A Long-Lost Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan Album Will Release This Fall

Khan originally recorded Chain of Light 34 years ago, and the project is slated to release on Sept. 20

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June 20, 2024

A lost album from the famed Pakistani singer Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan is set to release over three decades after he originally recorded it.

According to Peter Gabriel‘s Real World Records, the album was forgotten in warehouse storage and was rediscovered when thewas relocating its archive in 2021. Khan first recorded Chain of Light at Real World Studios in April of 1990, and the album will release 34 years later on Sept. 20

The album consists of four Sufi Islamic devotional songs called “qawwals,” including one that has never been heard before, Real World said. Khan recorded Chain of Light while also working on the 1990 album Mustt Mustt, his collaboration with guitarist and producer Michael Brook.

“I’ve had the privilege to work with a tonne of different musicians from all over the world in my time, but perhaps the greatest singer of them all was Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan,” Gabriel said in a statement. “What he could do and make you feel with his voice was quite extraordinary and we were very proud to have played a role in getting him to a much wider global audience. It was a real delight when we found out this tape had been in our library. This album really shows him at his peak. It’s a wonderful record.”

Khan died of a heart attack in 1997 at 48 years old. Gabriel signed him to Real World in 1989, and Khan won over many famous fans including Eddy Vedder, Madonna, Jeff Buckley, and The Rolling Stones among others. Buckley once referred to Khan as “my Elvis.” Rolling Stone placed Khan at 91 on our 200 Greatest Singers of All Time list in 2023.

From Rolling Stone US.

Ethan Millman