Mother's lullaby

My beautiful mom would always sing me songs. But not regular nursery rhymes were these. She would sing me beautiful classics from the 70s onwards. I grew up listening to her singing me songs, which I treasure to this date. I can confidently say, I would never have developed the kind of liking for music that I have, if not for my mom.

Let me list out a few great numbers that she sang to me, and why they hold a place so very close to my heart.

• Angelo *- Brotherhood Of Man

A very very touching song. If you listen carefully to the lyrics, it will break your heart. Its all about a rich girl and a Shepard boy "Angelo", who fall in love, and elope knowing they wouldn't be accepted. They keep running, and end their lives so they can be together forever. Still induces a tear, this.

• Lullaby- Billy Joel

Another great song. Mom used to sing this before I slept. Hear it and you will know why. I used to listen to several Billy Joel songs, but none more than:

• The River of Dreams*

A beaut of a song. Just brilliant. The backing vocals are superb.

Try these songs by the same great artist:

• Two Thousand years
• We didn't start the fire*
• My Life*
• Honesty

I shall now mention a song that I am crazy about, and those of you who haven't heard it are seriously missing something:

Bohemian Rhapsody*

This song(can it be called a song??) by Queen, is one of THE best pieces ever made in rock history, and not many are going to disagree.

An absolute stunner, it twists and turns, and slows and speeds. Words cannot describe this song. It has every element in it- rock, orchestra, opera, melody, etc.

When Freddy Mercury died of AIDS, my mom cried while listening to this song. You can see how much she loves her music.

Thanx Ma.

In memory of dear granny- Sail Away

Although I was still quite young when my grandma passed away in Spain, I can still remember her fondly. One of my vividest memories of her, was her enjoying a song that had released around 1988.

• Orinoco Flow(aka Sail away) *

This song by Enya, was an instant classic and hit right through the early 90s. Enya's music is beautiful, numbing, soothing, relaxing, and much more. Her music is a Celtic style. If you haven't tried her music, you are missing something. My grandma was a great fan of this song, and the video used to come on TV very often.

There are several other great Enya Tracks, but I shall list them as and when they were discovered by me. Keep reading!

*-Must Try

All things Spanish

It was obvious that I would soon get influenced by the Spanish dialect and music. Pavarotti was becoming "widely" successful, partnering with Jose Carreras and Placido Domingo to form the Three Tenors.

There were two songs in particular that were vastly popular going in the early 90s,
and they were:

• La Bamba
• Lambada

These songs bring back beautiful memories of Spain, and the music is typical of the island. Its got a very Brazilian touch to it, with lot of Spanish attitude. You just gotta try it. Makes you wanna move!

After school I would run home to watch my two all time favourite cartoon shows:

• Caballeros del zodiaco( The Zodiac Warriors)

• Oliver y Benji(a football cartoon)

I was so fixed on these cartoons, watching them with immense interest, while my mom would feed me beetroot rice.

The Intro soundtracks on these cartoons are amazing. Just like in He-Man, I would stand right in front of the tele, and scream along with the songs. Man, I miss those cartoons.

Speaking of cartoons, My Dad, Sis and I would sit together and watch Looney toons. We would watch it all day long if it were possible. To this day, when we are together we end up watching it. A lot of our collective characteristics are based on many characters from Looney toons- My Dad bearing great resemblence to Coyote. There is this one song called La Cucaracha(comes in many cartoons- mostly in Speedy Gonzales).

This is a weird version of the song with funky beats and changed lyrics, but do try the original

• La Cucaracha - www.musicalspanish.com/flashdemo2.htm

Classical Enchantment

With the inroads into the world of theater paved, it was time to experiment with Classical music. I suddenly discovered a wild passion for the piano, and having gotten a keyboard for Christmas, I was pounding away on the keys like a baby Beethoven. The keyboard had a button which emulated a clapping sound, and I would play my symphony and then press the button a few hundred times, whilst bowing in appreciation. That's all I would do. bang the keys like someone from the stone ages, and feed off the adulation from the appreciative audience.

Sigh. Some dreams don't turn into reality. But I find that amusing. What does turn to reality, I couldn't have even dreamt of. That's the best part.

Back to the music. I distinctly remember having a small Walkman, and at the time I was learning to ride a bicycle. My mom and I would hit the streets, I would ride the bike, and she would walk. We walked along the beach, and I would plug in my Walkman and listen to recorded tapes of Mozart, Bach and Beethoven.

Ludwig van Beethoven- The master. He went deaf. What a terrible way to end up, if you are a composer. When he went deaf, he thought something was wrong with his piano, and he chopped into bits with an axe. The realisation must have hurt deeply. Even before he went deaf, he suffered from paranoia, his 5th symphony being the point of interest. What a haunting piece of brilliance.

• 5th Symphony
• 9th Symphony
• Moonlight Sonata

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Johann Sebastian Bach are another two great composers and pianists. Try any or all of their compositions.

Musicals and Theater

So it was about this time that my dad got a job in an unheard of part of the world.

Canary Islands - las islas canarias:
(28° 06'N, 15° 24'W) are an archipelago of the Kingdom of Spain consisting of seven islands of volcanic origin in the Atlantic Ocean. They are located off the north-western coast of Africa (Morocco and the Western Sahara). They form an autonomous community of Spain.
(thanks for that Wikipedia)














We were on the little island in the middle called "Gran Canaria". It was beautiful. Tropical weather. Beaches. Paradise.

