Šaban Bajramović (Serbian Cyrillic: Шабан Бајрамовић) (April 16, 1936 -- June 8, 2008) was a Romani musician from Serbia. He was born in Niš where he attended primary school for only the first four years. On quitting school, he picked up his musical education on the street.
When he was 19 he ran away from the army out of love for a girl. As a deserter, he was sentenced to three years prison on the island Goli otok, but as he told the military court they could not hold him for so long as he could survive, they raised his punishment to five and a half years. He survived as he was a good goalkeeper in the prison football team. Because of his nimbleness and speed, they called him "Black Panther". Soon he forced his way into the prison orchestra that played, among other things, jazz (mostly Louis Armstrong, Sinatra, and sometimes John Coltrane) with Spanish and Mexican pieces.
After Goli otok, his intensive music career began. He made his first record in 1964. He is believed to have composed 650 compositions.In 2008, it was revealed that Bajramović was living impoverished in Niš with serious health complications and was no longer able to walk. The government of Serbia intervened to provide him with some funds, 10 000 euros. He died in Niš on June 8, 2008, from a heart attack.
Saban Bajramovic is clearly a giant talent, comparable in his own way to Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan or Mari Boine Persen, someone capable of bringing their music to life with such vivid spirituality that it vaults with ease over the most impenetrable cultural barriers. His voice combines the anguish of rai with the soulfulness of fado - a sort of Balkan gypsy jazz.