AAA 13- S02

 Amazingly About the Artist (AAA)_13 (S02- EP1)

S02- EP1- ILAIYARAAJA

Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey!!!!! Hw Y'all ? I assume everyone is safe & enjoying life with some feel good music. Yea, Am back! Am too happy to say that! Nextoctaveditz has come back with one more amazing season of the most loved series- AAA- Amazingly About the Artist. The wait is over, we will directly go in to the article.

As I promised, we will come back with some amazing content soon, here we go !! 

The Season- 02 Episode- 01 of AAA starts with the amazing artist- "Ilaiyaraaja" Sir. And also 02/06/23 marking his 80rth Birthday - Wishing him a many many happy returns of the day, may his life be much more prosperous, wealthy & healthy. And may him shower all of us with his mellifluous music again! Wishing him the best birthdays ever & an article in tribute to his genius. 

What can one do if you are given a chance to introduce the legend Ilaiyaraaja- just stand speechless!! Same is my situation, so I willn't dare to introduce him to you all, coz he is damn familiar. Who doesn't know Ilaiyaraaja? If you say no or so, then you don't know music!!

With not much more details, intro, etc etc we will directly move in to attribute an article to the legend. So, here we goooooo----

Here are "5 Best Albums Of Ilaiyaraaja That You Have To Hear Before You Die"

01. Thalapathy- 1991

Cast: Rajinikanth, Mammootty, Shobhana & Others

Director: Manirathnam

Vocalists: K. J. Yesudas, S. P. Balasubrahmaniyum, S. Janaki, Swarnalatha & Mithali Benarjee

Lyricist: Vaali

Language: Tamil

Don't you all think Thalapathy is one of the finest works in Tamil Cinema & one of the greatest contributions to Indian cinema!! Manirathnam has always been that lead directors who could extract best from every technical department & when Ilaiyaraaja is at helm who cares about best, it is just a masterpiece!! I don't think any other composer could just compose any such stuff now in these contemporary electronic gen.

Rakkamma Kaiyya Thattu sung by SPB & Swarnalatha has always had its embracement among the masses, Raaja always knew the pulse of such mass audience & neither he will disappoint the classical lovers too- and for such a statement this song which has been one among the 10 best tracks in the world top listed by BBC remains as a solid proof.

Sundari Kannal - this is a song which is purely experimented by the director and the composer too. Who will really expect such a studious romantic number with chaos, pain & wanting, that too on a superstar of masses like Rajinikanth? Probably none, but Manirathnam has made us all expect the unexpected things. What a lovely track this is, Vaali with his lyrics just takes us through all those warrior times of Akhira Kurosawa (character played by Rajinikanth in the song). SPB always says this, the pre-lude of the song when being recorded with a live orchestra at R. D. Burman's studio in Bombay got humongous applause by the orchestral members & they were in awe for Raaja for such a typical composition. And what not this song tells us- just an amazing number!!

Kaattukuyilu- performed by K. J. Yesudas & SPB always gives the listeners spine chills!! I don't know from where he gets all these rhythm patterns & hit on our heart straight away. I always had that fascination over the instrumentation of Raaja sir's compositions, coz they were something special, something unusual. The golden voices of Yesuadas & SPB make the track much more special. If you happen to watch this song, A'm sure you'll be as amazed for the composition equally for the performances of Rajinikanth & Mammootty. 

Chinna Thayaval sung by Janaki amma will just move us into tears. The backdrop of the song itself is just heart wrenching, the abandoned Soorya (Rajinikanth) happens to find his mom (Sreevidhya) after ages in a temple & he is speechless despite so many questions running in his brain, then this song keeps playing in the backgrond & the audience will weep probably. Manirathnam's excellency is embodied when Soorya picks the flower that fell from his mother's plait & right there on the ground is a drop of tear showcasing that she did'nt  abandon her child by knowing all & she still regrets that, to all this Raaja just plays that simple veena with a soothing Janaki's voice & all the magic lies there. 

Yamuna Aatrile, Mazhgazhithan, Puthum Puthu Poo songs too will just take us too trans casting the magic all over. Telugu version of this film along with soundtrack was equally successful with changes made in singers, the pathetic mother song sung by Susheela amma proves that it is no where less to the original. Both the high rated songs Sundari Neeve & Chilakamma Chitikeyamma are sung by SPB & Chithra which are of top notch quality. Indeed this is my favorite album of Raaja avarkal.

02. Geetanjali- 1989

Cast: Nagarjuna & Girija

Director: Manirathnam

Vocalists: S. P. Balasubrahmaniyum, S. Janaki & K. S. Chithra

Lyricist: Veturi Sundaramamurthy

Language: Telugu

Surprisingly this album too is from the combinations of Ilaiyaraaja & Manirathnam. Raaja equally enjoyed the reign over Tamil & Telugu music simultaneously back then in 80's & 90's. No doubt in claiming that easily this album is one of the favorites for generations to Telugu audience. This musically successful Nagarjuna's starrer remains as cult classic no doubt what he is today!!

