Radiodiffusion Internasionaal Annexe

♬ Maana Ho Tum

With a backing band called “His Bullets”, you would expect at least a hint of Spaghetti Western music. Unfortunately, that is not the case with this record.

The only thing I can tell you about Rakesh Nath & His Bullets, is that they recorded this single and an album called “Musical Ripples” that came out a year after the single.

If you have any further information about Rahesh, any of his Bullets, whoever Prem Gupta was or anything else about this recording, please leave it in the comment section below.

Catalog number 2308-3532 on Inreco of Kolkata, India. Released 1979.

♬ Sujan Majhi Re / সুজন মাঝি রে 

Senkar Kumar Sarkar was, to the best of my knowledge, from India. This is his sole recording, released by the Ashoka label – which was in business from as early as 1940 and lasted to the early 1980s. Yet, there are only a handful of releases listed on their Discogs page.  There must be more records out there…

If you have any further information about this artist or anything else about this recording or the record label, please leave it in the comment section below.

Catalog number 45-JCP 2058 / 7XLE 9782 on Ashoka Record of Calcutta, India. Released 1979.

♬ Seventy Time Seven

♬ Judgement Day

India is not the first place that comes to mind when you think about Christian Rock, but Christianity is the third largest religious group behind Hinduism and Islam. It’s only about 2.3 percent. But that percentage of the current population of India – roughly 1.4 billion – is still well over 30 million.

The band consisted of Kamy Melvani, Hugh Peters, Lionel Satya and Lawrence Vincent. Other than that, I have not found anything else about the band.

If you have any further information about this artist or anything else about this recording, please leave it in the comment section below.

Catalog number S/EMPE 101 on EMI of India, released 1981.

♬ Pyar Karne Wale

♬ Yen Bambai Shahar

Contrary to what the cover may convey, this is not a Bollywood Bluegrass album. Regrettably, that genre has yet to materialize. The banjo is only featured on one song on this album.

The only information I have been able to find about Jayanti & Honey, is that they released one other album – “Hits of 1987” – that was only available on cassette.

If you have any further information about these artists or anything else about this recording, please leave it in the comment section below.

Catalog number VBLP 1002 on Venus Records & Tapes Mfg. Co. of India. Released 1985.

♬ Aaji Mote Laagena Nida / ଅଜି ମୋଟେ ଲାଗେନା ନିଡ

I have always been fascinated by languages and fonts – especially non-Latin characters.

There are 22 official languages in India – which does not include English. This record was recorded in Odia – formerly known as Oriya – which is the official language in the eastern state of Odisha.

If you have any further information about these artists or anything else about this recording, please leave it in the comment section below.

Catalog number GRE 1152 on Gathani Records of Calcutta (now Kolkata), India. Released 1983.

♬ Thokar Pe

♬ Kuchh Khone Ko Dil

Mukesh Karia released three singles of instrumental versions of film songs.on the Gathani label between 1977 and 1979.

If you have any further information, please leave it in the comment section below.

Catalog number S/GRE 1079 on Gathani Records of Calcutta (now Kolkata), India. Released 1979.

♬ Aap Jaisa Koi

♬ Chhookar Mere Manko

How could I resist that cover, right?

I haven’t been able to find anything on Milan Deb. He did record at least one other single for the Senola label that was die cut to look like an apple. And with the exception of Deb’s two singles and one other LP of Bengali folk songs by Saratchandra Chattopadhyay, Senola had only been active in the 1930s, releasing 78 RPM records.

If you have any further information, please leave it in the comment section below.

Catalog number EQS 1005 on Senola of Calcutta – now Kolkata – India. Released 1980.

♬ Peete Peete Kabhi Yun Jaam

For years, I was under the impression that EMI – and its subsidiaries Angle, HMV and Odeon – had a monopoly on the music industry in India. That was at least until the Eighties when Polydor and Super Cassettes appeared on the scene. But that was what was going on in Bombay – now Mumbia.

Over in Calcutta – now Kolkata – there were a handful of small independent labels like Adlip, Ashoka, Bharati, Disco, EPEE Gramo, Gathani, Hindusthan, Inreco, Kohinoor, Mayur, Senola and Voice. Most of them only released a small number of singles.

All I have been able to find about Jagannath Dhar is that he released four singles for EPEE Gramo and one for Bharati – all Hindi film tunes. If you have any further information, please leave it in the comment section below.

Catalog number EPS. 193 on EPEE Gramo (Private) Limited of Calcutta (now Kolkata), India. No release date listed.

♬ Rote Hue

♬ Ye Mera Dil

While the Hawaiian steel guitar is the most prevalent when it comes to Bollywood covers, the “mouth organ” – or harmonica – is probably the second most common. I have seen a few records by other artists – such as Milon Gupta, Madan Kumar, and Saikat Mukherjee – but this is the only one I’ve ever seen by Pankaj Bose.

Other than steel guitar and harmonica, there are plenty of other instruments that have been featured on records of Bollywood covers: accordion – electric and acoustic, clarinet, clavioline, electric bass guitar, electric organ, mandolin – electric and acoustic, saxophone – alto and soprano, Spanish Electric guitar, synthesizer, violin – electric and acoustic, and whistling.

Catalog number KDEP 2101 on Kohinoor Record Co. of Calcutta (now Kolkata). No release date listed.

♬ Sukno Patar Nupur Paye

Kazi Aniruddha is mostly known – at least in the Western World – for his steel guitar versions of Bollywood songs. But to a large portion of the population of the Indian subcontinent, he was better known as the youngest son of Kazi Nazrul Islam.

Kazi Nazrul Islam was a Bengali poet, musician and revolutionary who pioneered poetic works espousing intense spiritual rebellion against fascism and oppression. His poetry and nationalist activism earned him the popular title of Bidrohi Kobi (Rebel Poet). Accomplishing a large body of acclaimed works through his life, Nazrul is officially recognized as the national poet of Bangladesh and commemorated in India.

This recording was to be Kazi Aniruddha’s last. He died in 1974, two years before his father passed away. As far as I know, this is the only recording Aniruddha produced of his father’s music.

Catalog number 7LPE106 EMI / HMV of India, manufactured & distributed by The Gramophone Company of India Limited in 1974.