Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan ( pa, ; born Pervez Fateh Ali Khan; 13 October 1948 – 16 August 1997) was a Pakistani singer, songwriter, and music director. He was primarily a singer of
qawwali
Qawwali (Punjabi language, Punjabi: (Shahmukhi), (Gurmukhi); Urdu: (Nastaʿlīq, Nasta'liq); Hindi: क़व्वाली (Devanagari); Bengali language, Bengali: কাওয়ালি (Bengali alphabet, Bengali)) is a form of Sufi Isl ...
— a form of
Sufi devotional music.
Sometimes called the "Shahenshah-e-Qawwali" (the King of Kings of Qawwali), he is considered by ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' to be the greatest qawwali singer of his generation.
He was described as the fourth greatest singer of all time by ''
LA Weekly
''LA Weekly'' is a free weekly alternative newspaper in Los Angeles, California. It was founded in 1978 by Jay Levin, who served as president and editor until 1991. Voice Media Group sold the paper in late 2017 to Semanal Media LLC, whose par ...
'' in 2016. He was known for his vocal abilities and could perform at a high level of intensity for several hours. Khan is widely credited with introducing qawwali music to international audiences.
Born in
Lyallpur (Faisalabad), Khan had his first public performance at the age of 15, at his father's
chelum. He became the head of the family qawwali party in 1971, and brought his unique style of
sargam,
khayal
Khyal or Khayal (ख़याल / خیال) is a major form of Hindustani classical music in the Indian subcontinent. Its name comes from a Persian/Arabic word meaning "imagination". Khyal is associated with romantic poetry, and allows the perfo ...
, and
rhythm
Rhythm (from Greek , ''rhythmos'', "any regular recurring motion, symmetry") generally means a " movement marked by the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions". This general meaning of regular re ...
to his family's legacy. He was signed by
Oriental Star Agencies,
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the We ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
, in the early 1980s. Khan went on to release movie scores and albums in
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
,
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...
,
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...
,
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
, and the U.S. He engaged in collaborations and experiments with
Western artists, becoming a well-known
world music artist. He toured extensively, performing in over 40 countries. In addition to popularising qawwali music, he also had a large impact on contemporary South Asian
popular music
Popular music is music with wide appeal that is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. These forms and styles can be enjoyed and performed by people with little or no musical training.Popular Music. (2015). ''Fu ...
, including
Pakistani pop
Pakistani popular music or shortly Pakistani pop music refers to popular music forms in Pakistan. Pakistani pop is a mixture of traditional Pakistani classical music and western influences of jazz, rock and roll, hip hop and disco sung in vario ...
,
Indian pop
Indian pop music, also known as Indi-pop, refers to pop music produced in India that is independent from filmi soundtracks for Indian cinema, such as the music of Bollywood, which tends to be more popular. Indian pop is closely linked to Bolly ...
, and
Bollywood music.
Biography
Early life and career
Khan was born into a
Punjabi
Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to:
* Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan
* Punjabi language
* Punjabi people
* Punjabi dialects and languages
Punjabi may also refer to:
* Punjabi (horse), a British Th ...
Muslim
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
family family in
Lyallpur
Faisalabad (; Punjabi/ ur, , ; ), formerly known as Lyallpur (Punjabi, Urdu: لائل پور), named after the founder of the city, but was renamed in 1977 in honour of late King Faisal of Saudi Arabia. It is the 3rd largest city of Pak ...
(modern-day
Faisalabad),
Punjab, Pakistan
Punjab (; , ) is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in central-eastern region of the country, Punjab is the second-largest province of Pakistan by land area and the largest province by population. It shares land borders with the ...
, in 1948. His family originates from Basti Sheikh Darvesh, who settled in
Jalandhar,
Punjab
Punjab (; Punjabi Language, Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also Romanization, romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the I ...
in present-day India. His ancestors learned music and singing there and adopted it as a profession. He was the fifth child and first son of
Fateh Ali Khan, a musicologist, vocalist, instrumentalist, and
qawwal. Khan's family, which included four older sisters and a younger brother,
Farrukh Fateh Ali Khan
Farrukh Fateh Ali Khan ( ur, ) (December 25, 1952 – September 7, 2003) was a Pakistani musician, who played the harmonium in Qawwali music. He was also a member of a well-known family of Qawwali musicians, the Qawwal Bacchon gharana (Delhi ...
, grew up in central Faisalabad. The tradition of qawwali in the family had passed down through successive generations for almost 600 years. Initially, his father did not want Khan to follow the family's vocation. He had his heart set on Nusrat choosing a much more respectable career path and becoming a doctor or engineer because he felt qawwali artists had low social status. However, Khan showed such an aptitude for and interest in qawwali, that his father finally relented.
