The Golden Era of Dr.IR and Dr.SPB

[Sureshs65]

(Time to keep my mouth shut and not state here that I haven't heard 'Raajathi Raja Un Thandhirangal' more than once or twice!!! illena pichichiduvaanga pichi)

[Plum]

Thevar Magan - my first as a firm kamal camper.( Mmkr was in the trigger phase.) Shaded only by Hey Ram among Kamal movies, and Udhiri Pookkal in TF history. Earlier in the year, Annamalai was the final thalai-muzhukku from opp. camp, and having entered college, away from the influence of sandiyar son, head of the school rajini camp, beginning of the long walk away from RK camp. With the zeal of a new convert and the inside knowledge of the emotional weak points of edhiri camp, collegela edhiri camp-ai dhwamsam dhaan. And as if to facilitate, Rajini released Pandiyan...luckily, ours was a non-violent college so vaai dhaan mooladhanam - brawn had no role play. Illaina hub-la vijay fans-ai bait panna uyiroda irundhirukka maatten - avlo veRi thAkkudhal of edhiri mugaam.

[app_engine]

#349 நடந்தால் இரண்டடி
(செம்பருத்தி, 1992)

'nadanthAl iraNdadi' from semparuththi

Very sweet SPB number with the necessary ingradients one expects from IR - lovely melody & sugamAna pinnaNi isai (note - tablA). I'm oblivious to the thaththuvams in most IR songs and so the lyrics are not paid any attention. As long as they are neither irritable nor jarring to the ears, I'm ok with them

The first time I heard this song was during a visit to Chennai around the time this movie got released. They showed another song on oliyum-oLiyum which had sea waves on screen and I enquired my cousin (who had been written about a lot in this thread during earlier posts) about the movie / songs. He had and played the cassette. This song stayed in my mind and none other at that point of time. I loved this number instantly!

Sometime later, one of our senior engineers at workplace was talking a lot about another song from this movie that he loved. He was insistent that I pay attention to it. So much so that he recorded the prelude of that song on EPROM chips as the "music on hold" for the PABX in our workplace. (And, he was not a very proclaimed IRF while I was). Feeling embarassed, I decided to give the song a listen the same day and he gave me the cassette. I loved the prelude then but didn't care for the rest of the song. It was years later that I somewhat liked that SJ-Mano number (nilAkkAyum nEram saraNam) and played many times during drives.

I've never had a chance to watch this debut movie of Roja (wife of the director of this movie - R K Selvamani, a proclaimed HCIRF) who is a small-time politician in AP now. Possibly the debut for Prashanth (s/o Thiyagarajan) as well.

[Plum]

No no - Prashant debuted with vaigaasi porandhaachu under Deva's baton. It was Roja's debut alright. RK Selva acquired Roja with this movie but lost his hit-producing capacity forever. Everything fine with the album - barring the assault of Nagoor Babu on our ears, ably assisted by veteran assaulter Bhanumathy. Despite this double barrel attack, Chitra and Raja save sembaruththi poovu, a measure of their talent. What a cruel joke - 4 of the best songs to faramu's friend and 1 vengala kiNNam to Balu. What was IR thinking?

[Bala (Karthik)]

Chalakku chalakku sEla - the best song in the album. Mano is not bad in it, is he? In fact, he is good :isitjustme:

[app_engine]

nanRi Plum, for the Prasanth debut info

Got some more vetti time today and let me post another 1992 hit (that may not have too many supporters to be voted for #366)...

[Bala (Karthik)]

Blasphemy alert: Rajadhi raaja un thandhirangal - the 2nd charanam spoils it (percussion)

[app_engine]

#350 கொட்டுக்களி கொட்டு நாயனம் கேக்குது
(சின்னவர், 1992, சித்ராவுடன்)

'kottukkALi kottu' from chinnavar, with KSC

Very enjoyable and melodious song from the Prabhu movie. Both SPB & KSC in excellent form making the song so sweet. IR lets the orchestration part simple and mostly on a support mode and it goes well with such numbers. Best to listen in the bed in night IMO.

This movie has a significant song - andhiyilE vAnam - sung by Mano & Swarnalatha with that great special first interlude! My memory fails now - it was either 91 deepAvaLi or 92 pongal that DD had a special program on rAsA. It featured many artists talking highly about IR. Mano was one of them and he sang a few lines of 'thooLiyilE Ada vandha vAnathtu min viLakkE' of CT and exclaimed 'engE pOnAlum indhappAttu dhAn sAr' and expressed his nanRikkadan to rAsA. There was BR who showed a mudhal mariyAdhai scene with and without BGM etc.

In that program, they showed the recording of that particular andhiyilE vAnam first interlude when giving the viewers a glimpse of what goes on in the theater of rAsA. They didn't play the song's lines however, and one had to wait to find out That piece alone got played multiple times and got firmly etched in my mind! I refused to have a TV during all my stay in Palakkad but this program was caught by a friend on VHS and he played to me on the same night, when we were invited to dine with them. It was a fantastic moment for me - in those days of no cable TV / no sat network etc, to have an almost hour long program on IR from Chennai tholaikkAtchi! (Available via KodaikkAnal antenna in Palakkad).

Those were wonderful times - whenever I visited the colony where my old bachelor home was, we had to visit more then a few homes before we could leave, as most were co-workers who insisted on giving some refreshment or other. It was around that time the 'Olaththumbaththu' was a rage in Kerala (pappayude swantham appoos - a Fazil / Mammootty / Shobana movie) and one could overhear that song being played in one home or other all the time. There was even a cover story on IR in manOramA that started with that pAdal varikaL. rAsA really riding high in 1991-92 - just prior to the time some vested interests succeeded in sidelining him.

Back to chinnavar - I love the kumbal fun song 'kadalOrakkavidhaiyE' also. I don't know anything else about the movie though (what story, hit or not etc)!

[app_engine]

Well, chinnavar song was the #350 - a small milestone

[app_engine]

For #366, the current nominations are :

rAjAthi rAjA un thanthirangaL (2.5) - Nerd, jai, app
muththu maNi mAla (1.5) -V_S, engine
sAmi kitta (1) -Plum

Let's see what other songs come up and who votes for them...