There is no more essential music in the western popular tradition than the thing called the blues. “The Blues is the roots; everything else is the fruits”, goes the dictum. Jazz, rock ‘n roll, gospel and their myriad offshoots and sub-genres can all be reduced down to the simple and raw structure and sound of African American slave music.
To the extent that the subcontinent has been producing rock and roll bands since the mid 60s, South Asian bands have been playing the blues. You only need listen to some of India’s early garage bands, like the X’Lents cover of Born on the Bayou, to understand that the blues came here a long time ago. And yet, the blues as a sound or a style of playing, as opposed to a foundational influence, seems to be a relative Johnny-come-lately to India’s club scene. But like with almost everything else in India, the pace of change has picked up dramatically with the result that more than a few really good blues bands and musicians are spreading the news of this most elemental and addictive of sounds.
Soulmate
Sweet Little Angel
Sweet Little Angel (also known variously as Black Angel Blues or Sweet Black Angel) is best known for its interpretation by BB King, which is included by the Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame on its List of 500 Songs that Have Shaped Rock n Roll. Its original recorded version by Robert Nighthawk is also an iconic touchstone of American blues. So if nothing else you have to admire the courage of Soulmate, probably India’s best known and most successful blues band, for taking a stab at doing their own version. But as this clip demonstrates the Shillong-based band acquits itself with incredible aplomb. In front of blues-hardened American festival crowd no less!
Big Bang Blues
Sweet Bridge
With a keening lead guitar that tips the hat more toward the tone and smoothness of Gary Moore, than the brawl of Johnny Winter, Delhi’s Big Bang Blues is one of the newer of the recent crop of blues bands. Ipshita Roy’s vocals are something to love. She can belt it out like Koko Taylor, or as on this gentler track, hold the power in check to deliver a line with emotional intensity and even delicacy. Another thing to dig about BBB is the place in the line-up given to keyboards adding a classic Doors-like ambience to the ensemble. This track gets better with each listening, as you discover more and more layers to enjoy.
Saturday Night Blues Band
Spoonful
Kolkata is home to the Saturday Night Blues Band whose members are unabashedly devoted to interpreting the classic works of American blues giants from the Wolf and Elmore James to Muddy Waters and BB. And in what is clearly a trend for Indian blues outfits, up front leading the charge is a big voiced Bengali soul sister, Arunima Dasgupta. Where are all these talents coming from? Is there a Blues Belting school out there off of Chowringhee or what? She’s not alone of course as this clip of the band doing the Willie Dixon penned bar band standard shows. Guitarist Jayantha Dasgupta has had several masters for his guru including Robben Ford and has been on the music circuit for nearly more years than runs made by the entire Australian cricket team in recent Tests. Stuart Munro (bass) and Avinash Chordia (drums) bring a well polished groove to their sets, making them a truly enjoyable group to listen to.
Betty Soo, Doug Cox, Salil Bhatt and Cassius Khan
Still Small Voice
This line up is the very definition of "world": Korean-American, Indian, Fijian and Canadian. Doug Cox the Canadian slide guitarist and long time collaborator with Salil Bhatt (son of Pandit Vishwamohan Bhatt) here teams up Korean-Texan Betty Soo (a wonderful rock-n-roll name!) and the even more stupendously monikered Cassius Khan, tabla wizard and ghazal master for a delicious ditty. The Bhatts have a richly deserved place in the history of Indian blues both having recorded outstanding albums with Ry Cooder and Doug Cox respectively. But Cassius Khan, born and raised in Fiji and settled in Canada, is a new name to this humble scribe. His drumming along side the usual trap set adds a subtle but distinctively desi feel to the proceedings.
Soulmate
I Am
Another track from Soulmate is not misplaced simply because every blues fan in the world deserves to know about Tirpriti "Tips" Kharbangar, diva and femme fatale of the band. Just listen to her rip this tune to shreds and you’ll understand why Mr Santana himself insisted upon jamming with the band when he visited India three years back. “I love your music,” he is reported to have said. No kidding, Carlos!
Delhi Belly
Saigal Blues (Duniya Mein Pyar)
Finally, no synopsis of the blues of India would be complete without this fab reimagining of that most bluesy of playback singers, KL Saigal from the film Delhi Belly. Strip away the contemporary atmospherics (which are very nice actually) and you’ll hear strains of Blind Lemon Jefferson here. Who says Bollywood can’t do good stuff?
