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Reviews
BEST BUY
THE BEST OF
SHRADDHANJALI
HMV, Rs.
55
Some years ago HMV had come up with an album titled Shraddhanjali, which
was a tribute by Lata Mangeshkar to those singing legends (some of whom were
her contemporaries, and some who are not alive any more), who immortalised
many a songs. Lata’s tribute was that she re-sang some of their best
songs, with the music too being re-arranged. Needless to say, the album was
a super success, and subsequently, a second volume was released, which too
was lapped up by music lovers. The music company has now chosen some of the
evergreen songs from these two volumes, and compiled them as The Best Of
Shraddhanjali. Here you get to hear ‘The Nightingale’ re-sing 19
songs sung by Mohammed Rafi, Kishore Kumar, Mukesh and Hemant Kumar, which
have been digitally re-recorded. Besides emphasising Lata’s supremacy
as a singer, this album proves how good music can move you. It’s an
enthralling experience as Lata sings Rafi’s Suhani raat dhal chuki (Dulari),
Kabhi khud pe (Hum Dono), Man re tu kahe (Chitralekha), Din Dhal jaaye (Guide),
Dil ka bhanwar (Tere Ghar Ke Saamne); Mukesh’s Kahin door jab din dhal
jaaye (Anand), Bhuli hui yaadon (Sanjog), Chal ri sajni (Bambai Ka Babu),
Aansoo bhari hain (Parvarish), Jaaon kahan bataa (Chhoti Bahen); Kishore
Kumar’s Koi humdum na raha (Jhumroo), Koi lauta de mere (Door Gagan
Ki Chhaon Mein), Yeh jeevan hai (Piya Ka Ghar), Woh shaam kuch ajeeb thi
(Khamoshi), O mere dil ke chain (Mere Jeevan Saathi); and Hemant Kumar’s
Teri duniya mein (House No. 44), Rulakar chal diye (Badshah), Yeh nayan dare
dare (Kohraa), and Tum pukar lo (Khamoshi) with aplomb. Lata re-sings the
songs just like the original singers, adding her unique touch at the same
time. Music, which has been digitally recorded by Daman Sood and digitally
re-edited and processed by Victor Dantes, infuses new life into the golden
oldies. The choice of songs is thoughtful, all of which tug at your
heart-strings. An album which is a must-buy and which you want to hear all
the time.
LEGENDS
MANNA DEY - THE MAESTRO
HMV,
Rs.
275 (five cassettes)
The veteran singer, with a strong classical music foundation, has been
acknowledged by his colleagues and music lovers as a perfect singer, yet
he hasn’t really been as big a craze as Mohammed Rafi or Kishore Kumar
or Mukesh. Maybe because he was mostly associated with classical songs, and
wasn’t as prolific as the others. Yet he has his fair share of admirers,
who vouch for his disciplined singing, which was one of the main reasons
why composers relied on him (and Rafi) when it came to singing complex
classical-based numbers. For those admirers and for connoisseurs of music,
this anthology is a bonanza, showcasing almost his entire work in five cassettes,
with anecdotes recounted by his friends.
VOL. 1 - This one has songs of Manna da from the year 1950 to 59, with an introduction by Kavi Pradeep. You get to hear Upar gagan vishaal (Mashal), Dharti kahe (Do Bigha Zameen), Lapak jhapak (Boot Polish), Dil ka haal sune dilwala and Pyar hua ikraar hua (Shree 420), the touching Tu pyar ka sagar hai (Seema), Sur na saje (Basant Bahar), Yeh raat bheegi bheegi (Chori Chori), Babu samjho ishare (Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi) and Tu chupi hai kahan (Navrang).
VOL. 2 - Kavita Krishnamurthy gives a brief introduction, followed by the singers’ songs in the 60s. They include ‘the’ patriotic ditty Ae mere pyare watan (Kabuliwalla), the evergreen qawwali Na to karvaan ki talaash hai (Barsat Ki Raat), Kisne chilman se mara (Baat Ek Raat Ki), Poocho na kaise maine rain bitayee (Meri Surat Teri Aankhen), Laaga chunari mein daag (Dil Hi To Hai) and Aao twist karen (Bhoot Bangla).
VOL. 3 - This volume has an introduction by Lata Mangeshkar and features most of Manna da’s duets with her. Sample this - Bheegi chandni (Suhagan), Tum gagan ke (Sati Savitri) and Chunari sambhal gori (Baharon Ke Sapne). This volume also features most of Manna da’s lively hits like Aye meri zohra jabeen (Waqt), Chalat musafir (Teesri Kasam) and O meri maina (Pyar Kiye Ja).
