Rough Guide to Mohd. Rafi

Velvety crooner nonpareil from the Indian subcontinent, Mohammed Rafi was something of an Indian Fred Astaire. With his trained voice and stylish rendition, Rafi was the “playback” personality behind many a debonair Bollywood star of the 60s and 70s. This RG is a good representation of his varied and prolific work, which ranges from uptempo orchestral numbers to introspective traditional folk tunes.

Track 1: Loud cheesy opening with trumpets, bongos, drums, etc., then transitions into soft, syrupy ballad led by acoustic guitar.

Track 2: Slow, brooding kitsch

Track 3: Peppy, midtempo serenade

Track 4: Midtempo, melodious, quintessential bollywood

Track 5: Opens with a weird synthetic swirl. Duet with the irrespressible Asha Bhosale

Track 6: The only qawali on the album, Rafi shines (as does Asha Bhosale)

Track 7: Midtempo duet. The recording has strange “studio” echo

Track 8: Slow, American-soul inspired track, complete with strange oceanic sounds

Track 9: Slow to midtempo. Staple Bollywood fare

Track 10: Melodramatic tear jerker from 60s family flick.

Track 11: Breezy, slow-tempo duet with the legendary Lata Mangeshkar

Track 12: Mid-tempo folksy dance number with sarangi, tabla, bells, and male chorus

Track 13: Mid tempo, soft solo with tabla and other traditional instrumentation

Track 16: Mid-to-uptempo, peppy romantic solo (similar to #3)

My picks: 6, 11, 12, 16