After many years as guest member of Spoonful, I’ve found that they are an unassuming bunch, they love their music and to a great extent, they let it permeate into their lifestyle. The band plays blues and classic rock in its true spirit; with open structures and an air of freedom. They treat each gig like they treat each song: with a casual, just-another-day attitude and they actually enjoy themselves on the stage.

This is why they’re often surprised when they discover how many people have heard of them. Probably the biggest of these surprises was this April when they were asked by the people at Base Rock Café to play a gig with the revered Aamir Zaki.

After hearing about this, I decided to join Spoonful for their next jam session. I arrived early at Abro’s house. As usual, we raided the fridge and sat in the garden while we waited for the electricity to return.

As we waited Zaki to arrive, I excitedly quizzed Abro about their first meeting with him.

“He was cool,” he characteristically replied. Being well-accustomed to such enlightening responses from Abro, I decided to wait and see for myself.

Needless to say Zaki’s reputation preceded him. I’d heard many things about him – mostly from people who hadn’t met him. The stories portrayed a legendary and ingenious diva, an unpredictable man with mercurial moods and an arrogant streak, whose wide knowledge and skill had made him a godfather of Pakistani music (and many Pakistani musicians).

When I met him he didn’t seem like any of these things. He was shy, introverted and slightly nervous but friendly; his boyish demeanor made it easy to forget he was older than us.

There was no glorious moment of wide-eyed wonder as he struck the first strings on his guitar, because everyone spent the first 20 minutes tuning and then straight into practice. As they played through the songs however, Zaki’s famed skill and experience became quite apparent. Whenever he played a fill or a solo, his graceful fingers would give each note its due, effortlessly producing a sound that was perfectly rounded and was unmistakably crafted over many, many years. He played with a very special kind of restraint that only a few guitarists possess – the kind that hints at someone who has a big bag of tricks, but chooses carefully and patiently from it. It was the sound of a seasoned bluesman.

As the days went by Zaki revealed himself to be much more of a bluesman than I’d imagined. Quite unwillingly he seemed to be immersed in the very essence of the blues, perpetually careworn and constantly bemused with life, he seemed to reside permanently at that proverbial crossroads, unable to decide where to turn and why. He complained about how moving forward was difficult, how gigs were too far apart and how difficult it was to capitalise on his music.

It certainly wasn’t for lack of meticulousness. Playing with him was a constant exercise for us young musicians; with a piercing gaze and ever-conscious ear, he would instantly detect mistakes, refusing to move on without ironing them out. Aziz Kazi was especially tested; a very talented and natural percussionist, he still had to stretch his mind and body to keep up with the complex movements of ‘Mohabbat Blues’ and a ‘behind the tempo’ blues style that his Rush inspired beats had not attained. These ever-scrutinised jam sessions contrasted with Spoonful’s easy-flow approach to practicing, and posed quite a challenge to the young musicians. The relentlessness was often tiring but did produce results (by gig day, April 25, the band was playing explosive renditions of Zaki’s songs).

As I sat out most of the songs and watched them interact, I found that at the root of Zaki’s perfectionism was an uncompromising honesty. A kind of a magnifying glass that he turned on himself as much as he did on others. Even in the electric atmosphere at the end of a great concert, he showed an inability to embellish, describing Spoonful to the expectant crowd as “One of the better bands in the underground scene.”

Contrary to his reputation however, we never saw his demanding and clinical spirit become tainted with drama or arrogance. “All the people who know me also know that I always tell the truth” he said to us during one of the extended cigarette breaks that took place during the load-shedding hour. He emphasised the importance of mastering the basics, like the twelve-bar-blues and being able to switch between different styles of music with ease.

On the day of the concert I also performed with him and the band, providing vocals and harmonica to a few songs. The list was a mixture of blues and classic rock covers (from Hendrix to Santana) interspaced with Zaki’s most loved original songs such as ‘Jaana,’ ‘Mera Pyar’ and ‘Mohabbat Blues.’ After a couple of encores, and a reluctant exit from the cheering crowd, he emerged exhausted but quite happy with the night.

It’s quite apparent to those who have seen Aamir Zaki in concert (such as the Summer Jam concerts last year), that his music is best experienced live. His music, like his personality, seems a little too layered to be judged from a distance. There is a certain electricity and spirit to his guitar playing that can’t be felt until you hear him play his songs on stage. Perhaps in this more concert-friendly time and with a new generation of eager musicians at his side, it is now a good time for the great Aamir Zaki to finally make a comeback.

A teaser from a jam session with Aamir Zaki for the upcoming performance:

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(Spoonful is a blues-rock band from Karachi, with guitarists Jasir Abro and Hamad Khan (also on vocals), Ali Haider playing bass and Aziz Kazi on drums. They will be performing with Aamir Zaki at the PACC on July 10)

*Photo credit: Nadir Siddiqui – Rebox Photos

Nadir Siddiqui  is a freelance photographer and a musician who often performs with Spoonful as a vocalist and also plays the harp (harmonica).

The views expressed by this blogger and in the following reader comments do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Dawn Media Group.