This album of North Indian sitar music I picked up at today's boot sale is particularly mesmerising. If you click on the back sleeve you should see an enlarged image which allows you to read the very informative sleeve notes. Or maybe you just want to immerse yourself in beautiful sound.
I'm quite consious of the fact that new posts have been thin on the ground over recent months. Really, I've been posting less and less frequently over the course of this year, not because of 'blogger fatigue' or anything like that, but more because I seem to have less spare time, work seem is taking up more of my time than ever before - difficult as I'm naturally a pretty lazy, workshy person. Luckily my local car boot sale continues to provide regular suprises so here is one of this weekend's nice finds.
R.D. Burman's soundtrack to this 1980 Indian/Russian movie production is a total pleasure, a hugely enjoyable funky romp with fabulous percussion, bubbling basslines, some fuzzy guitars, huge over the top strings and all your favourite playback singers. Each track is full of surprising turns and unusual, inventive flourishes that I'm sure will keep me listening over the coming months. Hopefully you too will find plenty here to pique your interest.
If you have the time and inclination, here is the whole lavish movie for you to feast your eyes (and ears) on. Just maximise the screen for the English subtitles:
Tracklist
01 Aa Ja Sar-E-Bazar
02 Music
03 Khatouba
04 Title Music
05 Jadugar Jadu Kar Jayega
06 Qayamat
07 Sare Shaher Men
Incredible sounds! Staggeringly beautiful songs from one of the Indian subcontinent's most famous and respected musical artists. I hadn't had the pleasure of hearing M.S. Subbulakshmi when I picked this little gem up in a flea market, but this is the kind of treasure that makes all the wading through stacks of old vinyl worthwhile.
Tracklist:
01 Vandadum Cholai
02 Neeyiranga Yenil
03 Vandinamuralum
04 Malai Pozhuthinile
05 Jankarasruthi
06 Yaro Ivar Yaro
07 Kandathundo Kannan Pol
08 Oli Padaitha Kanninai
09 Vanathin Meethu
If you like this and want to hear more, then head over to Anthems for the Nation of Luobaniya where you will find more recordings and a wealth of information.
Here's some gorgeous Indian classical music for your listening pleasure.
"Sharan Rani Backliwal (neeMathur)
(9 April 1929 – 8 April 2008) was an Indian classical instrumentalist
and music scholar, best known for her expertise with the sarod. She was India's first woman sarod exponent[1]
and came to be popularly known as Sarod Rani (Queen of Sarod) paved way
for a generation women to play of Hindustani instrumental music, She
was a disciple of Ustad Allaudin Khan and Ustad Ali Akbar Khan of Maihar Gharana school of Hindustani classical music.[2][3]
Her private collection of 370 musical instruments ranging from the
15th to the 19th century are now part of the "Sharan Rani Backliwal
Gallery of Musical Instruments" at the National Museum, New Delhi"
Tracklist:
01. Raga Yaman Kalyan
02. Tabla Solo
03. Bhairavi Raga
Jai Santoshi Maa is a low budget 1975 Hindi film that was the surprise hit of the year and which brought Santoshi Maa, a little known Hindu Goddess, the wider attention of the Indian public. Usha Mangeshkar, sister of both Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle, sings many of the beautiful devotional songs on C. Arjun's great soundtrack.
Tracklist:
01 Main to Arti Utaron
02 Yahan Wahan Jahan Tahan
03 Mat Ro Mat Ro Aaj Radhike
04 Yahan Wahan Jahan Tahan
05 Karti Hoon Tumhara Vrat
06 Mada Karo Santoshi Mata
This is a reissue of an album released by Elektra Records all the way back in 1966 and its grooves contain delightful musical gifts from some of the wandering troubadors of Bengal. This music is just incredible - definately one for those who groove on the Sun City Girls.
...but...
"Some People have said that it is possible to characterize the Bauls by a distinctive doctrine. I have never found it possible to do so, for it seems to me that they are first and formost individuals, and that the term Baul encompasses a wide range of religious opinion, traceable to several Hindu schools of thought, to Sufi Islam, and much that is traceable only to a man's own view of how he relates to God. All Baul's hold only this in common: that God is hidden in the heart of man, and neither priest nor prophet, nor the ritual of any organized religion, will help man to find him there."
