Kourosh Yaghmaei

Kourosh Yaghmaei (Persian: کورش یغمایی also spelled as Kourosh Yaghmaee; born 3 December 1946) is an Iranian singer-songwriter, composer and record producer, who started his career in the early 1970s. Regarded as one of the greatest Persian psychedelic rock musicians in the history of Iranian rock music, he is known as "the Godfather of Iranian psychedelic rock", as well as "the king of rock". Born in 1946 in Shahrud to Zoroastrian parents, Yaghmaei later grew up in Tehran. Most of his songs combine classical Persian poetry with more contemptary works, often incorporating his own lyrics. Musically, Yaghmai is recognized as being an early cross-pollinator for Persian traditional music and the western psychedelic rock of the era, with artists Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd often listed as specific influences. He began his solo career in 1973 with his first single "Gol-e Yakh" ("Ice Flower"), a track selling more than 5 million copies in the domestic market. This single was followed by the eponymous Gol-e Yakh (1973), which included the song. Much of Yaghmaei's work is well known by the Iranian diaspora, with singles "Gol-e Yakh", "Havar Havar" ("Shout Shout"), "Khaar" ("Thistle"), "Leila", "Paiz" ("Autumn"), "Reyhan" being particularly beloved. In 2011, his first compilation album, Back From the Brink: Pre-Revolution Psychedelic Rock From Iran: 1973-1979, was released by Now-Again Records to international recognition. Vogue has described Yaghmei as "psyche singer, stylish, moustached and funky". Following the 1979 Iranian Revolution, Yaghmaei's work was banned from the country's airways, markets and homes, and his name from the press.

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