In 1971, after the death of his uncle Mubarak Ali Khan, Khan became the official leader of the family qawwali party and the party became known as ''Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Mujahid Mubarak Ali Khan & Party''. Khan's first public performance as the leader of the qawwali party was at a studio recording broadcast as part of an annual music festival organized by
Radio Pakistan, known as ''Jashn-e-Baharan''. Khan sang mainly in
and
Punjabi
Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to:
* Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan
* Punjabi language
* Punjabi people
* Punjabi dialects and languages
Punjabi may also refer to:
* Punjabi (horse), a British Th ...
and occasionally in
Persian,
Braj Bhasha
The Braj language, ''Braj Bhasha'', also known as Vraj Bhasha or Vrij Bhasha or Braj Bhāṣā or Braji or Brij Bhasha or Braj Boli, is a Western Hindi language. Along with Awadhi (a variety of Eastern Hindi), it was one of the two predominant ...
, and
Hindi
Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been ...
. His first major hit in
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
was the song ''Haq Ali Ali'', which was performed in a traditional style and with traditional instrumentation. The song featured restrained use of Khan's
sargam improvisations.
Later career
In the summer of 1985, Khan performed at the
World of Music, Arts and Dance
WOMAD ( ; World of Music, Arts and Dance) is an international arts festival. The central aim of WOMAD is to celebrate the world's many forms of music, arts and dance.
History
WOMAD was founded in 1980 by English rock musician Peter Gabriel, ...
(WOMAD) festival in
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
. He performed in
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...
in 1985 and 1988. He first visited
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...
in 1987, at the invitation of the
Japan Foundation
The was established in 1972 by an Act of the National Diet as a special legal entity to undertake international dissemination of Japanese culture, and became an Independent Administrative Institution under the jurisdiction of the Ministr ...
. He performed at the 5th Asian Traditional Performing Art Festival in Japan. He also performed at
Brooklyn Academy of Music
The Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) is a performing arts venue in Brooklyn, New York City, known as a center for progressive and avant-garde performance. It presented its first performance in 1861 and began operations in its present location in ...
, New York, in 1989, earning him admiration from the American audience.
Khan, throughout his career, had great understanding with many south Asian singers such as
Alam Lohar
Alam Lohar ( pa, ) was a prominent Pakistani Punjabi folk music singer. He is credited with creating and popularising the musical term Jugni.
Early life and career
Alam Lohar was born in 1928 in Achh, near Kotla Arab Ali Khan, Gujrat Tehsil ...
,
Noor Jehan
Noor Jehan (Punjabi: ) (born () Allah Rakhi Wasai ; 23 September 1926 – 23 December 2000; sometimes spelled Noorjehan),Ashish Rajadhyaksha and Paul Willemen, ''Encyclopaedia of Indian Cinema,'' British Film Institute, Oxford University Press ...
,
A. R. Rahman
Allah Rakha Rahman (; born A. S. Dileep Kumar; 6 January 1967) is an Indian music composer, record producer, singer and songwriter, popular for his works in Indian cinema; predominantly in Tamil and Hindi films, with occasional forays in int ...
,
Asha Bhosle
Asha Bhosle (; Mangeshkar; born 8 September 1933) is an Indian playback singer, entrepreneur
and occasional actress and television personality who predominantly works in Indian Cinema. Known for her versatility, she has been described in th ...
,
Javed Akhtar
Javed Akhtar (born 17 January 1945) is an Indian poet, lyricist, screenwriter and political activist. Known for his work in Hindi cinema, he has won five National Film Awards, and received the Padma Shri in 1999 and the Padma Bhushan in 2 ...
, and
Lata Mangeshkar
Lata Mangeshkar () (born as Hema Mangeshkar; 28 September 1929 – 06 February 2022) was an Indian playback singer and occasional music composer. She is widely considered to have been the greatest and most influential singers in India. Her con ...
.
In the 1992 to 1993 academic year, Khan was a Visiting Artist in the
Ethnomusicology
Ethnomusicology is the study of music from the cultural and social aspects of the people who make it. It encompasses distinct theoretical and methodical approaches that emphasize cultural, social, material, cognitive, biological, and other dim ...
department at the
University of Washington
The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington.
Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seatt ...
,
Seattle
Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region o ...
,
Washington
Washington commonly refers to:
* Washington (state), United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A metonym for the federal government of the United States
** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...
, United States.
