Right now I am listening to ...

[persiflage]

I simply adore Bade Ghulam Ali Khan sahib.

Are there any other fans on this forum of his brother, Barkat Ali Khan? Equally illustrious in his own way, and a master at the lighter forms like thumri.

 

[Kamal]

I am a long standing fan of Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan: what a voice & what virtuosity !
Have an album where his son ,Munawar Ali khan sings in tandem-son is simply not in his league.
Have'nt heard Barkat Ali.

 

[awedeophile]

Robbie Robertson - Music For The Native Americans

 

[suniil]

Nine Inch Nails Live - Beside You in Time : HD DVD LPCM track

 

[ruenigma]

Loreena Mckennitt - Book of secrets

very musical album, not exactly new-age and neither can be categorized as proper celtic-folk a great mix of both, IMO.

This is not electronica or typical wizardry found in "new' new age . This one is a proper "recording", and thats what makes it a special new-age album, one of the finest in my list.

 

[Kamal]

Charlie Haden & John Taylor-
Nightfall
Very nice, relaxing music, langourous tempo,
Ideal listen on a night with a glass of the blissful in your hands.

 

[Kamal]

1. Call of the Monsoon- Pt Kumar Gandharva.
Rather apt, considering the ongoing season-amazing virtuosity/performance, considering that he was left with only one lung.
2.Whitney Houston-You Give Good Love.
A natural singer, if ever there was one.

 

[ruenigma]

Unable to find the right mood, and desperate to end a good weekend on a equally good note, i was siffling through my collection and stumbled upon a masterful rendition of Faiz's ghazals by Begum Abida Parveen.

Particularly "Gul Hui Jaati Hain" is a great example of exemplary verses done absolute justice to.

Happy listening
Sarang

 

[SuhasG]

a glass of the blissful in your hands.

Good idea but though I strictly keep myself away from this 'blissful' other would be interested in knowing about that 'blissful'! (just kidding , Kamal)

 

[dinyaar]

Had a pretty musical weekend and heard the following
Aint Complainin'- Status Quo
Inside Information- Foreigner
Nothing like the Sun-Sting
HITS- Reo Speedwagon.

 

[persiflage]

Ruenigma: have you heard the 2 CD compilation on Faiz, renditions by all the Pakistani greats interspersed with spoken word recitations by the poet himself? There's no one standout performance there, all of it is so amazing...

 

[prem]

Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan JVC World Sounds. Absolutely unadulterated stuff recorded in Japan in 1988. Needless to say, amazing stuff

 

[Kamal]

Herb Alpert & The Tijuana Brass- Classics Vol 1
Vintage stuff-absolutely enjoying the trip down memory lane....

 

[smedhavi]

>>>Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan JVC World Sounds. Absolutely unadulterated stuff recorded in Japan in 1988. Needless to say, amazing stuff

Prem,
JVC recordings are really great. Which songs has Nusrat sung for JVC?
Searching the web all I could get is an album where he has sung just one song, but there were no more details.

BTW, I listened to the famous "Allah Hu" by Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan once again on Saturday. This 18 minute quawalli is really a mind blowing experience every time I hear it. It follows the Khayal pattern of aakaar, aalaap, vilambit & dhrut. Does anyone know who is the singer accompanying him? During the last four minutes there is a sort of jugalbandi, where the accompanying singer's aakar versions following every extremely fast swar taan by Nusarat, are awesome.

 

[smedhavi]

Persiflage,
I have a single CD with various Pakistani artists singing Faiz. The discussions in other forums confirm that the voice there is not really Faiz. I did not encounter any 2 CD compilation. Do the credits explicitly mention that the narrator is Faiz himself? Can you please confirm if the CD is from EMI?

Sarang,
I have the exclusive albums by Abida and Nayyara Noor where they sing poetry by Faiz. They are good, but do not compare with Iqbal Bano's version of "Ham Dekhenge", which is as much about history, as it is about music. Faiz had been jailed under the "Rawalpindi conspiracy" due to him being a communist leader. While he was in jail Iqbal Bano sang his revolutionary poetry to a 50,000 strong crowd cheering her (more of a rally I guess). This live recording of "Ham Dekhenge" is the most powerful and provocative recital I have ever heard. This nazm presents the judgment day as defined in religions, as the day when the people would take over.

I also like the compositions by Ustad Ghulam Mustafa Khan from the Indian movie "Aagaman", where he composed and sang some of the revolutionary verses from Faiz Ahmad Faiz like "Ab Toot Girengi Zanjeeren", "Yeh Daagh Daagh Ujala". All these are available on HamaraCD.

http://202.138.97.7/ramgen/~saregama/HF13765.rm
http://202.138.97.7/ramgen/~saregama/HF13782.rm

I think I should the Merchant-Ivory movie on Faiz sometime.

 

[Kamal]

Smedhavi wrote-
" They are good, but do not compare with Iqbal Bano's version of "Ham Dekhenge", which is as much about history, as it is about music. Faiz had been jailed under the "Rawalpindi conspiracy" due to him being a communist leader. While he was in jail Iqbal Bano sang his revolutionary poetry to a 50,000 strong crowd cheering her (more of a rally I guess). This live recording of "Ham Dekhenge" is the most powerful and provocative recital I have ever heard. This nazm presents the judgment day as defined in religions, as the day when the people would take over."
I have this on cassette & indeed its an enthralling & powerful song/indictment.
Its really nice to see some other members' interest in Hindustani Classical music/ghazals-most of the posts are abt western music.

 

[prem]

Smedhavi,

Here is the link to the 2 cds
Amazon.com: Pakistan: Vocal Art of the Sufis, Vol. 2 - Qawwali: Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan: Music

Amazon.com: Pakistan: Vocal Art of Sufis, Vol. 1: Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan: Music

Regards

Prem

 

[smedhavi]

Thanks Prem!
The description on Amazon says "While the recording here isn't perfect,...". I already have some of these songs on CDs from Magnasound. (The company does not exist anymore. It was sealed after the court realized, based on a complaint by Asha Bhonsle, that they had not been paying any artists at all). The recording on the Magnasound CDs is crisp, usually better than HMV and TSeries, but a bit sibilant. I am worried if I would get the same recording again for $50 a CD! You mentioned that the recording is good, do you hear any sibilance in these recordings?

 

[ruenigma]

Ruenigma: have you heard the 2 CD compilation on Faiz, renditions by all the Pakistani greats interspersed with spoken word recitations by the poet himself? There's no one standout performance there, all of it is so amazing...

No, but i'd love to.

 

[prem]

Smedhavi

No sibilance whatsoever. Very well mastered cds. Look for them on the ebay as they are not in print anymore. Will get it for about $20. Buy the japanese pressing, not the US one.

Regards

Prem