Artist:Prem Joshua & Band
Song:Funky Guru
Album:In Concert
Prem Joshua is a German musician who has had success in India and other eastern countries with his eastern influenced music. He was born in Germany in 1958 and started out playing flute and sax in local bands. At age 18, he traveled overland to India so he could learn about music from the countries along the way. When he got to India, Joshua learned to play the sitar. It's his main instrument today and he cites Ravi Shankar as his main influence. His spiritual master Osho gave him the name Joshua and has encouraged him to spread his music everywhere. Though the sitar is dominant in his music, Joshua mixes it with contemporary music. So it's not traditional Indian music. Joshua started recording in the early 90s as leader of Terra Incognita. They released two albums. Then he led Hamsafar for one album. Since then he has recorded solo and he has led Prem Joshua & Band since 2007. Because the song appeared on a Putomayo collection, Funky Guru is one of Joshua's better known songs. It is from the 2004 album Yatri: Mystics of Sound. It was released on the German label Spice Records. Joshua wrote and produced the album. The arranger is German musician Rishi and he also plays bass and keyboards. Kit Walker plays keyboards. He usually plays Smooth Jazz. The lead singer is Sandhya Sanjana from India. That album is not available. But Funky Guru was recorded on the 2008 album Prem Joshua & Band In Concert. It is on the German label Medial Music. Joshua's music is distributed in the US by meditational music company White Swan. Musicians are Satgyan Fukuda on vocals and bass, Chintan Relenberg on keyboards and Raul Sengupta on drums and percussion. Joshua last released an album in 2021. They just finished touring. So they may be working on a new album. Here's Prem Joshua & Band performing Funky Guru in Mumbai, India.
