Below is a compilation of Iranian rock and jazz bands of the 1960s and 1970s.

The original Black Cats

 –جرای گروه بلک کتز در سالهای دور – The original Iranian rock and jazz band known as the Black Cats. The name of this band was revived from the early 1990s by the Iranian diaspora community in Los Angeles. 

-گروه بلک کتز – مدل مو و لباس ها خیلی مرتب و با وقاره – Portrait of the Black Cats in the 1960s.

-گروه موسیقی بلک کتز در سالهای دور- The Black Cats amusing themselves in the streets of Tehran in the 1960s. 

Vigen: The Father of modern Iranian Popular Music

“Mahtab” by by the late Iranian-Armenian singer Vigen Derderian (1929-2003).

Psychedelic Iranian Music from the 1960s and 1970s

The Littles “Koocholloha” with the single “Fatemeh Sultan”. Note blending of melodies of Western 1960s pop with Persian riffs.

“Dokhtar e Darya” by Takhalha (1966); note the guitar lead resembles the one heard in “House of the Rising Sun” by Eric Burdon and the Animals.

An interesting pop song “Mikoshi Mano” by the Flowers. This again blends Persian riffs with 12-bar blues. The lyrics are actually based on an old countryside song.

“Koocheh Ashnah” by Saeed; note the guitar lead and guitar melody which blends eastern themes with Western-style guitar riffs.

“Penahi” (Panahi?) with unnamed Iranian instrumental song. Another interesting and melodic experiment in blending Eastern and Persian tones with Western 12-bar blues.

One of Kourosh Yaghmai’s first hits “Del Dar-e Pir Mishe” in 1966. Yaghmai and his brothers set a new standard for popular Iranian guitar melodies, resulting in an interesting blend of east-west seen in much of modern Turkish popular music. For more of Kourosh Yaghmai’s music click here…