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To the extent that the subcontinent has been producing rock and roll bands since the mid 60s, South Asian bands have been playing the blues. You only need listen to some of India’s early garage bands, like the X’Lents cover of Born on the Bayou, to understand that the blues came here a long time ago. And yet, the blues as a sound or a style of playing, as opposed to a foundational influence, seems to be a relative Johnny-come-lately to India’s club scene. But like with almost everything else in India, the pace of change has picked up dramatically with the result that more than a few really good blues bands and musicians are spreading the news of this most elemental and addictive of sounds.
Soulmate
Sweet Little Angel
Sweet Little Angel (also known variously as Black Angel Blues or Sweet Black Angel) is best known for its interpretation by BB King, which is included by the Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame on its List of 500 Songs that Have Shaped Rock n Roll. Its original recorded version by Robert Nighthawk is also an iconic touchstone of American blues. So if nothing else you have to admire the courage of Soulmate, probably India’s best known and most successful blues band, for taking a stab at doing their own version. But as this clip demonstrates the Shillong-based band acquits itself with incredible aplomb. In front of blues-hardened American festival crowd no less!
Big Bang Blues
Sweet Bridge
With a keening lead guitar that tips the hat more toward the tone and smoothness of Gary Moore, than the brawl of Johnny Winter, Delhi’s Big Bang Blues is one of the newer of the recent crop of blues bands. Ipshita Roy’s vocals are something to love. She can belt it out like Koko Taylor, or as on this gentler track, hold the power in check to deliver a line with emotional intensity and even delicacy. Another thing to dig about BBB is the place in the line-up given to keyboards adding a classic Doors-like ambience to the ensemble. This track gets better with each listening, as you discover more and more layers to enjoy.
Saturday Night Blues Band
Spoonful
Kolkata is home to the Saturday Night Blues Band whose members are unabashedly devoted to interpreting the classic works of American blues giants from the Wolf and Elmore James to Muddy Waters and BB. And in what is clearly a trend for Indian blues outfits, up front leading the charge is a big voiced Bengali soul sister, Arunima Dasgupta. Where are all these talents coming from? Is there a Blues Belting school out there off of Chowringhee or what? She’s not alone of course as this clip of the band doing the Willie Dixon penned bar band standard shows. Guitarist Jayantha Dasgupta has had several masters for his guru including Robben Ford and has been on the music circuit for nearly more years than runs made by the entire Australian cricket team in recent Tests. Stuart Munro (bass) and Avinash Chordia (drums) bring a well polished groove to their sets, making them a truly enjoyable group to listen to.
Betty Soo, Doug Cox, Salil Bhatt and Cassius Khan
Still Small Voice
This line up is the very definition of "world": Korean-American, Indian, Fijian and Canadian. Doug Cox the Canadian slide guitarist and long time collaborator with Salil Bhatt (son of Pandit Vishwamohan Bhatt) here teams up Korean-Texan Betty Soo (a wonderful rock-n-roll name!) and the even more stupendously monikered Cassius Khan, tabla wizard and ghazal master for a delicious ditty. The Bhatts have a richly deserved place in the history of Indian blues both having recorded outstanding albums with Ry Cooder and Doug Cox respectively. But Cassius Khan, born and raised in Fiji and settled in Canada, is a new name to this humble scribe. His drumming along side the usual trap set adds a subtle but distinctively desi feel to the proceedings.
Soulmate
I Am
Another track from Soulmate is not misplaced simply because every blues fan in the world deserves to know about Tirpriti "Tips" Kharbangar, diva and femme fatale of the band. Just listen to her rip this tune to shreds and you’ll understand why Mr Santana himself insisted upon jamming with the band when he visited India three years back. “I love your music,” he is reported to have said. No kidding, Carlos!
Delhi Belly
Saigal Blues (Duniya Mein Pyar)
Finally, no synopsis of the blues of India would be complete without this fab reimagining of that most bluesy of playback singers, KL Saigal from the film Delhi Belly. Strip away the contemporary atmospherics (which are very nice actually) and you’ll hear strains of Blind Lemon Jefferson here. Who says Bollywood can’t do good stuff?