I recently posted a song by Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan here on hubski. When posting it, I mentioned that I didn’t have a lot of “world” music on my ipod. That got me to thinking about how silly that terminology is –“world” music. It’s ALL world music.

I may not have any other “Qawali” music on my ipod but I certainly have music that is related to Nusrat, if by influence only.

The song I have posted is by Jeff Buckley an artist from the 1990’s. I realize most of you are probably familiar with Jeff’s work but in the off chance that some of you are not, it is worth posting this. Due to his unparalleled vocal ability, great songwriting and seriously underrated guitar playing, Buckley is credited as one of the more influential artist of his decade. The song I have posted was written by Leonard Cohen (it’s a gorgeous song) but Buckley takes it to new heights. It is a live recording with just him and his guitar. –That’s a LOT of sound for one person to make. –Have a listen and forget that you’ve heard this song a million times (including Shrek), just focus on the performance. –Amazing.

How is he related to Nusrat? -Jeff Buckley credited Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan as one of his largest musical influences.

Also on my ipod is Radiohead. Thom Yorke (their lead singer) directly credits Jeff Buckley for influencing his vocal style. You can really hear it on several of the songs off of “the Bends” most noticeably on, “Fake Plastic Trees”.

So, “world” music just isn’t a term I’ll be using anymore. It’s all connected, it’s an evolution that dates back all the way to that obelisk in Kubrick’s 2001.

Unfortunately for the world, Jeff Buckley died in 1997. If you are not familiar with his work, check out his album “Grace”, it is amazing. Much like Nusrat, Jeff is widely credited with having one of the best male voices ever recorded. –He’s long been a favorite of mine, hope you enjoy.