In 1988, Khan teamed up with
Peter Gabriel
Peter Brian Gabriel (born 13 February 1950) is an English musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and activist. He rose to fame as the original lead singer of the progressive rock band Genesis. After leaving Genesis in 1975, he launched ...
on the soundtrack to ''
The Last Temptation of Christ'', which led to Khan being signed to Gabriel's
Real World label. He would go on to release five albums of traditional qawwali through Real World, along with the more experimental albums ''
Mustt Mustt'' (1990), ''
Night Song'' (1996), and the posthumous remix album ''
Star Rise
''Star Rise'' is a remix from two previous Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan–Michael Brook collaborations. The album was dedicated to the memory of Khan, who died prior to the album's completion, and released posthumously by Real World Records.
Tracks 1, 2 ...
'' (1997).
In 1989, commissioned by Oriental Star Agencies Ltd in Birmingham UK, Khan collaborated at Zella Recording Studios with composer Andrew Kristy and producer Johnny Haynes on a series of 'fusion' tracks which propelled Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and Party into the Channel 4 Christmas Special of "
Big World Café." While in the UK in 1989, Khan and party performed Sikh devotional music at a Sikh Gurdwara in Slough, continuing a tradition of Muslims performing hymns at Sikh temples.
Further to this in 1990, the BBC devoted an entire program on Network East to this collaboration, and Big World Café subsequently invited Khan, Andrew Kristy and violinist
Nigel Kennedy to perform Allah Hoo live on the show. A live UK tour containing these new fusion tracks was made in 1990.
Khan's experimental work for Real World, which featured his collaborations with the Canadian guitarist
Michael Brook, spurred on several further collaborations with a number of other Western composers and rock musicians. One of the most noteworthy of these collaborations came in 1995, when Khan grouped with
Pearl Jam
Pearl Jam is an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1990. The band's lineup consists of founding members Jeff Ament (bass guitar), Stone Gossard (rhythm guitar), Mike McCready (lead guitar), and Eddie Vedder (lead vocals, g ...
's lead singer
Eddie Vedder
Eddie Jerome Vedder (born Edward Louis Severson III; December 23, 1964) is an American singer, musician, and songwriter best known as the lead vocalist and one of four guitarists of the rock band Pearl Jam. He also appeared as a guest vocalist i ...
on two songs for the soundtrack to ''
Dead Man Walking''. Khan also provided vocals for ''
The Prayer Cycle
''The Prayer Cycle'' is a choral/orchestral album by American film and television composer Jonathan Elias. The album was released by Sony Classical Records in the United States on March 23, 1999.
The project, recorded and mixed by co-producer R ...
'' which was put together by
Jonathan Elias
Jonathan Elias (born 1956) is an American composer best known for his film soundtracks.
Background
Elias was born in New York City in 1956. He is of Jewish-Hungarian background. Elias started playing piano at the age of six, and was composin ...
, but died before the tracks could be completed.
Alanis Morissette
Alanis Nadine Morissette ( ; born June 1, 1974) is a Canadian-American singer, songwriter, and actress. Known for her emotive mezzo-soprano voice and confessional songwriting, Morissette began her career in Canada in the early 1990s with two ...
was brought in to sing with his unfinished vocals. In 2002, Gabriel included Khan's vocals on the track "Signal to Noise" on his album ''
Up''.
Khan's album ''
Intoxicated Spirit'' was nominated for a
Grammy Award for Best Traditional Folk Album in 1997. That same year, his album ''Night Song'' was also nominated for a
Grammy Award for Best World Music Album.
Khan contributed songs to, and performed in, several
Pakistani films. Shortly before his death, he composed music for three
Bollywood
Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" ...
films, which includes the film ''
Aur Pyaar Ho Gaya
''Aur Pyar Ho Gaya'' (English: And Love Happened) is a 1997 Indian Hindi romance film directed by Rahul Rawail and starring Bobby Deol and Aishwarya Rai. This film marked the Hindi debut for Aishwarya Rai. The film's music was composed by th ...
'', in which he also sang for "Koi Jaane Koi Na Jaane" on-screen with the lead pair, and "Zindagi Jhoom Kar." He also composed music for ''
Kartoos
''Kartoos'' () is a 1999 Indian Hindi action thriller film directed by Mahesh Bhatt and starring Sanjay Dutt, Jackie Shroff and Manisha Koirala. It was the last release of Mahesh Bhatt as a director until the release of ''Sadak 2'' (2020). The ...
'' where he sang for "Ishq Da Rutba", and "Bahaa Na Aansoo", alongside
Udit Narayan Udit is an Indian masculine given name that may refer to:
* Udit Narayan, Bollywood playback singer
*Udit Narayan (politician) (born 1960), Fijian politician of Indian descent
*Udit Narayan Singh (1770–1835), Indian monarch
*Udit Patel (born 198 ...
