostly in the "Imagine" cover and the french-U2 "C'est la nuit". The length also works hard against it. Still, it's a fun listen, and I'd be interested to check out more of what Cheb Khaled has to offer. Favorite tracks: "Aâlach Tloumouni", "Trigue Lycee", "El Aâdyene"

Very interesting mix of styles. It mostly sounds like pop music, but occasionally approaches almost jazz, or samba or something? I really enjoy it honestly. It's unique and feels different than most western stuff, but still very palatable.

At nearly 80 minutes a bit long but pretty interresting.

Had to listen through a YouTube playlist because it is not available on any streaming services in my area. The Imagine cover is corny but otherwise I was digging this album. Standouts for me were Trigue Lycee and Ya Aachkou

Very different than anything I feel like I've listened to previously, in the best way. Really unique sound; some of the songs started to blend together towards the end of the album, but I'll chalk that up to my inexperienced ear. Very enjoyable listen, fun dance music. Top tracks: Aâlach Tloumouni, C'est la nuit, Imagine

This was pretty good! I really did not like the cover of "Imagine" because I thought their voices did not blend well at all, but all the solo songs were pretty good. Most songs were pretty catchy and kept me entertained without going on too long. Shockingly, despite the length, I did not think this album felt too long. I enjoyed listening to this because I have no idea how I would even happen to come across this if it hadn't been for 1001 albums.

I always rate international albums too high

Gloria musical

Very essential and fun!

Wow, the opening track "Aalach Tloumouni" is a banger! That beat is sick. The next track, "El Harba Wine" is great too. A big, soaring pop song with strings. And I love the guest singer too. She's got this wild, high-pitched voice that ups the drama. I love the way the strings bob and weave through these beats, like on “Melba,” another hard-hitting track. So good. “Raba Raba” has that too but with horns! What a groove! The music surprisingly eclectic. “El Aadyene” has a funky beat and “Gouloulha-Dji” features Latin rhythms. But Khaled makes each genre his own. This was awesome. Really fun and one of the coolest inclusions on the list so far.

Liked this a lot

Im very glad this album was recommended, I would've never known about ria otherwise. I have no idea what they're saying but the instruments sound great!

Me gustó el beat

This is worldly music. Powerful and emotional, this album goes beyond words and language to move the listener. It is truly unfortunate this album is not on Spotify in my country as this is certainly a treasure. Special recognition to "C'est la nuit" and the "Imagine" cover.

Kenza -Khaled 1. Aâlach Tloumouni ❌ 2. El Harba Wine✅ 3. C'est la nuit ❌ 4. Imagine✅ 5. Trigue Lycee✅ 6. E'dir E'sseba✅ 7. Ya Aâchkou ✅ 8. Melha✅ 9. Raba-Raba✅ 10. El Bab ✅ 11. El Aâdyene" – 5:37 ✅ 12. Gouloulha-Dji" – 5:37 ✅ 13. Mele H'bibti" – 6:29 ✅ 14. Derwiche Tourneur" – 6:00 ✅ 15. Leïli C’Est La Nuit/Version Arabe ✅ Top 3 (N/A)

Best ok, niet helemaal mijn ding, maar toch wat goede momenten.

Quite listenable with some interesting rhythms.

Mildly obsessed with this now that I tracked it down on a youtube playlist. El Bab is a banger of a tune.

Yeah, I quite enjoyed this. Some songs I could do without, but on the whole, this was a mood booster. I don't think I'd listen to this kind of music all the time, but it's good to try new things sometimes.

Aside from the Imagine cover, this is a really solid and fun listen

En Youtube.com