Some people are born great, Some achieve greatness and some have greatness thrust upon them. With Nusrat Fateh AliKhan it had only been the first two. ’
**Born:12 July, 1948, Lyallpur (later renamed Faisalabad), Pakistan
Death: 16 August, 1997 at Cromwell Hopital, London, due to liver and kidney failure. **
History: One of the most popular singers in the Indian subcontinent, Khan predominantly sang qawwali, the music of devotional Sufism, but incorporated other forms including Khyal (traditional classical) to produce a unique style that appealed to followers of all religions. He performed with the Party, a group of highly trained Pakistani musicians which included several family members.
In 1971, Nusrat took over from his father (Ustad Fateh Ali Khan) as leader of the Party after experiencing recurring dreams that he was singing at the famous Muslim shrine of Hazratja Khawaja Moid-Ud-Din Christie in Ajmer, India. This dream became reality eight years later
Through the 70s and 80s Khan’s music began to become increasingly synonymous with India and Pakistan’s vibrant film industry. Such was his popularity with the stars of the movies that in 1979 he was invited to sing at the wedding of Rishi, son of actor/director Raj Kapoor, in front of the most prominent members of the Bombay film industry.Peter Gabriel’s admiration of Nusrat’s singing has led to him working with WOMAD on projects including a compilation album, many festival appearances and more recently releases on the Virgin /Real World Records label, recorded in England.
The first of these, Shahen-Shahwas named after Nusrat’s Pakistani nickname, Shahen-Shah-e-Qawwali (The Brightest Star In Qawwali).
ForMustt Mustt, Nusrat worked with experimental composer Michael Brookin an attempt to give his sound a western orientation. On all but two tracks, traditional songs were replaced by classical vocal exercises which were edited around western rhythms. Brook said of the project ‘everyone was excited, although it wasn’t painless - it worked’. A remix of the title track by Massive Attackled to a surprise UK club hit. Nusrat returned to his roots withShahbaaz, four traditional qawwali songs all praising the Devine Beloved. Successive albums for Real World have continued to see cross-experimentation between qawwali and Western influences, though none were as integrationist asMustt Mustt.
Despite this, the vibrancy of the artist’s deeply spiritual performances, on record and stage, militates against the suspicion that he had forgotten his roots. His sudden death robbed the world of one of it’s finest voices.
