Google Doodle celebrates Saudi Arabian musician Talal Maddah

Sunday's Google Doodle is in celebration of what would have been musician and composer Talal Maddah's 78th birthday. The 'doodle' is on display to Google users in Australia, New Zealand, Sweden, and much of the Middle East, including Saudi Arabia, Iraq and the UAE, as well as all of North Africa. Known throughout Arabia as the 'golden throat,' the Saudi singer died of a heart attack at the age of 60 during a live television performance the Al Meftaha concert show on Saudi Arabian TV. During his career, which spanned nearly 50 years, Maddah composed more than a thousand songs. He was well-known in the Arab world, and often performed in Egypt, Lebanon and other countries. His 1976 song Maqadir became the first song from the Hijazi region of Saudi Arabia to gain wide popularity. Although he was so well known, Maddah was found to have hardly saved any money. "It was a national disgrace when we all found out how meagre was his wealth," Lisa Urkevich, author of Music and Traditions of the Arabian Peninsula , quotes one of his fellow musicians as saying. Maddah also starred alongside Lebanese singer Sabah in a movie, Fog Street in 1965. ______________________ Read more: Samy Ben Redjeb's goal to change perceptions of African music Luis Fonsi: 'Music can be so powerful that it can bind and unite cultures' ______________________