Rachid Taha ( ar, رشيد طه, Latn, ar, Rashīd Ṭāhā, ; 18 September 1958 – 12 September 2018) was an
Algerian
Algerian may refer to:
* Something of, or related to Algeria
* Algerian people
This article is about the demographic features of the population of Algeria, including population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, econo ...
singer and activist
[ based in France][ described as "sonically adventurous".][ His music was influenced by many different styles including ]rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
, electronic
Electronic may refer to:
*Electronics, the science of how to control electric energy in semiconductor
* ''Electronics'' (magazine), a defunct American trade journal
*Electronic storage, the storage of data using an electronic device
*Electronic co ...
, punk
Punk or punks may refer to:
Genres, subculture, and related aspects
* Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres
* Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...
and raï
Raï (, ; ar, راي, Latn, ar, rāʾy, ), sometimes written rai, is a form of Algerian traditional music, folk music that dates back to the 1920s. Singers of Raï are called ''cheb'' (Arabic: شاب) (or ''shabab,'' i.e. young) as opposed ...
.
Early life
Taha was born on 18 September 1958[ in ]Sig
Sig used as a name may refer to:
* Sig (given name)
*Sig, Algeria, a city on the banks of the Sig River
*Sig Alert, an alert for traffic congestion in California, named after Loyd Sigmon
*Sig River, a river of Algeria also known as Mekerra
sig (l ...
, Mascara Province
Mascara ( ar, معسكر ', ber, ⵎⵄⴻⵙⴽⴻⵔ ') is a province ('' wilaya'') in Algeria. It was named after its capital, whose name is Arabic for "military garrison", and which is unrelated to "mascara", the cosmetic. Another important ...
, Algeria
)
, image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Algiers
, coordinates =
, largest_city = capital
, relig ...
,[ although a second source suggests he was born in the Algerian seacoast city of ]Oran
Oran ( ar, وَهران, Wahrān) is a major coastal city located in the north-west of Algeria. It is considered the second most important city of Algeria after the capital Algiers, due to its population and commercial, industrial, and cultural ...
. This town was the "birthplace of raï" music, and 1958 was a key year in the Algerian struggle for independence against French authority.[ He began listening to Algerian music in the 1960s,][ including street-style music called ]chaabi
Chaabi ( in Arabic), also known as Chaâbi, Sha-bii, or Sha'bii meaning "folk", refers to different music genres in North Africa and the Middle East such as Algerian chaabi, Moroccan chaabi and Egyptian Shaabi.
Chaabi music just means 'music ...
.[ Additionally, music from the ]Maghreb
The Maghreb (; ar, الْمَغْرِب, al-Maghrib, lit=the west), also known as the Arab Maghreb ( ar, المغرب العربي) and Northwest Africa, is the western part of North Africa and the Arab world. The region includes Algeria, ...
region was part of his upbringing.[
He moved with his parents to France when he was ten years old, settling in an immigrant community around the French city of ]Lyon
Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...
in 1968. His father was a textile factory worker,[Curiel, Jonathan]
"Arab rocker Rachid Taha's music fueled by politics, punk attitude and – what else? – romance"
''San Francisco Chronicle
The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and M. H. de Young, Michael H. de ...
''. 27 June 2005. Retrieved 14 March 2013. with long hours and low pay, such that his life was compared to that of a "modern slave", according to one account. Aged 17, Taha worked during the day at a central heating plant, described as a "menial job",[ and hated this work, but at night worked as a club DJ playing Arabic music, rap, salsa, funk and "anything else that took his fancy."][
In the late 1970s, Taha founded the nightclub called ''The Rejects'' or, in French, ''Les Refoulés'', where he would ''spin'' mashups of Arabic pop classics over ]Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...
, Bo Diddley
Ellas McDaniel (born Ellas Otha Bates; December 30, 1928 – June 2, 2008), known professionally as Bo Diddley, was an American guitarist who played a key role in the transition from the blues to rock and roll. He influenced many artists, incl ...
and Kraftwerk
Kraftwerk (, "power station") is a German band formed in Düsseldorf in 1970 by Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider. Widely considered innovators and pioneers of electronic music, Kraftwerk were among the first successful acts to popularize the ...
backbeat
In music and music theory, the beat is the basic unit of time, the pulse (regularly repeating event), of the ''mensural level'' (or ''beat level''). The beat is often defined as the rhythm listeners would tap their toes to when listening to a p ...
s.[Morgan, Andy]
"Can Rachid Taha rock the Casbah?"
