Thank You Fellow Bloggers & Music Lovers!

Well my Blog crossed a milestone of 5000 hits and I was aware of this only when someone reminded me today! This is thanks to my Blogging Guru "Joseph Thomas" who introduced me to Blogging in the first place! After that it has been a wonderful journey all the way since April-2006 of meeting and knowing awesome singers and musicians from all over the world! I have come to understand the power of the Internet and the amazing opportunities it offers musicians. Everyday it's a process of learning. Due to the continuous support, encouragement and criticism of people like Murali, Meera, Swati, Vidyu, Jo, Ajay,Madhavanji, N.V ji, Ganesh, Anup, BlueByrd, James, Kiran, Barani, Kathy....the list goes on....this journey is becoming more and more exciting day by day. I am also slowly derieving a wicked happiness by exploring into different and wild realms of singing which others may fathom, but I have been in quest for the unattainable in music......right from when I began this journey. It's my bad luck that I have been deliberately stamped by many as one who is good for only Hindi just because "Meri Awaz Suno" was in hindi and I sing hindi well! This all in spite of the fact that, I was introduced to Film singing by none other than the late "Ravindran Master" as early as in 1993, much before "Meri Awaz Suno"! The same people call the Udit Narayans, Shanker Mahadevans, Adnan Sami's (who are excellent singers in Hindi) and they sing in chaste Malayalam and we heave a sigh of relief ....and say that... mayalam music has been saved from our horrible Malayalee singers...God bless the Udit's and Samis....! Well strange are the ways of the malayali sometimes. They enjoy my "Ennakkaruppin Ezhazagu" and "Poorumo En Shyama Meghame" and then say that I should sing only hindi! It's a pity! Some even tried to force this image upon me for their personal gains! I am pained by this attitude and have lost valuable time in the Film field due to this. My talents have not been properly utilized by any of the so called composers in Malayalam except the late "Raveendran Master" to some extend. This Blog is also an eye-opener in the beginning of my fight-back! Here I am free to express every aspect of my musical skills and no one can suppress or take this freedom away from me! Here you will find my mood swing again and again as I don different colors. I do not believe living in a self created closed world of either musical ego (where I am stuck with singing or listening only to a particular type of music and call it musical intelligence as some do) or the other egoistic world called the celebrity world, by many! Times have changed. If celebrities think that they are gods then they are wrong! If the public thinks that celebrities are gods then they are wrong too! We all are human with flesh and blood. I like to know what I am, directly from those who interact with me. I am open to good suggestions which would improve the artist in me. I would also like to help others to follow my path and use the little knowledge that I have gained to their advantage. Once again I thank each and everyone who has been a part of these 5000 hits! Hope you all continue to come here. I will continue to entertain, educate and enlighten you with what I have, and what I learn on the way!

I have included a download page where all the songs which are posted can be downloaded. This is in response to many who have bad internet connections and cannot hear the songs online. The link is below the Song Player to the right.

Also check out this new duet at Swati's Blog which we have tried together. Please leave your comments about this song on her blog.

Eric Clapton-Tears In Heaven

Eric Clapton is one of the Living Legends of rock & blues in our era. He not only is one of the best known Guitar players of the world but also an equally good singer and writer. This song is one of my favorites which holds a special place in my heart! There are many songs which live in a singer....till the end. This is one of them for me. Sang it for the first time in a competetion on a ship which featured singers from all around the world; Finland, U.K, Japan, Srilanka, Kenya, UAE, Greece, ......almost youth from 13 countries were there as participants and listners. I won the first place singing this song! The most exciting part was that the competition was held while the ship was in the midst of the Indian Ocean! Eric Clapton caught the "unplugged" trend just at the right time, when the public was hungry to hear how well rock stars and their material can hold up when stripped of elaborate production values. Clapton himself seemed baffled by the phenomenon, especially when picking up the armload of Grammys Unplugged earned him, including Record and Song of the Year for "Tears in Heaven," the heart-rending elegy to his young son, Conor. Clapton wrote this song in the memory of his young son who died in an accident. I dedicate this song to a friend of mine who left this world many years ago. He was the one who initiated me into singing western music. Country Roads was the first song that I learnt from him. We had done many stage programs while in College.

