Sharhabil Ahmed

Ahmed's father was a religious man, but the family already owned a phonograph and liked both religious madeeh singing as well as popular haqiba music. In an interview with the Egyptian newspaper Al-Ahram, Ahmed remembered: "My biggest worry was how not to upset my father, who was interested in Sufism, and was fond of madeeh, but felt that music and art distracted me from my studies."[1]

As his father worked as a truck driver, the family frequently moved from one part of Sudan to another. Ahmed grew up in Al-Obeid, the capital of Kordofan Province, in Western Sudan, and eventually enrolled at the College of Fine Arts in Khartoum, where he studied graphic design. After graduation, he joined the Sudanese Ministry of Education as an illustrator of textbooks and comics magazines. He worked for several children's magazines like Al-Sabian, Maryud and Sabah magazine from 1960, until he retired from the Ministry of Education in 1995.[2]

Sharhabil's wife, Zakia Abdul-Gassim Abu Bakr, was the first female guitarist in Sudan, and several of their seven sons and daughters also have become musicians.

Sharhabil Ahmed

Before becoming a guitar player, Sharhabil learned to play the oud, saxophone, trombone and trumpet. But it was the electric guitar which eventually became his favourite instrument. His smooth voice, full of vibrato, has added to his distinctive popularity.[3]

"I started out by learning to play the oud and traditional Sudanese music, and got a diploma from the music institute of Khartoum University. But my ambition was to develop something new. For this, the guitar seemed like the best instrument. Western instruments can approximate the scales of Sudanese music very well. After all, a lot of Western music is originally from Africa. I have absorbed different influences, from traditional Sudanese rhythms to calypso and jazz, and I hold them together in my music with no difficulty."[1]

The electric guitar was originally introduced to the Khartoum music scene by musicians from Southern Sudan, who appreciated the popular guitar sound from their neighbours in the Congo. Congolese music, itself heavily influenced by South American and Caribbean sounds, had an important influence on Sudanese popular music in the 1960s.

Even though Sharhabil has been commonly called "The King of Sudanese Jazz", and perhaps because of the occasional saxophone, his style of music has not much in common with the Western notion of Jazz music. Rather, Sharhabil’s sound can be called a unique combination of rock, funk, and Congolese music with a typical Sudanese character. Combining his soft vocals with the distinct sound of urban Sudanese music, he and his band became one of Sudan's most sought-after music groups. Over the years of his long career, he has published many songs and albums, available mostly in Sudan. As of 2018, Sharhabil Ahmed was still performing live at select occasions in Khartoum.

In July 2020, Habibi funk, an independent music label based in Berlin, Germany, re-edited digital versions of some of Sharhabil's songs on an album called "The King Of Sudanese Jazz", with the title Argos Farfish and other songs available for free listening.[3][4] - Announcing this compilation in the Financial Times, David Honigman describes the music in the following, vivid way:[5]

The first track, Ahmed’s calling card “Argos Farfish”, opens with a brutal rock riff and high bleating saxophone. Ahmed’s voice comes in, urgent, imploring, exploding into a cry of “hey hey!” The drummer rolls all over the kit, like a version of “Tequila” set in the mean streets of Omdurman. The sax jostles with the vocals; the guitar flies up, high and spiky. Ahmed screams like James Brown. The rhythms stop and start, chords detonating with a flourish before the beat jolts back into life.

— David Honigman, Financial Times, July 17, 2020, Sharhabil Ahmed: The King of Sudanese Jazz — urgent and explosive

• Sharhabil Ahmed on discogs.com
• The King Of Sudanese Jazz by Sharhabil Ahmed, Habibi Funk 2020

• Music of Sudan
• List of Sudanese singers

• Bulbultain by Sharhabil Ahmed - music video
• Hirman by Sharhabil Ahmed - music video
• Sharhabil Ahmed and his band live at National Theatre, Omdurman
• Sharhabil Ahmed and his son Shareef: TEDxKhartoum
• Sharhabil Ahmed on Facebook