| Song: Sur Mera Album: Swarathma Type: Indie Artist: Swarathma Rating: 4.6 I had been meaning to listening to Swarathma for a long time, and when I did pop the CD in my player, I cursed myself for not listening to them earlier. While the entire album is HUGE (they shot to fame with “Eee Bhoomi” and won awards for their “Pyasi” video), my pick is “Sur Mera”. The biggest thing about the song is simply that it has a beautiful tune. But there’s more it. The musical arrangement is mindblowing – a ghatam and a mridungam that play hide and seek, a bluesy guitar sound and a sweet violin solo meld together in perfect harmony. This song is also probably best showcase for the vocal talent of the band’s frontman Vasu Dixit (yeah, Raghu Dixit’s brother). The guy can SING. iTunes US iTunes UK iTunes Canada Flipkart |
| Song: Kannanennu Peru Album: Erattakuttikalude Achan Type: Mollywood Singers: Chitra Music Director: Johnson Lyricist: Kaithapram Rating: 4.2 A very easy on the ears melody. Very cool accordion – can’t recall many Malayalam songs with that instrument. |
| Song: Won’t Get Fooled Again Album: Who’s Next Type: Rock Artist: The Who Rating: 4.9 The Who leave behind their naivette of the 60s to display maturity (and alas, cynicism) in this song. There’s a lot to like in this song but the haunting organ sound and Roger Daltrey’s primal scream at the close are probably the two things that make the biggest impact. iTunes US iTunes UK iTunes Canada Flipkart |
| Song: Aayi Idhar Baharein Album: Paigham Type: Ghazal Artist: Hariharan Rating: 4.8 A ghazal with an Arabic flavor imparted by an oudh in the intro and the tune itself. A lot of non-traditional ghazal instruments including a beautiful trumpet. Hariharan’s harkat at “barbad kar gayiiiiiii” is breath-taking. iTunes US iTunes UK iTunes Canada |
| Song: Chhod Do Anchal Zamana Kya Kahega Album: Paying Guest Type: Bollywood Singers: Asha Bhonsle, Kishore Kumar Music Director: S.D. Burman Lyricist: Majrooh Sultanpuri Rating: 5.0 A sitar-filled, peppy and playful number. Amazing chemistry between Kishore and Asha in this song. Burman da injects Bengal in the song with the flute. iTunes US iTunes UK iTunes Canada Flipkart |
| Song: Theme Song Album: Jhankaar Beats Type: Bollywood Singers: Sudesh Bhosle Music Director: Vishal-Shekhar Lyricist: Vishal Dadlani Rating: 3.7 A pretty good song. An unabashed Pancham tribute with Sudesh Bhosle trying almost every vocal stunt Pancham da had in his repertoire (including the guttural voice, vocalizations, and most importantly the panting!). Sudesh must have listened to a “Duniya Mein Logon Ko” a million times before singing this one. Flipkart |
| Song: Yeh Teri Ankhen Jhuki Jhuki Album: Fareb Type: Bollywood Singers: Abhijeet Music Director: Jatin-Lalit Lyricist: Indivar Rating: 3.4 The melody is not too bad but everything else is in-your-face dhinchak. |
| Song: Aandolam Album: Sargam Type: Mollywood Singers: Yesudas, Chitra Music Director: Bombay Ravi Lyricist: Yusufali Kecheri Rating: 5.0 A lovely student-teacher song. Yesudas says this at the beginning “Sing slowly, only then can you sing with feeling”. Powerful! A very simple composition sung very well by the two greats. |
| Song: Athiradee Album: Sivaji Type: Koliwood Singers: A.R. Rahman, Sayonara Music Director: A.R. Rahman Lyricist: Vaali Rating: 4.2 An adrenalin-pumping song. Three things I love about the song – a) the clanging guitar sound remniscent of Tarantino movies, b) Sayonara’s sexy vocals, c) The kick-ass chorus. iTunes US iTunes UK iTunes Canada |
| Song: People Are Strange Album: The Very Best Of The Doors Type: Rock Artist: The Doors Rating: 5.0 Despite the bleak lyrics and Jim Morrison’s melancholic singing, the song carries a zing. I love the short Manzarek solo and the backup vocals that kick in at the end. At a shade above 2 minutes, it’s a frustratingly short song that leaves you asking for more. iTunes US iTunes UK iTunes Canada Flipkart |