MUSIC #18: CONNIE FRANCIS – CONNIE FRANCIS SINGS GREAT COUNTRY HITS 1962 (ENGLISH)

I am not much of a country and western (C&W) fan but there are a few singers (and a few songs rather), from 1960’s and 1970’s that I don’t mind including Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, Loretta Lyn and Dolly Parton. Imagine my surprise when I saw this album of Connie Francis as I am more familiar with her pop songs rather than C&W. BTW, this album is dedicated to Probir Mitra. Hope you enjoy it.

Just a quick short bio of Connie: Born Concetta Rosa Maria Franconero on 12 December 1938, Connie Francis is an American pop singer of the 1950’s and 60s. Raised in a strict Italian-American family in Newark, New Jersey, her father opposed her relationship with then fellow singer and teen heart-throb Bobby Darin, to the extent of running Bobby out of a concert hall at gun-point, to stay away from his daughter. Connie is best known for singing emotive ballads such as “Who’s Sorry Now” and “Where The Boys Are” and topped the Billboard Hot 100 singles on three occasions with "Everybody's Somebody's Fool," "My Heart Has a Mind of Its Own" and "Don't Break the Heart That Loves You". Her faster paced songs include "Lipstick on Your Collar" and "Stupid Cupid." She’s been married four times and has an adopted son to her third husband. She quotes not marrying Bobby Darin to be her greatest mistake in life.

Not sure if I would be giving Connie a fair go here by rating this album as I said, I am not much of a C&W person. But there are a few songs I don’t mind from this album, namely “I really don’t want to know”, “I can’t stop loving you”, “Oh, lonesome me” and “Tennessee Waltz” as I think it suits Connie’s voice and personality. The rest just doesn’t do it for me, and I think she massacred “I walk the line”….that song belong to Johnny Cash and Johnny Cash alone! If I had to rate this album, I’d give it two stars. C&W lovers may beg to differ. You be the judge!

NB: There are some minor skips in a couple of the songs. Sorry can’t be helped.

Connie Francis: Connie Francis Sings Great Country Hits 1962


Side One

1. I Walk The Line

2. I Really Don’t Want To Know

3. I’m Movin’ On

4. He Thinks I Still Care

5. I Can’t Stop Loving You

6. Oh, Lonesome Me

7. She’ll have to go

8. Heartaches by the number

Side Two

1. Your Cheatin’ Heart

2. Bye, Bye Love

3. Tennessee Waltz

4. Singing The Blues

5. Half As Much

6. Cold Cold Heart

7. Hearts Of Stone

8. I Am A Fool To Care

PS: Since writing this review, I have had a chance to listen to this album a couple of times and it has sort of grown on me. I now give it three stars.

MUTTERINGS #08: WHAT A TALE!

A friend sent me this ‘story’ (thanks HK) today and I thought I’d share it with you cos it seems so bizarre, like everything else that happens in America.

This is how the story goes….

A lawyer in Charlotte, North Carolina purchased a box of 24 very rare and expensive cigars, and then insured them against, among other things, fire.

Within a month of having smoked his entire cigars, the lawyer filed a claim against the insurance company. In his claim, the lawyer stated that the cigars were lost 'in a series of small fires.'

The insurance company refused to pay, citing the obvious reason, that the man had consumed the cigars in the normal fashion – by smoking them. The lawyer then sued the insurance company and WON!

In delivering the ruling, the judge agreed with the insurance company that the claim was frivolous. The judge stated nevertheless, that the lawyer held a policy from the company, in which it had warranted that the cigars were insurable and also guaranteed that it would insure them against fire, without defining what is considered to be unacceptable 'fire' and was therefore obligated to pay the claim.

Rather than endure lengthy and costly appeal process, the insurance company accepted the ruling and paid $15,000 to the lawyer for his loss of the cigars that perished in the ' small fires'.

After the lawyer cashed the check, the insurance company had him arrested on 24 counts of ARSON!!! With his own insurance claim and testimony from the previous case being used against him, the lawyer was convicted of intentionally burning his insured property and was sentenced to 24 months in jail and a $24,000 fine!

This story supposedly won First Place the 2001 Criminal Lawyers Award contest.

However, this sounded too good to be true so I did a Google search (yes, I am a kill joy) and found that it was not a true story (see article HERE). But I have to give the writer kudos for a very active imagination. Well done. And it did make a good story, if nothing else!

