SHAKITA (THE CREEK)
She came from another country
She had heard about me, she was very happy
I asked her who are you and where do you come from?
Tell me, let me know, how did you hear about me?
I asked her who are you and where do you come from?
Tell me, let me know, how did you fall in love with me?
She answered, I was the one
I was the quiet girl
We used to play together in the creek
She answered, I was the one
I was the quiet girl
I used to sit next to you in the creek
You remind me of those days
I had one photo from a long time ago
There was no-one like you, no girl as beautiful
How can I forget your beauty, girl from my nation.

NISHRA (THE EAGLE)
See the eagle, he's looking with his eyes
See the eagle, he's showing us the path.
How long will I live in a foreign land
Living as an alien with no identity
Tell me when the day will come that we will all gather together
And hand in hand we will return to those mountains
See the eagle, he's looking with his eyes
See the eagle, he's showing us the path
Who is the man who has the intelligence
To gather my people together and find a solution
I miss my neighbours and relatives so much
I want to go back to my country so I can hold them in my arms
See the eagle, he's looking with his eyes
See the eagle, he's showing us the path
Eagle, show me the shortest way
I want to go back to my homeland
I'm fed up with displacement, I'm struggling to hold back the emotion
I keep hearing the name of Nineveh, it brings tears to my eyes.

JOSHIE’S SONG
Have a look at my child, how sweet he is
How much happiness he has brought to my heart
I have brought you up in the way of faith
And your heart should be clean and full of happiness.
There’s no day he doesn’t wake up and look at my face
He starts singing his songs for me
He has a really beautiful voice
And he sings all the time
All this time we waited for you
When you were born we didn’t realise how much love you’d bring us
We waited days and nights
We didn’t know your love was going to come.
There’s not one day I don’t take him to Bertoni
He always asks me, “Where’s Tony’s mum?”
Lots and lots of girls always gather round him
In my heart I say to him “good on you!”
I love you more than both my eyes
Your love is so beautiful to me
I don’t want to go through a single day without you
I truly love you so much.
All this time we waited for you
When you were born we didn’t realise how much love you’d bring us
We waited days and nights
We didn’t know your love was going to come.

TADOOR ALI (COME BACK TO ME)
Come back, come back to me
I’m having a breakdown
Come and have a look at my life
I am very depressed
She has turned against me
Since she left I feel completely shattered
She has turned against me
She has made me so confused
Like I’m falling
Come back, Don’t leave me alone
I only ever loved you
Come and have a look at my life
I am so miserable since you left
She has turned against me
Since she left I feel completely shattered
She has turned against me
She has made me so confused
So confused
Come and have a look, Look in my eyes
Come and see how much I have to say
My heart is sad
Even now it only loves you
She has turned against me
Since she left I feel completely shattered
She has turned against me
She has made me so confused
So crippled
Come back to me My sweetheart
Make my heart happy
Come back to me My sweetheart
So my heart can be happy
She has turned against me
Since she left I feel completely shattered
She has turned against me
She has made me so confused
So confused
Come back to me My sweetheart
Make my sadness happy
Come back to me My sweetheart
So this sadness can become happiness
She has turned against me
Since she left I feel completely shattered
She has turned against me
She has made me so confused
Like I’m falling
Come back, Come and look at me
I tell this to you alone
My heart, my love for you
I am so miserable since you left
She has turned against me
Since she left I feel completely shattered
She has turned against me
She has made me so confused
So crippled
Come back!

KISS ME KISS ME
Kiss me kiss me with your mouth
My life is passing by
Kiss me kiss me with your mouth
Life is way too short
Ay hawar hawar, my voice is calling out
Your kiss is still in my memory
You went and left me behind, sad in this world
I’m asking of you, where’s that kind heart of yours?
Kiss me kiss me with your mouth
My life is passing by
Kiss me kiss me with your mouth
Life is way too short
You told people that you loved me a lot
But I was young in age, that’s why you didn’t want me
I didn’t have the guts to tell you
I was young in age and I loved you a lot
Kiss me kiss me with your mouth
My life is passing by
Kiss me kiss me with your mouth
Life is way too short
I used to wait for the day to go past quickly
Night time used to come and my heart would fill with flowers
I used to get up from my sleep like I was crazy
And I’d say “oh my god what the hell is happening?”
Kiss me kiss me with your mouth
My life is passing by
Kiss me kiss me with your mouth
Life is way too short

