MICK MCSHANE is roused by a band whose socialism laces every line of every song with commitment and raw passion
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Omar Souleyman
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ALEX HALL is disgusted by the misuse of ‘emotional narratives’ to justify uninformed geo-political prejudice
SUE TURNER welcomes a thoughtful, engaging book that lays bare the economic realities of global waste management
JOHN GREEN welcomes an insider account of the achievements and failures of the transition to democracy in Portugal
SIMON PARSONS applauds an imaginative and absorbing updating of Strindberg’s classic
PETER MASON is enthralled by an assembly of objects, ancient and modern, that have lain in the mud of London’s river
Omar Souleyman
Jazz Cafe
A SINGLE A-board sits outside the Jazz Cafe emblazoned with the words Global Dance Icon — Omar Souleyman. More of a nod to the dry humour of this most beloved of Syrian singers than a sign of an ego-tripping diva, though Souleyman truly has become something of a cult sensation.
Hailing from humble origins in the village of Ra’s al-’Ayn near the Syria–Turkey border, he began as a part-time singer at weddings where the dabke is performed, a traditional folk music performed during line-dances and popular on celebratory occasions.
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