BTW, I will be posting a new music album later today. Watch this space.

MUSIC #17: KHILONA 1970 (HINDI OST)

One of my favourite movies of the 70’s as it stars my favourite actress Mumtaz (she is so beautiful) and the awesome actor Sanjeev Kumar (see LP cover above).

The music of Khilona (Toy or Play Thing) is by duo Laxmikant Shantaram Kudalkar and Pyarelal Ramprasad Sharma, collectively known as Laxmikant-Pyarelal. Between 1963 and 1998, they composed the music for about 500 Hindi movies – what a feat! The lyrics for Khilona are by another Bollywood (the terminology used to describe the Hindi movie industry in India) music legend, Anand Bakshi – he wrote the song lyrics for over 300 films.

The most popular (and known) song of the album would be ‘Khilona Jan Kar’, famous not only for its music and lyrics, but also for its singer, Mohd Rafi (and to some extend, the actor Sanjeev Kumar). It’s my favourite song from the album too. Check out the lyrics and translation of this song at this awesome site: Nasir’s Eclectic Blog. Then there is ‘Main Sharabi Nahin’ followed by ‘Khush Rahe Too Sada’ and ‘Sanam Too Bewafa’.

Most of the songs in this album are sentimental and mujra (Moghul-influenced Kathak music) in nature with only ‘Roz Roz Rozi’ and ‘Main Sharabi Nahin’ breaking the monotony, as in quicker in terms of the tempo.

My verdict: 4 star plus….as I love sentimental and mujra-style music - I can just imagine myself twirling around in an angarkha and chudidaar¹ when I listen to music of this style.

Khilona 1970: The Original Soundtrack


Side One

1. Khilona Jan Kar – Mohd Rafi

2. Main Sharabi Nahin – Mohd Rafi and Asha Bhosle

3. Roz Roz Rozi – Kishore Kumar and Kishore Kumar

Side Two

1. Khush Rahe Too Sada – Mohd Rafi

2. Sanam Too Bewafa – Lata Mangeshkar

3. Yeh Natak Kavi – Manna Dey and Chorus

Get the music of Khilona HERE.

1. An angarkha and chudidaar is a two piece pant suit, with the top consisting of a tight fitting bodice and flared from beneath the bosom to the knees or below, worn with tight fitting trousers, scrunched at the ankles – see picture of Madhuri Dixit from the film Devdas wearing an angarkha below.

MUSIC #16: PAKEEZAH 1972 (HINDI OST)

This album was requested by fellow blogger Bollywood Dewana. Here you go mate, as promised, the OST to Pakeezah (Pure of Heart).

The music for the movie Pakeezah is by Ghulam Mohammad and Naushad and lyrics by Majrooh Sultanpuri, Kaifi Azmi, Kaif Bhopali and Kamal Amrohi (who is also the director of the movie). The making of this movie was plagued with one controversy after another and it took 14 years to complete, during which more tragedy occurred. The reason for the two music directors is that the first music director, Ghulam Mohammad died before the movie and soundtrack was completed. Naushad was asked to step in to compose more songs for the movie, namely the film's background music and title music.

The main reason for the 14 year delay was the marriage break-down of director Kamal Amrohi and his wife, the leading star of Pakeezah, Meena Kumari (pictured below). Not only did music director Ghulam Mohammad pass away during this time, so did the movie’s cinematographer Josef Wirsching. It’s been said that over a dozen of Bombay's top cinematographers helped in finalising the movie.

By the time both Kamal Amrohi and Meena Kumari were convinced to resume shooting of the film, Meena Kumari was quite ill with cirrhosis. When filming continued, she was lying down in most of her scenes and for the dance sequences, actress Padma Khanna was used as a body double and can be seen in the long-shots. Meena Kumari died a few weeks after the film was released.

During the 1972 Film Awards, actor Pran refused to accept his award for Be-Imaan because he felt that Ghulam Mohammed deserved a posthumous Filmfare award for his music in Pakeezah.

Most of the music of Pakeezah is in the form of Moghul-influenced Kathak style music. The use of traditional Indian instruments such as the sitar¹ and tabla² and the chimes of the ghunghroo (thick anklets made from between 50 to 200 bells) are prevalent in the music. It’s the type of music one sits back to, with their favourite drink in hand, be it a cup of garam, garam chai (very hot tea) or a nice port or sherry, and savour the music. It’s like classical European music - You either like it or hate it! My favourites from Pakeezah are ‘Chalte Chalte’, ‘Inhi Logon Ne’, ‘Chalo Dildar Chalo’ and ‘Thare Rahiyo’.

