bdnews24.com : Beloved musician Ayub Bachchu, who popularised rock music in Bangladesh alongside his band LRB, has passed away.
Bachchu was brought in an unconscious state to Dhaka’s Square Hospital around 9:15am on Thursday, said Emergency Division nurse Habibur Rahman.
The singer, guitarist, lyricist and composer was a founding member of the band LRB (Love Runs Blind). He was 56 years old.
Fans, musicians and cultural figures rushed to the hospital after news of his death spread.
President Md Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who is currently in Saudi Arabia, have expressed their grief over the death of the singer.
Cultural personalities as well as fans pour their hearts out online over the news of Bachchu’s death.
“Ayub Bachchu! No!! Why?? Who will now play the blues with you throwing us into the blues? This is NOT fair! There was so much to be done, to be heard, to be seen, to be composed, to be sung, to be loved, to be jammed, to be toured, to be released, to be hummed, to be strummed…” wrote ABC Radio host Naveed Mahbub in his Facebook post.
“A star of our teenage and youth left us leaving his silver guitar behind. I have spent thousand emotional nights with your songs; those memories will now be tagged with your songs. Your music will remain in my heart as long as I live. You were not just a singer but a chapter in my life,” wrote fan Tanvir Ahmed.
LRB bandmate Shamim told bdnews24.com that Bachchu had been ill for some time. His condition suddenly worsened on Thursday morning and he was taken to Square Hospital.
“He had a heart attack this morning,” Square Hospital Medical Service Director Mirza Nazimuddin told the media. “The driver brought him to the hospital around 9:15pm. He died before he arrived.”
Ayub Bachchu, also known as AB to his fans, carved out a legendary position in the history of Bangladesh’s band music.
In addition to his extraordinary role in rock music as a singer and composer, Bachchu was one of the leading guitarists in the country. He was also well-known for his distinctive style and the flamboyant look of his guitars, which captivated audiences for over four decades.
On Aug 16, his birthday, Bachchu told bdnews24.com that his greatest achievement was being able to make his fans happy and earn their love. He also said he was planning to write a memoir.
“I’ll begin the work after the Eid. I’ll go somewhere outside Dhaka, where there are no phones and no internet. I will go where I can eat fish freshly caught in the river, eat rice and drink water. I’ll come back to Dhaka after the work is finished.”
There is still a long way to go, Bachchu had told bdnews24.com that day.
Bachchu will be taken to the Central Shaheed Minar at 10:00 am on Friday so that people can pay their respects, cultural organiser Nasir Uddin Yusuf told bdnews24.com. His funeral prayers will be held at National Eidgah premises.
The legendary singer will be laid to rest beside his mother in Chattogram on Saturday following another funeral service after his children return from abroad.
Ayub Bachchu was born in Chattogram in 1962. In an interview Bachchu said he always loved music and became a singer through ‘trial and error’ during his early years. He fell in love with the western music and began to play guitar. He drew inspiration from the guitarists like Jimi Hendrix, Joe Satriani and Steve Moore. While in college he formed a band in college named ‘Ugly Boys’. They performed at neighbourhood programmes.
As a professional, he joined the band Feelings in 1978 and then the band Souls In 1980. After playing with them for 10 years, he formed LRB or Love Runs Blind from “the deepest of his impulses” in 1991.
LRB started playing live gigs in the following years and ushered in a new chapter in the history of music in Bangladesh. With its eagerness to create something revolutionary, LRB debuted with a double album in 1992.
Bachchu’s band performed more than 500 open-air and about 2,000 indoor concerts at home and abroad, according to its website.
His first show outside Bangladesh was held in India in 1997. LRB is the only Bangla rock band to perform at the Madison Square Garden in New York. Bachchu performed in seven states during his tour of the United States in 1998, according to the LRB website.
His songs ‘Cholo Bodle Jai’, ‘Ferari Ei Monta Amar’, ‘Ami Koshto Pete Bhalobashi’, ‘Ekdin Ghumbhanga Shohore’, ‘Ekhon Onek Raat’, ‘Hashte Dekho Gaite Dekho’, and many others – will linger in the hearts of his fans.