Album starts with a kicking Jagada Jagadam sung by SPB & which is called the boy's best-loved song. As I keep telling Raaja's rhythm patterns are something very unique like those of Micheal Jackson, every song has it's own pulse! Every song that Raaja composes appeals, coz they have unique rhythm patterns & beats. No way this song gets old, it still tops charts, blessed we had singers & composers like SPB- Raaja who could make such amazing music. 

Chithra's Jallantha Kavvinta deserves a gold medal! Raaja proves that female oriented songs too can have that pomp, exuberance & roguish elements in the song like that of male ones. The prior one is the male introduction song & this one for the lady star of the film. May be the trend of making songs in rain for female leads started from here!!

Nandikonda Vaagullona by SPB & Chithra is still the anthem of ghosts- Haha!!Eventually if your above to make something related to ghosts here is an amazing track that Raaja made for all of us way back in 1989. If Veturi knew what all to write, SPB knew how to highlight them, OMG one cannot brace their ears while SPB is singing this song, how could someone go into the skin of the character!! As said before, we all are blessed to have them worked for all of us.

O Priya Priya the personnel favorites of all the love birds which deserves an Oscar.  Manirathnam has some sort of fantasy of creating such strange war kind backgrounds for the romantic songs & fortunately they all turn to be chartbusters. This song keeps us wanting it to love till we die, no body else can pen such a great anthology on love rather than Veturi & no one can sing it like SPB & Chithra. 

Amani Paadave & Paapa Laali the melancholic songs deal with the major plot of the film & Raaja's music does all the job that a director or protagonist is trying to do. If we didn't have this songs nor this composer for this film, this film wouldn't have hit us like this did!! Om Namaha by Janaki & SPB is the seductive theme of Geetanjali, in between of a serious film we need some good coffee & this song is that coffee!!

Telugu audience are forever indebted to Raaja gaaru for such masterpieces!!

03. Kaalapaani- 1996

Cast: Mohanlal, Prabhu & Tabu

Director: Priyadarshan

Vocalists: Ilaiyaraaja, M. G. Sreekumar, Mano & K. S. Chithra

Lyricists: Gireesh Puttencherry & Javed Akhtar

Language: Malayalam

Chemboove by Sreekumar & Chithra has some ethereal tune & amazing levels of nativity. Priyadarshan always had the liberty to put all his ideas into the pictuarization & he got the right composer to give life to his ideas. Every song in the film has something more than ordinary & this song is my personnel favorite.

Aattrambile Kombile by Sreekumar & Chithra ,too has that energy which evokes romance. These tunes add alot of space to the complete actor Mohanlal & Tabu to incarnate their chemistry in the film. Songs might be just fillers in a plot of 3hrs + script but they never can be overlooked atleast for the sake of Ilaiyaraaja. 

Kottum Kuzhal Vizhi though wasn't included in the final cut of the film had an engaging concept which was as equally important to get this song into the final cut of the film as it is the song that narrates the feelings of two youngsters in love about the separation for a brilliant cause. But unfortunately the lengthy film's plot didn't allow this song into the final cut. Sreekumar & Chithra were held in charges of taking the album to a different elevation & they do complete justice.

Maarikoodinullil a reverberating solo by Chithra & Ilaiyaraaja might appear lovely & soulful but this song is full of emotions. The lady protagonist waiting for her husband really wins our hearts. Tabu what a beauty she is, her innocent looks in the entire film will surely make us fall for her & then Raaja's music with Chithra's soulful rendition adds upon like icing on a cake, Chithra & her high pitched renditions are match made in heaven. Only she can sing those high notes with that power & volume & still sound like honey. Raaja knows that Chithra is a perfect fit, so this song is by her. 

Vandemaatram by Mano is patriotic. Raaja knew the pulse of audience, I mentioned before & so is this song. Like a roar in rough sea this song makes much noise in the film.

Just we cannot thank enough Raaja avarkal for all this, but constraining the entire gratitude into two simple words- Thank you!!

04. Saagara Sangamam- 1983

Cast: Kamal Hassan & Jayapradha

Director: K. Vishwanath

Vocalists: S. P. Balasubrahmaniyum, S. Janaki & S. P. Sailaja

Lyricist: Tyagaraja & Veturi Sundaramamurthy

Language: Telugu

Baala Kanakamaya the Thyagayya kriti recreated by Ilaiayaraaja is a sheer magic in the film. Vishwanath movies always had that maximum scope for some best classical music, all his movies are classics nevertheless & same is this movie. I think this is the best recitation of Baalakanakamaya ever, coz no Carnatic singer could sing it exactly like Janaki ma, she knew where to take a breath & where to sing it as a whole, I think she set that benchmark for any other singers to select such songs & sing without any flaws with the lyrics. Overall it's my favorite number!

