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MUSIC
REVIEW : GODFATHER |
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Rahman
proves why he is the Godfather of music
“I’ll make you an offer you can’t
refuse”, said Marlon Brando famously in
the cult classic movie Godfather. Now, we aren’t
going to the extent of comparing K.S. Ravikumar’s
upcoming movie of the same name (starring Ajith
and Asin) with arguably the greatest movie of
all time (let’s reserve judgment after we
have actually seen the film). However, as far
as Rahman’s music is concerned, he really
has given a score you can’t ignore, if not
refuse.
But we are getting ahead of ourselves here…
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1.
Ilamai (Aslam, Tanvi, Shalini)
The album kicks off with arguably the pick of
the lot, Ilamai. This is a very feel-good, fast
paced track that immediately makes you shake your
head and tap your feet to its infectious beats.
No doubt, this is the track that the youth will
make their own, and I can just foresee it being
blasted off loudspeakers in cars and FM stations.
Rahman’s vintage style is evident in this
track’s catchy rhythms.
As it has almost become a tradition with all his
albums, we also get to hear a remix version of
the song by Blaaze. However, the rather-too-short
remix does not capture the magic of the original
– plus Blaaze’s technically “compressed”
voice in the background does get rather annoying.
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2.
Theeyil Vizhundathey (AR Rahman)
The
next song features Rahman himself lending
his voice to Theeyil Vizhundathey. This
very somber piece of music has heavy Arabic
influences, and Rahman’s modulating
voice appropriately captures the soulful
mood required for the song. But after a
few listens, you tend to have the nagging
feeling that you have heard a similar song
in his own Alaipayuthe.
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3.
Kaatril (SPB, Sadhana Sargam, Bharadwaj)
Kaatril is a track that features Sadhana
Sargam in a very polished performance, along
the incomparable voice of S.P. Balasubramanium.
This is one of those tracks that you might
just ignore on the first listen, but as
nearly always with most of his albums, this
song “grows” on you after a
while.
4.
Thothapuram (Kalpana, Sonukakar, Leon James,
Peer Mohamed, Ranjith)
Somehow, the song Thothapuram, on the flip
side, disappoints – it doesn’t
quite strike me as anything out of the ordinary.
We have heard songs of this nature a lot
of times before in Tamil films, and there
is nothing much to talk about. Of course,
it is fairly good, but you don’t normally
expect Rahman to give “fairly good”
songs.
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5.
Innisai (Naresh, Mahathi)
After Ilamai, the other song which is truly worth
Rahman’s name is Innisai. This song features
beautifully orchestrated Indian classical music,
given a Rahman-esque touch – and that is
enough to tell you that this track works big time.
The very feel of this song is grandiose and extravagant,
and I have the feeling that this track would sound
even better when watched on the big screen. Innisai
also comes with a remix adaptation, and surprisingly,
even the remix is wonderful on the ears.
6.
Kamma Karaiyil (Naresh, Sowmiya)
We
have Kamma Karaiyil as the final track of the
album. This is the sort of “street-smart”
song that we have seen so often in Vijay-starrers
– however, Vijay didn’t have the luxury
to have a genius like Rahman scoring his music.
Therefore, even though this genre is well-known,
the song is pretty nice to hear – familiar,
but refreshingly different. A great way to close
a memorable album.
The
trouble with reviewing a Rahman album is that
you always have to redefine what “good”
is. Impressive as that may sound, that’s
not always a good thing. We have seen the maestro
delivering some of the most unforgettable tracks
that Indian cinema has ever heard, so even when
he lets his guard down just a tiny little bit,
you feel the difference immediately.
So
even though Godfather is an otherwise superior
album, some purists may argue that it does not
reach the elite standard that Rahman has set for
himself. That may be true, but compared to the
kind of film music that is churned out week after
week, Rahman is still leagues ahead of them. This
year’s super success with the sublimely
beautiful Rang de Basanti showed that Rahman has
still not lost his touch – and now Godfather
proves it once again.
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