. He died shortly before the movie's release. His final
music composition for Bollywood was for the movie ''
Kachche Dhaage
''Kachche Dhaage'' () is a 1999 Indian Hindi-language action thriller film directed by Milan Luthria and starring Ajay Devgn, Saif Ali Khan and Manisha Koirala. The film features Devgan as a smuggler, delivering goods across the Rajasthan-Pa ...
'' where he sang in "Iss Shaan-E-Karam Ka Kya Kehna." The movie was released in 1999, two years after his death. The two singing sisters of Bollywood,
Asha Bhosle
Asha Bhosle (; Mangeshkar; born 8 September 1933) is an Indian playback singer, entrepreneur
and occasional actress and television personality who predominantly works in Indian Cinema. Known for her versatility, she has been described in th ...
and
Lata Mangeshkar
Lata Mangeshkar () (born as Hema Mangeshkar; 28 September 1929 – 06 February 2022) was an Indian playback singer and occasional music composer. She is widely considered to have been the greatest and most influential singers in India. Her con ...
sang for the songs he composed in his brief stint in Bollywood. He also sang "Saya Bhi Saath Jab Chhod Jaye" for
Sunny Deol
Ajay Singh Deol (born 19 October 1956), better known by his stage name Sunny Deol, is an Indian actor, film director, producer, politician and current Member of Parliament from Gurdaspur (Lok Sabha constituency) of Punjab, India. As an acto ...
's movie ''
Dillagi''. The song was released in 1999, two years after Khan's death. He also sang "Dulhe Ka Sehra" from the Bollywood movie ''
Dhadkan'' which was released in 2000.
Khan contributed the song "Gurus of Peace" to the 1997 album ''
Vande Mataram
''Vande Mataram'' (Sanskrit: वन्दे मातरम् IAST: , also spelt ''Bande Mataram''; বন্দে মাতরম্, ''Bônde Mātôrôm''; ) is a poem written in sanskritised Bengali by Bankim Chandra Chatterjee in th ...
'', composed by
A. R. Rahman
Allah Rakha Rahman (; born A. S. Dileep Kumar; 6 January 1967) is an Indian music composer, record producer, singer and songwriter, popular for his works in Indian cinema; predominantly in Tamil and Hindi films, with occasional forays in int ...
, and released to celebrate the 50th anniversary of India's independence. As a posthumous tribute, Rahman later released an album titled ''Gurus of Peace'' which included "Allah Hoo" by Khan. Rahman's 2007 song "
Tere Bina" for the film ''
Guru
Guru ( sa, गुरु, IAST: ''guru;'' Pali'': garu'') is a Sanskrit term for a "mentor, guide, expert, or master" of certain knowledge or field. In pan- Indian traditions, a guru is more than a teacher: traditionally, the guru is a reverential ...
'' was also composed as a tribute to Khan.
Shaukat Khanum Hospital fundraising event
Khan was the main performer at
Imran Khan
Imran Ahmed Khan Niazi ( ur}; born 5 October 1952) is a Pakistani politician and former Cricket captain who served as the 22nd Prime Minister of Pakistan from August 2018 to until April 2022, when he was ousted through a no-confiden ...
's charity appeal concert at the
InterContinental London Park Lane Hotel on December 3rd 1992 to raise funds for
Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre, a cancer hospital built in Imran's mothers name which provides free services.
Other celebrities were also in the audience including
Peter Gabriel
Peter Brian Gabriel (born 13 February 1950) is an English musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and activist. He rose to fame as the original lead singer of the progressive rock band Genesis. After leaving Genesis in 1975, he launched ...
,
Elizabeth Hurley
Elizabeth Jane Hurley (born 10 June 1965) is an English actress and model.
As an actress, her best-known film roles have been as Vanessa Kensington in ''Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery'' (1997) and as the Devil in ''Bedazzled (2000 ...
,
Mick Jagger
Sir Michael Philip Jagger (born 26 July 1943) is an English singer and songwriter who has achieved international fame as the lead vocalist and one of the founder members of the rock band the Rolling Stones. His ongoing songwriting partnershi ...
, and
Amitabh Bachan.
Death
Khan was overweight in his later years; various reports stated that he weighed over 137 kilograms (300 pounds). He had been seriously ill for several months, according to a spokesperson at his U.S. label,
American Recordings. After travelling to London from his native Pakistan for treatment for liver and kidney problems, he was rushed from the airport to the
Cromwell Hospital
The Cromwell Hospital is a private sector hospital located in the South Kensington area of London. It is operated by international healthcare company Bupa.
History
The hospital, which was designed by Holder Mathias, was established by Bank of Cre ...
in
London
London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
, where he died of a sudden cardiac arrest on 16 August 1997, aged 48. His body was repatriated to
Faisalabad, and his funeral was a public affair. His wife, Naheed Nusrat, moved to
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...
after the death of her husband, where she died on 13 September 2013 in
Mississauga
Mississauga ( ), historically known as Toronto Township, is a city in the Canadian province of Ontario. It is situated on the shores of Lake Ontario in the Regional Municipality of Peel, adjoining the western border of Toronto. With a popu ...