My verdict: 5 stars.

Pakeezah 1972: The Original Soundtrack


Side One

1. Title Music – Alap³ by Lata Mangeshkar

Music: Naushad

2. Inhi Logon Ne – Lata Mangeshkar

Music: Ghulam Mohammad

Lyrics: Majrooh Sultanpuri

3. Nazariya Ki Mari – Raj Kumari

Music: Naushad

4. Chalo Dildar Chalo – Lata Mangeshkar and Mohd Rafi

Music: Ghulam Mohammad

Lyrics: Kaif Bhopali

5. Kaun Gali – Parveen Sultana

Music: Naushad

6. Teer-E-Nazar – Lata Mangeshkar

Music: Ghulam Mohammad

Lyrics: Kaif Bhopali

Side Two

1. Thare Rahiyo – Lata Mangeshkar

Music: Ghulam Mohammad

Lyrics: Majrooh Sultanpuri

2. Mausam Hai Ashiqana – Lata Mangeshkar

Music: Ghulam Mohammad

Lyrics: Kamal Amrohi

3. Mora Sajan – Vani Jairam

Music: Naushad

4. Chalte Chalte – Lata Mangeshkar

Music: Ghulam Mohammad

Lyrics: Kaifi Azmi

Get the album HERE.

Footnotes:

1. The sitar is a plucked stringed instrument used in Hindustani classical music since the middle ages. It derives its resonance from sympathetic strings, a long hollow neck and a gourd shaped resonating chamber.

2. The tabla is a popular Indian percussion instrument used in Hindustani classical, popular and devotional music. The instrument consists of a pair of drums of contrasting sizes and the music is created by either tapping the drums with the fingers or by using the base of the hand. The word tabla is derived from the Arabic word, tabl, which simply means "drum."

3. An alap is the opening section of a North Indian classical performance. It is unmetered, improvised (within the raga or music scale) and unaccompanied (except for the tanpura, a type of Indian lute) and starts at a slow tempo. In instrumental performance and singing, this part receives heavy emphasis and can last for more than an hour.

Look out for my next posting: Khilona 1970

MUTTERINGS #07: VYJAYANTHIMALA

As I have just reviewed the OST of Sangam and Jewel Thief, I thought a quick spill on the heroine of these movies would be most apt. I am talking about Vyjayanthimala, of course

Vyjayanthimala was born on 13 August 1936, in Madras (present day Chennai), Tamil Nadu, India. She studied bharatanatyam (one of the oldest form of classical Indian dance originating from Tamil Nadu, India which combines the art of expression, music and rhythm) from a young age and performed in front of the Pope when she was just four. She was ‘discovered’ when she was 15, during her final year at school, by family friend and Tamil film director M.V. Raman, for a role in the Tamil film 'Vazhkai'. This movie was successful at the box office and was re-made in Hindi and released as 'Bahaar' in 1951. She made around 62 movies, in both Hindi and Tamil languages.

Vyjayanthimala got her leading Hindi movie role in Nagin (1954). Her dance routine for the song ‘Man Dole, Mera Tan Dole’, in the movie made it a hit and Vyjayanthimala an overnight success. This lead to director Bimal Roy casting her as the role of Chandramukhi, opposite superstar Dilip Kumar in the critically acclaimed Devdas (1955). She subsequently starred in four successful films opposite him, two of which she received best actress awards: Naya Daur (1957), Madhumati (1958), Ganga Jamuna (1961) and Leader (1964). She received the Filmfare Best Actress Awards for Madhumati and Ganga Jamuna. She also received a Filmfare nomination as Best Actress for her role as a courtesan in Sadhna (1958) which she co-starred with Sunil Dutt.

She caused some controversy with the release of her next hit movie, Sangam (1964), which earned her another Filmfare Best Actress Award. She wore a fire-engine red swimsuit in the song ‘Bol Radha Bol’ and her attire in the song ‘Main Kya Karo Ram’ was considered quite risqué. It was also rumoured that she had an affair with co-star Raj Kapoor, which she dismissed, stating that it was a publicity stunt by Raj Kapoor to boost his waning image.

