Addiction

Addiction is a composition by Indian musician Ananda Shankar, released as part of his self-titled debut album in 1970. The track exemplifies Shankar’s fusion of traditional Indian classical music with Western psychedelic rock and funk, a style he pioneered in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The piece runs for 2 minutes and 53 seconds.

Shankar recorded the album in London under the label Reprise Records, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Records. He incorporated the sitar as the lead instrument, blending its tonal qualities with electric guitars, bass, and drum kits. The track features Shankar on sitar alongside session musicians, though specific personnel credits for this recording remain partially undocumented. The album’s production reflected cross-cultural collaboration, with arrangements that merged raga scales with rock rhythms.

Addiction stands out for its hypnotic sitar riffs and driving percussion, characteristic of Shankar’s experimental approach. The composition avoids traditional Indian classical structures, instead adopting a repetitive, groove-oriented format aligned with contemporary Western popular music. While the album did not achieve immediate commercial success, it gained a cult following in subsequent decades, particularly among audiences interested in world music fusion.

The original release appeared on vinyl LP, with later reissues on CD and digital platforms. No official music video or single edit of Addiction exists, though the track frequently appears on compilations of Shankar’s work. The album’s influence extended to later artists in psychedelic, electronic, and global fusion genres, though direct sampling or covers of the song are not widely documented.

Limited archival information restricts a full account of the recording sessions or alternate takes. Shankar’s subsequent albums, such as Ananda Shankar and His Music (1975), further developed his fusion style, but Addiction remains a defining early example of his innovative sound.