Bahadir Akkuzu (born 1955 in Istanbul – died August 6, 2009), was a Turkish musician who was a self-taught guitarist and vocalist.
Contents |
Akkuzu began playing shows at the age of 15 and at the age of 17 joined a rock and roll group called "4 Adam". This was followed by a stint in "The Signal" and then a long career as a member of the Turkish/Anatolian psychedelic-progressive rock band Kurtalan Ekspres, which he joined in 1980. He was a contemporary of and worked with the famous Turkish musicians Cem Karaca, Erkin Koray, and Edip Akbayram. His band-mate and friend Barış Manço died in 1999 at the age of 56. Akkuzu took over singing duties for the band after his friend died.[1]
He was generally considered an experimental rock musician who cited many western influencs, among which were classic rock bands such as Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin, Yes, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, Bad Company, Humble Pie, Genesis, Ten Years After, and Rush.
He died of a heart attack on August 6, 2009.
With Kurtalan Ekspres