, Ontario. Khan's musical legacy is now carried forward by his nephews,
Rahat Fateh Ali Khan and
Rizwan-Muazzam
The Rizwan-Muazzam () Qawwali Group is a Pakistani Qawwali group, headed by Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan's nephews, Rizwan and Muazzam., Rizwan-Muazzam Qawwali Group
Career
Both of them are the sons of Mujahid Mubarak Ali Khan, they have been p ...
.
Awards and titles
Khan is widely considered to be the most important qawwal in history. In 1987, he received the President of Pakistan's Award for
Pride of Performance for his contribution to Pakistani music.
In 1995, he received the
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international coope ...
Music Prize. In 1996 he was awarded
Grand Prix des Amériques at
Montreal World Film Festival for exceptional contribution to the art of cinema. In the same year, Khan received the Arts and Culture Prize of the
Fukuoka Asian Culture Prizes. In
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the n ...
, he was also remembered as the Budai or "Singing Buddha."
In 1997, he was nominated for two
Grammy Awards
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...
, for
Best Traditional Folk Album
The Grammy Award
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by ...
and
Best World Music Album
The Grammy Award for Best Global Music Album is an honor presented to recording artists for influential music from around the globe at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. Honors i ...
.
In 1998, he was awarded PTV
Life Time Achievement Award. As of 2001, he held the
Guinness World Record
''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...
for the "Most Qawwali Recordings", having recorded over 125 qawwali albums before his death. In 2005, Khan posthumously received the "Legends" award at the
UK Asian Music Awards. ''Time'' magazine's issue of 6 November 2006, "60 Years of Asian Heroes", lists him as one of the top 12 artists and thinkers in the last 60 years. He also appeared on
NPR's
50 great voices list in 2010. In August 2010 he was included in
CNN's list of the twenty most iconic musicians from the past fifty years. In 2008, Khan was listed in 14th position in
UGO
Ugo is the Italian form of Hugh, a widely used name of Germanic origin. Its diminutive form is Ugolino.
It is also a Nigerian Igbo first name.
It may refer to:
People
* Vgo (stonemason), medieval stonemason
* Ugo Bassi, a Roman Catholic pri ...
's list of the best singers of all time.
Many honorary titles were bestowed upon Khan during his 25-year music career. He was given the title of
Ustad (the master) after performing classical music at a function in
Lahore
Lahore ( ; pnb, ; ur, ) is the second List of cities in Pakistan by population, most populous city in Pakistan after Karachi and 26th List of largest cities, most populous city in the world, with a population of over 13 million. It is th ...
on the anniversary of his father's death.
Tributes, legacy and influence
Khan is often credited as one of the progenitors of "
world music."
Widely acclaimed for his spiritual charisma and distinctive exuberance, he was one of the first and most important artists to popularize qawwali, then considered an "arcane religious tradition", to Western audiences.
His powerful vocal presentations, which could last up to 10 hours, brought forth a craze for his music all over Europe. Alexandra A. Seno of ''
Asiaweek'' wrote:
Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan's voice was otherworldly. For 25 years, his mystical songs transfixed millions. It was not long enough ... He performed qawwali, which means wise or philosophical utterance, as nobody else of his generation did. His vocal range, talent for improvisation and sheer intensity were unsurpassed.
Jeff Buckley
Jeffrey Scott Buckley (November 17, 1966 – May 29, 1997), raised as Scott Moorhead, was an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. After a decade as a session guitarist in Los Angeles, Buckley amassed a following in the early 1990s by ...
cited Khan as a major influence, saying of him "He's my
Elvis", and performing the first few minutes of Khan's "Yeh Jo Halka Halka Suroor Hai" (including vocals) at live concerts. Many other artists have also cited Khan as an influence, such as
Nadia Ali,
Zayn Malik
Zain Javadd Malik ( ; born 12 January 1993), known mononymously as Zayn, is an English pop and R&B singer. Zayn auditioned as a solo contestant for the British music competition television series ''The X Factor'' in 2010. After being eliminate ...
,
Malay,
Peter Gabriel
Peter Brian Gabriel (born 13 February 1950) is an English musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and activist. He rose to fame as the original lead singer of the progressive rock band Genesis. After leaving Genesis in 1975, he launched ...
,
A. R. Rahman
Allah Rakha Rahman (; born A. S. Dileep Kumar; 6 January 1967) is an Indian music composer, record producer, singer and songwriter, popular for his works in Indian cinema; predominantly in Tamil and Hindi films, with occasional forays in int ...