Credits: Eric Clapton's Website

Song No: 65

Song: Tears In Heaven

Original Song by: Eric Clapton

Single Song Player:

Lyrics:

Would you know my name If I saw you in heaven. Will it be the same If I saw you in heaven

I must be strong, and carry on Cause I know I don't belong Here in heaven

Would you hold my hand If I saw you in heaven.

Would you help me stand If I saw you in heaven.

I'll find my way, through night and day Cause I know I just can't stay Here in heaven

Time can bring you down Time can bend your knee

Time can break your heart Have you begging please Begging please

Beyond the door There's peace I'm sure. And I know there'll be no more... Tears in heaven

Would you know my name If I saw you in heaven Will it be the same If I saw you in heaven

I must be strong, and carry on Cause I know I don't belong Here in heaven

Illaiyaraja's Magic Continues!

Enough is enough! Well, that was my state of mind today, as I was determined to end my self inflicted voice ban after the sinus problem. I last opened my voice to sing on 7th of this month! What a relief it has been to get my act together once again even though I am not fully well. So I have not attempted to go full blast though. I decided to start with a loosner and though that this was the ideal song for a comeback. And what a song! Illiyaraja's songs are like wine; "the more older the better"! When I listened this song some time back, it did not create any impression as I thought..."hey I have heard this tune before". But later the song started to build up on me and it started a strong urge in me to learn and sing it. Well here is the result. This is already the season's biggest hit from the Mohanlal starrer "Rasatantram".

Song No: 64

Song: Poo Kunkuma Poo

Film: Rasatanthram

Originally sung by: Yesudas

Music: Illaiyaraja

Lyrics: Gireesh Puthencherry

Single Song Player:

My Recording Gear!

Since I have not yet fully recovered from my acute sinusitis, I cannot sing and so I thought I would throw some light on my recording gear!

1) MICROPHONE: RODE NT2
2) PC: AMD ATHLON 64 WITH 1GB RAM
3) SOUND CARD: AARDVARK PRO 24/96 (4IN/6OUT with PHANTOM POWER)
4) MONITOR SPEAKERS: AN OLD PAIR FROM TECHNICS (1980's stuff)
5) KEYBOARD: KORG TRITON LE
6) SOFTWARE: GUESS!!!!!

So that's what gets my voice on my blog!

K.L Saigal-The Immortal Voice

Well, I am sick, and my nose is running and have very bad sinusitis. But this will not prevent me from putting up something on my blog today! Since I am in no condition to sing, I decided to use a very old montage which is from a live show in 1998! I decided to move away from the likes of Rafi, Mukesh, Kishore, Yesudas, S.P.B, Jayachandran and give you a different experience. He may be called the forefather of all the above greats. The greatest of them all who reigned like a king in Hindi Films from 1932-1946! He is K.L Saigal or Kundan Lal Saigal who is said to have a voice which was so powerful that recording needles used to break when he sang, giving a tough time for the recording engineers those days! Born in a family of Jullunder in the year 1904, he entered in the films in 1931-32 and acted in several films until his untimely death on 18th January 1947 at the very young age of just forty-two! Alcohol eventually consumed him. As a boy his mother used to take him to a Sufi-Pir Salman Yousuf of the Yesvi sect. Singing was his hobby. Later on he learnt music and basic melodic structure and perfected after practicing a lot. He also learnt from the great masters: Faiyaaz Khan, Pankaj Mullick and Pahari Sanyal. In 1935, Saigal played the role that would come to define his acting career: that of the drunken title character in Devdas. At New Theatres, his singing style was influenced by the studio's top music directors, such as R.C. Boral, Pankaj Mullick, and Timir Baran. As an actor, his first film was Mohabbat Ke Aansoo (1932), but it wasn't until Chandidas in 1934 that he became a bonafide star in Hindi cinema. As a youngster, India's "melody queen" herself, Lata mangeshkar, is alleged to have said that she wanted to marry K.L. Saigal after seeing his performance in Chandidas!
Saigal's distinctive singing voice was so melodious and popular that he was idolized by the first generation of post-independence Bollywood playback singers, including Lata Mangeshkar, Mohammad Rafi, Mukesh, Kishore Kumar, and even singers in the south like Ghantasala, Kamukara, T.M.S, P.B.S..... Saigal managed to develop what the Italians call ‘La Voce Bianca’ or the ‘White Voice’ of Italians that follows you like a scent and hides in your memory like a coiled serpent.
I present a very famous song of him here. I repeat that this recording being live would have mistakes, show my inexperience as a singer in my early days, and what not...but I was tempted to share this recording with you!

