Review - Lata Concert in CA - VERY LONG
ani...@my-dejanews.com
I am posting this for my friend Rakesh Modi.
LATA MANGESHKAR
LIVE IN CONCERT
Oakland, California
October 9, 1998
The show began with Sanjeev Kohli, son of the veteran Music Director, Madan
Mohan, welcoming the audience, and announcing that people should not take
pictures while Lataji is singing, because it distracts her. And so, they
should respect her request. He also mentioned that on September 28, Lataji
turned 70, and the people in Chicago had the great fortune to bring in her
birthday. He then called upon Farida Jalal to start the show. Farida said a
few words about Lata and then called her on stage.
Lata was dressed in a white sari with a yellow border. She said that people
were not on time. We think it is the custom in India to be late. But I see,
even in other countries, this happens. We are keeping our tradition alive
("hamaari parampara bhoolte nahee"). She said she has received many requests
for old songs although she will sing some new songs, most of the songs she
would like to sing are the old songs. She started with a Sanskrit shloka.
1. Tere bina zindagi se shikwa This was the first song she sang, and I was
trembling, because she was not good. The goddess was falling from her
pedestal. She sounded breathless and out of tune many times.
2. Wo bhooli daastaan The next song was worse. Disappointment. I
thought this song was so popular that she knew the tune by heart. But she
faltered with the "ghata si cha gayee" tune. And this version did not sound
good.
3. Mere khaabon mein jo aaye This song, she sang pretty good. But she
made a big mistake, in reading the words and lost one whole line and so she
just continued until she got on track again. I think it was the flashes that
disturbed her. (Even with very tight security at the gate and no cameras
allowed and even with all the requests, people did sneak in the cameras and
shamelessly clicked away). And of course, the late comers. (The doors should
be closed and no one allowed inside once the show is started).
After this song, Lata said she would like to sing a number that she liked. She
said, "mujhe is industry mein ab fifty six years poore ho jayenge. Aur itne
saalon mein maine bohot gaane gaaye hain. Par ye gaana main apne liye gaa rahi
hoon. Shayad aap logon ko accha na lage. Aur agar accha lage to taali zaroor
bajaayeeye"
4. Kuch dil ne kaha
Thankfully, she regained her good singing in this song. I think, its also
because, it has long pauses so she wasn't breathless.
Then came Sudesh Bhosle. He commented as usual something about the
"uparwaalon" and "laton" (meaning the late comers). He sang "Hame tumse pyar
kitna" in memory of Kishore Kumar; "Chingari koi bhadke" with a dialog from
Amar Prem; and then "Sona Sona" for Amitabh Bacchan. He then called Didi to
sing with him.
Lata came and said, how she is not used to doing shows at short intervals -
"aaj yahaan, kal wahaan, to hum log bohot thak gaye hain. Kal hamare Sudeshji
ko bukhaar bhi tha, lekin phir bhi vo gaa rahe hain. To is liye kuch
galtiyaan bhi ho jaati hai. Aisa lagta hai jaise is gali ke log us gali chale
gaye ho (meaning her sur is going haywire). To hum se galtiyaan ho jaye to
hume maaf kar dena. Aur ab main Mukesh bhaiyaa ko bulati hoon..."
5. Saawan ka mahina
This Lata-Sudesh duet was good. She's getting into form.
6. Jai Jai Shivshankar Again a Lata-Sudesh duet and she sang very well.
Sudesh, of course, was good at his Kishore Kumar on-stage impersonation.
Farida, then introduces Usha Mangeshkar, and she comes in a white sari with a
pale pink and gold border. She said that didi has sung so many songs and it
is not possible for her to sing so many songs tonite, so she would sing some
of didi's and some of her own songs. She sang Lata's "Agar tum na hote" and
"Aajaa, ayee bahar, dil hai beqaraar" and her own "Mungda". Some people
screamed once more, and she sang one verse again.
She called Adinath, next, who sang "Tu mile, dil khile" with Jyotsana Hardikar
(Anil Mohile's girlfriend); "Dil kya kare, jab kisiko kisi se pyar ho jaaye",
and "Chaiyya Chaiyya" with Jyotsana again.
Lata came on stage, again and said, "Agla gaana jo main gaa rahi hoon, who,
Naushad sahab ka hai, aur recording ke waqt, Naushad sahab kaha ki aap is
gaane ko apni saheli ko yaad karke gayeeye. To maine kaha, meri saheli…? To
vo bole, Vo jo aapki saheli hai na, Noorjahaan. Maine kaha, maeri saheli to
kaise Kahn, main unko, unki, gayakee ko bohot maanti hoon, main unki tarah
gaane ki koshish karoongi. Par maine gaaya vaise hi jaise Lata Mangeshkar
gaaye.
7. Uthayejaa unke sitam
She sang this very well. If you listen to it, without even thinking about the
original, then it is good.
The next song was a favorite of Nargis. She liked this song and she came for
the recording. It was for her last movie, she stopped acting after getting
married.
8. Awaara, aye mere dil
Lata sang this song very well, the whole song in tune.
