State of Bengal
| State of Bengal | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Saifullah Zaman |
| Also known as | Sam Zaman |
| Born |
16 April 1965 Karachi, Pakistan |
| Origin | London, England |
| Died |
19 May 2015 (aged 50) United Kingdom |
| Genres | |
| Occupation(s) | |
| Instruments |
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| Years active | 1987–2015 |
| Labels |
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| Associated acts | |
| Website |
www |
| Notable instruments | |
Saifullah "Sam" Zaman (16 April 1965 – 19 May 2015), known by the stage name State of Bengal, was a British DJ and music producer of Bangladesh descent associated with the UK and Asian Underground movement.
Early life
Zaman was born in Karachi, Pakistan and lived in Ankara, Amman, and Dhaka before moving in London, England at the age of eight. His father is a homeopathic doctor.[1]
Career
In 1987, Zaman set up the State of Bengal group in London after a visit to Noakhali, Bangladesh, where he interacted with traditional folk musicians and dancers. Original members of the group included his youngest brother Deeder Zaman (later became vocalist of Asian Dub Foundation) who was seven, and MC Mushtaq (later became the lead rapper for Fun-Da-Mental) who was 15.[2] Outside of the State of Bengal project, Zaman also worked with British Asian youth groups, setting up music training workshops.[3] After working in a variety of communities from across the country, they founded a record company called Betelnut Productions.[4]
Formerly a teacher, Zaman worked at youth centres.[5] State of Bengal was a DJ at the Anokha club in London's East End during the mid-1990s. His tracks "Flight IC408" and "Chittagong Chill" – written and produced with Matt Mars – were featured on Anokha – Soundz of the Asian Underground compilation, and helped him gain prominence. Singer Björk discovered his work at Anokha; he opened with the homeogenic world tour, and remix her track "Hunter" after hearing the original "Hunter" by State of Bengal in September 1996, thereby signing to the One Little Indian record label. After Anokha, State of Bengal took up residency at the Off Centre club nights,[6] he produced his debut album Visual Audio in 1998[4][7] and then toured solo at several international festivals, and did extensive remix work.
After the release of Visual Audio[4] in 2001,[5] State of Bengal worked on two projects with musicians from Bengal, collaborating with Indian sitar innovator Ananda Shankar on the 2000 album Walking On[1][8] and with Baul singer Paban Das Baul on the 2004 album Tana Tani (Push and Pull).[1][9] In 2008, he remixed Massive Attack's album Mezzanine.[1] In 2007, Zaman's second solo album Skip-IJ was released.[4][5][10] Subsequently, alongside music work and DJing, Zaman went back to teaching kids and conducting music workshops.[5]
Personal life and death
In 2001, Zaman played in Dhaka, Chittagong and Kolkata. This was the first time he visited Bangladesh in 13 years.[2]
On 19 May 2015, Zaman died of an apparent cardiac arrest[4][11][12] from a suspected heart attack.[1] Zaman was divorced and survived by his young son, Sage.[5]
On 15 June 2017, the British Plaque Trust honoured Zaman by unveiling a Blue Plaque in his home and studio, East London, where all his albums were created and his eclectic music collection was housed.[13]
Discography
Singles
| Year | Single | Chart positions | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | "Elephant Ride" | Visual Audio | |
| 1999 | "Rama Communication" | Visual Audio | |
Albums
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | Certifications |
|---|---|---|---|
| Visual Audio |
|
||
| Skip-IJ |
|
||
Collaborations and contributions
| Year | Artist(s) | Title | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Ananda Shankar Experience and State of Bengal | Walking On | Realworld Records, Virgin Records |
| 2004 | State of Bengal vs. Paban Das Baul | Tana Tani | Realworld Records, EMI Records |
Compilations
| Year | Artist(s) | Title | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Various artists | Anokha - Soundz of the Asian Underground | Omni/Island Records |
Remixes and other work
| Year | Artist(s) | Title | Album/Single | Label |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Björk | "Hunter" remix | "Hunter" (single) | One Little Indian Records |
| 1998 | Massive Attack | Inertia Creeps | Mezzanine – The Remixes (album) | Virgin Records |
| Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan | "Shadow" | Star Rise: Nusrat Fateh Ali Kahn and Michael Brook Remixed | Realworld Records | |
| Ronnie Jordon | New Delhi Island | Unreleased | ||
| 1999 | Amar | "Day By Day", "If You Say That You Love Me", "Sometimes It Snows in April" | Unreleased | Warner Bros. Records |
| Euphoria | "Delirium" Delhi Rias Mix | Delirium Remixes (single) | Six Degrees Records | |
| Cheb i Sabbah | "Shri Durga" | Tantra Lounge (album) | ||
| 2000 | Jolly Mukherjee | "Madhuvanthi", "Jhinjoti", "Sarang" | Fusebox (album) | Palm Pictures |
| Mindless Self Indulgence | "Bitches" remix | "Bitches/Molly" (single) | Elektra Records | |
| Solar Twins | "Rock the Casbah" remix | "Rock the Casbah" (single) | Maverick Records | |
| 2001 | Khaled | "Mal Habibti" | Barclay Records | |
| Amar and Khaled | "El harba wine" |
See also
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 K, Sanj (20 May 2015). "Sam Zaman: Musician who emerged from London’s Asian Underground to work with Bjork and Massive Attack". The Independent. Retrieved 1 August 2015.
- 1 2 "Mr. Sam Zaman". Swadhinata Trust. 28 March 2006. Retrieved 1 September 2015.
- ↑ "Biography". State of Bengal. Retrieved 7 March 2006.
- 1 2 3 4 5 K, Sanj (20 May 2015). "Sam Zaman / State of Bengal dies (1965-2015)". Nada Brahma. Retrieved 21 May 2015.
- 1 2 3 4 5 Pemmaraju, Gautam (23 May 2015). "Sam Zaman, pioneer of the Asian Underground, influenced everything from US rap to Bollywood beats". Scroll.in. Retrieved 1 August 2015.
- ↑ "CD Review". FFWD Weekly. 17 June 1999. Retrieved 7 March 2006.
- ↑ Ramani, Vinita (1 December 2000). "State of Bengal Visual Audio". Exclaim!. Retrieved 1 September 2015.
- ↑ Bidaye, Prasad (1 February 2000). "Ananda Shankar Experience and State of Bengal Walking On". Exclaim!. Retrieved 1 September 2015.
- ↑ Longley, Martin (12 April 2004). "State of Bengal Vs Paban das Baul Tana Tani Review". BBC Music. Retrieved 1 September 2015.
- ↑ Patterson, Louis (22 July 2007). "State of Bengal Skip-Ij Review". BBC Music. Retrieved 1 September 2015.
- ↑ K, Sanj (20 May 2015). "State of Bengal aka Sam Zaman Dead at 50". Rolling Stone India. Retrieved 21 May 2015.
- ↑ "State of Bengal aka Sam Zaman dies". Dhaka: Dhaka Tribune. 21 May 2015. Retrieved 21 May 2015.
- ↑ Ullah, Ansar Ahmed (27 December 2016). "British Asians 'struggle for top jobs despite better school results'". London: The Daily Star. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
External links
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