Pakistani Soul Session

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The Pakistani Soul Session were a group of touring Pakistani musicians (some the crème de la crème of Pakistan’s classical music scene, featuring amongst others Ustad Nathu Khan and Salamat Hussain) who came together in London's PYE studios in the late 60's, encouraged by Chris Blackwell of Island records to have a go at recording an album of traditional Pakistani ‘soul’ music albeit in a slightly more psychedelic and westernised format. Vic Singh’s psychedelic, liquid light show inspired design on the cover also features a dove prominently, an important motif in the approaching summer of love. The group's sole album was released in 1967.
== Links to Peel ==
Peel had a copy of the album in his Record Collection: P; on the back cover he wrote John R.P. Ravenscroft, instead of his nom de guerre, John Peel. This could be evidence that he obtained the album before he was given the name John Peel when he joined Radio London in March 1967 (although he was still using his own name a couple of months later, for example in a letter he wrote to International Times). It is unlikely that Peel obtained the album in America, as the LP was released in the UK in 1967, with the prominent dove motif on the back cover, typical of the era of peace and love, suggesting that it was released well after January of that year, when Island Records was still a small label.
In 1967 Island were beginning to venture into pop and rock music, with artists like Traffic, but were still best-known for their catalogue of ska, blue-beat and rock-steady records, which sold well in Britain's Caribbean immigrant communities but weren't issued in the USA. Therefore, this LP could have been aimed at Pakistanis living in the UK as much as white listeners interested in Eastern music. Peel returned from America to the UK in February 1967, so it is most likely that he got the album when he was living in London.
The style of music on the album is the basically "classical" type that Peel would have played on Night Ride, rather than on Radio London or Top Gear; most probably, the LP was issued a bit too early for such exposure. Tracklistings of late 1960s shows on the Peel wiki site provide no evidence of any tracks from this album being played on the radio. It wasn't until decades later, with the rise of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and Qawwali music, that Pakistani artists became popular in the West. Certainly, despite the fashion for Eastern music, the album was overlooked at the time of its release, remained obscure and copies now fetch collectors' prices.
== Shows Played ==
* None, according to available playlists.
== See Also ==
*Record Collection: P
== External Links ==
* John Peel’s Hidden Gems
* John Peel Archive
* Discogs
Category:Artists