| Song: Yeh Dosti Hum Nahin Album: Sholay Type: Bollywood Singer: Kishore Kumar, Manna Dey Music Director: R.D. Burman Lyricist: Anand Bakshi Rating: 5.0 “Yeh Dosti” may not be the most melodious song or one that has awesome singing but it packs a huge punch. For many Indians, it is THE definitive male bonding/friendship song. (Happy Friendship Day in advance!). It is also an ideal song to have on the FFP a day after Kishore Kumar’s birth anniversary. I also love the song for its beezy instrumentation made up of the usual Pancham trademarks – banjo, bango, sax, trumpet, electric guitar, whistle, harmonica. Oh, and it would be criminal to not include the video link, so here it is. iTunes US iTunes Canada Flipkart |
| Song: Kya Nazare Album: Jheel Ke Us Par Type: Bollywood Singer: Kishore Kumar Music Director: R.D. Burman Lyricist: Anand Bakshi Rating: Kishore’s “fun” songs may be more popular but it’s really in his more serious numbers that you truly see the man’s genius. Another mind-blowing Pancham/Kishore combination. The song has a slight echo effect – a result of some Pancham experiment, no doubt! iTunes US iTunes UK iTunes Canada |
| Song: I Can’t Help Myself Album: Together – The Temptations / The Four Tops Type: Pop Artist: The Four Tops Rating: 3.9 A nice, sunny, mushy love song. The opening line “Sugar Pie Honey Bunch” is tacky but also catchy. In fact, that’s is how a lot of people (myself included) remember this song. iTunes US iTunes UK iTunes Canada Flipkart |
| Song: Doctor My Eyes Album: Jackson Browne Type: Pop/Rock Artist: Jackson Browne Rating: 4.5 A piano-based song, that starts of with a pop feel and progresses to classic rock once the lead guitar kicks in half-way through the song. I really like the song for Jackson Browne’s silky voice and the chorus interludes. Not a surprise since, according to my friend Wikipedia, the backup vocals are David Crosby’s – the harmony maestro from The Byrds and the C in CSNY. iTunes US iTunes UK iTunes Canada Flipkart |
| Song: Rak Rak Rak Album: Rudraksh Type: Bollywood Singer: Gayatri Iyer, Kunal Ganjawala, Shankar Mahadevan Music Director: Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy Lyricist: Sameer Rating: 2.8 A dark, electronica-based song but falls flat because it’s too filmi, specially Kunal Ganjawala’s singing and a jarring, guttural vocal by Shankar at the end. iTunes US iTunes UK iTunes Canada Flipkart |
| Song: Seene Mein Jalan Album: Gaman Type: Bollywood Singer: Suresh Wadkar Music Director: Jaidev Lyricist: Shahryar Rating: 5.0 Jaidev remains an enigma. The general populace does not know much, or seem to care, about this musical phenomenon whose career spanned three decades and won three National Film Awards for Best Music. “Seene Mein Jalan” is just one gem in Jaidev’s treasure trove – a ghazal sung beautifully by Suresh Wadkar. This non-traditional treatment of the ghazal genre may have been the precursor to the ghazal revolution of the 80s by Jagjit Singh, Hariharan, et al. iTunes US iTunes UK iTunes Canada Flipkart |
| Song: Paarkadhe Paarkadhe Album: Gentleman Type: Koliwood Singer: Minmini Music Director: A.R. Rahman Lyricist: Vaali Rating: 3.8 A light-as-popcorn song with brief moments of brilliance. I don’t like Minimini’s singing but maybe it doesn’t really matter in a song like this. iTunes US iTunes UK iTunes Canada |
| Song: Vaikasi Nilave Album: Unnale Unnale Type: Koliwood Singer: Haricharan, Madhushree Music Director: Harris Jayaraj Lyricist: Vaali Rating: 4.3 Nice, mellow song. Haricharan and Madhushree sing very well, and Harris Jayaraj’s arrangement is impeccable. I like the sound of tabla, an instrument that does not get used a lot in Koliwood. iTunes US iTunes UK iTunes Canada Flipkart |
| Song: Zindagi Ka Safar Album: Safar Type: Bollywood Singer: Kishore Kumar Music Director: Kalyanji-Anandji Lyricist: Indeevar Rating: 5.0 “Zindagi Ka Safar” is a really sad song, and would be like any other sad song, except for the element of hope that Anandji-Kalyanji somehow manage to inject in it. I don’t know what it is – the tempo, the guitar strum, or maybe just the melody. Another example of how impactful Kishore is in his more serious songs. iTunes US iTunes UK iTunes Canada Flipkart |
| Song: O Hansini Album: Dil Vil Pyar Var Type: Bollywood Singer: Hariharan Music Director: R.D. Burman Lyricist: Majrooh Sultanpuri Rating: 4.0 This cover of “O Hansini” is actually brilliant but I hesitate to give it a higher rating because it’s based on a really good/popular original. What’s so special about the cover? Hariharan improvises like only he can and gives the song an identity of its own, without deviating too much from the original. iTunes US iTunes UK iTunes Canada Flipkart |