Reminiscing The Asha Puthli Era | Mr. Bongo Presents The First Official Asha Puthli Compilation Album

Asha Puthli born and raised in Bombay is a singer-songwriter. Her music largely sits somewhere in the space of cosmic disco, jazz, glam and soul. It also effortlessly molds in reminders of her Indian classical background, especially when she slips into those high-pitched vocals that are gorgeously sinuous.

Over the years, Puthli’s songs have been used in tracks by hip-hop artists, electronic producers, and even in grime beats. Her work from the ’70s and ’80s has been sampled and resampled by artists like P. Diddy, 50 Cent, Jay Z, the Neptunes and many others.

Asha Pulthi’s music has always always been considered ahead of its time. Her career started out singing in Mumbai’s jazz clubs, where she improvised with what would become a signature blend of jazz and Indian classical-style vocals. Mr. Bongo has come up with the first official compilation of Puthli’s work over the years - ’The Essential Asha Puthli' which is going to be out this June.

The collection features some of her most beloved songs like Space Talk, Ornette Coleman — What Reason Could I Give, Peek A Boo Boogie and Chipko Chipko. When talking about ‘Space Talk’ Asha says, “It’s had a life of its own”. The song starts with a cinematic choir, while cosmic chimes and a lithe bass line enter eventually. This symphony is soon topped with Asha’s distinctly smooth vocals. This song has been sampled in several hip hop songs, most famously in P. Diddy and Notorious BIG’s ‘The World Is Filled’.

During the 70s, talent scout John Hammond (who also had famously signed Bob Dylan) discovered Asha and sent her audition tape to free jazz pioneer Ornette Coleman. This was how she became a featured vocalist on his album Science Fiction and worked on his song ‘What Reason Could I Give’.

The song ‘Peek A Boo Boogie’ is from Asha’s multitasking days when she had to balance being a single mom and a songwriter with an album deadline. The song was written while playing hide n seek with her son. Her 1990s song ‘Chipko Chipko' was a raging cover of Michael Jackson’s Smooth Criminal. It was inspired by the Chipko movement, started by tribal and marginalized communities to prevent deforestation.

Browse our Asha Puthli records

Also read: Silk Smitha: The Marilyn Monroe of Indian Cinema