In 1966, she starred in the historical epic 'Amrapali', based on the life of the legendary Buddhist courtesan Amrapali. The movie was not a commercial success, and the failure disappointed her as she considered her efforts in the movie to be the pinnacle of her acting ability. She did however make many more hit movies such as Suraj (1966) with Rajendra Kumar, Jewel Thief (1967) and Duniya (1968) with Dev Anand and Prince (1969) with Shammi Kapoor, to name a few.

Vyjayanthimala fell in love with Raj Kapoor's personal physician, Dr. Chamanlal Bali, who treated her for pneumonia after she fell into a lake while shooting for a film. He was married at that time. The two grew close and later married after he divorced his first wife. Vyjayanthimala quit acting after her marriage and relocated to Chennai from Mumbai, where she took an active role in Indian politics and became a Member of Parliament. She however quit politics in 1999. The Balis have one son, Suchindra Bali.

Trivia: In 1956, Vyjayanthimala won the Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award for her role as Chandramukhi in Devdas but did not accept the award as she felt that her role was not a supporting one - the strong-headed actress felt she was as much the heroine of the film as Suchitra Sen, who played Paro. That was the first time a person had declined to receive a Filmfare Award! You go girrrl!

NB: In time, I will be posting all the original vinyl soundtracks from the above listed movies….except Devdas – the album still eludes me, and Bahaar. At this point in time, the OST from Sangam (1964) and Jewel Thief (1967) are already up.

Watch this space!

MUSIC #15: JEWEL THIEF 1967 (HINDI OST)

After months of trying to find the LP and DVD of this movie, I finally found them both in a spate of a couple of weeks. I don’t think I ever watched this movie (it was released the year I was born…..oops, the cat is out of the bag now) but I definitely have heard the songs!

My parents used to own the EP of the movie but a recent phone call to mum established that the EP has long disappeared! Not impressed. Anyway, there may have been a silver lining to this saga as I found a near mint LP of Jewel Thief on eBay for a very reasonable price! You can get lucky…..sometimes.

The music in this recording is by Sachin Dev Burman and the main lyrics by Majrooh Sultanpuri (with Shailendra providing the lyrics for one song – see below). Kishore Kumar, Lata Mangeshkar, Mohammad Rafi and Asha Bhosle provided the vocals in this amazing soundtrack.

Sachin Dev Burman is at his peak in this production with my favourites being Yeh Dil Na Hota Bechara (I sooo love the plastic fish at the end of the fishing line in the movie song clip and the convertible….I want that one!), Dil Pukare, (H)Othon Pe Aisi Baat and the seductive and risqué number, Raat Akeli Hai (how cute is Tanuja in this number!).

My rating: Pure 5 Star Magic!

Jewel Thief 1967: The Original Soundtrack

Side One

1. Yeh Dil Na Hota Bechara - Kishore Kumar

Lyrics: Majrooh Sultanpuri

2. Roola Ke Gaya Sapna Mera - Lata Mangeshkar

Lyrics: Shailendra

3. Aasman Ke Peeche - Kishore Kumar and Lata Mangeshkar

Lyrics: Majrooh Sultanpuri

4. Baithen Hain Kya Uske Pas - Asha Bhosle

Lyrics: Majrooh Sultanpuri

5. Dance Music

Side Two

1. Raat Akeli Hai - Asha Bhosle

Lyrics: Majrooh Sultanpuri

2. (H)Othon Mein Aisi Baat - Lata Mangeshkar, Bhupendra and Chorus

Lyrics: Majrooh Sultanpuri

3. Dil Pukare - Lata Mangeshkar and Mohd Rafi

Lyrics: Majrooh Sultanpuri

Get the music HERE.

Watch out for my next two postings: Pakeezah (1972) and Khilona (1970).

MOVIE #05: JEWEL THIEF 1967 (HINDI)

Not sure whether I should be separating my jottings when I am writing about a movie with soundtracks. Oh well, until I can come up with a better idea, I’ll keep the movie review and music review separate.

Jewel Thief is a 1967 Hindi crime thriller produced by Navketan films (Dev Anand's production house) and directed by Vijay Anand (Dev Anand’s brother). The music is by Sachin Dev Burman (see my post on the music of Jewel Thief HERE). The film stars veteran actor Ashok Kumar, 1960s heart-throb Dev Anand, Vyjayantimala, Tanuja (mother of actress Kajol) and the beautiful Helen.