''The Independent
''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
''. 6 November 2009. Retrieved 8 November 2009.
Career
Raï roots
In the 1980s, Algeria's indigenous pop music known as ''raï'' began to achieve international attention.[ Originally raï music was based on "city slickers adapting music from the sticks" and was described as ribald, but it became more of a medium for ]political protest
A protest (also called a demonstration, remonstration or remonstrance) is a public expression of objection, disapproval or dissent towards an idea or action, typically a political one.
Protests can be thought of as acts of coopera ...
when young people in the 1960s and 1970s used it to "express their anger and desires."[ Taha suggested that Algerian musical styles and rock are "closely linked".][ Taha was influenced by the Moroccan chaâbi band ]Nass El Ghiwane
Nass El Ghiwane () are a musical group established in 1970 in Casablanca, Morocco. The group, which originated in avant-garde political theater, has played an influential role in Moroccan chaabi (or ''shaabi'').
Nass El Ghiwane were the first ...
which has been described as "Morocco
Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to ...
's answer to the Beatles or the Stones."
Carte de Séjour
In 1981, while living in Lyon
Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...
, Taha met Mohammed and Mokhtar Amini and the three of them, along with Djamel Dif and Eric Vaquer would soon form a band. In 1982, Taha was the lead vocalist for the Arab-language rock group which they named Carte de Sejour, meaning ''Green Card'' or ''Residence Permit'' depending on the translation.[ He sang in both French and ]Arabic
Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...
, but usually in Arabic. Taha was inspired by the group ''The Clash'':
Taha met members of the group The Clash
The Clash were an English rock band formed in London in 1976 who were key players in the original wave of British punk rock. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they also contributed to the and new wave movements that emerged in the wa ...
in Paris:
Taha believed his early recordings helped to inspire The Clash to create the song "Rock the Casbah
"Rock the Casbah" is a song by the English punk rock band The Clash, released in 1982. The song was released as the second single from their fifth album, ''Combat Rock''. It reached number eight on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart in the US (t ...
".[ A '']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 d ...
'' music reporter wrote of Taha's cover version of the Clash's hit song probably influenced by his earlier work:
These were difficult years since record stores often refused to stock their records "because they didn't want Arabs coming into their shops".[ There was little money; the band performed in suburbs of Lyon.][ Taha took a standard patriotic French song entitled "Sweet France" (in French: ''Douce France'') which had originally been recorded by ]Charles Trenet
Louis Charles Augustin Georges Trenet (; 18 May 1913 – 19 February 2001) was a renowned French singer-songwriter who composed both the music and the lyrics to nearly a thousand songs over a career that lasted more than 60 years. These include ...
in the 1940s, kept the lyrics, but sang it with "furious irony" which irritated many French listeners, particularly coming from a "scruffy, bohemian-looking Arabic singer", to the point where Taha's version was banned from French radio.[ The "acerbic" song created a "splash", nevertheless, and won Taha some recognition as a serious artist.][ The group never achieved much commercial success and, as a result, Taha had to work a series of day jobs in a factory, then as a house painter, a dishwasher, and later as an encyclopedia salesman.][ They recorded their first maxi album ''Carte De Séjour'' in 1983. In 1984, with the help of British guitarist ]Steve Hillage
Stephen Simpson Hillage (born 2 August 1951) is an English musician, best known as a guitarist. He is associated with the Canterbury scene and has worked in experimental domains since the late 1960s. Besides his solo sound recording and reprodu ...
, the group achieved a "sharp, driving sound" which played well on the radio, and the LP was entitled ''Rhoromanie''.[ In his songwriting, Taha wrote about living in ]exile
Exile is primarily penal expulsion from one's native country, and secondarily expatriation or prolonged absence from one's homeland under either the compulsion of circumstance or the rigors of some high purpose. Usually persons and peoples suf ...
and the cultural strife associated with being an Algerian immigrant in France.[ In 1986, his "sneering punk-rock cover of 'Douce France'" was seen as an "unmistakable protest against the nation's treatment of its immigrant underclass", and caused consternation in French political circles.][ His song "Voilà, Voilà" protested racism.][ Taha had to cope with anti-Arab sentiment and confusion; for example, '']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 ...
'' stated in a front-page story that Taha was Egyptian rather than Algerian, but later posted a correction. Later, in 2007, Taha-as-an-immigrant was mentioned in France's National Center of the History of Immigration.
