Born on the island of Lamu, Kenya, the young Zein was surrounded by music as his father played host to the Arab traders. He started to play the oud in the 60s in Mombasa, and subsequently became akin to a musical father for the Kenyan taarab scene, with all the famous singers at some point or another passing through his group. More recently he has gone back to basics, playing oud with two ngoma percussionists, performing contemporary compositions as well as old songs that Zein has unearthed and revived from Lamu and the Northern Swahili Coast.

"You've gone over the top, I give you the fact: Whoever expects to get all, without doubt is sure to lose all! A dhow with many captains, I refuse to travel, I'll alight. What you are telling me, I will make an effort to understand. The charges will stay, they will grow larger than belief. The dhow will sink, we are too many captains! I see you are anxious, being beyond all reason. You've got nowhere to grasp, because you desired too much. When the dhow overturns, which pole will you cling to?" Zein l'Abdin