Edward C Dimmock Jr. - from the sleevenotes
Here's a more recent offering from Purna Das to whet the appetite:
Tracklist:
01 Ki Die Pujibo Hari Charana Tomar
02 Bloey Koey Manush Key Ki Sadhu Kora Jai?
03 Manush Bhaja, Manush Puja
04 Sesher Diney Sheyjon Biney
sung by Purna Das
05 Tumi Jaaliey Geey Moner Aagoon Nivey Geley Naa
sung by Hare Krishna Das
06 Prem Kathati Shuntey Bhalo
sung by Luxman Das
07 Ebar Jeney Shune Namio Saabdhaney
sung by Sudhanhanda Das
08 O're Mone Jele
sung by Purna Das, Luxman Das & Hare Krishna Das
I picked up a few cds of Tamil film music at a boot sale about 6 months ago and was lucky enough to find this one which came in the case of a completely different movie soundtrack. What we have here is 18 songs of wonderfully demented Kollywood sounds from Sri Lanka. Expect wild guitars, crazy synths, jarring percussion and impossibly high pitched singing. As the cd came without a cover, I have no idea what the titles of the songs might be so any help with identification would be wonderful. The films though are:
The excellent record label, Finders Keepers has just released two volumes of film music by Dr Ilaiyaraja (which you can buy HERE), and this is what their website has to say about this chap's wonderful music:
"Ilaiyaraaja, Ilayaraja, Ilayaraaja, Isaignani, The Maestro... The undeniable prince of Kollywood cinema, India's second largest film industry, Ilaiyaraaja is more than equal to his forward thinking contemporaries in Bollywood and Lollywood in both productivity and experimentation. However, once you have exhausted all possible leads using his various names (and the numerous misspellings) you're faced with the unenviable task of sifting through a 34-year career spanning more than 900 film scores in Tamil, Hindi, Telugu, Malayalam and Kannada in order to unearth some the heaviest dancefloor friendly electronic pop to ever emerge from Southern India.
Impossible to pigeonhole and characterised by his own indefinable style the man is a genre in his own right."
This is a cassette of fantastic bangra style remixes of songs from the 1991 Bollywood movie, Naag Mani which starred a former Miss India.
Compare and contrast the movie original with the SUPER JHANKAR BEATS version that follows:
Tracklist:
01 Mera Long Gawaacha 02 Dil Toot Gaya Tha 03 Chann Pardesi Mere 04 Aashiqon Ka Naam Hum 05 Parbat Ki Unchaai 06 Dushman - E - Jaan Ko Hum 07 Dil Jo Hamaara Aahen 08 Zindagi Men Jeete Jee 09 Pal Pal Meri Jaan 10 Aao Khelen Sanam Sanam
This is another recent boot sale find. It came without a sleeve but I managed to find a scan of the front cover on a website dedicated to the Gramophone Company of India. The internet can be a wonderful thing.
Sitara Devi is one of India's most famous classical dancers of the Kathak style. The recording on this LP is pretty lo-fi and there seems to be a musical conversation flowing between Sitara Devi and the tabla player throughout of most of the tracks. The rhythms are complex and kaleidoscopic.
Lata Mangeshkar should need no introduction - she is one of the Indian sub-continent's most famous voices, the vocal star of a thousand Bollywood movies over the years. On this beautiful album, the music is divorced from the movie industry, these are not songs for gaudy technicolour dance routine's, they are songs of devotion - music as a form of meditation - a way to become closer to the gods - a pathway to a deeper understanding, all written by Meera, a 16th Century Rajput mystic singer and poet.
The sleevenotes state:
"Meera rightly belongs to the world tradition of women mystics, and a variety of legends have grown around her life. Meera was, by all accounts, a Rajput princess who flourished in the 16th Century. Widowed while still in her teens and with nothing to look forward to in the world, she consecrated herself wholly to religion. Immersed in her holy love of Lord Krishna, she soon forsook the splendour of palace life in quest of a personal God. Her restless, unyielding spirit led her to far-flung places. Bare-footed, the erstwhile princess spanned the vast expanse of North India, singing lyrical songs that were full of devotion, surrender and abandonment to Lord Krishna, and she attracted a vast following wherever she went. Legend has it that Meera sang her way to union with the flute-playing cowherd God at Dwarka, the earthly abode of Lord Krishna, in Gujarat State."
