Shakhaily Tambakoo (Mister Tobacco) as he liked to tell people his name was was an incredible tambur player. His real name was Mir Agha Kushtu. He had a small 'hole in the wall' (literally) shoe repair shop near the Bala Hisar. I came from Kabul and went to his shop. After tea and some catching up, I said I wanted to do some recording. He pulled a plastic sheet over the front entrance of his shop and led me down the street. We entered a doorway and down a few steps into a small courtyard. There were a few sheep and chickens milling about. We went down some more steps and into a mud room with a few other men. The was an old man there who filled that gigantic chillum and covered it with glowing coals. The first few minutes of the first song I recorded had rounds of coughing punctuating the music. The mud walled room added a sweet natural echo!
You can hear Tambakoo at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ETKKAlJIDy4