This being my first personal blog and my first post, I thought I'd keep a record of the origin of the blogs name. I couldn't help but dedicate the name of this blog to probably one of the best songs ever performed live. Clearly this is my personal view and, unsurprisingly, is the view of several people known to me around the world.
What Need Have I For This – What Need Have I For That – I Am Dancing At The Feet Of My Lord – All Is Bliss – All Is Bliss
This song takes me back to late 1998 when my brother had just returned from Singapore. He brought with him what back then seemed like unusual looking CDs. Today I can pinpoint them as the notable gold colored Imation brand CDs. The inquisitive little 8th grader that I was, I distinctly remember posing the inevitable question…"What kind of CDs are these man??"
He smiled in disbelief and installed this software on the computer. This was the first time I was exposued to the infamous Winamp. I cannot forget the face he made when I asked him what Winamp and MP3 CDs were. These were absolutely new concepts to me. All my brother could ask me was what generation I belong to. I don't think my brother has the slightest clue as to how this conversation had an effect on me.
Winamp was probably the most wonderful thing I had seen until then. Winamp to me was a god's gift as an alternative to the dastardly Windows Media Player. And when I was told that I could copy songs directly from this MP3 CD onto my hard disk, I thought my life was made! (Yes these were downloaded songs. Metallica...go suck an egg)
Winamp was probably the most wonderful thing I had seen until then. Winamp to me was a god's gift as an alternative to the dastardly Windows Media Player. And when I was told that I could copy songs directly from this MP3 CD onto my hard disk, I thought my life was made! (Yes these were downloaded songs. Metallica...go suck an egg)
What turned out to have a greater impact on me was the music that my brother brought on those CDs. I still remember the blank expression on my face when I was scanning through those songs. My brother said "Let me play you some GN'R…check out the quality man." My obvious reaction was, "GN'R?" He was beyond stunned at this point. And I can't even blame him!
But now, when I think of these MP3 CDs, I realise that they had some songs that I can never erase from my memory. I was forcibly made to listen to Queen, The Who, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Rolling Stones, Aerosmith, Eric Clapton, Guns N'Roses, Metallica, Iron Maiden, AC/DC, Scorpions and what not. My first reaction was YUCK! I would ask my brother to burn (literally) those CDs because I felt like they were nothing but garbage. I wouldn't be writing this today if my taste hadn't changed. Come to think of it, there is no way I could have not liked those songs. Today, those songs hold a very special place in my heart.
The same special place is shared by some songs on the another CD. There were songs by U. Srinivas, M. Balamuralikrishna, Lalgudi Jayaraman, N. Ramani, Zakir Hussain, Shivkumar Sharma, L. Subramanium and lastly, Shakti.
Shakti...the very thought of that very name makes float into musical nirvana today. Back then, I remember I saw how Windows explorer had clipped the name of the song .
What Need Have I For This – What Need Have I For That – I Am Dancing At The Feet Of My Lord – All Is Bliss – All Is Bliss
I laughed and wondered why anyone would choose such a big name. I would be lying if I told you it took me less than a year to appreciate this song. At first, I was attracted by the anger and energy of Guns N'Roses and the likes. Slowly, my taste in music changed. I wouldn't say my taste evolved because I respect all forms of music and musicians. This is the song that spearheaded the change in the music I liked.
I think one of the reasons I gave this song another try was because of November Rain (Guns N' Roses) and Coma (Guns N' Roses). I thought, if I can hear songs as long as 14 minutes from GN'R, why not give 29.03 minutes a shot. I wanted to know how they could play a song that long (little did I know how long Indian classical songs can last). I gave it a shot. I thought it was okay. I gave it another shot...and another....and another. I remember that day. I had heard this song around 9 times. That is over 4 hours of one just song. I was in love with this song. I was and will remain forever in awe of the solos and interludes by John (Guitar), Shankar (Violin), Zakir (Tabla) and Raghavan (Mridangam). The song struck the perfect note within me.
Given a chance to go back in time, I would gladly go back to July 5th 1975 at Long Island New York so I could find my way into this concert hall. In ways I cannot quite put down in words, this song has defined the way I am today. It has defined the the way I see music. It has allowed me to explore the wonders of the world of jazz, jazz fusion, world music and their derivatives.
29 minutes...1,7440 seconds of pure musical genius is what this song is to me. I dedicate the name of this blog, as irregular as my posts may be, to this piece of true art. Unfortunately, the video below seems to be the only version caught on video. It is still, a treat that is a class apart.
Enjoy this one-off video. It is a treat!
