Singing, after a long time!

My 'dusty' microphone & other singing gears were about to be sold on Ebay by my kids. I figured this is my chance to get away from everyday chores, and clean the dust off the mic.

Tagore songs (Rabindra Sangeet, in bengali) were my childhood favorites (in addition to Nazrul songs). Even KishoreDa scored quite a few such memorable Tagore songs (which I intend to sing down the road, sometime). Here is one of my favorite Tagore songs:

Aami Kemon Koriya Janaabo Aamar


(Click here to download)

A famous bengali number, from even a more famous bengali movie (sung by Hemant Kumar, picturised on none other than Uttam Kumar):

Ogo Kajol Noyona Horini (Mon Niye)


Click here to download

Now a classic duet, originally sung by KishoreDa and Asha Bhonsle. My good friend Azam painstakingly improvised this marvelous track (originally created by Taranaa.com) to include the beginning female alaap part. Thanks Azam for the track, and your great job with the improvisation. And if you are a frequent visitor of Indian Blog world, the name Deblina Mukhopadhayay should not be a new one to you. A God-gifted voice, a pure bliss & sheer pleasure to listen to. Listen how fluidly her voice rides the highs & lows of this beautiful song. Thanks Deblina for singing this duet with me:

Yeh Raatein Yeh Mausam (Dilli Ka Thug)

Click here to download

KishoreDa has sung many types of songs throughout his singing career, both in movies and albums. Be it a romantic song, a sad one, a peppy number, funny/silly song, a lullaby, he had (and still does, amongst us!) a ubiquitous presence in almost every types. Except for one...qawwali. For filmy-qawwalis, music directors usually reached out to either Rafi Sahaab or MannaDa. However, KishoreDa did get his hands dirty in a couple qawwali-type songs, like this one from Alag Alag (picturised on Kaka). He made his songs sound so simple and easy. But you won't know until you try it for yourself. And, this one was a toughie!
Here's my humble attempt (I said attempt!):

Kabhi Bekasi Ne Maara (Alag Alag)


(Click here to download)

Talking about KishoreDa's romantic songs, here is one of my favorites.

Phir Wohi Raat Hai (Ghar)


(Click here to download)

18 comments:

Parasmani said...

Kabhi beqasi ne maraa, Kabhi bebasi ne maara...
Shayari ki khoobsoorati aur aap ka dard bhara andaaz..bahot pasand aaya.

Ye raatein, ye mausam...
Ek arse se intezaar tha is gaane ka. Such numbers are "as if" made for your voice.

Anonymous said...

Asimda,
I always love your Bengali singing. Especially the "Hemant Kumar" songs get lot of justice from you. I was not head over heels at "Kabhi bebasi ne". But I enjoyed "ye raatein".
It was good to hear from you. Keep singing.
regards
Udita

ZEG Consultants said...

Asim Da, kia baat hai. You made up for the long delay! "Aami Kemon" has a beautiful tune and a sort of a majestic touch! When you get a chance please post the translation of that song.

"Ye Raatain" was a treat to listen to in your voice. It was my first time listening to "Kabhi Bekasi ne" and loved it.

No more long breaks for you!!!

Vishal Khaparde said...

You sure made up for your long absence ..and what a treat ..5 songs !!..or should I say "panchpakwan" :-)...Loved every one of them ..never heard those Bengali numbers but enjoyed in your voice .."Yeh Raatein" was simply superb..Deblina's voice has made it even more sweet...I heard that qawwali before but could have never guessed it, if someone asked me to name Kishoreda's qawwali song ..:-) .."Phir Wohi" was another good rendition ..

Keep singing :-) ...

Cheers,
-Vishal

Jo said...

Loved that Rabindra song. Beautiful rendition. Looking forward to more of such. Also please do update me through email whenever you post a new song so that I can update at Audio India (http://audioindia.blogspot.com). Thanks and keep up the good work.

Anonymous said...

ek bochor por gaibar somoy holo bolo? ami to dhorei niyechilam je tumi gaan chere diyecho.
fantastic laglo gaangulo, especially r/sangeet ta aar kajol noyona; deblinar songe duet ta durdhorso, she has a great voice. tomar okhane thake? phir wohi raat hai dadake shunte bollam, janina suneche kina, tumi to jano dadar koto priyo gaan ota.
deshe kobe ascho? kotooooo din tomar live gaan shunini. opekkhai roilam. etodin baade baade blog upload korcho keno boloto? tomar fan club er modhye sudhu ami proti maase tomar upload check kori, shyamali archana ra to tomar opor rege giye tomar blog check kora chere diyeche. milantithi kobe shonacho? one more request, cheyechhi jaare ami, please parle next time ota gaibe?
too long post hoye gelo, setao tomari fault. -B

Dhiraj said...