EEJENAH (WE ARE COMING)
(in Assyrian)
My night is not night, my day is not day
Your beauty is so beautiful
I fell in love with you, I love you so much
With your love I will never forget you
(In Arabic)
Here we come, here we come, here we come
We came to ask for your daughter, we came
We came to see her, we came
We accepted the marriage conditions
Our son loves your daughter, here we come.
Here we come, here we come, here we come
We came and brought you a gift
We have nothing but gold for your daughter
We came bringing our relatives with us
They just want to see who this girl is
Here we come, here we come, here we come
We came to see your daughter, we came
She is dark and beautiful, we came
Her eyes are blue and beautiful, we came
Our son loves your daughter, here we come.
Here we come, here we come, here we come!

(The first verse of the song, from the perspective of the groom, is in Assyrian. Then the rest of the song, from the perspective of the groom’s parents speaking to the bride’s parents, is in Arabic. This suggests that the song describes a cross-cultural marriage, with the groom’s family being Assyrian and the bride’s family being Arab.)

Khaled ya Khaled
What have you done to us?
You’ve ruined our lives
You’ve shattered our dreams.
So many years I saved up my money
Entrusting it to the worms, I buried it underground.
How did you have the gall to go that low?
You even defrauded the worms.
Khaled ya Khaled
What have you done to us?
You’ve ruined our lives,
You’ve shattered our dreams.
Not a morning went by without me looking up
To see the name of a frog written in the sky.
How come now you love frogs so much?
Back in Dora we used to kill them with our sling-shots.
Khaled ya Khaled
What have you done to us?
You’ve ruined our lives,
You’ve shattered our dreams.
You fed $20 million to the Shark
Just so you could have one boat.
You cruised around, eating the whole world,
Now why have you moored that boat in Long Bay?
Khaled ya Khaled
What have you done to us?
You’ve ruined our lives,
You’ve shattered our dreams.

HEY MARO
Hey Maro, what can I tell you
I had two sisters
One of them left me way before her time.
I didn’t know what to do
I didn’t know who to talk to
It was like a dream passing very quickly before my eyes.
I didn’t have time to visit you
I had a few words to tell you
I didn’t have the guts to talk to you
But I had a few words to send with you.
Hey Maro, what can I tell you
I had two sisters
One of them left me way before her time.
I didn’t know what to do
I didn’t know who to talk to
It was like a dream passing very quickly before my eyes.
You haven’t spoken to me for a long time
You haven’t spoken to me since the day of Nusardil
I couldn’t be of any help to you
Because I lived far away
There’s nothing I could have done
Because I lived far away from you.
Hey Maro, what can I tell you
I had two sisters
One of them left me way before her time.
I didn’t know what to do
I didn’t know who to talk to
It was like a dream passing very quickly before my eyes.
I’m saying goodbye to you, kind-hearted Maro
I’ll always remember you til the day I die.
I had a letter to send with you
Take it to her and tell her how much I still remember her.

TEELA DANA (THE TIME CAME)
The time came, and everyone was separated from each other
The time will come that everyone will join together again
I am looking for the day to come
We will raise a flag and start building those houses
I am looking for the day to come
We will raise a flag and start building those villages.
The time came, and everyone was separated from each other
The time will come that everyone will join together again
We have dispersed over the seas,
We are waiting for that blessed day to come
We have dispersed over the seas,
Far from each other, waiting for that day to come
The time came, and everyone was separated from each other
The time will come that everyone will join together again
Our departure was hurried
Our return will be full of love and happiness
Our departure was bitter
Our return will be full of love and happiness.

DESTINY
(In Assyrian)
Why did you split up with me?
Why did you split up with me?
You left me very unhappy
You took your love away from me and gave it to someone else.
You left me very unhappy
You took your love away from me and gave it to someone else.
Why did you split up with me?
Why did you split up with me?
Just with words you tricked me
You took your love away from me and gave it to someone else.
Just with words you tricked me
You took your love away from me and gave it to someone else.
(In English)
I’m on the run
There’s nothing left to cling to
I’m on the run
Nothing’s going to change.
(In Assyrian)
Why did you split up with me?
Why did you split up with me?
There’s only one girl I have ever loved
Even she has forgotten me
There’s only one girl I have ever loved
Even she has forgotten me
(In English)
I’m on the run
There’s nothing left to cling to
I’m on the run
Nothing’s going to change.
(In Assyrian)
Why did you split up with me?
Why did you split up with me?

