Ananda Shankar - Snow Flower (1970)

Ananda Shankar - Snow Flower (1970)

Gran representante de la música india Ananda Shankar ha sido una de las máximas figuras del país por los últimos 40 años. Disfruten.

Ananda Shankar

Este músico indio, sobrino del renombrado sitarista Ravi Shankar. se caracteriza por haber fusionado el rock con la música india tradicional.

Tras haber tocado con artistas contemporáneos como Jimi Hendrix, en 1969, firmó un contrato con Reprise Records, compañía discográfica con la que editó, en 1970, su primer álbum de título homónimo, donde hace versiones de temas muy conocidos como Light My Fire del grupo The Doors y Jumpin' Jack Flash de The Rolling Stones. Este álbum consiguió un gran éxito de crítica y ventas dándole a conocer en todo el occidente.

Como curiosidad, les cuento que Ananda rechazo la petición de Jimi Hendrix de grabar un álbum juntos, alegando que esa no seria su propia música.

Ananda Shankar (1970)

Tomado de:

http://sonatmystica.blogspot.com/2011/06/ananda-shankar.html

http://digitalmeltd0wn.blogspot.com/2008/08/ananda-shankar-ananda-shankar.html

http://whatsinmyipod.blogspot.com/2007/02/ananda-shankar-ananda-shankar-okko.html

Ananda Shankar, nephew of world-famous sitar player, Ravi Shankar, never quite matched the success of his uncle, but made a significant impact in the '70s psychedelic underground scene by combining Western electronics and Indian music to create instrumental jams and moody soundtracks.The son of famous classical dancers caught the show-biz bug in the late '60s and traveled to Los Angeles, where he played with rock musicians (including Jimi Hendrix) at the pinnacle of the psychedelic movement. At age 27, he signed a deal with Reprise Records who released this debut self-titled album; a fusion cult classic that combined Hindustani music with psychedelic.

The opener, the sitar- and Moog-soaked take on "Jumpin' Jack Flash," is performed perfectly, with every choice accent milked for maximum drama. Once the novelty of sitar-dosed covers of your favorite songs wears off, you really begin to notice how excellent the performances are on this record. Ananda Shankar manages to bridge the gap between kitsch and fine art on these tracks, from the opener all the way to the cover of "Light My Fire." One minute he is playing simple notes like it was taking the place of a guitar, at other times utilizing the full reign of the sitar's sound possibilities. The originals on the album follow an equally impressive path. The dreamy, hazy bliss of tracks like "Snow Flower" and "Mamata" is both meditative and slinky -- light melodies with twisted atmospherics and tweaked Moogs. The drum breaks in the gurgling "Metamorphosis" are worth the price of the album alone. For the most part, the album rarely strays from the East-meets-West formula, with the Eastern rhythms getting the short shrift and the focus relying on Western funk and pop styles getting an Eastern makeover. This specific track guides the listener through a space/water odyssey over the course of 13 minutes. It's a slow build that gains momentum as the music progresses and flashes of acoustic guitar help the rhythm along. The final track is a great mixture of folk guitars that takes the focus away from the sitar for once, instead incorporating vocals and a chorus that manages to lock into a repeated chant that is the unexpected highlight of the album. - Allmusic

Year of Release: 1970
Label: Reprise
Genre: Psychedelic, World Fusion
Bitrate: 320kbps

Pass: felgutico
Track List:
1. Jumpin' Jack Flash
2. Snow Flower
3. Light My Fire
4. Mamata (Affection)
5. Metamorphosis
6. Sagar (The Ocean)
7. Dance Indra
8. Raghupati