Heard your hindi songs, awesome singing Asim bhai, i think i heard that Qawwali before, all your Kishore kumar numbers (especially Phir Wohi Raath Hai) are awesomely sung. As Azam told no more breaks for you.

Sudipta Chatterjee said...

Darun, darun!!

Please keep singing and posting!

Harshan said...

Loved your rendition of Phir Wahi ..Raat hain ..:-) Awesome !!

I wont consider this to be a romantic song though...especially if you have seen this movie ..:-)

Anonymous said...

aapke "geetmala" keliye bahut 'dhonyobod' :) darun khoob laglo :)

Asim Ghosh said...

Paras; Thanks for your good words! Yeah, finally did Yeh Raatein.

Udita: Thanks for liking the bong and Yeh Raatein. I know I can count on you (and Bips) for 'chul-chera' analyses & feedback. Kabhi Beqasi is a toughie,

Azam: Aami Kemon Koriya is a Rabindra Sangeet, penned/composed by Rabindranath Tagore, a bengali Nobel laureate. His lyrics are always simple, yet very deep in interpretation. Will try to translate it sometime in the future.

Vishal: 'Panchpakwan'??? Ha Ha Ha....a good one Vishal! Thanks for listening to all the songs, even the bengali ones, and your good words.

Jo: Truly appreciate your stopping by and leaving the comments. Yes, I'd surely send you an email next when I update the blog (in another year may be ;)

B: Sorry for disappointing you, somoy hoy na! Deshe to por-por 3 years gelam! amaar fan club? Se ki, seta abaar kobe holo? Shaymali/Archana-der aamar hoye sorry bolo. Next Milantithi gaayibo, promise. Email pathiyo.

Dhiraj: Honored to have your comments and feedback. Thanks for liking Phir Wohi.

Sudipta: Thank You.

Harshan: I am so glad you stopped by, and good to have your feedback too. Yes, I agree w/you, the situation was not really a romantic one. But, the way Vinod Mehra was trying assuage his wife after the terrible event, it appeared to have some romantic/lovey-lovey connotation to it. But I still agree w/you, it was not purely a romantic song.

Anonymous: Thanks for your 'dhonyobod'. Liked your bengali attempt.

Deblina M. said...

Dear Asim-da,

Heard all your songs today ... it was sheer pleasure listening to all of them. The best ones I liked were Phir Wohi Raat Hai and Aami kemon koriya Janabo. :)

Thank you so much for singing Yeh Ratein with me :)

Hope you update your blog more often from now on :)

Best Wishes,
Deblina

Soumitra said...

Asim,
Good to see you back :-) Liked all the renditions specially the bengali ones :-) Love a Rabindra Sangeet anytime anywhere :-)
Keep singing :-)

Anonymous said...

Hi Asimda,

Finally heard all of your songs and i am really impressed with all 5. There were all very different songs and you have done a wonderful job with all of them :). The Bengali song was beautifully done. Couldn't understand the meaning but I enjoyed the tune and your singing a lot. You have sung it with your heart :). Phir wohi is another beautiful song and you have done an awesome job. Yeh Raatein with Debs was a pleasure to listen to :)
Thanks for sharing the songs :)

Kuntal

Anonymous said...

Hi Asimji,
Thought you had given up your blog altogether. Wow ... nice come back with five numbers. Haven't heard much Bengali numbers but did in yours. Duet came out nice with Deblina. Enjoyed all the songs and keep posting more songs.

Keep Singing ... me listening,
Shantha

Anonymous said...

Beautiful voice .. just like Kishore da... awesome!

I thought the tone was a little.. very little.. nasal. Would be great if you can consciously cut down on that.

I think you you missed a lyric or two.. but the above two apart.. you sang really well.

N V Krishnan said...

Asim...

Hearing your song for the first time. Heard "phir wahi..", a favourite song of mine.

Excellent. Just loved your rendition. Keep it up..

N V K

Anonymous said...

Asim da,
Am visiting your blog for the first time.Already a fan of your voice from Day 1 since I heard you on Paras's stage.You sound so similar to Hemant Mujherjee.I wanted to share my opinion on "kajol nayana Horini',but couldn't post my comments there.Loved Phir wohi equally.You are an amazing singer and would be visiting your Blog quite often now.Hope you don't mind.

My Songs:

Mere Mehboob Qayamat Hogi
Movie: Mr. X in Bombay (1964)
Music: Laxmikant Pyarelal
Lyrics: Anand Bakshi
(Original) Singer: Kishore Kumar
Sunayna
Movie: Sunayna (1979)
Music: Ravindra Jain
Lyrics: Ravindra Jain
(Original) Singer: KJ Yesudas