Trawling back through my posts from years ago, as I am at the moment, it is amazing to recall some of the people, places - and the music - that I have featured in the long history of this blog... Not least today's birthday girl the very lovely Ofra Haza, Israel's national treasure, whose untimely death of AIDS-related complications in 2000 led to public mourning on a scale only usually devoted to heads of state.
I wrote of my adoration of Miss Haza on the occasion of what would have been her 50th and again here. Inevitably, between them I managed to feature two of our favourite tracks of hers, notably her most enduring Im Nin'Alu and the dance hit Wish Me Luck. From her magnificent album Yemenite Songs, here is another:
From the sublime to...
...Eurovision! Miss Haza came a close second to Luxembourg, remarkably, despite those (ahem) dancers:
In the mid 80s to early 90s, a trend towards incorporating World Music into house and dance choons evolved (with the likes of Mory Kante and Natacha Atlas and sounds from Cuba, Brazil and India pervading the mix). Ofra's vocals were remixed by DJs, and used or sampled by (among others) Eric B. & Rakim, Black Dog, Madonna and Sarah Brightman; she also collaborated with a mixed bag of artists including Thomas Dolby, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Sisters of Mercy and Hans Zimmer.
And Iggy Pop...
Such a multi-talented woman. Such a loss.
Ofra Haza (born Bat-Sheva Ofra Haza-Ashkenazi, 19th November 1957 – 23rd February 2000)
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