Seldom if ever we have had talents exactly like Mohsen Namjoo in Iran, albeit we do have had great talents with similar authenticity and ingenuity in other shapes of traditional or mixed-style musical and lyrical performance all integrated into a single performer / singer.
If we're talking the Sixties and Seventies, Farmarz Aslani has been one such phenomenal artist of course playing Guitar-Flamingo in a masterfully while singing from both Hafez as well as his own lyrics. our beloved late Farhad was another typical example playing (piano and guitar accompaniment) and singing live on stage all by himself while being quite good with orchestral performances in the studio too. Foroughi was also good in his own right.
Other than these names just mentioned, there were not so many pop music “solo performer / singers” in Iran before the revolution. Most others were just singers, and not all of them very good ones really! (no offense but I think most serious listeners will agree with me on that.)
In “In-tune with the times“, Manesh efers to the “traditional or classic pop” music of Iran in those times. people like Banan or Marzyeh or Haydeh and other ones. Those were the ones with a much better technically accurate singing strengths and great voices too but again not all of them did perform on their own, ie, playing some instrument and singing to it by themselves at the same time. In fact, many of them were mostly “studio singers” singing on radio rather than stage performers. they were good though. I mean the “David-voice” of Banan or the warmth in Marzyeh's tone, or the Haydeh's “high pitch” timber (to which experienced Iranian repairs men fine-tuned tape recorder!) were amongst the greatest of those times.
Interestingly enough, some of the great composers that worked with Golha of those times come from a Western Jazz music background! Khaleghi, Mahjoubi and some others used to perform live jazz music on stage in Laleh Zar cafes (Grand Hotel?) in very old times and then works like the eternally beautiful and unbeatable Karavan (sung by the great singer Banan) were created by these gentlemen.
In fact, come to think of it, the very musical masterpiece of Karavan itself, has an impressive jazz / pop ring to it. (consider the intro and ending of the work played by piano and orcestra for instance and I think you'll agree with me on that.) There are some other examples of traditional pop music in Iran too that are truly great to listen to even now: Badizadeh's “Shod Khazan” for instance, or Banan's “Elaheh Naz”, or Delkash's “Amad Nobahar” are a few of such items that come to my mind right now.
All that said, Namjoo's work is “phenomenal” indeed! On a totally different category and level I'd also agree strongly! There are a number of very good talents in Iran right now, doing just great stuff really; take for instance or Reza Yazdani and other guys doing Rap and HipHop, the Iranian style. all great guys indeed imho and just as phenomenal as Namjoo, however, Namjoo's style is unique. unique in the way that he has, as you have referred to it too so rightly, he has been able to mix Dylan, Farhad, Esfehani with the traditional “moghami” lyricism and still there is also another substance to it somewhat hard to explain!
But is it really hard to find out what that substance is? Not really: that extra substance is Namjoo himself! A young Iranian grown up in the years after the revolution and gone through so many ups and downs in turbulent times. Of course, there have been many other young Iranians undergoing similar conditions but not all have turned out to be like Mohsen Namjoo. Yet, as said earlier, we are now witnessing the emergence of really bright talents in the young pop (mostly underground) music scene of Iran with Namjoo and Sobhani and some other truly genius ones leading the way. I just hope this process won't be interrupted by any unnatural or natural causes whatsoever and someday we'll all be able to attend these fine people's concerts in our free and proud and peaceful homeland of Iran …
Two more things to mention before I close this long and boring post:
1. One other great Iranian talent who is well known in the theater and cinema industry but not quite well know (except to some people) in the traditional pop music of Iran and worth mentioning in here is a certain gentleman by the name of Rasoul Najafian. He is one of those “naturals” with live and stage performance abilities only the likes of Namjoo have been able to demonstrate in their works. Just like Namjoo, Rasoul also plays Setar, Tar, Santoor, piano and sings with a warm and addictive voice you want to listen to over and over again. He is also masterly well-versed with the classic Iranian poetry of Hafez and other Iranian literature giants of the past as well as he is great at reciting his own lyrics.
Rasoul too started doing music at a very early age, many years ago, and although perhaps not as classically trained as Mohsen Namjoo, he is however capable of delivering a nice and perfect live performance almost whenever you ask him to kindly do so for you! No matter if he plays only for a sole listener in a room or for a large audience in an auditorium, Rasoul is just good! And he won't stop playing unless you tell him too … : – )
I just could not help but mention him in here because Mohsen's performance reminds me very much of that of Rasoul's in many ways. i remember pre-revolution times Rasoul singing in different styles too: “kharabati”, Dariush Rafie, Turkmen, and other ones and doing all of them so nicely that i dare say he too is phenomenal! And I'm not the only one saying so (my secret wish, however revealed as of now though, is that one day I see Namjoo and Rasoul performing together! I bet they'll make a great duo.)
; – )
2.I know it's hard to do, and I'm not doing it myself either, but you (and I) should be careful with repeated playings of Namjoo's works! We don't want the effect to wear out soon, do we?
