The World

The Bluesman of Baghdad

Guitarist Ghassan al Mosuli once played John Denver songs at the Saddam Hussein Cultural Center. Now he dreams of moving to the United States, to a rustic cabin in the mountains. But as an Iraqi refugee in Syria, he can’t get a visa. As Theo Padnos discovered, the uncertainty and displacement of wartime hasn’t curbed al Mosuli’s passion for American folk music.

Arts, Culture & Media