VOL. 4 - Pankaj Udhas and Mahendra Kapoor speak in this volume, and the songs here are the philosophical types like Zindagi kaisi hai paheli (Anand), Nadiya chale (Safar), Kyon pyala chalakta hai (Phir Bhi), Aye bhai zara dekh ke chalo (Mera Naam Joker), Tum bin jeevan (Bawarchi) and Door hai kinara (Saudagar).
VOL. 5 - Manna da himself voices his thoughts
here, followed by songs Yaari hai imaan mera (Zanjeer), Mitwa (Us Paar),
Albeli naar (Main Shadi Karne Chala), Jiska koi nahin (Laawaris) and Teri
gathri mein (Dhoop Chhaon) to name a few. Four non-film songs also form a
part of this volume.
RAMZAN RELEASES
Ramzan commences this month, and among the many Muslim devotionals released
for the occasion, we feature two of them:
ALLAHU KA
JAAM
Sangeet, Rs. 35
This one has six Sufiana qawwalis sung by qawwal Shabbir Irfan, with lyrics
by Sarfaraz Sultani. The title qawwali and Saamne hi manzil hai stand out
for their messages.
UTHA LE JAM-E
ILLALAH
Sangeet, Rs.
35
Qawwal Abdul Rahman Naza renders four qawwalis composed by Mangesh Sawant,
and written by Sarfaraz Sultani and Naza Sholapuri. Since the duration of
each qawwali is long, it will appeal mainly to the qawwali buffs.
NAMO SHRI GANESHA
(MARATHI)
RJ Series, Rs.
28
The speciality of this devotional album is that it is the first one in Marathi
for which well-known music director Ravindra Jain has composed the music.
There are seven songs in supplication of Ganapati, written by Sanjay Upadhye
and rendered by Suresh Wadkar (four), Kavita Krishnamurthy (two) and Ravindra
Jain himself (one), which stand out for their raciness and unusual tunes.
This song’s opening line is Shrimanta ghari nirdhanachya ghari. The
Suresh Wadkar-rendered Aaj shaant jhaala kaisa is also noteworthy. The three
others rendered by Suresh are: Aaj mee gondhal maandila (the opening piece),
Chala chala saare jaawooya and Anaadi devnayaka. The two songs sung by Kavita
Krishnamurthy are: Om gan Ganpatey namah and Vandu Shri Mayureshwar.
Popular and well-known names like composer and singer
Ravindra Jain, and singers Suresh Wadkar and Kavita Krishnamurthy are associated
with the album, and needs no recommendation to music lovers.
RADHE KRISHNA BOLO
RJ Series, Rs.
35
A DR Productions presentation, this is again a devotional album consisting
of seven bhajans, all set to music by Ravindra Jain, who has written five
and also rendered four of them.
Side A of the audio opens with Radhe Krishna Radhe Krishna bolo bolo sung by Ravindra Jain and is followed by the Anup Jalota-rendered Radhe Radhe Krishna Krishna, Radhe Krishna Radhe Krishna. Sushil Kumar and Padmaja Joglekar have sung Krishna Kanhaai Govind giridar. It has been written by Rajendra Joshi.
The flipside consists of Mere Gopal jhoole palnaa, written by Nirmala Jain and rendered by Deepmala, Rachana and Payal; Govinda maakhan ke matwaro sung by Ravindra Jain and Meenal Jain; Radherani tere jaisa bhaagya rendered by Ravindra Jain and Namaami Radhe namaamo Krushna also by Ravindra Jain.
A must for Krishna devotees and all lovers of devotional
music.
SAATH MEIN...
Sangeeta Music,
Rs.40
A maiden album of Sangeeta Music. It has been produced by accomplished tabla
player Sangeeta Trivedi and consists of eight songs (Hindi pop) set to music
by Bappi Lahiri. Written by Ateeque Alahabadi, they have been rendered by
Sudhir Kumar.
Side A starts with the title song Ek haseen khwaab dekha raat mein and is followed by Chupke chupke dabe paav mein tera mere paas aana. Both the numbers are lilting and hummable. Naa London, naa Russia naa Japan ki kudi is racy but Sunaina, sun le meri jaan, Sunaina is the pick of the lot. It is steeped in mood music and the singer has rendered it with feeling and in a voice suited to the meaning and mood of the song lines.
On the flipside are four more songs: Rukhsana Rukhsana dil de denaa, Mein jisko chaahata hoon, at times marked by rare softness, Mein ladka jara smart hoon and Din jindagi ke hai chaar kudiye (quite racy).
The compositions bear the Bappi Lahiri touch and stamp
and will be appreciated not only by his fans but all music lovers. As for
Sudhir Kumar, it will be no exaggeration to say that he is a singer of
potential.
In sum, an audio worth having in one’s collection.
Reviewed by Salma Khatib And Pandit Shimpi