,
Sheila Chandra,
Alim Qasimov
Alim Hamza oghlu Qasimov ( az, Alim Həmzə oğlu Qasımov; born August 14, 1957) is an Azerbaijani musician and one of the foremost mugham singers in Azerbaijan. He was awarded the International Music Council- UNESCO Music Prize in 1999, one o ...
,
Eddie Vedder
Eddie Jerome Vedder (born Edward Louis Severson III; December 23, 1964) is an American singer, musician, and songwriter best known as the lead vocalist and one of four guitarists of the rock band Pearl Jam. He also appeared as a guest vocalist i ...
, and
Joan Osborne, among others.
His music was also appreciated by singers such as
Mick Jagger
Sir Michael Philip Jagger (born 26 July 1943) is an English singer and songwriter who has achieved international fame as the lead vocalist and one of the founder members of the rock band the Rolling Stones. His ongoing songwriting partnershi ...
, socialites such as
Parmeshwar Godrej, actors such as
Amitabh Bachchan
Amitabh Bachchan (; born as Amitabh Shrivastav; 11 October 1942) is an Indian actor, film producer, television host, occasional playback singer and former politician known for his work in Hindi cinema. He is regarded as one of the most succe ...
,
Trudie Styler
Trudie Styler (born 6 January 1954) is an English actress and film producer.
Early life and family
Styler was born in Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, the daughter of Pauline and Harry Styler, a farmer and factory worker. When Styler was two years ...
,
Sean Penn
Sean Justin Penn (born August 17, 1960) is an American actor and film director. He has won two Academy Awards, for his roles in the mystery drama ''Mystic River'' (2003) and the biopic ''Milk'' (2008).
Penn began his acting career in televisi ...
,
Susan Sarandon, and
Tim Robbins
Timothy Francis Robbins (born October 16, 1958) is an American actor and filmmaker. He is known for portraying Andy Dufresne in the film '' The Shawshank Redemption ''(1994), and has won an Academy Award and two Golden Globe Awards for his rol ...
,
and authors such as
Sam Harris, who cited Khan as one of his favourite musicians.
Paul Williams picked a concert performance by Khan for inclusion in his 2000 book ''The 20th Century's Greatest Hits: a 'top-40' list'', in which he devotes a chapter each to what he considers the top 40 artistic achievements of the 20th century in any field (including art, movies, music, fiction, non-fiction, science-fiction).
The Derek Trucks Band covers Khan's songs on two of their studio albums. Their 2002 album
Joyful Noise includes a cover of "Maki Madni", which features a guest performance by Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, Khan's nephew. 2005's ''
Songlines
A songline, also called dreaming track, is one of the paths across the land (or sometimes the sky) within the animist belief systems of the Aboriginal cultures of Australia which mark the route followed by localised "creator-beings" in the Dre ...
'' includes a medley of two of Khan's songs, "Sahib Teri Bandi" and "Maki Madni." This medley first appeared on the band's live album ''
Live at Georgia Theatre'' (2004).
In 2004, a tribute band called Brooklyn Qawwali Party (formerly Brook's Qawwali Party) was formed in New York City by percussionist Brook Martinez to perform the music of Khan. The 13-piece group still performs mostly instrumental jazz versions of Khan's qawwalis, using the instruments conventionally associated with jazz rather than those associated with qawwali.
In 2007, electronic music producer and performer
Gaudi, after being granted access to back catalogue recordings from Rehmat Gramophone House (Khan's former label in Pakistan), released an album of entirely new songs composed around existing vocals. The album, ''Dub Qawwali'', was released by
Six Degrees Records. It reached no. 2 in the iTunes US Chart, no. 4 in the UK and was the no. 1 seller in
Amazon.com's Electronic Music section for a period. It also earned Gaudi a nomination for the BBC's World Music Awards 2008.
On 13 October 2015,
Google
Google LLC () is an American Multinational corporation, multinational technology company focusing on Search Engine, search engine technology, online advertising, cloud computing, software, computer software, quantum computing, e-commerce, ar ...
celebrated Khan's 67th birthday with a
doodle on its homepage in six countries, including India, Pakistan, Japan, Sweden, Ghana, and Kenya, calling him the person "who opened the world's ears to the rich, hypnotic sounds of the Sufis." "Thanks to his legendary voice, Khan helped bring 'world music' to the world," said Google.
