chandhirajOthi (Kamasasthram)
Pick #548
Song: chandhirajOthi
Film: Kamasasthram
Music: M.S.Viswanathan
Singers: T.K.Kala, Malaysia Vasudevan
Lyrics:
Year: 1979
When she sings in her bright and clear voice, T.K.Kala does not just sing the song, she leaves a lasting impression. Her formal training in classical music and her style of singing give her songs a unique old world touch. Her first TFM song "thAyiRchiRantha kOyilum illai" for the film Agathiyar(1972) in Kunnakkudi Vaidyanathan's music became immensely popular. In spite of singing some beautiful and popular light melodies such as "pOi vA nadhi alaiyE", "oru kAthal sAmrAjyam" and hit folk melodies such as "vArEn vazi pArththiruppEn", "vaLLimalai mAn", her career never really took off. The non-film song "manathil ezuthiya kadithanggaL" that TKK sang in the late 70s is spellbinding. And the devotional song "chOttAnikkarai mEvum nArAyaNi" was popular in the late 70s/early 80s. However, the generous music directors of TFM only gave her approximately an average of one song a year in the last 35 years. The quick list I made has 27 songs spanning 35 years. Assuming I had missed about 10 songs it would average around one song a year. And nearly half of the songs in my list are unimaginative and meaningless kuththu songs that I wish she had not sung at all.
Thanks to ARR and the new trend of using a variety of voices, Kala's TFM career was resurrected in the 90s and she went on to sing some good songs such as "ArArO ArirarO", "senggAththE", "kuLichchA kuththAlam" and "chinna poNNu rAsAththi". She has sung film songs under the direction of KVM, MSV, T.R.Papa, V.Dakshinamurthy, S.Rajeswara Rao, Shankar-Ganesh, Kunnakudi Vaidyanathan, Jaya-Vijaya, Soolamangalam Rajalakshmi, S.A.Rajkumar, Deva, ARR, Bharani, and Vidyasagar. But none under Ilaiyaraja. T.K.Kala recently played a supporting role in the film "Veyyil" as Bharath's mother and gave a performance that was praised by the critics. Hope she has some luck with this new career at least.
Today's pick is a nice folk song. Don't know if "Kamasasthram" ever released. The film has a nice solo by VJ (mAnenRum vAnaththu mInenRum) and a dramatic devotional solo by TMS (soundaryakalyANi). The lyrics of today's pick and the VJ solo mention the names of many freedom fighters and political leaders from the state. Thought this song would be appropriate as Pasumpon's centenary celebrations begin today.
Part of the statistics in this post was collected off the internet. Thanks to all who contributed.
http://raretfm.mayyam.com/stream/pow...ndhirajothi.rm
muththuppugaz padaiththu (Sivagangai Seemai)
Pick #549
Song: muththuppugaz padaiththu
Film: Sivagangai Seemai
Music: Viswanathan-Ramamurthy
Singers: S.Varalakshmi, (Radha)Jayalakshmi
Lyrics: Kannadasan
Year: 1959
The previous pick "chandhirajOthi" mentioned Sivagangai, Chinna Marudhu, Periya Maruthu, etc. and it led me to today's pick. Kannadasan's production "Sivagangai Seemai" is a classic of epic proportions. It is a film that no Tamil film fan should miss.
Two legends come together to sing today's song. They praise the riches, contributions, valor and beauty of their motherland with pride. With the singers, musicians and the grand orchestra the recording studio must have looked like a Thiruviza. Nearly five decades later we can still enjoy a little bit of the festivities through this recording. The audio quality is not the greatest but it is clear enough to enjoy the beauty and the vibrance of the song.
http://raretfm.mayyam.com/stream/pow07/muththuppugaz.rm
yArO manmadhan (Rajathi Rojakkili)
Pick #550
Song: yArO manmadhan
Film: Rajathi Rojakkili
Music: Chandrabose
Singers: S.P.Balasubramanyam
Lyrics: ?
Year: 1985
Another beautiful song by Chandrabose. SPB at his best.
This song is a nEyar viruppam.
http://raretfm.mayyam.com/stream/pow...o_manmadhan.rm
kaNNanai ninaiththAl (Suprabhatam)
Pick #551
Song: kaNNanai ninaiththAl
Film: Suprabhatam
Music: M.S.Viswanathan
Singers: K.J.Yesudas, Vani Jairam
Lyrics: Kannadasan
Year: 1979
Happy Deepavali!
Thanks to Saravanan for providing the song.
POTW will return after Deepavali.
http://raretfm.mayyam.com/stream/pow07/kannanai.rm
