The much-awaited
"Alaipayuthae" song album was released in the city on Tuesday (22nd Feb).
A.R. Rehman, who had in the past given some of his masterpieces for his "Guru" Manirathinam is back with yet another great performance.
The first song on 'A' side of the album "Kaadhal Sadugudu" is a soft, love song sung by SPB Charan and
Naveen, where in some parts Charan sounds like his father, the renowned singer
S.P. Balasubramaniam. The second song "Snehedhane" begins with ARR
"Agmark" intro touch where a male voice (Srinivas) hums and the song proceeds with Sadhana Sargam rendering the rest of it. Being the best song in the album, it is sure to capture the hearts of the listeners.
Lyricist Vairamuthu continues with his Tinglish (Tamil + English) lyrics which add more punch to the medium. Special mention should be made about Sadhana Sargam who has sung the song pretty well without any trace of a Hindi accent. The third track is
"Yaro Yaradi" sung by Mahalakshmi, Vaishali and Richa Sharma and is a folk track with a Rajasthani style aalap spread in between. The last track of A side "September
Madham" is a Latino style song in the voice of Asha Bhonsle and Shankar
Mahadevan. Asha, known for her inimitable style in rendering dance numbers, lives up to the expectations.
The B side of the album begins with "Alai Payuthey". This classical Carnatic song, rendered by Outhukaadu Venkatasubba
Iyer, is sung in the traditional way with Rehman adding a DJ mix to it. The song is sung by Kalyani
Menon, Harini and Neyveli Rajalakshmi. The second song is a repetition of A side
"Snehedhane", the only difference being that Ustad Sultan Khan has added his Saarangi touch to it. The third song
"Evano Oruvan" has a strong Arabic flavour with Swarnalatha lending her voice to the song. The last track of the album is
"Pachchai Nirame" which poetically looks at various colours and their place in one's life. The song is sung by Hariharan and Clinton, with Hariharan once again creating a soothing mood.
Special performance in Mohana Veena by the Grammy award winner Vishwa Mohan Bhatt has been mentioned in the album, but one wonders which track contains his recording. There is a special expectation among the audience to see the visuals of the songs as
Manirathnam, after a long period, has joined hands with cinematographer
P.C.Sriram. The cassette priced at Rs. 50 and released by HMV is worth a buy.
