The music of India and Pakistan have had a profound influence on western music since the Beatles travelled to Rishikesh, India in 1968 to study transcendental meditation with the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. This event spawned a wave of Indian influence on artists like Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, John Mclaughlin and more recently Pearl Jam and Jeff Buckley. Names like Ravi Shankar and Zakir Hussein have become familiar to us because of their numerous collaborations with western artists. The Indian practice of playing a melody over a single "drone" or stagnant note can be found in songs like Jimi's "Third Stone from the Sun", even Creed's "Higher". Unfortunately, this concludes my knowledge of Indian music so I'll let these videos demonstrate my point.
Note: In my minimal research for this post I came across this site, it has some of the best pictures of the Beatles that I've ever seen. http://www.thebeatlesinindia.com
Video the first: Jeff Buckley emulating Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, considered one of the greatest Pakistani singers of all time. A truly prolific figure.
Video the second: Pearl Jam singing an original song, "Long Road" with Nusrat's nephew Rahat Fateh Ali Khan. Hearing someone who has been trained in the art of Qawalli might help you understand why religion plays such a dominant role in those parts of the world.
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