A tribute to old Hindi film music. Songs of the 30s through the 60s.

Singers

Rafi’s Centenary Special: 35 songs from 35 years (1946-1980)

March 19, 2024

Guest article by Sivanandam Palamadai as a tribute to Rafi with 35 songs in 35 years (1946-1980) in the continuing series of articles on Rafi’s centenary (24th December 1924-31st July 1980) (Songs Of Yore is celebrating 2024 as the centenary year of Mohammad Rafi. I heralded the year with his solos from A to Z. […]

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Mohammad Rafi from A to Z

January 1, 2024

Wishing the readers and their friends and families a very Happy New Year with Rafi’s centenary year celebrations (b. 24 December 1924, d. 31.7.1980) Mohammad Rafi is the undisputed most versatile playback singer of Hindi films. You think of genres – bhajan, qawwali, romantic, patriotic, ghazal – he could do all. There was another unique […]

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SN Tripathi Part 5 (post-50s): His best songs by other female playback singers

SN Tripathi with Geeta Dutt and Shamshad begum

October 19, 2023

Concluding the series on SN Tripathi with his best songs for ‘other’ female playback singers It is time to conclude the series on SN Tripathi after a comprehensive coverage of his multi-faceted talent in the Vintage Era (1949 and earlier) in Part 1 as a singer, actor, music director and dialogue and story writer; Part […]

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Best songs of 1942: Wrap Up 2

October 8, 2023

And the SOY ward for the Best Female Singer goes to? In my overview post of the best songs of 1942, I had mentioned that the ratio between male solos and female solos in the songs in which singers were credited was 1:2.55 in the year as a whole. I had included 84 songs in […]

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SN Tripathi Part 4 (post 50s): His best songs for Lata Mangeshkar

September 28, 2023

Continuing the series on SN Tripathi with a tribute to Lata Mangeshkar on her 94th birth anniversary (28 September 1929 – 6 February 2022) It is matter of satisfaction that after a reader noted the omission of SN Tripathi, I have been able to cover him in some detail, though late. I have already posted […]

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Vasant Desai Part 3 (post-50s): His best songs for Lata Mangeshkar

September 28, 2022

Continuing the series on Vasant Desai, his best songs for Lata Mangeshkar as a tribute to her on her 93rd birthday (28 September 1929 – 6 February 2022) Lata Mangeshkar would have been 93 today. This is her first birthday after she left this mortal world and this calls for a tribute to her. Coincidentally […]

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Rafi’s songs with some unrecognised composers

July 31, 2022

Guest article by Sivanandam Palamadai as a tribute to Rafi on his 42nd Remembrance Day (24 December 1924 – 31 July 1980) (Rafi was the most dominant male playback singer of the Golden Era of film music. Yet he remained an unassuming, simple-hearted person with malice to none. The stories of his kindness and support […]

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Duets (+) of Mukesh: With Male Singers

July 22, 2022

Guest article by Ahok M Vaishnav as a tribute to Mukesh on his 99th Birth Anniversary (b. July 22, 1923 – d. August 27, 1976) (Once SOY-veteran N Venkataraman remarked that there has been a post on Mukesh every year. If it was there, I or a guest author must have had something new to […]

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Nathli se toota moti re: Manna Dey’s Non-film Hindi Gems

May 1, 2022

Guest article by Ashok M Vaishnav as a tribute t0 Manna Dey on his 103rd birth anniversary (1 May 1919 – 24 October 2013) (Manna Dey has been described by some as an enigma among singers. That was a reference to his apparent defensiveness about his place among the contemporary playback singers, despite having the […]

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Book Review: “The Unforgettable Music of HEMANT KUMAR”

March 31, 2022

The Unforgettable Music of HEMANT KUMAR By Manek Premchand Pages: 441 First Edition: 2020 Blue Pencil, New Delhi (With study of his Bengali repertoire by Antara Nanda Mondal and Sounak Gupta) Salil Chowdhury once said if God wanted to sing, he would do it in the voice of Hemant Kumar. Lata Mangeshkar said about him, […]

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