The music here is beautifully tranquil and Lata's voice is flawless. Enjoy!
Tracklist:
01 Sanvaro Nanknandan
02 Kinun Sang Khelun Holi
03 Mhara Re Girdhar Gopal
04 thane Kanee Kanee Sunava
05 Maee Mhano Supnama Parnare Dinanath
06 Oji Hari Kit Gaye
07 Ramaiya Bin Nind Na Aave
08 Sanvara Mari Preet Nibhajonji
As I said previously, I know very little about Indian music. It would be fair to say that I know even less about the music of the Sikh religion. I picked up this album of Sikh devotional songs in a charity shop a couple of weeks ago and its very beautiful. As usual, any information about the songs or the artists would be much appreciated.
Tracklist:
01 Ek Onkar Bani Guru-Guru 02 Sun Sun Jeevan Teri Bani 03 Choji Mere Gobinda 04 Ditha Sab Sansar 05 Guru Mere Sang Sada Hai Neale 06 Kirpa Karo Deen Ke Datay 07 Abh Tabh, Jabh Kabh, Tuhi Tuhi 08 Mithay har Gunn Gao 09 Toou Mera Pita Tu Hai Mera Mata
Laxmikant Pyrelal were a duo who composed over 500 songs for Hindi films between the early '60s and the '90s. They worked with all the great Bollywood playback singers over the years. This compilation album that I picked up at a local boot sale features songs recorded between 1969 and 1974 and features great singers like Lata Mangeshkar, Mukesh and Mohd. Rafi, but its Asha Bhosle who takes my top prize with this inspired piece of musical mania:
Tracklist:
01 El Pyar Ka Naghma Hai
02 Sharafat Chhod Di Main Ne
03 Mere Dil Men Aaj Kya Hai
04 Sa Re Ga Ma Pa
05 Khilona Jan Khar
06 Bindiya Chamke Gi
07 Chabi Kho Jae
08 Hangama Ho Gaya
09 Yeh Jeevan Hai
10 Achha To Hum Chalte Hain
11 Jal Bin Machhli
12 Sawan Ka Mahina
Okay, the poorly recorded tracks have been replaced with nice clean recording which you can get HERE. My apologies to those of you who downloaded the first attempt.
These beautifully evocative recordings of Bhajans were made in Rishikesh on the River Ganges. Bhakti is a Hindu practice in which the believer takes an active role in worship and expresses their love and devotion through participation in acts which will help to attain unity with the universal. Here, the music is a form of yoga, it is a vehicle to transport the performers into the arms of the gods; the songs themselves are incredibly complex and require single-minded concentration, their performance is regarded as a form of Hatha-Yoga.
These songs all ebb and flow into each other, with recurrent phrases and melodies dancing around a constant, hypnotic key note. On side two, the music slows and becomes incredibly languid. The air thickens and a crow can be heard cawing somewhere in the distance.
Tracklist:
Side One - Hare Rama, Hare Krishna / Yaya Ganesha / Bhajore Bhaiya Rama Govinda Hari / Namastestu Gange
Side Two - Manasa Sanghara re Brahmani / Mano Bhuddhyahankara-Chittani Naham / Mangalam Song / Santi Mantram /Sarvam-Brahmarparpanam
I really know very, very little about Indian classical music, but there's lots of information about Pandit Ram Narayan, the master sarangi player, to be found over here. This album was recorded in 1971 and features Suresh Talwalkar on tabla and Jhorna Bose on tambura. The music is totally kaleidoscopic and sends the mind spinning off in all kinds of directions.
Here is Raga Kirvani:
The melancholic sound of the sarangi makes for some dark moments in the music and reminds me that the counterpoint to splendour of India's temples and palaces is the naked dancer in the embers of the funeral pyre, that the beauty of the Ganges is coloured by the presence of the dead who float in its waters.