Mounamelanoyi the evergreen melody- always reminds me of the beautiful face of Jayapradha & that silence in the beginning of the song!! Raaja knew that making noise in  a song which has silence as backdrop would be a blunder, so is the song - slow & soft! If Veturi had the guts to make noise with his stupendous words, Janaki & SPB take us into a trance with their renditions. Like I always say about combinations, Janaki-Ilaiyaraaja-SPB is a combination made in heaven!!

Naada Vinodamu penned by Veturi & sung in the voices of SPB & Sailaja deserves all the honors. When it's a song with a backdrop portraying classical & romance on two different tracks simultaneously, who else can make it much more appealing other than the legendary Raaja!! I always wonder how can he be so perfect? Even in the live shows he can replicate the same perfection! India is blessed to have such composers. 

Om Namah Shivaayah an amazing semi- classical sung by Janaki evokes complete devotion. There is always that hidden magic when Janaki sings for IR. She is just amazing like how he is!!

Thakita Thadimi the "Khatron Ki Khiladi" song of that generation, if Kamal Hassan had guts to dance on the edge wall of a well, then SPB had the rage to give him all the motivation to dance with apt grace. I think no one can forget this number, it's a shear brilliance of the director, composer & the actor. Nevertheless IR owns the song.

Vedam Anuvanuvuna Naadam is yet another masterpiece. How perfect the song goes & how perfect the singers are!! It's really impossible to present gen singers to recreate such masterpiece. Who could have brought people to theaters in queues that too for a classical based film other than Vishwanath Gaaru, IR & Kamal Hassan!! Sailajas' beautiful humming in between showcases her brilliance & what this Industry has really missed from her. And any need to say about the great SPB's rendition in this track?!

Vevela Goppemmala is the fun track in the film with a serious melody. It appears like somewhat an old 70's number but Vishwanath manages the rest with his caliber. Sailaja singing this is an added attraction , she has an amazing voice but it's sad that she does'nt sing very often now'a'days. She sang this song in Malayalam also & trust me I was just blown away with her voice & pronounciation when I heard it for the first time. Really pity our filmmakers & composers for not utilising such a talent. 

05. Agni Natchathiram- 1988

Cast: Karthik, Prabhu, Nirosha & Amala

Director: Manirathnam

Vocalists: K. J. Yesudas, Ilaiyaraaja, S. Janaki & K. S. Chithra

Lyricists: Vaali

Language: Tamil

Thoongatha Vizhigal is that IR's trademark melody that appears in almost all his films disguised as a new song. Agni Natchatiram has always been holding a special place in every music lovers hearts, coz for it's fresh & keen in those times. Janaki & Yesudas, what a sweet combo is it, they both just sooth away our hearts. Vaali makes it much more easy for IR to compose any complicated compositions, coz he is there to write anything, literally anything. 

Ninnukori Varanam - a Chithra's evergreen hit!! You all understood why I said that, coz I think there are very few instances where she left the stage without singing this song in IR's live concerts or even her concerts, because you all know what happens when she sings it live, we all will be surprised for her exceptional high pitched range, it is she who paved a path for all those high pitched renditions. In a concert at New York, when she was singing this number, the crowd were really that energetic that no note of any instrument is barely heard, but her voice was crystal clear & when she sang that first stanza there was an euphoria. This song is really a special one, a mixture of wonderful orchestration, poetic lyrics & at last the exceptional singing by Chithramaa.  My all time favorite.

Oru Poonga Vanam even till date gives me spine chills. Absolute masterpiece, Manirathnam's direction skills make Nirosha look much more beautiful & Raaja's music adds on like the icing on a cake. Janaki maa singing this is'nt any surprise coz she sang many of kinds, but Telugu version was sung by Vanijayaram & she rocks the song like never before. IR is that wonder machine who can surprise audience with his experimentation, who can ever think about Vanijayaram singing a seductive number!! Only IR's things!! One listening to this number would tell SJ+IR=Ore Sugam!!

Raaja Raajathi - a song about IR. Rightly he knew what audience would feel about him, he knew what's his position in the hearts of music lovers, so might he choose to sing this number. Every phrase in the song describes him rightly. Don't know why I feel like this song is made for him. "Long Live IR"!!

Roja Poo Adivanthathu- one more brilliant female seductive by the evergreen SJ. She is the queen of such songs, who else is that amazing at giving such sensous expressions other than Janaki amma, she's an all-rounder & yesteryear is always blessed to have such a singer.

Vaa Vaa Anbe - one more IR kind melody. Yesudas & Chithra croon this track as if like they have the full authority to steal the listeners hearts!! They are amazing, we are amazing & Raaja is always amazing!!

That's it about today, let's meet again later with one more artist. Untill then take care, enjoy the day with some nice Raaja's melodies to get drenched into an ocean of musical magic.