The film was a box office hit and is considered THE crime thriller of Bollywood (a term used to describe the Hindi language movie industry in India). I totally agree that Jewel Thief is a movie ahead of its time - when most of the movies produced during this era and the next had issues with story line continuity!

To the movie. Vinay, played by Dev Anand, is young man who finds himself constantly mistaken for a look-alike jewel thief named Amar. Vinay is able to prove that he is not the Jewel Thief and co-operates with the police (whose Commissioner is actually his father) to locate this elusive Amar - only to find himself embroiled in devious schemes that sees him ending up with amnesia and making him the target of every policeman, in India (including his pa, of course).

The acting in this movie is superb although I have to add that Vyjayantimala seems to be at her chubbiest here (yet still able to be quite desirable – you go girrrl) and Tanuja is too cute. I also loved Helen’s appearance and item number in the movie. BTW, one question has always plagued me with pre 1980s Hindi movie – why do most of the western ‘two piece’ costumes always have a nude sheer lining to give it the illusion of a two piece garment when it is actually only a one piece garment! It then does not match the skin colouring of the actress and looks as if a fashion disaster has occurred. If it is a case of modesty, aren’t most Indian attires, like the sari and/or ghangra choli, two pieces of clothing that bares the midriff, with only a wispy bit of chiffon (if that) worn as a sash? Hmmmm…..Go figure!!! And the pointy bras! What's that all about?

Again, nothing to do with the movie, but isn’t the “pom-pom” sari worn by Vyjayantimala a riot? So love the 60s....

So, if you love a good spy movie with plenty of ohs, ahs and twists like the roads in Sikkim (where parts of the movie was filmed), Jewel Thief is definitely a movie not to be missed.

Veen’s rating: 5 stars

NB: Jewel Thief OST post to follow....

MUSIC #14: FRANKIE LAINE 1964 (ENGLISH EP)

Frankie Laine (born Francesco Paolo LoVecchio on 30 March 1913 and died 6 February 2007) was an American singer, songwriter and actor whose career spanned 75 years. Often billed as America's Number One Song Stylist, his other nicknames include Mr. Rhythm, Old Leather Lungs and Mr. Steel Tonsils. He started singing in 1930 but is better known from the 1960’s onwards for his rendition of theme songs from Western movies such as Rawhide, 3:10 To Yuma, High Noon, Gunfight at the O.K. Corral and Blazing Saddles. Although he sang to western movie themes, he was never a country and western singer in the true sense. His hits include That's My Desire (featured on this EP), That Lucky Old Sun, Mule Train, Cry of the Wild Goose, Jezebel, High Noon, I Believe, Hey Joe!, The Kid's Last Fight, Cool Water, Moonlight Gambler, Love is a Golden Ring, Rawhide and Lord, You Gave Me a Mountain.

Trivia: Frankie Laine did not sing the soundtrack song for High Noon (it was sung by Tex Ritter) but Frankie’s version (with altered lyrics to the original) became the bigger hit.

Veen’s rating: Three stars

Frankie Laine 1964

Side One


1. That’s My Desire*

(Loveday-Kresa) B. Feldman

2. Don’t Blame Me

(McHugh-Fields) Campbell Connelly


Side Two


1. All Of Me

(Simons-Marks) Francis Day and Hunter

2. Someday Sweetheart

(Marton-Spike) Herman Darewski


*Number 4 on the US Billboard in 1947

MUSIC #13: SANGAM 1964 (HINDI OST)

This is one of my favourite movies and album from the 1960’s and in my opinion, one of Shankar-Jaikishan’s better albums from that era. The music directors missed out on the 1965 Filmfare Awards for that album to the more classical music of Dosti (a winner in its own right) by Laxmikant-Pyarelal. I will be posting this OST in the very near future. The lyrics in this album are by Hasrat Jaipuri and Shailendra.

For me, the music of Sangam epitomises that bagpipes, accordions, violins and the balalaika (or is the bouzouki?) can be very ‘sexy’ music instruments and can actually work in pop music. Apart from the guitar, the violin was another instrument that I wished I had learnt. This is what I miss about the music of the present – the lack of full orchestral music in albums.

Now to the songs, and this is going to be hard as I love the whole album! But if I had to chose, my preferences (I could not pick one, sorry) would be ‘Dost Dost Na Raha’, ‘O Mere Sanam’ (I actually memorised the whole song in my teenage years when I found out that the ‘Anil Kapoor’ look-like in my hometown that I had a crush on, liked my best friend....sob....Drove my mum mad as I would keep rewinding the video to write the lyrics down!!!) and ‘I Love You’.

