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Thursday, July 31, 2008

28th Anniversary of Mohammed Rafi

On the 28th anniversary of Mohammed Rafi - one of the greatest and the most versatile singer of Hindi Cinema, I have prepared a couple songs to pay my humble tribute. People like me, could perhaps speak for their entire lives about Rafi sahab, but it will not suffice his eminence, caliber, and repute. His is the voice that is truly heavenly!

"Parda Hai Parda" is one of the songs I have received the most requests for. It is another illustrious qawwali by Rafi sahib. Picturized with the charisma of Rishi Kapoor in Amar Akbar Anthony, "Parda Hai Parda" is also considered Rishi Kapoor's signature song. Laxmikant Pyarelal and Anand Bakshi provide an awe-inspiring combination for this quixotic melody!

"Aaja Aaja", from the movie Teesri Manzil, is the song I have been planning to sing for a while and finally was able to record it to my satisfaction. Songs like these make us think that singers like Rafi sahab and Asha ji were way ahead of their time. This song also provides nothing but a pure manifestation of RD Burman and Majrooh Sultanpuri's brilliance. I thank Deblina for providing her jovial and gleeful voice for this foot-tapping, head-bobbing, funk-filled, hip-hop "Twist"composition.

I thank you all for bearing with me!


Download "Parda Hai Parda"


Download "Aaja Aaja Main Hun"

23 comments:

Murali Venkatraman said...

I was playing your song as I was working on something else. somehow I had forgotten at some point that I was actually listening to a karaoke version of a rafi song. I was under the impression that I am listening to a Rafi original as I work on my stuff.

I am typing as I am listening to Parda hai parda - excellent rendition catching every single subtle nuance of rafi. I have not seen anyone in the blogs religiously follow his/her idol's rendition. Shows your devotion to rafi.

Murali Venkatraman said...

The only negative coomment I would give on Parda is the unsure singing of the ending aalaap. Other than that, fine piece of work.

ZEG Consultants said...

Murali,

It is a pleasure to hear from you!

Well, Murali, with songs like "Parda Hai" and "Aaja Aaja", engraved so cleanly and clearly in people's minds, I just cannot get by without making my best effort :)

The last alaap was way more difficult than I imagined. I could not bring it to my own satisfaction either!

I thank you very much for your observations!

Rahul.... said...

Khan Bhai,

I would sincerely request each and every music blogger to listen and appreciate your rendition of Parda hai Parda....Murali is bang on that it just sounds as amazing as original by Rafiji.....

You amazed me one more time....Why dont you try some Reality shows on television....u r definately a talent which will surely get noticed.......

I would have loved if in the end you could say "AZAM" mera naam nahi hai instead of AKBAR....lol....got used to such stuff now in reality shows...but still, no issues...was just a treat to hear ur voice again...

Cheers.
AJ

Dhiraj said...

Parada Hai Parda Wah bahuth khoobh gaya hai Azam bhai, Sun ke dil ko mehsoos hua ke aap Rafi saab ko kithna darja dethey hai, hats off to you, Aur rahi baath Ajaa Ajaa ki, kya kahoon, aap ne is gaaney ki khushi ke pal ko bakhoobhi nibahaya hai... Deblina was awesome, its difficult to sing those Aajaa Aajaa's by Asha ji, she has done that effortlessly. Kudos to both of you for giving us such wonderful numbers.

Anonymous said...

Parda hai parda..I commend you for singing this qawwali(قوٌالی;) so well! Voice is appealing.
Aaja aaja...Your versatility is admirable.

ShirinAbid said...

Its been a long time since I head this qawwali. It is indeed very pretty but ofcours I am partial to qawwalis. I never heard aaja aaja before and enjoyed that one too. While on the subject of qawwali, I only recently heard "chehra chupa liya hai kisi nay hijab mein" - NICE!!

Anonymous said...

Azam - You've done it once again. Excellent work! When do you start giving vocal lessons? I want to be the first student!

Srividya Kasturi said...

Loved and enjoyed both the songs thoroughly...Excellent renditions! Deblina was also good..

Harshan said...

Azam ...great singing !!!

Especially Parda ..is excellent !! You have captured this song to the minutest of details..

Anonymous said...

Azam,
Amazing piece of singing on both the songs. Just loved the alaap at the end of "Parda Hai Parda" Great tribute to Rafi Sahab on his anniversary. Very well sung!

Also liked "Aaja Aaja". You and Deblina both sound fabulous.

Still awaiting my farmaish! When?

Best wishes,
Dinesh

Deblina M. said...