"Is agle gaane ke music director ko main bhai maanti thi. Is gaane ki
recording ke baad vo aake bole, Lata tum ne bohot accha gaaya"
9. Lag jaa gale Superb rendition. Every sur is perfect. Every tune just like
the original. Even her voice is getting better with every song she is
singing. My initial disappointment and apprehension has long ago turned into
praise and awe for Lata.
People were still clicking pictures, and Lata was irritated. She said, "aap
logon ko kaha hai ki photo mat lijeeye, phir bhi aap kyun aisa kar rahe hai.
Kya khushi milti hai aapko aise".
She invited Sudesh to sing the next song with her, which was filmed on Farida
and Rajesh Khanna and so also called Farida to lip sync as she sang the song.
Farida and Sudesh started with the dialog and Lata took over with the singing.
10. Baagon mein bahaar hai
All three are in perfect harmony
11. Dil to Paagal Hai
Lata sang this with Sudesh and Adinath. Very close to the original.
Sudesh sang "Aye mere pyaare watan", in Manna Dey's voice. For the
"uparwaalon", he sang a medley comprising of "Dekha na hai re", "Jahaan teri
ye nazar hai" and "Mach gaya shor saari nagri re". Finally, he sang "Na na na
re".
Lata came back. "Industry ke acche acche gayak, ab nahee rahe, par unke gaane
to hamare saath hai, vo popular hai." She sang the next song "Hemantda ki
yaad mein".
12. Yaad kiya dil ne
This is soulfully sung, excellent performance by both, Lata and Sudesh.
13. Ye kahaan aa gaye hum
The best song of the evening. Masterpiece. Sung extremely well, with Amitabh's
dialog delivered by Sudesh. The long notes are particularly excellent, and she
holds the sur with such ease, it is awesome.
She says that another of Hridaynath's son is learning music and "aap log uski
peeth thap thapaayenge to bacche ka dil reh jaayegaa. Usne mere saath teen
program mein gaaya hai, par abhi darta hai" Meghnath sang "Duma dum mast
kalandar" with a lot of josh, and "Ehsaan tera hoga". He sounds good. But more
like an amateur college singer.
14. Hum pyaar mein jalne waalon ko
Sung extremely well.
Hridaynath and his daughter, Radha, came on stage and he explained how
classical music was important for the singer; that all of didi's songs were
good because of the classical base. He said that the audience would notice a
marked difference in Lata's voice and singing in the classical songs that she
would be singing and the other film songs.
He read a letter from a fan (Jasbir Singh) who had asked which was the first
song that Lata ever sang. He said, no one knows which was the first song she
sang, except the family. And tonite Lata would sing this song. (I am not sure
if this fan was from San Francisco, because as soon as he announced this, one
lady from the audience screamed "Thank you, didi"). The brother and sister
duo started on a wonderful musical journey. Lata was superb in the classical
renditions, and so was Hridaynath. The audience, who usually uses this time
as a break, sat in pin drop silence, like in a trance.
Lata's first song went something like "sada rang, nit utha kar, deta tu
hai…". They sang "Baabul mora" in the agra gharana style and then in the
Banaras gharana style. Radha sang a bit in between. And they ended the flow
into "Yaara seeli seeli"
17. Yaara seeli seeli
Lata has probably sung this song even at home, maybe for her riyaaz, so many
times, it sounds a masterpiece, every time she sings it. It was performance at
its very best.
After this song, she said that she is singing the last song for the evening,
and she wanted to sing more songs, but because people came in late, they had
to reduce the songs.
18. Tum na jaane
Sounded more like one of the Shraddhanjali-2 songs.
Because she said this would be her last song, people shouted and screamed for
some farmaishes, mostly "Aye mere watan ke logon". She got furious and said
in an irritated voice, "Chup rahiye, yahaan shareef log gaa rahe hai". I
don't know if she was irritated with the audience, or the organizers, who
kept sending Radha to inform her after each song to continue.
The next song she said was for Noorjahaan.
19. Aye dil-e-naadaan
Beautiful singing.
20. Jiya Jale Surprise!!! Although the musicians did not have the right
instruments to play the exact music as the original, they did the best they
could with whatever they had. Lata sang well, nothing spectacular. Also, by
now, she had lost much interest and so it did not sound from the heart. 21.
Aye mere watan ke logon She invited all the singers for this song, but she
did not sing the starting antara of "Aye mere watan ke logon, tum khoob
lagaao naaraa,…". She straight away started with the song. And cut off a
couple of verses.
But then surprised everyone again, when she shouted "Vande Mataram" and then
immediately started singing the song.
22. Vande Mataram
She got into the mood again and sang this song with much gusto and spirit.
My[Rakesh's] opinion: A Lata show is a Lata show is a Lata show. She is
undisputably great. Although I honestly thought the 1997, Bombay show was
much better than this one, but even then, this show was not to be missed.
--
Cheers,
Anil P. Hingorani
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BSSagoo
Thank you for the review ...it felt like I was at the show.
Bhagwant
Kalyan
>
>Anil
>Thank you for the review ...it felt like I was at the show.
>Bhagwant
Do you mean that the pain of listening to Lata, way past her prime, and
an assortment of good-for-nothing relatives and (worst of all) Sudesh
Bhosle can be experienced by just reading the report :)
KK