I know that ‘Dost Dost Na Raha’ is a sad song but when I do hear this song, it makes me break in a Viennese Waltz....pity none in my household would take me up on the offer to dance, except young Master G. And then there is the German song ‘I Love You’ which I could find no info on. If Shankar-Jaikishan did write the score for the music, they did a bloody good job in fusing Greek/Mediterranean style traditional music, with filmi music (the violin score) and German lyrics. What a combo!

I give this album 5 stars!

Sangam 1964: The Original Soundtrack

Side One

1. Bol Radha Bol – Mukesh (and Vyjanthimala)
Lyrics: Shailendra

2. Hardil Jo Pyar Karega –Lata Mangeshkar, Mukesh and Mahendra Kapoor
Lyrics: Shailendra

3. O Mehbooba – Mukesh
Lyrics: Hasrat Jaipuri

4. Yeh Mera Prem Patra – Mohd Rafi
Lyrics: Hasrat Jaipuri

Side Two

1. Main Kya Karoon – Lata Mangeshkar
Lyrics: Hasrat Jaipuri

2. I Love You – Vivin Lobo
Lyrics: Not Credited

3. Dost Dost Na Raha – Mukesh
Lyrics: Shailendra

4. O Mere Sanam - Lata Mangeshkar and Mukesh
Lyrics: Shailendra

Get the album HERE.

PS: Don’t forget, you have another four days to vote for the next album you would like to hear.

MUSIC #12: YEH RASTEY HAIN PYAR KE 1963 (HINDI OST)

Yeh Rastey Hain Pyar Ke (This Path Of Love) is by composer Ravi and lyrics by Rajinder Krishan. I think this is one of Ravi’s finest works (in the classical 1960’s filmi style music) and I for one cannot fault this album. However, if you are looking for an album to bob to, this ain’t that. Most of the songs are sentimental in nature although ‘Jane Jaa Paas Aao Aao Na’ does have a slightly faster beat and some very amorous lyrics! ‘Tum Jis Pe Nazar Dalo’ is the only fast paced song in the album.

Ravi chose Asha Bhosle and Mohd Rafi to sing the whole OST – a wise choice as they both do credit to the music. I just love Mohd Rafi singing ‘Zulf Laharai Teri Aur Meri’....brings goosebumps to my skin....especially when he says, “Koi mujhse puchee, ke tum meri kya ho....mera pyar ki, ek haseen iltija ho....” (Someone ask me, who are you to me.....you are my love’s, most beautiful entreaty/desperate plea....). Sigh.....

I give this album 4 stars plus.

Yeh Rastey Hain Pyar Ke 1963: The Original Soundtrack

Side One

1. Yeh Khamoshiyan Yeh Tanhaiyan – Asha Bhosle and Mohd Rafi
2. Jane Jaa Paas Aao Aao Na – Sunil Dutt and Asha Bhosle
3. Yeh Rastey Hain Pyar Ke – Asha Bhosle
4. Gunahon Ka Diya Tha Haque – (Narrator) Asha Bhosle

Side Two

1. Tum Jis Pe Nazar Dalo – Mohd Rafi
2. Zulf Laharai Teri Aur Meri – Mohd Rafi
3. Aaj Yeh Meri Yeh Zindagi Dekho – Asha Bhosle

 Get the album HERE.

MUSIC #11: HUMJOLI 1970 (HINDI OST)

Okay, it’s time to up the ante a bit. I have been posting too many soppy songs (and there’s nothing wrong with that, is there?) and I think some upbeat songs are now warranted. And for that, I have chosen Humjoli.

It is so hard to write about songs from Hindi movies without referencing the song clips from the movie. This is definitely the case with Humjoli. The dance scenes are so bizarre and OTT (in a nice way, mind you….but who in their right mind dances that way?!) that Farah Khan, the director of Om Shanti Om, referenced quite a bit of the song scenes and costumes from this movie in Om Shanti Om. For a really good review on the Humjoli movie, costumes and scenes, check out this awesome posting at Bollywood Deewana.