AZADOOTA (FREEDOM)
I'm very confused
I don't belong anywhere
I've lost touch with the world
I've lost all respect.
My sister's not talking to me
My mum's fed up
She's really angry, she says
"Enough with this showing off!"
I put it to you that from my perspective
the taste of freedom is the sweetest thing.
What can I do?
I'm disconnected from my generation
I've been cursed with the fate
Of being born the only son.
My dad returned home
He called me aside
He whispered in my ear
It brought tears to my eyes.
I put it to you that from my perspective
the taste of freedom is the sweetest thing.
Who will be the one
To instigate change?
Who will be the one
To show us love?
Enough with this showing off
It's left me with no-one
I've lost touch with reality
I don't belong anywhere.
I put it to you that from my perspective
the taste of freedom is the sweetest thing.
God sends a cure for this child
An easy solution to this problem:
Singing, singing.

DOOLA TEELA
(Assyrian part)
Here she comes, here she comes
Wearing a yellow dress
Here she comes, here she comes
With flowers she picked specially for me.
I don't want to open my eyes
I don't want to wake from this dream
I'm looking at this vision of beauty
I'm asking "Who is she?"
(Arabic part)
The beauty that I see
My eyes can't believe it
My damaged heart is filled with kindness.
(English part)
Doola teela, hey doola teela
Swing your hips and dance like Shakira.
Doola teela, hey doola teela
Shake your hips, dance like Shakira.
(Assyrian part)
Here she comes, here she comes
Wearing a yellow dress
Here she comes, here she comes
With flowers she picked specially for me.
I don't want to open my eyes
I don't want to wake from this dream
I'm looking at this vision of beauty
I'm asking "Who is she?"
It feels like Spring is here
She brings a message
I'm telling the world
there will be Peace between all nations.

BRUNI (MY SON)
She came from another country
She had heard about me, she was very happy
I asked her who are you and where do you come from?
Tell me, let me know, how did you hear about me?
I asked her who are you and where do you come from?
Tell me, let me know, how did you fall in love with me?
She answered, I was the one
I was the quiet girl
We used to play together in the creek
She answered, I was the one
I was the quiet girl
I used to sit next to you in the creek
You remind me of those days
I had one photo from a long time ago
There was no-one like you, no girl as beautiful
How can I forget your beauty, girl from my nation.

HABANIYA
I love you so much, it doesn't need justification
Every day and night I think about you, my love.
Through all the years that I've been living here
I've always talked about you.
Oh girl from Habaniya
It's you I love.
The day you arrive in Australia
I'll find you a house close to the water
So your heart doesn't miss the Habaniya lakeside
I'll show you my love and I'll build you a house.
Oh girl from Habaniya
It's you I love.
I'm asking
I'm thinking
I'm waiting
I'm talking about those days in Habaniya.
Don't look at me and start crying
Don't tell me I haven't been faithful
So many years I've been waiting for you
Do you think I've even spoken to any other girl?
Oh girl from Habaniya
It's you I love.
I'm asking
I'm thinking
I'm waiting
I'm talking about those days in Habaniya.
My eyes don't want to see any more
It's too difficult, my heart is torn
Thinking about this girl
Her father and mother are saying,
"Find yourself another girlfriend.
Our daughter isn't going to Australia."
Oh girl from Habaniya
It's you I love.

GET UP
Get up, get up, get up and dance
The bride is coming!
A bridegroom, I'm standing and waiting
The groomsmen are singing
I'm waiting for her to come through the door
To look in her eyes for the first time.
Get up, get up, get up and dance
The bride is coming!
As soon as she sits down next to me
I'll gently take hold of her hand
If her mother isn't watching
I'll give her a kiss.
Get up, get up, get up and dance
The bride is coming!
I'm looking in your eyes
Marvelling at their beauty
I'm asking the sky and the moon
They agree your eyes are very pretty.
Get up, get up, get up and dance
The bride is coming!
Now you and I will get up and dance together
So we can show these people how we've accepted each other.
Get up, get up, get up and dance
The bride is coming!