In February 2016, a rough mix of a song recorded by
Red Hot Chili Peppers
Red Hot Chili Peppers are an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1983, comprising vocalist Anthony Kiedis, bassist Flea, drummer Chad Smith, and guitarist John Frusciante. Their music incorporates elements of alternative rock, funk ...
in 1998 called "
Circle of the Noose" was leaked to the internet. Guitarist
Dave Navarro
David Michael Navarro (born June 7, 1967) is an American guitarist. He is best known as a member of the rock band Jane's Addiction, with whom he has recorded four studio albums. Between 1993 and 1998, Navarro was the guitarist of the Red Hot C ...
described the song saying, "It's pop in the sense of verse, chorus, verse, chorus, bridge, hook. I really love it and we use a loop of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan. It's really nice. The best way I can describe it is it's like pepped- up '60s folk with '90s ideals, but I would hate to label it as folk because it's not, it moves."
The 2018 book ''The Displaced Children of Displaced Children'' (Eyewear Publishing) by Pakistani American poet Faisal Mohyuddin includes the poem "Faisalabad", a tribute to Khan and to the city of Khan's birth. "Faisalabad" includes a number or references to Khan, including the excerpt, "There are no better cures for homesickness / than Nusrat's qawwalis, / except when you're a mother / and you find comfort in the unfolding / hours of a child's existence." The poem was first published by
Narrative Magazine in Spring 2017.
Popular culture
One of Khan's famous qawwali songs, "Tere Bin Nahin Lagda"
("I am restless without you"),
appeared on two of his 1996 albums, ''Sorrows Vol. 69'' and ''Sangam'' (as "Tere Bin Nahin Lagda Dil"), the latter a collaborative album with Indian lyricist
Javed Akhtar
Javed Akhtar (born 17 January 1945) is an Indian poet, lyricist, screenwriter and political activist. Known for his work in Hindi cinema, he has won five National Film Awards, and received the Padma Shri in 1999 and the Padma Bhushan in 2 ...
; ''Sangam'' sold over 1million copies in India.
Lata Mangeshkar recorded a
cover version
In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song relea ...
called "Tere Bin Nahin Jeena" for ''Kachche Dhaage'', starring
Ajay Devgn
Vishal Veeru Devgan (born 2 April 1969), known professionally as Ajay Devgn, is an Indian actor, film director and producer who works in Hindi cinema. Devgn has appeared in over a hundred films and has won numerous accolades, including four ...
,
Saif Ali Khan
Saif Ali Khan (; born Sajid Ali Khan Pataudi; 16 August 1970) is an Indian actor and film producer who works in Hindi films. Part of the Pataudi family, he is the son of actress Sharmila Tagore and cricketer Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi.
Khan ...
and
Manisha Koirala
Manisha Koirala (; born 16 August 1970) is a Nepalese actress who works in Indian films, predominantly in Hindi and Tamil films and has also worked in few Telugu, Bengali, Malayalam, Nepali and English films. Known for her work in both commer ...
.
Composed by Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, the ''Kachche Dhaage'' soundtrack album sold 3million units in India.
British-Indian
British Indians are citizens of the United Kingdom (UK) whose ancestral roots are from India. This includes people born in the UK who are of Indian origin as well as Indian people, Indians who have migrated to the UK. Today, Indians comprise ...
producer
Bally Sagoo
Baljit Singh "Bally" Sagoo (Punjabi: ਬਲਜੀਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਸੱਗੂ, born 19 May 1964) is a British-Indian record producer and DJ. Born in Delhi, India, Sagoo was raised in Birmingham, England. He entered the recording and entertain ...
released a remix of "Tere Bin Nahin Lagda", which was later featured in the 2002 British film ''
Bend It Like Beckham'', starring
Parminder Nagra
Parminder Kaur Nagra (born 5 October 1975) is a British actress of Indian Punjabi descent and Sikh heritage. She is known for portraying Jess Bhamra in the film '' Bend It Like Beckham'' (2002) and Dr. Neela Rasgotra in the NBC medical drama ...
and
Keira Knightley.
A cover version called "Tere Bin" was recorded by Rahat Fateh Ali Khan with
Asees Kaur
Asees Kaur (born 26 September 1988) is an Indian singer. She has participated in various singing reality shows including ''Indian Idol'' and'' Awaz Punjab Di''. In 2021, her song "Raatan Lambiyan" from ''Shershaah'', with Tanishk Bagchi, became ...
for the 2018 Bollywood film ''
Simmba
''Simmba'' is a 2018 Indian Hindi-language action film directed by Rohit Shetty from a script written by Yunus Sajawal and Sajid-Farhad. The third installment of Shetty's Cop Universe film franchise, the film was produced by Shetty and Relian ...
'', starring
Ranveer Singh and
Sara Ali Khan
Sara Ali Khan Pataudi (; born 12 August 1995) is an Indian actress who works in Hindi films. Born into the Pataudi family, she is the daughter of actors Amrita Singh and Saif Ali Khan. After graduating with a degree in history and political ...
