Moheener Ghoraguli Shongbig Psychedelic Rock Folk Baul jazz Rare India Ep Record

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ONE OF THE RAREST INDIAN ROCK N ROLL RECORDS IMPOSSIBLE TO FIND ULTRA-RARE INDIAN SINGLE Absolutely fantastic rarity! in super condition VG++ with original picture sleeve In last 18 years of collecting I have come across this for the SECOND time & the first time with the sleeve! PLEASE LET ME KNOW IF YOU HAVE A BEST OFFER But seriously this is one record to die for collectors of obscure music :)) THANKS FOR LOOKING !! Moheener Ghoraguli (Bengali: মহীনের ঘোড়াগুলি, literally "Moheen's Horses") was a Bengali independent music group from Kolkata, established in 1975. Their music drew from wide variety of influences, including Bengali folk, Baul, urban American folk, and jazz. They sometimes described their style as "Baul jazz." Established in the 1970s during a period of stagnation in Bengali music, when commercial film songs were the dominant market force, the lyrics and music(and to some extent the compositions) of Moheener Ghoraguli with its leader Gautam Chattopadhyay were radically new. They were of a very personal or social nature, similar to the urban folk movement led by Bob Dylan in the 60s.Though they were almost unknown in their time, in recent years they have undergone a critical re-evaluation much like the Velvet Underground. The band disbanded in 1981. In the 1990s, Gautam released a compilation of "Moheener Ghoraguli Sampadito" albums, in which there were songs written and composed by Gautam Chattopadhyay himself, songs by contemporary artistes and a few old songs of Moheener Ghoraguli The albums Aabaar Bochhor Kuri Pore in 1995. Jhara shomoyer gaan 1996. Maya in 1998 and Khepar Gaan in 1999. Style This group was formed by a group of Kolkata musicians led by Gautam Chattopadhyay towards the end of 1974. Initially, they called themselves 'Saptarshi', and finally settled on the name 'Moheener Ghoraguli' proposed by Ranjon Ghoshal.The name was borrowed from a poem 'Ghora' by Jibanananda Das. In such a conservative climate, Moheener Ghoraguli, with its unorthodox musical compositions and strange choice of song themes, failed to gain much of a fan base. Its songs dealt with everyday topics—politics, poverty, injustice, revolution, love, loneliness, even begging and prostitution. Gautam Chattopadhyay had strong political beliefs; in common with many intelligent and idealistic young men of his generation, he was involved in socialist/communist politics during the 1960s and 1970s, and may have been involved in the Naxalite movement.[5] This political outlook was reflected in the musical output of the band. The type of music that Moheener Ghoraguli pioneered, though debatably, had the seeds of now very popular Jibonmukhi gaan or 'Songs of ordinary life'. Two decades after Moheen, singers like Kabir Suman, Nochiketa and Anjan Dutt took Jibonmukhi gaan to a new level of popularity, but the origins of the genre can be found in the songs of Moheener Ghoraguli. The band recorded with Western and Bengali folk instruments and also experimented in a variety of musical styles, some of which must have jarred with the sensibilities of its audience. Today, these compositions sound quite contemporary, leading many to conclude that Moheener Ghoraguli was indeed ahead of its time. The band freely borrowed elements from baul shongeet, the folk music of rural Bengal. It can therefore lay claim to be the original Bengali folk-rock band. Many bands since Moheen have adopted similar innovations. Music lovers and music makers, through the passage of time have looked up to his kind of music, his perception, deconstruction of music, his ideology, his madness when it comes to music. Gautam Chattopadhay or Moni Da, has a special place in everyone’s heart today. But what was so special about him? Today, every college fest you come across, Mohiner Ghoraguli songs like ‘Kokhon tomar ashbe telephone’ or ‘Prithibita naki choto hote’ are highly popular. But how well was this revolutionary and bohemian musician accepted during his times? “Whatever runs faster than time, faces social barricades.” Mohiner Ghoraguli, too, being way ahead of its time, was no exception. The revolutionary spirit of Bengal was at its peak during the 70’s. The Naxalite Movement, the struggle to curb decrepit power structure had resulted many enlightened youngsters to lose their lives. The entire city was bleeding with unrest. The jolt of the Vietnam War was very much prevalent. This was the juncture when the first ever Bengali band came into existence and changed the archaic structure of music. An era when young men were taking up guns, this group of youngsters resorted to music --- the strongest weapon of love and protest. The band was initially called ‘Saptarshi’. The name was later changed to Mohiner Ghoraguli inspired by a line of poetry by the eminent poet, Jibanananda Das. Gautam Chattopadhyay was primarily the front man of the band. He wrote the songs, played the guitar and sang them in an unconventional voice. Pradip Chattopadhyay, a brother of Gautam played bass and flute, Bishu Chatterjee, another brother played drums, Tapesh Banerjee was a vocalist, Tapash Das was another vocalist and rhythm guitarist, Abhraham Majumdar played the violin and piano while Ranjan Ghoshal was the music arranger. The division was never stringent. They would often interchange instruments on stage and create magic. The then audience considered them ‘hippies’ and often could not relate to the kind of music done by them. But they called themselves ‘ghoras’ who were ready to run many miles ahead of their times. Mohiner Ghoraguli was essentially a western band where a new genre of Baul-jazz was created. Their initial albums were Songbigno Pakhikul O Kolkata Bishoyok (1977), Ajaana Udonto Bostu ba Aw-Oo-Baw(1978) and Dreeshyomaan Moheener Ghoraguli. The band was truly unique in terms of music, instrumentation and metaphorical lyrics with significant imageries which were completely beyond the understanding of the orthodox Bengalis who were accustomed to mainstream adhunik gaan. Mohiner Ghoraguli primarily wanted to offer a firm voice to the modernity and the urban culture of contemporary times with a guitar as a symbolic cultural imperialism. However, the dearth of enthusiasm among the masses could not stop the journey of ‘ghoras.’ In 1979, the band played with several jazz bands from abroad where they presented their experimental approach of baul and jazz and made a mark. The band finally got disintegrated in 1981 but it had created a strong impact on the youth who were looking for a neoteric tide in the arena of Bengali music.