5 Rock Legends that played Live in Egypt

Egypt has always inspired and attracted not only politicians, colonists, invaders, but also rock stars had their share of inspiration from the center of the Middle East, the land of the Nile, or as it’s been described before, the “Desert Rose”.

1. Jerry Garcia – The Grateful Dead & Bob Dylan (September 15, 1978):

Did you know where the ‘Giza Sound and Light Theater’ got its name from?

Ranked 13th on the 100 Guitarists of All Time by Rolling Stone magazine, Jerry Garcia, frontman of the ‘Grateful Dead’ who also played the pedal steel during several of the Dead's concerts with the legend Bob Dylan in 1987. The Dead set up their gear at the open-air theater by the Great Sphinx for three nights of concerts calling their stage set-up "The Gizah Sound and Light Theater".

With the final night's performance under a total lunar eclipse, "An increasing number of shadowy figures gathering just at the edge of the illuminated area around the stage and audience – Bedouins, the nomadic horsemen of the desert were drawn in by the music and lights... wearing the same garment, a dark, hooded robe each night they have remained to dance and sway rhythmically for the duration of the show" bassist Phil Lesh describing the concerts.

So why Egypt? “The pyramids are like the obvious number one choice because no matter what anyone thinks they might be, there is definitely some kind of mojo about the pyramids” bassist Phil Lesh stating.

2. Sting – The Police (April 25, 2001):

The one who caught our hearts with “ya leil ya leil” in Desert Rose which was featured in the album that went multi-platinum and won Sting two Grammy Awards for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance and Best Pop Album.

On a Wednesday night, under the Sphinx, British lead singer of ‘The Police’ received a warm welcome from 8,000 spectators to play one of the rarest concerts as a part of promoting his award winning album at the time ‘Brand New Day’, where he was joined by Algerian star Cheb Mami to sing Desert Rose.

Breaths were caught and tears escaped the eyes for 2 hours making the idea of performing under the Sphinx “a very special idea, to be singing next to those monuments that have been there for 5,000 years and they will still be there for another 5,000 years when I’m long forgotten. It’s going to be very interesting, I feel privileged to do this” Sting described prior to the concert.

3. Scorpions (November 17, 2005):

At one point or another you must have stumbled over “The Winds of Change” by the “The Scorpions.”

In the desert, where the “scorpions” live, under the full moon of a Thursday night by the Pyramids, 4,000 Egyptian rockers were about to be part of Rock n’ Roll history. Myths and hovering spirits shaped the perfect atmosphere for the Scorpions to cast Rock spells live in concert in Cairo in the land of the Pharaohs.

"It is so beautiful to be here for the first time, in front of the mighty Pyramids, It means so much for us to come here and play for you in Egypt, a country with such a beautiful culture."

Tickets ranged from LE 350 facing the stage, to LE 1,200 if you want to lounge on a comfy couch in the VIP, but that was back in 2005!

"Alright Cairo! Shokran, shokran," yelled out the band's front man and vocalist Klaus Meine. The crowd loved it.

4. Brian Adams (March 2016):

The one who wrote “Summer of 69,” “Please Forgive Me,” and “Everything I Do”, that’s nostalgia for all of you born in the 80s. The latest visit of Canadian singer and songwriter Bryan Adams to Egypt was marked by a green marker in 2016!

Bryan Adams’ private concert was scheduled to celebrate the changing of a major corporation’s name.

Egyptians went ranting about Cairo airport on social media platforms when Brian Adams posted the picture of his 1957 Martin D-18 guitar marked by the Cairo border agent using a green marker. Posts varied from how people weren’t surprised that such practice just happens in Egypt and apologizing for the rock star who crossed a continent to perform.

Egypt hasn’t failed to capture the heart of Adams as he said that despite the incident he would return to Egypt to perform. “Rest assured, apart from this incident, I love Egypt and look forward to returning again one day,” he said. “But without the green paint markers please.”

5. Robert Plant – Led Zeppelin:

The year 1994 witnessed an experimental version of Kashmir (originally by Led Zeppelin) played by Plant and Page live along with an Egyptian orchestra lead by Hossam Ramzy. But that wasn’t the first encounter of Plant with North African culture.

In 1970, Robert Plant, the frontman of the rock gods -Led Zeppelin- was visited BY Egyptian spirits in his inspirations on his first visit to Morocco, where he heard Egyptian icon Oum Kalthoum.

“… When I first heard the way she would dance down through the scale to land on a beautiful note that I couldn't even imagine singing, it was huge... “Literally nothing at all in 1970 that said, 'this is the music of these people called Berbers, they move around the Sahara, they speak the same language despite being separated by vast distances, they have their own culture, they were the people who inhabited North Africa before the Arab invaders, and they are a uniquely spectacular people, both in terms of song and appearance and culture'.

Egypt, never failing to surprise us, musically, culturally, or even with green markers! Definitely these aren’t the only ones who visited or got inspired by the Nile’s gift, the list goes on, but we will save that for later ;)