RIP Zakir Hussain.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c2exzm9r043o
Grateful Dead family member and musical icon. Best known as a master of the tabla Indian drum. He played with a lot of artists but I was introduced to him by the Dead. (That’s true about a lot of artists.) He passed away at 73 on Sunday but I just heard about it yesterday. I didn’t have time to post about it until today. The dude was amazing and I doubt whether most people know about him nor what a loss his passing is. I say “RIP” because it’s our custom but it’s probably more appropriate to say “Live on” which he will do in my music collection regardless of any eschatological fantasies anyone might hold.
I think this was my first exposure, the first track on this CD (which every Deadhead should own):
That band was first formed by Hussain in ‘73 (such a great year in musical history) as Tal Vadya Rhythm Band. They changed the name to Diga Rhythm Band in ‘75 when Mickey Hart joined and released the album in ‘76.
That’s a relatively accessible track. This goes a little farther. Listen to the whole thing because Zakir really slays in the last 90 seconds or so.
I can’t say offhand how many times Mickey worked with Zakir over the years. Mickey released a couple books with companion CDs in the early 90’s. (The first book, Drumming at the Edge of Magic, is excellent. The second, Planet Drum, is more of a museum piece but it’s also great. Both discs that accompanied the books are fine. Mickey and his Planet Drum cohorts also performed some live shows. If you’re a Deadhead then you probably already know the names Airto Moreira and Flora Purim. Here’s a track from the Planet Drum disc with just Airto and Zakir.
The Dead (and Bill Graham) turned me on to Miles Davis who turned me on to John McLaughlin. John and Zakir worked together in the band/project Shakti. Buckle up. This is a trip.
I’ll bet I’m the only one here who owns this album. Released in ‘87, the same year I saw my first Dead show, McLaughlin is a collaborator. This is the title track authored by Hussain. (The second track is titled Zakir authored by McLaughlin.)
Truly a great loss.
Thank you, Zakir, with all my heart and soul.