.
Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan's music had a big impact on
Bollywood music, inspiring numerous Indian musicians working in
Bollywood
Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" ...
since the late 1980s. For example, he inspired
A. R. Rahman
Allah Rakha Rahman (; born A. S. Dileep Kumar; 6 January 1967) is an Indian music composer, record producer, singer and songwriter, popular for his works in Indian cinema; predominantly in Tamil and Hindi films, with occasional forays in int ...
and
Javed Akhtar
Javed Akhtar (born 17 January 1945) is an Indian poet, lyricist, screenwriter and political activist. Known for his work in Hindi cinema, he has won five National Film Awards, and received the Padma Shri in 1999 and the Padma Bhushan in 2 ...
, both of whom he collaborated with. However, there were many hit
filmi songs from other Indian
music director
A music(al) director or director of music is the person responsible for the musical aspects of a performance, production, or organization. This would include the artistic director and usually chief conductor of an orchestra or concert band, the di ...
s that plagiarised Khan's music.
Viju Shah's hit song "Tu Cheez Badi Hai Mast Mast" in ''
Mohra
''Mohra'' () is a 1994 Indian Hindi-language action thriller film co-written, edited and directed by Rajiv Rai and produced by his father Gulshan Rai. It stars Akshay Kumar, Sunil Shetty, Raveena Tandon in the lead roles, along with Naseeruddin ...
'' (1994) was plagiarised from Khan's popular qawwali song "
Dam Mast Qalandar
''Dama Dam Mast Qalandar'' () is a spiritual Sufi qawwali written in the honour of the most revered Sufi saint of Sindh, Lal Shahbaz Qalandar (1177–1274) of Sehwan Sharif. The original poem was initially written by the 13th-century Sufi poet A ...
."
Despite the significant number of hit Bollywood songs plagiarised from his music, he was reportedly tolerant towards the plagiarism.
In one interview, he jokingly gave "Best Copy" awards to Viju Shah and Anu Malik.
In his defense, Malik claimed that he loved Khan's music and was actually showing admiration by using his tunes.
However, Khan was reportedly aggrieved when Malik turned his spiritual "Allah Hoo, Allah Hoo" into "I Love You, I Love You" in ''
Auzaar
Auzaar () is a 1997 Indian Hindi-language action thriller film directed by Sohail Khan and written by Anwar Khan. The film stars Salman Khan, Sanjay Kapoor and Shilpa Shetty. ''.
Khan said "he has taken my devotional song ''Allahu'' and converted it into ''I love you''. He should at least respect my religious songs."
His music also appears on soundtracks for
Hollywood films such as ''
The Last Temptation of Christ'' (1988), ''
Natural Born Killers'' (1994) and ''
Dead Man Walking'' (1995).
Discography
Sales
See also
*
List of Pakistani musicians
*
List of Pakistani qawwali singers
*
Filmi qawwali
Filmi qawwali ( ur, فلمی قوٌالی. bn, ফিল্মি কাওয়ালি, hi, फ़िल्मी क़व्वाली) is a form of qawwali music found in the Lollywood, Dhallywood, Tollywood, and Bollywood film industr ...
References
Further reading
* Ahmed Aqil Rubi (1992). ''Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan: A living legend ''. Words of Wisdom
* Baud, Pierre-Alain (2008). ''Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan: The Messenger of Qawwali''. Editions Demi-Lune. A biography of Nusrat.
* Varun Soni (2014). ''Natural Mystics: The Prophetic Lives of Bob Marley and Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan''. Figueroa Press. Depicts Religious aspects of Artists lives, and how they used technology.
* Baud, Pierre Alain (2015). ''Nusrat: The Voice of Faith''. Harper Collins India. A biography of Nusrat.
External links
Article with brief 1993 interview (edwebproject.org)*
*
NPR Audio Report
Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan: The Voice Of Pakistan*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Khan, Nusrat Fateh Ali
1948 births
1997 deaths
20th-century composers
20th-century Pakistani male singers
Bollywood playback singers
EMI Records artists
Harmonium players
Nigar Award winners
Pakistani classical singers
Pakistani film score composers
Pakistani playback singers
Pakistani folk singers
Pakistani male singers
Pakistani ghazal singers
Pakistani music educators
Pakistani qawwali singers
Pakistani Shia Muslims
Pakistani world music musicians
Singers from Faisalabad
Musicians from Punjab, Pakistan
Pakistani Muslims
Performers of Sufi music
Persian-language singers
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Real World Records artists
Recipients of the Pride of Performance
Tabla players
Urdu-language singers
Virgin Records artists
Punjabi people
20th-century Pakistani singers
Nusrat
Male film score composers
People from Faisalabad
Pakistani tenors
PTV Award winners