When performing live, Taha wore various outfits, including at one point a leather fedora
A fedora () is a hat with a soft brim and indented crown.Kilgour, Ruth Edwards (1958). ''A Pageant of Hats Ancient and Modern''. R. M. McBride Company. It is typically creased lengthwise down the crown and "pinched" near the front on both sides ...
hat, then later a red cowboy hat
The cowboy hat is a high-crowned, wide-brimmed hat best known as the defining piece of attire for the North American cowboy. Today it is worn by many people, and is particularly associated with ranch workers in the western and southern United S ...
. The band's second and last LP entitled ''Ramsa'' (Five) was released in 1986. The band dissolved in 1989.
Solo years
In 1989, Taha moved to Paris to launch his solo career.[ At one point he was invited to Los Angeles to record with musician ]Don Was
Don Edward Fagenson (born September 13, 1952), known professionally as Don Was, is an American musician, record producer and record executive. Primarily a bass player, Was co-founded the funk-rock band Was (Not Was). In later years he produced s ...
, who had been a producer associated with the Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the g ...
.[ Taha mixed a variety of instruments and styles for his sound. With a drum instrument called a doumbek or darbuka, his new group played Arabic-style beats.][ It appeared at one point that Taha might become an "overnight success", but after the release of the album ''Barbès'', sales were disappointing in the United States, possibly because Americans were not keen on Arabic-sounding music during the time of the first ]Gulf War
The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases: ...
.[
In 1993, Taha again worked with Hillage who helped produce his second solo album, the self-titled '']Rachid Taha
Rachid Taha ( ar, رشيد طه, Latn, ar, Rashīd Ṭāhā, ; 18 September 1958 – 12 September 2018) was an Algerian singer and activist based in France described as "sonically adventurous". His music was influenced by many different styles ...
'' and helped him achieve "the kind of clubland-raï synthesis".[ Hillage worked on nine solo Taha albums from 1993 to 2006, helping Taha return to his "north African roots".][ In 1995, he released the album entitled ''Olé Olé'' with Taha looking like an "Aryan androgyne" with dyed blond hair and blue contact lenses, to make a point about anti-Arab bigotry and at the "homophobia of North African culture."][ ''Valencia'' features the singing of ]Kirsty Hawkshaw
Kirsty Hawkshaw (born 26 October 1969) is an English electronic music vocalist and songwriter. In addition to her work as a solo artist, she is known as the lead vocalist of early 1990s dance group Opus III, and her collaborative work with oth ...
. In 1997, his song "Ya Rayah
"Ya Rayah" ( ar, يا رايح, Yâ râyiḥ, lit=you, the one leaving) is an Algerian chaâbi song written and performed in 1973 by Dahmane El Harrachi (Amrani Abderrahmane). Up until the past 15 years this song was known to be Dahman El Harrac ...
" became a hit.[ He performed in the ]Canary Islands
The Canary Islands (; es, Canarias, ), also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish autonomous community and archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, in Macaronesia. At their closest point to the African mainland, they are west of Morocc ...
.
In 2001, Taha released '' Made in Medina'', and a music critic commented that he used a "full and varied instrumental palette" along with "a dizzying vocal facility that transcends whatever style he's plugged."[ The album was recorded in Paris, , and London with input from the American jam band ]Galactic
Galactic is an American jam band from New Orleans, Louisiana.
Origins and background
Formed in 1994 as an octet (under the name Galactic Prophylactic) and including singer Chris Lane and guitarist Rob Gowen, the group was soon pared down to a ...
.[ Taha saw parallels between African and American music and said "New Orleans is like Algiers ... They were both French colonies at one time, and there's even an area there called ]Algiers
Algiers ( ; ar, الجزائر, al-Jazāʾir; ber, Dzayer, script=Latn; french: Alger, ) is the capital and largest city of Algeria. The city's population at the 2008 Census was 2,988,145Census 14 April 2008: Office National des Statistiques ...
," and he noted that Louisiana Zydeco
Zydeco ( or , french: Zarico) is a music genre that evolved in southwest Louisiana by French Creole speakers which blends blues, rhythm and blues, and music indigenous to the Louisiana Creoles and the Native American people of Louisiana. Al ...
drum patterns were similar to raï music.[ ''Made in Medina'' combined Algerian roots, ]techno
Techno is a genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempo often varying between 120 and 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central rhythm is typically in common time (4/4) and often ch ...
, pop music, and early rock and punk influences with "remarkable consistency" with previous works, according to Hillage.[ There were elements of political protest in his music leading a ]BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
critic to describe him as a "shit-disturbing artist who risks challenging his own culture as undemocratic."