In live shows, SPB used to do his own improvisations at the end of the song to end with a flourish. His voice would never waver no matter what pitch he sang in. SPB’s voice may not have been very unique, but his voice quality was. To me, Sankarabharanam in 1980 and Payanangal Mudivathillai in 1982 were landmarks in SPB’s career which elevated him from being called a good singer till then, to a great singer. If one were to use millennial lingo, SPB kills it. The texture of SPB’s voice for each of these songs is different. Not just in terms of genre, even the emotions conveyed in each of the songs are different. And other gems like ‘Thogai Ilamayil’, ‘Mani Osai Kettu Ezhunthu’, ‘Saalai Oram Solai’ and finally the pathos filled song - ‘Vaigaraiyil Vaigaikariyal’.Īll these songs in the album - of which some are solo acts - are of SPB. In between, you have the evergreen classic ‘Ilaya Nila Pozhigirathu’ which is a melody in the western classical mould.
At the other end, you have a song like ‘ ‘Hey Aatha Aathorama’ which falls in the genre of a typical dappankuthu song. On one end, you have the song ‘Raaga Deepam’, a classical number based on the raga Hamsanandi with a grand aalaap right at the beginning. I must add here that Payanangal Mudivathillai is also a film that showcases Ilaiyaraaja’s range as a composer, and it is with him that SPB had the best of partnerships. Though there are many, if I have to pick one album of SPB to demonstrate his variety and versatility, it will be Payanangal Mudivathillai, a film with a singer as the protagonist. But unless told so, anyone who had the opportunity to listen to the thousands of songs he sang will never believe that he did not have a classical music background and that all his singing was self-made. So, genes did play a role in shaping SPB as a singer.
As a child, he did not learn any form of classical music, though he had the opportunity to learn from his father, who was a Harikatha exponent. This probably came from the belief SPB had, that he was indeed blessed and gifted.īy his own admission, SPB was not a trained singer. For all of them, SPB was a role model not just for the music but also for the way he conducted himself with utmost humility. Almost all the orchestras of those days had one singer who tried to sing SPB’s songs in his voice. Between the ‘70s and ‘90s in Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, if budding male singers had an inspiration, it was only SPB.
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