This was a great charity shop find as its provided me plenty of enjoyment over the years. Cool jazz sounds from swinging London that would go down great at any hippy smoke-out or love-in:
During the 1970s, R.D. Burman was the Bollywood dream factory's most popular composer of film songs. His music drew heavily on Western pop styles and so, on this compilation, we're treated to a healthy dose of fuzz guitars and echo chamber effects to complement the Bollywood strings and tablas. Here is the first song on the album, the classic 'Dum Maro Dum', from the 1971 movie 'Hare Rama Hare Krishna':
If you watched the video, then it should come as no suprise that the title translates to something like 'Puff, take a puff'. One of the reasons I find old records so endlessly fascinating is that they often offer us a window through which we can get a novel view of the world. This fabulous piece of film seems to be saying something about the invasion of India by disaffected Western kids in search of 'authenticity', enlightenment, and of course great drugs. This invasion started only twenty years after India was given independence from British colonial rule, and I think its worth pointing out here that much of Britain's colonial wealth and power was made during the 19th Century through its monopoly over the trade in opium.
In the 18th Century the colonial government of India expropriated land and used some of the displaced population as labour power to work the poppy plantations, increasing the production of opium for export to the lucrative Chinese market. In this way, the British government and the East India Trading Company established and maintained an opium monopoly that helped prepare the ground for capitalism in Asia by creating massive consumer markets. The trade generated enormous cash flows, while at the same time helping to establish trade routes, reorder class structures, change productive practices and create new political and economic structures throughout Asia (Fitzgerald, 2005). Even at this early stage opium was a controversial commodity subject to politicization, frequently modulating between official monopoly and contraband commodity (Fitzgerald, 2005). By the 1830's, the Chinese government came to realize it was trading away its wealth to pay for the population's growing love of the pipe; subsequent attempts to prohibit the trade led to the Opium Wars of 1839 and 1856 (Chambliss, 1977; Davenport-Hines, 2000). Marx pointed out the hypocrisy and ruthless profiteering of the British Government in correspondence for the New York Tribune. While highlighting the inflated profits resulting from the 'contraband character' of the trade, Marx also predicted the causes of the decline in British involvement in the opium trade:
"...the Indian finances of the British Government have, in fact, been made to depend not only on the opium trade with China, but on the contraband character of that trade. Were the Chinese Government to legalize the opium trade simultaneously with tolerating the cultivation of the poppy in China, the Anglo-Indian exchequer would experience a serious catastrophe”(Marx, 1858).
After 1859, the Chinese government did indeed legalize opium enabling them to levy a tax, while at the same time allowing farmers to cultivate their own poppies (Chambliss, 1977). This did not however, cause the catastrophe Marx envisaged, for the money capital generated during the opium boom flowed back to England and was used to fuel the growth of industrial capital, which by the mid 19th Century had already emerged, “...dripping from head to toe, from every pore, with blood and dirt” (Marx, 1990: 926).
Chambliss, W.J. (1977) “Markets, Profits, Labour and Smack” Contemporary Crises 1: 53-76
Davenport-Hines, R. (2001) The Pursuit of Oblivion: A Global History of Narcotics 1500 – 2000 London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson
Fitzgerald, J. (2005) “Illegal Drug Markets in Transitional Countries” Addiction Research and Theory 13 (6): 563-577
Marx, K. (1990) Capital Volume I London: Penguin
Marx, K. (1858) “Monopoly or Trade” in New York Tribune
Regardless of all that, I hope you enjoy these groovy sounds.