So off we went on our first adventure. Many things were a first at the time(This was in 1989). For the first time I was a brother. I had responsibilities. I had to "share". It was my first flight, first time out of India. It was exciting.

I have fond memories of the Island. Many memories. I joined "The British School of Gran Canaria", a school meant for the expats who were on the island and whose children couldn't go to a Spanish school. There was a fair mix of British, Spanish and Indian kids there. It was here that i developed my love for music and football.

Mr. McManus. My music teacher. I still remember him after all these years. Hes one of the biggest catalysts in my musical unearthing. He played the piano. He made me join the choir. He made me study music, and learn the piano( I am sorry to say I have forgotten most of it now).

Under him, I came to learn of Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber, one of the greatest composers of musical theater to ever walk the face of earth. His compositions moved me deeply. Mr.McManus would make us perform his plays through songs.

The Phantom of the Opera















Cats












These are two of the plays which I absolutely love. The music in phantom of the opera is haunting, touching, sad, and yet so beautiful. When we were told the story, I had tears in my eyes. Every time I hear the music, my heart crumples up, and I relive the memories. The female vocals (Sarah Brightman) are breathtaking.

Just recently the movie came out, thankfully with all the music in place. It was great. Each song is a classic.
I would strongly suggest listening to these two songs in particular:

• Think of me
• Phantom of the opera

From Cats I would suggest listening to:

• Memories

This song is fantastic. A really touching song. I would just imagine a beautiful woman standing in her balcony and singing this.

Another musical I took part in, which left a telling impression, was Oliver!(based on Oliver Twist). The musical numbers are fantastic as well. My favourite songs from here are:

• Food Glorious Food
• Oom-Pah-Pah
• You gotta pick a pocket or two
• Who will buy?
  

We used to scream our lungs during Food Glorious Food, and the best line goes like this:

"Food Glorious Food! Hot sausage and mustard!
While we're in the mood, Cold Jelly and Custard!"

The orphans are dreaming about good food during this song, while they are being served "the same old gruel".

I have the POWER!

For pure nostalgic interest, I shall pen down my memories of the He-Man soundtrack. I would watch the cartoon whenever it was on, and even had a plastic sword to wave around during the intro music. I would stand in front of the tele and scream "BY THE POWER OF GREYSKULL...I HAVE THE POWER"!!! and hum the tune. That tune was fantastic. It was inspirational. It gave hope to my young mind. I had the He-Man toys and would clatter them against each other, whilst singing the theme track. The good old days! Wish I could still do that! :)

I had the exact same toy :

The First Beats

The 80s. Heightened by the pop scene, bands sprung from every nook and corner, sporting out of the world hair dos and wacky costumes. It was the era where appearance and showbiz took the driving seat away from the music. It was the era of MTV. Jazzy pop videos with psychedelic colors and guys clicking their fingers together, while their image moves around in circles around the screen. A lot of music from this decade suffered from lack of genuine music talent, but instead was replaced by smart and attractive videos. Don't get me wrong, there was a lot of good music here too! I was born in the middle of this decade, but didn't feel its musical impact till i entered the 90s. So what did I get out of the 80s?

Born in Hyderabad, and moving quickly onto Bombay(Mumbai), I was first drawn towards music by a movie which i still love deeply. A movie of such brilliance, that now when i watch hindi movies, I shudder in realisation of what has gone wrong. A movie so pure, so touching, so musically perfect, that it would always leave me in tears.

Qayamat se Qayamat Tak.
Right from the start where Aamir Khan rolls onto the stage singing Papa Kehte Hain, to running through the woods, melodiously singing Akele Hain, and upto the end where "Raj" kills himself, and a slow, extremely sad rendition of Papa Kehte The belts out- the movie proves to be a masterpiece.

Although I am heavily averse to hindi music at present, I cannot thank this movie enough. Thank it for leading me to the path, for being the perfect ingress to my musical discovery.

Every song on this soundtrack is a beaut:

• Akele Hain
• Ey Mere Humsafar
• Gazab Ka Hai Din
• Kahe Sataye
• Papa Kehte Hain

http://ww.smashits.com/music/hindi-film/songs/1210/qayamat-se-qayamat-tak.html

The movie released in 1988, and I was 5. My sister was born in the same year, and was named "Juhi"- Juhi Chawla playing the heroine in the movie.
I would prance around and sing these songs all day long. I must have seen this movie a thousand times. I still do. Let me state that my hindi is atrocious, hence the aversion. But this movie is something different. Something special.

Overture

Music has been an integral part of my life. It’s been part of my happiness, my melancholy, my loneliness, my togetherness. Through the fast paced changes in my life, music is one thing that has remained a constant- though the styles often vary. Right from birth, I have not experienced life in one place for more than five years. Moving around the globe has given me one thing, and that is a chance to experience; Experience different life styles, different people, different climates, and most certainly different music. Now, I am not what you may call a traveler, I am still too young to pursue such pleasurable dreams. All this traveling I have encountered thus far, is thanks to my fathers change in jobs, and, as we will come across later, my pursuit in quality education!

Through this writing, you will travel with me through 22 years of my life, wherein I shall share the joys of discovering and rediscovering all forms of music, from the tender toddler ages, through the "rock" savaged teenage years, and up the ladder in hope of attaining musical deliverance.