Pomegranates

Given the current political climate in Iran it is hard to imagine that a vibrant pop music scene once used to exist there. This was prior to the Islamic Revolution of 1979, a time in which Iran was under monarchical rule. Pomegranates is a compilation of some of the best–loved Iranian pop songs from this period. It is described as ‘Persian pop, funk, folk and psych off the 60s and’ – the use of the word Persian as opposed to Iranian (the former relating to the language) giving it an exotic gloss. The majority of the tracks are love songs, in a variety of styles with Western instrumentation such as brass, strings and woodwind. Something they all have in common is deep emotion, well in evidence in the vocals. Also notable is the typical Iranian swing epitomised by the percussive 6/8 rhythms.

The album gets off to a funky start with a groovy number by Zia, who the liner notes liken to an Iranian James Brown with good reason. Iconic diva Googoosh gets the most tracks here, as she really does sum up the music of this era: her star quality and endless number of big hits has ensured her music continues to be recognisable even to younger Iranians. Although there are some big names such as Ramesh and Dariush on this disc, there are some artists missing, like Vigen, Aref and Sattar. For the Iranian diaspora, Pomegranates will be a nostalgic listen while for non–Iranians it’s a great introduction to an otherwise unknown genre of music.