Abdou El Omari

Abdou El Omari (1945–2010) was a visionary Moroccan composer, organist, and pioneer of musical fusion. Though he famously balanced his creative life while working as a professional hairdresser in Casablanca, he became a revolutionary figure in the 1970s by modernising traditional Moroccan Chaabi and folk music.

Armed with his signature Farfisa organ and ARP Odyssey synthesiser, El Omari blended traditional North African rhythms with psychedelic rock, spiritual jazz, cosmic disco, and hypnotic funk. His most celebrated work includes the vibrant Nuits... album trilogy.

While he spent his later years away from the spotlight, his unique psychedelic trance sound has been widely rediscovered by global audiences. This revival is thanks to dedicated archival reissues by labels like Belgium's Radio Martiko and the discovery of his lost 1980 studio tapes.