Did you become a Rafisaab fan before, or after the legend passed away? Options

[iqbal]

All Rafians, please vote - this should be interesting!

[simplefable]

All Rafians, please vote - this should be interesting!

i was fourteen when the Maestro passed away. May be i should have made a trip to Mumbai, my regret for life..and i literally grew up listening to His songs...the moments i cherish are when i used to keep a note book to jot down the song lyrics..as the Maestro sang them...and then to decipher them later..as i am not from north. Incidentally i am a leo too...:-)
May His soul rest in peace..

[Unregistered_050208]

I will add one more note to the post below that I had shared in my own thread: Now I know why I didn't pick up the taan / harkatein at the time. This was a romantic song and I was 14 - of course a 14 year old clown doesn't have the maturity or age in life to totally experience or appreciate romance - not till you're in your 20s. I just realized it now while listening to the song again - genius


I was born in Philadelphia, USA in 1985. Mohammed Rafi had regained his numero uno position in 1980 and sang some memorable hits for the superstar of that time – Amitabh Bachchan, who remained the most popular star till at least 1993. Lots of VHS cassettes of Amitabh movies – including the ones with Rafi songs, were laying around in my house in 1990s.

As a child, I immediately became obsessed with Salamat Rahe Dostana Hamara, John Johnny Janardhan, and Chal Mere Bhai. Instantly. At the time, I did not know that it was sung by a legend or who Mohammed Rafi was, and I certainly did not recognize any of the “random” people in the picturisation of John Johnny Janardhan. It was just the VOICE alone that a blank kid could naturally love. I’d repeatedly watch Dostana so I could listen to the opening song. The singer who started the song particularly stood out for me. The deep, intrinsic emotions in Mohd Rafi’s voice and melody were so clearly present that even a 7 or 8 year old child could appreciate. Isn’t that amazing!

I never investigated the singer or kept up with the movies as I got into my teens. Now I’m 13. My dad had lots of Lata and Kishore tapes (I enjoyed them) and lots of CDs of boring bhajans. There was one and only one CD titled “Golden Collection Rafi – Lata”. By now, I was aware that this Mohammed Rafi was very respected and considered a GREAT, legendary singer. I still did not know that this was the same singer whose voice I so loved as a child and the same one who sang those songs I mentioned! I listen to the CD with impartial expectations. The first song was “Tumhari Nazar Kiu Kafa” from Do Kaliyan.

The opening tune sounded nostalgic but catchy (today my favorite MDs are SJ). The opening singer appeared technically very sound. Yes, I deduced this as a child – even a half brain idiot can realize that Mohammed Rafi’s voice is clear, has superior tonal quality, is melodious and great! However, I felt he was singing the OPENING lines kind of flat. He didn’t seem to have the taan and harkatein of say, the singer that sang John Johnny Janardhan. Obviously I was too green at the time to deduce the subtleties otherwise I wouldn’t make such a terrible error in judgment.

Still, just by the first observation, I agreed that yes this singer deserved his respect, yes he sounded like a “great singer”. Having heard of of Mohd Rafi’s legend, I was so EXCITED to "finally for the first time" hear him myself and find out if he lived up to it. As a result, I remembered it only as a Rafi CD and forgot that my beloved Lata was the other singer. Even back then, I was very familiar with Lata Mangeshkar (as she was still alive so recency affect) and had loved her songs in the late 1980s. I actually was not familiar with her prime years or her work before 1980s – and so despite being aware of only her “twilight years” - I still loved and respected her. Isn't that amazing - it shows how great Lata was!

