Sam+Stonerock

The Ballad of Roger Lee My dad Roger used to be an extreme alcoholic and drug addict. Throughout this period of his life he got into all sorts of trouble, not only with the law but with his family as well. Many things that he did caused his family to give up on him and kind of let whatever was going to happen, happen. To this day there are still some hard feelings about his behavior and how it affected all of the other people in his life including himself. After a serious offense the judge gave him the choice of 5 years in the state penitentiary or he had to complete drug and alcohol rehab along with probation. This was the best thing he ever did because he saved his own life and his relations with his family. He soon got sober and a few years later became a councilor for drug and alcohol abuse. His life was completely turned around from where it was going and he lives on now with an amazing wife and has gotten to raise a son and two daughters and repair old hard feelings from his not so perfect past. He has been sober for 27 years now and he hasn’t touched a drink or drugs. The lesson learned is that drugs and alcohol are of little importance compared to the love and support of one’s family. And that it is not worth it and that anything can change for the better if one has the will and mind set to do something about it. ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Idir was born in 1949 in Ait Lahcene, Algeria. His accomplishments have made him an ambassador of the Kabyle culture. Idir's music consists of simply his vocals and his acoustic guitar. Idir's first album called "A vava inouva" came out in 1976 and the song "A vava inouva" became so popular that it was translated into seven languages. This song has been called the most beautiful song an Algerian history. After the great success of his first album he came out with another called "Ay Arrac Negh" in 1979. After more than a decade long break, Idir came out with a new album in 1993 called "les Chasseurs de lumières". His final album was called "identities" in 1999, and it was a tribute album thet featured many different artists. Idir has played in many concerts supporting different causes. For example, on June 22, 1995, more than 6,000 people attended a concert for peace, freedom and tolerance performed Idir and his friend Khaled. The two of them started "l'Algérie la vie" which means "Algeria life". Idir also played in a concert in memory of Matoub Lounes, the Kabyle singer who was assassinated in 1998. Idir defended his national identity at "Le Zénith" in Paris in the spring of 2001 at a celebration of Berber culture. And on July 8, he organised a special fund-raising concert to support the population in Kabylia when anti-government riots were occuring frequently amongst the Berber culture in the summer of 2001. Idir was joined by a number of stars and thousands of Algerian and French fans who turned out to "Le Zénith" to support the Kabylians

[|Idir- A Vava Inouva]