Erkin Koray, the legendary name of Turkish rock music, passed away at the age of 82. It was reported that Erkin Koray was hospitalized in Toronto, Canada, where he lived for a long time, due to health problems. Her daughter, Damla Koray, announced the death of Erkin Koray, the master of Anatolian Rock music[1], on Instagram:
Mavi Boncuk |
Mustafa Erkin Koray (b. 9 December 1941-d. 7 August 2023) was a Turkish musician, electro-baglama player, and active in Anatolian rock[1].
Born in Istanbul in 1941, Erkin Koray took guitar lessons after learning piano from his mother, Vecihe Koray, who was a music instructor. Koray started playing contemporary pieces of the period in the group "Erkin Koray and Rhythmists", which he founded with his friends in the 1950s.
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Erkin Koray, who has released 15 albums from 1973 to 1999 as part of his solo works, "Necessarily Ki", "Crazy Woman", "Alone", "So Time Passes Ki", "Tangle", "Fesupanallah", "Confused"", "Sevince" and "Lonely Rıhtım", as well as the songs he composed himself, as well as adaptations such as "Cemalim" and "Passed by the Bridge". {"İlla Ki", "Deli Kadın", "Tek Başına", "Öyle Bir Geçer Zaman Ki", "Arapsaçı", "Fesupanallah", "Şaşkın", "Sevince" ve "Yalnızlar Rıhtımı" ]
After his high school education, Koray continued his musical studies as an amateur in the 1960s. After his military service, he took part as a guitarist in the band "The Hiccups" in Germany for 2.5 years. In 1969, he formed the band 'Yeraltı Dörtlüsü,' which became a pioneering force in Turkey's underground music scene. The band performed covers of famous rock bands like Cream, Jethro Tull, and Pink Floyd, as well as Koray's original rock compositions. They were known for their unique fusion of rock sounds with Turkish lyrics and Anatolian influences.
Continuing his professional work solo, Koray released 45 records of English songs in 1966, but since the record did not sell well, he decided to make his next songs in Turkish.
Koray's 45, which was released in 1967 and featured the songs "Take the Girls to the Soldier" and "The Game of Love", made the famous musician known throughout Turkey.
Koray pioneered the underground music movement with the group "Underground Quadruple", which he founded in 1969. In this group, he adapted songs from groups such as Jethro Tull, Pink Floyd and Cream.
After establishing the psychedelic rock band "Super Group" in 1971 with bass guitarist Jerzy Ziembrowski, whom he met in Germany, Koray decided to continue his musical studies solo in 1973.
During his time in Europe from 1975 to 1984, except for brief visits to Turkey, Erkin Koray lived in Holland, Germany, and Canada. Despite facing some financial difficulties during this period, he released notable works such as 'Estarabim' and 'Arap Saçı.' ![]()
Erkin Koray's return to Turkey in the mid-1980s brought him commercial success and critical acclaim. His album 'Çöpçüler' (1985) marked a significant turning point in his career, followed by albums like 'Gaddar' (1986) and 'Hay Yam Yam' (1989), which featured hit songs like 'Şaşkın' and 'Hayat Katarı'
The famous artist announced on his social media account on July 7 that he would be releasing a new album.
Inspiring many new generation bands in Turkish rock music, Erkin Koray was described as the "father of Turkish rock" by the Israeli heavy metal band Orphaned Land.
Koray also went into the history of Turkish music by producing electric baglama with Orhan Gencebay.
[1] Anatolian rock (Turkish: Anadolu rock), or known as Turkish psychedelic rock, is a fusion of Turkish folk music and rock. It emerged during the mid-1960s, soon after rock groups became popular in Turkey. Most known members of this genre includes Turkish musicians such as Barış Manço, Cem Karaca, Erkin Koray, Selda Bağcan, Fikret Kızılok alongside bands such as Moğollar, Kurtalan Ekspres and 3 Hürel.