Tracklist:
01 Dum Maro Dum
02 I Love You
03 Na Koi Umang Kai
04 Rampur Ka Bassi Hoon
05 Aaj To Meri Hansi Udai
06 Kahin Karti Hogi
07 Duniya Mein
08 Biti Na Bitai Raina
09 Deko Re Hua
10 Bangle Ke Peechhe
11 Jeena To Hai
12 Piya Tu Ab To Aja
Great album of songs from Hindi films by some of Bollywood's best known singers. Nice crackly, charity shop sounds from the films of 1968 and 1969. Here is a clip from the 1968 movie, Shikar featuring Asha Bhosle's song 'Parde Mein Rahne Do':
Tracklist:
01 Lata Mangeshkar & Mohd. Rafi - Main Hoon Saqi Tu Hai Sharabi 02 Mohd. Rafi - Likhe Jo Khat Tujhe 03 Lata Mangeshkar - Parai Hoon 04 Mohd. Rafi - Na Aadmi Ka Koi Bharosa 05 Asha Bhosle & Chorus - Parde Men Rahne Do 06 Lata Mangeshkar - Mere Jeevan Saathi 07 Mohd. Rafi - Aaj Purani Rahon Se
08 Asha Bhosle & Mohd. Rafi - Aulad Walon 09 Mohd. Rafi - Mere Pairon Men Gungharoo 10 Lata Mangeshkar & Mahendra Kapoor - Ye Kali 11 Mohd. Rafi - Babul Ki Duayen Leti Jaa 12 Lata Mangeshkar - Rama Duhai 13 Mohd. Rafi - O Nanhe Se Farishte 14 Mohd. Rafi & Sulakshana Pandit - Jab Jab Apna Mel
I picked up this strange 7" single at a jumble sale a couple of weeks ago and was immediately intrigued...the music seemed to be Indian in origin, but the record itself was from Trinidad & Tobago. The music itself is reminiscent of Bollywood film music, with driving rhythms and saucy lyrics. But I was still intrigued about the Trinidad connection. Now we have the world at our fingertips, it seems that mysteries like this can be resolved in moments. This is Chutney music, indigenous to the Southern Caribbean, Trinidad, Tobago and Guyana. It was created by Indo-Caribbeans, the ancestors of people from the Indian subcontinent who were transported to the West Indies during the height of the European Colonial period and served as indentured servants in the colonies. Once again, the music indirectly tells stories of the diaspora, of the movement of people around the world, the mutability of culture and the impossibilities of nationalism.
Here is the man himself, Sundar Popo: And here are the two sides of the single so you can sample the flavours of Caribbean Chutney!
Ustad Bismillah Khan was a devout Shi'ite Muslim but also a devotee of the Hindu Goddess of art and wisdom. He often played at Hindu temples and festivals, his music a healing force to ease tensions between religious groups:
The music is, of course, for evaluation purposes only. If you like what you hear then go out and try and buy stuff...or something, give money to a down on his luck musician, or sponsor a good busker, it may be the start of something beautiful.
If any of the zips die, then post a comment and i'll try to repost. And leave comments, abuse, name calling, any response is welcome.
I think all of the albums posted are currently unavailable, but if this is not the case we'll remove the offending files.
Jai Santoshi Maa is a low budget 1975 Hindi film that was the surprise hit of the year and which brought Santoshi Maa, a little known Hindu Goddess, the wider attention of the Indian public. Usha Mangeshkar, sister of both Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle, sings many of the beautiful devotional songs on C. Arjun's great soundtrack.
This is a reissue of an album released by Elektra Records all the way back in 1966 and its grooves contain delightful musical gifts from some of the wandering troubadors of Bengal. This music is just incredible - definately one for those who groove on the Sun City Girls.
This is another recent boot sale find. It came without a sleeve but I managed to find a scan of the front cover on a website dedicated to the Gramophone Company of India. The internet can be a wonderful thing.
Musical Direction: Hridnayath Mangeshkar
This was a great charity shop find as its provided me plenty of enjoyment over the years. Cool jazz sounds from swinging London that would go down great at any hippy smoke-out or love-in:
Great album of songs from Hindi films by some of Bollywood's best known singers. Nice crackly, charity shop sounds from the films of 1968 and 1969. Here is a clip from the 1968 movie, Shikar featuring Asha Bhosle's song 'Parde Mein Rahne Do':
And here are the two sides of the single so you can sample the flavours of Caribbean Chutney!
Ustad Bismillah Khan was a devout Shi'ite Muslim but also a devotee of the Hindu Goddess of art and wisdom. He often played at Hindu temples and festivals, his music a healing force to ease tensions between religious groups:
