Surinder Kaur
"The Nightingale of Punjab," Surinder Kaur was her generation's premier interpreter of Indian folk music. Born November 25, 1929, in Lahore, the capital of the then-undivided state of Punjab, Kaur was one of eight children. At the age of 12, she and older sister Parkash together studied classical music under Muslim master Inayat Husain and Hindu master Pandit Mani Parshad, ultimately conquering the complexities of the complete Indian musical scale with a command virtually unmatched by their rivals. Kaur made her professional debut on Radio Lahore in August 1943, and the following year she and Parkash cut their first duet, "Maavan Te Teeyan Ral Baithiyaan," for the HMV label, emerging as superstars across the Indian subcontinent.
Following Punjab's 1947 partition, Kaur and her parents relocated to Delhi, later settling in Bombay. There she began working as a film industry playback singer, and for the 1949 film Shaheed recorded one of her most memorable hits, "Badnam Na Ho Jaye Mohabbat Ka Fasaana." Upon returning to Delhi in 1942, Kaur married Joginder Singh Sodhi, a university literature professor who guided her career in the decades to follow. "He was the one who made me a star," she later recalled. "He chose all the lyrics I sang and we both collaborated on compositions." Together Kaur and Sodhi wrote such classics as "Chan Kithe Guari Aai Raat," "Lathe Di Chadar," "Shonkan Mele Di," and "Gori Diyan Jhanjran Sarke-Sarke Jandiye Mutiare" -- they also served as the public face of the Indian People's Theatre Association, an arm of the Indian Communist party, spreading messages of peace and love to the most remote villages of East Punjab.
In all Kaur recorded more than 2,000 songs, among them duets with Asa Singh Mastana, Harcharan Grewel, Rangilla Jatt, and Didar Sandhu. Although her life and collaboration with Sodhi was cut short upon the educator's death in 1975, she continued the family's creative tradition via duets with their daughter Dolly Guleria and granddaughter Sunaina, culminating in the 1995 LP The Three Generations. In 2006 a prolonged illness prompted Kaur to seek treatment in the U.S. -- she died in a New Jersey hospital on June 15 at the age of 77.
© Jason Ankeny /TiVo
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Akhiyan Ch Tu Vasda, Vol. 2
Asa Singh Mastana, Surjit Khan, Surinder Kaur
World - Released by Saregama on Dec 1, 2010
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Luti Heer Ve Gaman Ne
Surinder Kaur, Asa Singh Mastana
World - Released by Saregama on Jul 17, 2002
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Virsa, Vol. 2
Harcharan Garewal, Surinder Kaur, Jasbir Kaur
World - Released by Saregama on Dec 1, 1988
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Tribute to Surinder Kaur, Vol. 2
World - Released by Saregama on Jan 1, 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Folk Music of Punjab, Vol. 1
Surinder Kaur, Asa Singh Mastana, Hazara Singh Ramta
World - Released by Saregama on Sep 15, 1995
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Suie Ve Suie
Asa Singh Mastana, Surinder Kaur, Prakash Kaur
World - Released by Saregama on Oct 14, 1995
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mainu Heere Heere Akhe (LoFi Flip)
World - Released by Saregama on Jul 8, 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Kala Dooria (Lofi Beat)
World - Released by Saregama on Jan 18, 2024
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Ek Meri Akh Kashni - The Versions
World - Released by Saregama on Apr 18, 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Duet Songs from Punjab, Vol. 3
Asa Singh Mastana, Surinder Kaur
World - Released by Saregama on Mar 28, 1985
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Do Pal Beh Ja Kol Ve (Electronic Mix)
World - Released by Saregama on Jun 12, 2023
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Luti Heer Ve Gaman (Chill Flip)
World - Released by Saregama on Jun 15, 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Chan Kithe Guzari (Synth-Pop Mix)
World - Released by Saregama on May 18, 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Motor Mitran Di (Trap Beat)
Surinder Kaur, Harcharan Garewal
World - Released by Saregama on Jul 16, 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Chan Kithan Gurjaari Raat Ve
World - Released by Music Pearls on Mar 23, 2022
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Bhabho Kehndi E Singha (Chill Flip)
World - Released by Saregama on Jul 6, 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Tribute to Surinder Kaur, Vol. 1
World - Released by Saregama on Jan 1, 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Madhaniya (Chillwave Mix)
World - Released by Saregama on Jun 22, 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Ek Meri Akh Kashni (Chill Trap)
World - Released by Saregama on Jun 28, 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Madhaniya (Electronic Mix)
World - Released by Saregama on Jun 13, 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo