Salah Ragab (Arabic: صلاح رجب), born 25 July 1935 in Egypt, was a jazz drummer and musician. He studied jazz with American saxophonist Mac X Spears (also known as Osman Kareem), and together they formed an early jazz ensemble in Cairo. In 1968, Ragab began assembling what would become The Cairo Jazz Band, which gave its first public performance in 1969, with the help of Hartmut Geerken and Edu Vizvari. He worked with Sun Ra, performing in Egypt in 1971 and 1983, and recorded The Sun Ra Arkestra Meets Salah Ragab in Egypt (1983). Ragab’s music blended traditional jazz elements with Middle Eastern influences. His notable works include Egypt Strut (originally 1974) and Egyptian Jazz (a 2006 reissue of 1968–1973 recordings). He passed away on 3 July 2008.