Now again, I was very green so I failed to realize that Lata was the female voice in this CD as she sounded different. I was unimpressed with that voice – felt it sounded too toned down. I kick myself in the head to this day for such a foolish judgment. Apparently, that first impression in the opening lines must have biased me because the greatness of the song becomes less and less subtle as it plays. Lata’s supreme voice and the taan / harkatein of both singers becomes crystal clear towards the middle and end (it was always there but less subtle). Today, I can detect her voice like a shark detects blood. When I was 12 or 13 I would not feel like doing my school work but my dad made me sit on the desk anyway. I would listen to music chup chaap. I couldn't use the tape deck in the wide open living room so I had to listen to CDs on the computer and this was the only CD besides those bhajans. So I “forcefully” listened to it for a few more times and began to “like it”. Foolish boy! Ironically, if today you were to throw me in the desert and offer only 1 CD to listen to endlessly - I’d ask for Rafi-Lata duets.

For another 7 years, I don't pick up. I watch the movie Naseeb once again and get reacquainted with my favorite childhood song. Realize the singer is Mohd Rafi. Realize that this was the same singer who sang Tumhari Nazar (how great Rafi is – he can adapt to the different times and the different values of music to still remain #1 – he sounded different in 1980 than 1969 – wah Rafi Sahab!). It is the taan and harkatein, among many others like his PERFECT, MELODIOUS VOICE, that immortalizes his songs. You can sense that even in a fun song like John Johnny Janardhan which is so full of emotions despite not being a romantic or a sad song etc.

Again, I don’t pick up with this until I’m 20 years old. I was watching an OK movie called Dil Maange More just because I was bored and it was laying around in my house. There is a Rafi song in that one from Mughal E Azam. Loved the voice once again. Now my interest has been sparked for the third time. This time I DON'T fail to pick up. Now I come back to college and youtube craze. People upload many Rafi songs so they become easily accessible. Since the past two years, I have been listening to Mohammed Rafi like crazy, have collected 600 of his songs (when I grow up I’ll collect ALL of them and buy an EXCELLENT stereo that does his voice justice). I cannot begin to tell you how much I love Rafi in this already long post. Now, I am OBSESSED.

Every time I watch an old movie, I look in the beginning for playback singer credits. When Rafi’s name is not listed – I get really sad and my prospects for the movie lower tremendously. My favorite actor is Dharmendra and his voice was Rafi so I really love that combination. My favorite director is Hrishikesh Mukherjee and unfortunately he had RD Burman give music for many of his movies and so I get sad knowing that my favorite director and singer will not come together often. The only reason that I like Chupke Chupke better than Sholay is because Sholay has one big flaw – no Rafi songs (yet he fitted Dharmendra so much better than the great Kishore Kumar who fitted Amitabh Bachchan better!).

I have to give YOUTUBE credit for getting me into Mohd Rafi and making his songs so much more accessible. Mohd Rafi just does not disappoint – his career is like a universe where there are more and more songs that listeners discover each day. I have probably heard only 1000 of his different songs if that – I still have another ~5000 to go. His versatility and ability are unmatched IMO. His voice is just right, very melodious, so full of emotions. His magic is enchanting. Only someone of his greatness could have remained on top for 4 different decades. He may have had lean years from 1970-1976 but he returned to #1 and only he could have pulled it off against the Kishore wave. Surprisingly, some of my favorite Rafi songs are from the year that was supposedly his leanest – 1973. Aaj Mausam Bada Bhaiman Hai, Teri Bindiya Re, Chura Liye, Yaadon Ki Bharat, Deewano Hai Deewano are my favorites! If that was his “lean” year – then how do you measure his best? This man just never disappointed – he was even a great human being whom everyone loved!

Even today, sometimes I’ll have to listen to a song 7 or 8 times (and sometimes instantly) before I love it. The reason for it is this: even though classic songs are immortal, they are a little different. Surely you can’t ignore 40 years just like that. So the listener may need a little bit of time to adjust to it.” I also think it takes time to fully realize just how great Mohammed Rafi was. The chaps from older generations have an advantage over me in that they did not have to deal with the "noise" and "distractions" of inferior music standards today and the garbage like rap music and such in the USA. Doesn't matter - even a child can see the sun through all that.