Back to the score. The music is by Laxmikant-Pyarelal and lyrics by Anand Bakshi. My favourite song from this movie is ‘Tik Tik Tik Mera Dil’ (and the movie clip is awesome too). However, I am surprised that Lata Mangeshkar is actually singing this song because it is the ‘type’ of song and music (slightly raucous) usually accredited to Asha Bhosle. And then, you have Asha singing the more mellow ‘Dhal Gaya Din’ and once again, Lata with the more upbeat ‘Haye Re Haye’. These songs for me is the trifecta of the album, although I don’t mind ‘Hu Tu Tu Tu’ and ‘Chal Shuru Hoja’. Also, in my opinion, this album belongs to the females. What do you think?

I give this OST 4 stars.

Humjoli 1970: The Original Soundtrack


Side 1

1. Hu Tu Tu Tu – Asha Bhosle, Kamal Barot and Chorus

2. Haye Re Haye – Mohd Rafi and Lata Mangeshkar

3. Dhal Gaya Din – Mohd Rafi and Asha Bhosle

Side Two

1. Tik Tik Tik Mera Dil – Mohd Rafi and Lata Mangeshkar

2. Ye Kaisa Aya Zamana – Mukesh, Kishore Kumar and Mehmood

3. Chal Shuru Hoja – Mohd Rafi and Kishore Kumar

Get the music HERE.

PS: I will upload music with better bit-rates in a couple of postings.

MUSIC #10: JAILHOUSE ROCK 1957 (ENGLISH OST)

Jailhouse Rock was Elvis Presley’s third movie and the songs from the movie was released as an EP (seven inch 45 rpm), instead of an LP, in October 1957. The album peaked at number one on the newly established Billboard EP chart. The title song, Jailhouse Rock, which was released as a single in September 1957, also went to number one, on the singles chart.

The movie actually had six songs but only five songs were featured on the OST. The sixth song, “Treat Me Nice” was featured on Side Two of the Jailhouse Rock single. This song peaked at number 18 on the singles chart.

The writers for this album were Jerry Leiber, Mike Stoller, Aaron Schroeder, Abner Silver and Ben Weisman.

Jailhouse Rock – The Original Soundtrack

Side One

1. Jailhouse Rock – Elvis Presley

Writers: Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller

2. Young And Beautiful – Elvis Presley

Writers: Aaron Schroeder and Abner Silver

Side Two

1. I Want To Be Free – Elvis Presley

Writers: Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller

2. Don't Leave Me Now – Elvis Presley

Writers: Aaron Schroeder and Ben Weisman

3. {You're So Square} Baby I Don't Care – Elvis Presley

Writers: Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller
Veen’s rating: 3 stars

MUSIC #09: DAAG – A POEM OF LOVE 1973 (HINDI OST)

This is one of my favourite Hindi music album and movie too. I just love all the songs in this OST and can’t for the life of me pick one or two I consider the best from this album. “Hum Aur Tum” makes me want to break out with an air guitar and kick myself for not taking guitar lessons in my youth. I really love the intro folk guitar music. “Ni Main Yaar Manana Ni” makes me want to put on a flare skirt and just twirl and dance around the house. Not a good sight but nevertheless, that’s what it makes me feel like doing, LOL. And then there’s Kishore Kumar and his enchanting voice delivering “Mere Dil Main Aaj Kya Hai” .... such soulful music from composers Laxmikant-Pyarelal and beautiful lyrics from Sahir.

No wonder the album became a superhit and dominated the charts for 1973. The hits of the songs and movie popularity also entrenched Yash Chopra (this movie was his debut) in the history books as Bollywood’s finest directors. My verdict for this album: 5 star plus.

Daag – A Poem Of Love: The Original Soundtrack

Side 1

1. Ab Chahe Ma Roothe Ya Baba – Kishore Kumar and Lata Mangeshkar

2. Hum Aur Tum – Kishore Kumar and Lata Mangeshkar

3. Ni Main Yaar Manana Ni – Lata Mangeshkar and Minoo Purshottam

Side 2

1. Mere Dil Main Aaj Kya Hai – Kishore Kumar

2. Hawa Chale Kaise – Lata Mangeshkar and Chorus

3. Jab Bhi Ji Chahe – Lata Mangeshkar

4. Main To Kuchh Bhi Nahin (Dialogue) – Rajesh Khanna

Get the music HERE.

MUTTERINGS #07: NOT WELL...

I could have another moan but I'm sick to death of my own whingeing.
~ Steve Bruce