Hey Azam,

Parda hai Parda is awesome ... very very well sung.

Thanks a lot for singing Aaja Aaja with me.

Deblina

Deblina M. said...

Thanks a lot Dhiraj, Vidya and Dineshji for Appreciating Aaja Aaja.

Regards,
Deblina

Anonymous said...

Hi Azamji,
Aaja Aaja I am listening to after sometime. Very much enjoyed both of your & Deblina's voices.
Parda Hai Parada is a recognizable performance. Loved both songs and an excellent way to tribute the legend.

Keep Singing ... me listening,
Shantha

Anonymous said...

Khan Sahab - Buying classical songs is, I bet, a lot easier than singing them. I want to learn the latter... :)

Bhavana said...

Azam ,
Parda Hai Parda was awesome!Aapke high notes kya easily lagte hain!
Sach mein ,you should be in one of the TV talent shows!
In Aaja Aaja also you both sound so delightful!:)A-a--ajas were done very well by both of you.
Debs,loved your voice Aaja Aaja in ur voice.You have sung in ur own style instead of singing in Asha ji's style and you know what..it rocks! :)

Anonymous said...

Bhai,

Parda Hai Parda ... bohat ache! Deblina is wonderful in Aja aja.

Asim Ghosh said...

Parda Hai Parda.....left me completely speechless Azam. The pitching, the murkhis, the expressions, the clarity of your pronunciations..."remarkable" is not enough a word. A super-tough song, yet you made it sound so easy, so fluid. Oh, btw, loved those 'personal' styles/nuances you threw in, here and there. Lovely. And I am glad you didn't sing "Azam Mera Naam Nahi Hai"... to me that kinda' dilutes the originality.

Loved the duet from Teesri Manzil...yours and Deblina's voice blended seamlessly. The 'naughtiness' in this song was well-brought-out by you both. Beautiful job, Azam & Deblina.

Bhai Sahab, Yeh Duniya Yeh Mehfil kab sunaoge?

Anonymous said...

Azam khan,

Outstanding performance. I like !!!

...

Phone ker liya kerein ek do maheenon men.

ZEG Consultants said...

AJ, mere bhai, I am having a tough time keeping it as a hobby ... too much work and too little fun make Jack a "cranky" boy! Life ka reality show bhi chalu rakhna hai :) Thanks for your encouragement though! Appreciate it!

Dhiraj, bohat shukria mere bhai. Aap ke alfaaz ne dheron khoon badha diya!

Paras, aap ki satayish aur qadr-daani ka main tah-e-dil se shukr-guzaar hun!

Tess, thank you for visiting my blog! So glad you liked both songs!

Saqib, you first promise to have some jamming sessions with me and then I will teach you ... where to buy some pure classical songs from :D

Srividya, thank you very much for your kind words!

Harshan, thank you very much for listening and commenting! I am very glad you liked both songs!

Dinesh bhai, aap ki farmayish jaldi poori karne ki koshish karun ga! Der hone ki maafi! Aur dono gane sunne aur pasand karne ka bohat shukria! Aap ki izzat-afzayee hai!

Shantha, thank you very much for your ever-encouraging words ... mean a lot!

Saqib, in that case, let me find a good teacher and we both will join!

Bhavana, thank you very much for listening and commenting. And about the high notes, I will just say first line of a sher, "aankh jo dekhti hai lab pe aa sakta nahin ..." :D

Babar, thanks for listeninig and commenting, bhai jaan :)

And Deb, thanks for your comments on Parda hai Parda. Also, thank you for being patient with me for last 2 years to finish this song. You sound excellent! Love your expressions!

Asim Da,
I could not sing "Azam mera naam nahin hai...". Of course, you know that :). "Ye Dunya Ye Mehfil" zurur sunaoon ga, fikr na karain! Thank for listening both songs and providing such an awesomely encouraging feedback!

Dear Moonchhon wale anonymous bhai,
I will call you but you should have written your name in your message. Please do so and I promise I will call you :D. By the way, thanks for liking these songs!

Adithi said...

Reached here (a little late!) from Audioindia blog. Absolutely brilliant rendition of "Parda Hai Parda"! I love your dedication and attention to detail. The more I listen to people like you, I wonder how much there is for me to learn nad improve. Excellent work and thanks for the musical treat!

N V Krishnan said...

Azam Khan...

Wowow...What a great singing , man. I just loved it . The right feel and harkatein.. Keep it up...

N V Krishnan

Photographer Pappu!!! said...

Hey pretty neat stuff in your blog. I liked most of your recordings