Shankar Jaikishan: Ek Phool Char Kante / Iqbal Qureshi: Love In Simla (1960)

To the extent Shankar Jaikishan's 'Ek Phool Char Kante' is well known it will likely be for featuring actor/singer/Elvis-soundalike Iqbal Singh's 'Bombshel Baby' [sic], a track that would lend its title to Bombay Connection's superb compilation 'Bombshell Baby of Bombay' in 2006. What's interesting, apart from it being an ace early rock 'n' roll number with a wonderful swing to it, is that the words were changed from slightly suggestive 'Bombshell Baby of Bombay' on the record to the rather more pedestrian 'Beautiful Baby of Broadway' in the film. Why isn't quite clear; the aforementioned compilation's liner notes suggest "Perhaps the Indian censor board was wary of the explosive potential of the lyrics...". Similarly styled (and almost as fab) 'O Meri Baby Doll' was however deemed appropriate.

The other two tracks are nice too, especially Lata's lovely 'Banwari Re'.



There's more of the same to be found on Iqbal Qureshi's 'Love In Simla' [review]. Part rock'n'roll, part Latin ballroom, the lively 'Gaal Gulabi Kiske' wouldn't have sounded out of place on a Shankar Jaikishan score, and 'Dil Thaam Chale' proves how effective the sound of a train engine works as rhythmic backing, here with the added effect of getting stuck in my head for a few hours after every time I hear it. Both are great songs.

Two EPs of songs from this film were made (no LP was released at the time), unfortunately I don't have the other one.

Track listing, 'Ek Phool Char Kante':
1. Lata Mangeshkar: Banwari Re
2. Mohd. Rafi: O Meri Baby Doll
3. Mukesh: Matwali Naar
4. Iqbal Singh: Bombshel Baby

Track listing, 'Love In Simla'
1. Mohd. Rafi & Chorus: Dil Thaam Chale
2. Mohd. Rafi & Asha Bhosle: Al Baby Idhar Aa
3. Mohd. Rafi & Asha Bhosle: Love Ka Matlab Hai Pyar
4. Mohd. Rafi & Chorus: Gaal Gulabi Kiske


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Laxmikant Pyarelal: Karz (1980) / Iqbal Qureshi: Bombay By Nite (1970/1977)

I wouldn't normally post a soundtrack EP when I've previously posted the long playing counterpart (only the other way around) but this one is special. 'Karz' contains a track that for whatever reason didn't make it onto the LP, and what a track it is. 'Theme Music' is an exquisite instrumental, slow-burning and sexy with a distinct European sound, reminiscent of the themes Ennio Morricone made for Italian (s)exploitation movies in the 1970s. I adore it! Considering the EP also includes the two best songs from the soundtrack, the fantastic 'Om Shanti Om' in a long (if not entirely complete) version even, there's a case to be made for it being the release you primarily need.



It's only been a few months since I posted the original 'Bombay By Nite' EP; this is the subsequent one, released years later, as mentioned in the earlier post. To be honest it's very shabby. I've often bemoaned how they tended to truncate tracks for EP versions of Bollywood soundtracks; here they've taken that practise to a new low. Not content with fading out songs long before they end, they also start them anything from 20-40 seconds in; on 'Kaun Si Manzil Pe' it sounds so amateurishly random I thought it was the record skipping. And while I'm sort of glad to have the joyous 'Yeh Sham Mehkati Sham' on record, I'm gutted it's lacking its brilliant intro. Bah! (The video versions are more complete.)

Maybe I should look for the 78 rpms...

Track listing, 'Karz':
1. Kishore Kumar & Chorus: Om Shanti Om
2. Lata Mangeshkar & Kishore Kumar: Main Solah Baras Ki
3. Theme Music

Track listing, 'Bombay By Nite':
1. Mukesh: Baharon Ne Kiye Sajde
2. Suman Kalyanpur: Kaun Si Manzil Pe
3. Kishore Kumar & Sulakshana Pandit: Dheere Dheere Dhal Na Jaye
4. Krishna Shinde: Yeh Sham Mehkati Sham

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Laxmikant Pyarelal: Jaal (1966) / Iqbal Qureshi: Bombay By Nite (1970)

If you ask me, nobody in Bollywood did suspense in music better than Laxmikant Pyarelal. So it comes as no surprise that they're the ones responsible for the score to 'Jaal' [review], described by some as a Hitchcockian thriller. That said, these aren't their most dramatic of songs, even though you can hear traces of what the pair were capable of on the intro to Mohd. Rafi's 'Akela Joon Mai'. It's a gorgeous, hypnotic track, the best thing on the record. Lata Mangeshkar's 'Mere Zindagi Ke' and 'Rokna Hai Agar' are pretty too, if not quite as gripping. But considering I primarily bought this EP for its cool sleeve, I have no complaints.



Compared to Laxmikant Pyarelal, Iqbal Qureshi is a fairly unsung music director. Despite him being responsible for at least a dozen scores (granted, that's not very prolific by Bollywood standards) I can't remember ever having seen his name before. Which is a shame, at least if his work on 'Bombay By Nite' is anything to go by.

By all accounts an obscure film; it seems to have been made around 1970 (that's when this EP came out) but not released until much later (1976 or 1979; opinions differ). By then, songs such as 'Dheere Dheere' and 'Husn-E-Baharan Tauba' may have sounded a bit dated. To me they're great though; happy, lively and packed with fun. There's also a deliciously cool cabaret number that unfortunately isn't on the record, but – and this is where things get confusing – may be on one of three 78 RPMs (in the 1970s!), or on a second EP that possibly only saw the light of day in 1977. I'd love to see track listings for all of them.

A big thank you to long time MFT3F reader Deewani for invaluable input on this one.

Track listing, 'Jaal':
1. Mohd. Rafi: Akela Joon Mai
2. Lata Mangeshkar: Mere Zindagi Ke
3. Lata Mangeshkar: Rokna Hai Agar
4. Lata Mangeshkar & Mohd. Rafi: Mizaj Girami

Track listing, 'Bombay By Nite':
1. Kishore Kumar & Sulakshana Pandit: Dheere Dheere
2. Sharda & Chorus: Husn-E-Baharan Tauba
3. Mukesh: Baharon Ne Kiye Sajde
4. Mahendra Kapoor, Krishna Kalle, Sharda & Chorus: Khubsurat Badan

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