Talal Maddah

Talal Maddah (1940-2000) was a Saudi singer and composer. He is one of the singers who introduced Saudi songs to the world by performing in front of thousands of audiences in several American and European cities. He released about seventy albums, and his songs include "The Earth's Voice", "Guitar of the East" and "Knight of the Saudi Song."

Talal Maddah was born in Makkah al-Mukarramah as Talal Bin Abdul-Sheikh Bin Ahmed Bin Jaafar al-Jabri. He was nicknamed Talal Maddah after his maternal aunt’s husband, Ali Maddah, who raised him after the death of his parents. His passion for singing and music bloomed during his childhood. In 1959, when he was nineteen years old, he was given his big break after his song “Wardak Ya Za'eer al-Waard” was broadcast on Saudi radio.

He added a new chord to the oud and played about twenty-two maqams (tones). For four decades, his time on stage did not exceed one hour per day, and he played a maximum of six songs per concert. He was the first Saudi artist recorded by the Society of Authors, Composers, and Publishers of Music in France, and the first to receive a Golden Record. Talal Maddah had acting experience in the movie "Fog Street" and the series "al-Aseel."

Talal Maddah was a prominent participant in the annual operetta of the Janadriyah National Heritage and Cultural Festival for eleven years. He composed and sang the first anthem written for the festival, titled “Izz al-Watan.” Additionally, he authored and performed "Watanii al-Habib," one of the renowned national songs, in 1988. Talal Maddah, along with Mohammed Abdu, represented Saudi songs in national forums and events. His distinctive rhotacism, which hindered him from pronouncing the letter R, was admired and earned him the nickname "the R of Talal."

Talal Maddah sang for a number of composers, including: Baligh Hamdi, Tariq Abdul-Hakim, Fawzi Mahsoun, Mohamed al-Mogy, and Mohammed Abdel Wahab, who compared him to the Arab musician “Ziryab” because they both have the same singing style. Talal Maddah also composed for a number of Arab artists, such as Warda al-Jazairia and Abdel Karim Abdel Qader.

King Fahd bin Abdulaziz Al Saud awarded Talal Maddah the Order of Merit of the second degree and he was honored at the Arabic Song Festival in Cairo in 1995. Approximately nineteen years after his passing, specifically in 2019, al-Muftaha Theater, located at the heart of the King Fahd Cultural Center in the city of Abha, was renamed "Talal Maddah Theater," with his name engraved at the entrance.

Talal Maddah appeared visually and acoustically with the advent of television broadcasting in the mid-1960s. He sang during that era outside the Kingdom in the Republic of Lebanon. His artistic tour extended to Syria, Egypt, and Tunisia, and from there to London and Washington, as part of the cultural exhibitions held by the Kingdom.

Some Arab radio stations own recordings of Talal Maddah’s concerts held in these countries. Accordingly, these radio stations began broadcasting Saudi songs. This is how Talal Maddah contributed to introducing the world to Saudi songs. He also sang in the dialect of every Arab country he visited.

A number of Saudi composers, including Siraj Omar, collaborated with Talal Maddah on many songs, starting with 'Ma Tgoul Lana Saheb,' followed by 'Makadir,' which gained wide popularity and reached other Arab countries.

During his career, Talal Maddah collaborated with many Saudi poets, including Badr Bin Abdul Muhsin in the song 'Min Uyuni', and Ibrahim Khafaji in several songs, such as 'Tṣaddaq Wala Ahlif Lak'. Talal Maddah also sang in national concerts, such as the "Arayes al-Mamlaka" operetta with Mohammed Abdu, Rashed al-Majed, and Abdul Majeed Abdullah in 1996.