Credits: Suresh Chandvankar, e-bay

63) Soja Rajkumari- K.L Saigal-Punkaj Mullick-Zindagi

Single Song Player:

Pramadavanam-Tribute To Ravindran-Part-III

If K.J Yesudas is the Gaanagandharvan of Malayalam film music, then P Jayachandran is considered as the Bhaavagayakan of Malayalam Film music. P Jayachandran's forte is laying the song with intricately woven subtle sangathis...and terrific expression or bhava! The fact that his voice is still young as it was in the 60's is evident from this song. I still remember the day when I last met Ravindran Master in his Ernakulam Flat, two years back on the day of voting, for office bearers of M.A.C.T.A(Malayalam Cine Technicians Association). He showed me a VCD of his sons who were in Chennai that time. The background of the VCD was this song. He told me, "Pradip, they sent me this VCD asking me to see it whenever I missed them, and I miss them very much now. They don't like to be here in Kerala, so I have see them like this".

I could see the tears in his eyes as he spoke those words. I could sense something terribly wrong, but could not tell what it was...... After one month I heard that he was no more!
The song below was the best song composed by Ravindran for Jayachandran. Lyrics are by Vayalar Sharatchandra Varma, who is showing that he too has imbibed some of the skills of his father, the legendary Vayalar Ramavarma!

62) Aalilathali-Mizhi Randilum- P.Jayachandran-Ravindran-

Lyrics: Vayalar Sharatchandra Varma

Single Song Player:

Sandeep Chowta - Celebrity Visit to Blog!

Yesterday I had a big celebrity visit to my Music Blog. It was none other than the extremely talented & handsome young music director Sandeep Chowta! He needs no introduction for any of the Indian music lovers around the world. He came and conquered with Satya and there after he set his own trend with films like Mast, Vaastav, Jungle, Company, Dum, Pyar Tune Kya Kiya, etc. I have many times gone to visit his site just to listen to the enchanting theme of Satya that he has set as an opening theme on his site. It's just awesome and captivating music! He also has big hits in Telugu like Nine Pelladatha, Super and Political Rowdy. He was the one who introduced Sunidhi Chauhan and Sonu Kakkar. He is the only music director in India to have a website which has a forum which accepts demos from aspiring singers and musicians. He also has big names like John Scofield, Jay Oliver, Eddie Daniels, Bunny Brunel collaborating with him in various works! A.R.R holds him in high esteem.
So you can understand my excitement and joy on his visit. Here are the excerpts from the message he sent to me yesterday!

Dear Pradip,

Visited your Blog. It is really really awesome.
Time has come when we shall work together. I hope by this you know that you are a phenomenal singer and it was a matter of time before we started to work.
Will talk soon

Regds

Sandeep

Pramadavanam-Tribute To Ravindran-Part-II

Here I am re-presenting some songs in the playlist which were my originals for Ravindran Master. The photo shows him teaching "Paalnilaavile" which I sang as track for S.P.B.
Out of the songs that I sang for him my most favorite one is "Innunjan Ente" from the Album "Ponnonam". Tells about how someone remebers his mother on Onam day when he sits with his little son for having "Onasadya" on a "Thooshaila". He remembers all what his mother had done for him. This song always brings tears to my eyes....
This song was sequenced and arranged by "Sarath" another gifted music director who lost his way to stardom.
The other one is "Aashadom" from the film "Mazha"in the raag "Amrithavarshini". This song which would have come out in my voice in the film did not make it by a whisker due to the strange ways of our film industry! I still remember "Ravindran Master" telling me over phone from Chennai that, "Pradip you have sung the track better than the original, but I could not help it since the cassette producer was very rigid in his stand". Then the other song which I will never forget is "Samayam Manoharam" from the film "Ezhuthachan"which was my first recording in a studio! This was done in A.V.M "G" at Vadapalani, Chennai. These recordings were preserved from the tape, so bear with the quality.

2) Innunjan Ente-Pradip-Ravindran-Ponnonam-1998
18) Aashadam- Track- Ravindran- K. Jayakumar-Mazha-2002
4) Samayam Manoharam-Pradip & Ranjini Menon-Ravindran- Kaithapram-Ezhuthachan-1993