Mondo Rama

Jai Uttal | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (February 12, 2002)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Narada
• ASIN: B00005Y1JO
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #144,394 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Narayana

2. Shri Krishna

3. Tomorrow Never Knows

4. Exile

5. shalom

6. The Whisper Stream

7. Bom Bolenath

8. Mood X

9. Kali Mata

10. Hot Button

11. Valencia Gardens

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Jai Uttal has been immersed in Indian music for decades. He traveled with the Bauls of Bengal, singing their chants, and he plays the dotar, a baby brother to the Indian sarod, which he studied with Ali Akbar Khan. His 1991 album, Footprints, essayed a heady, mostly instrumental world fusion full of atmosphere and improvisation, including a guest appearance from jazz trumpeter Don Cherry. For the most part, each succeeding album has found Uttal moving in the pop direction, emphasizing his vocals, in which he alternates emotional ballads in English and adaptations of the chants.

Mondo Rama continues the trend as Uttal rummages through the bazaar of global elements to enliven his songs, turning sacred chant into pop. From the opening "Narayama," with its vaguely calypso groove, soul choruses, and Beatles-esque guitars, to the turntable effects of "Sri Krishna," Uttal mixes raga-rock nostalgia with just a touch of ethno-techno ambience. At times, however, he falls short of similar fusions by singers like Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Shafqat Ali Khan, and Sheila Chandra. When his spiritual chants get undercut, rather than reinforced, by all the competing elements, his hymns can become trivialized, and the pop sounds can become forced and even clichéd. --John Diliberto

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wow! Where did this guy come from?, March 23, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Mondo Rama (Audio CD)

This CD blows my mind! I'm new to Jai Uttal and the Pagan Love Orchestra, but I'm an instant convert. Every song moves me in a different way. I'm no music critic and I dont know how to write a review, but I just LOVE this disc. Funk, jazz, Indian, Brazilian, Hebrew, folk, and just plain wierd.......but all from the heart. And it all goes straight to my heart.
Super cool!

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars I like Jai's music but was disappointed with Mondo Rama, December 23, 2003

By 

Steven Douglas (San Diego, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mondo Rama (Audio CD)

I have quite a collection of Indian classical and fusion music and have been a devotional singer for years. I also love Miles and SRV. I really love Jai's/Pagan Love Orchestra's muted trumpet/Miles Davis/devotional sound from parts of his first two realeases and think he is the best musician in the devotional genre. I understand what Jai is doing with Mondo Rama, but the result in my opinion doesn't work well. A perfect example is the Beatle's "Tomorrow Never Knows", one of my favorites. I was wondering when someone was going to cover this song, but was disappointed with Jai's attempt; it fell flat. Though I love both, I find the electric guitars and "phychedelic" sound very detracting from the devotional feel of his music. I think Jai needs a really good producer to show what he is capable of doing. He has all the components, but isn't really bringing them together as well as he could.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fun, Poignant, Fearlessly Creative Spirit Music, February 18, 2002

By 

"wildrosepath" (San Francisco, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mondo Rama (Audio CD)

Jai Uttal has nothing to prove. His God-given talent, lifelong musical training, and profound spiritual quests have given him one of our age's great voices. Jai could sing from the telephone book, and everyone in the room would get a joyful buzz (and find themselves charmed a little farther down the spiritual path).

On this CD, Jai has fun taking musical risks. For some, these risks may not fully succeed, but I believe that for most, the enthusiasm, creativity, and musical virtuosity which Jai and the Pagan Love Orchestra have poured into this effort will make each track charming and interesting. And when the risks do fully succeed, the results are spectacular. Track 3, Tomorrow Never Knows/Shivaya, looks impossible on paper: an old Beatles song, Hindu chanting, electronic effects, a worldbeat groove... The result? Mind blowing -- you'll play this track over and over. Track 7, Mood X, is a poignant ballad about the difficulty of trying to simply "live in love" in this crazy world.

To get an idea of what you're in for, there are 17 musicians listed in the credits, and they play instruments ranging from "turntables" to "Bengali mridanga." Jai himself plays the following startling array of instruments: dotar, harmonium, electric and acoustic guitars, keyboards, gubgubbi, ektar, kartals, sarod, BANJO (!), gopichand, flute, and harmonica. Skeptical about the banjo? It is used to amazing effect, sounding almost Japanese and forming part of some truly unique musical soundscapes.

Shining through all the music is the compelling purity and sincerity of Jai's voice. If you like that voice, and don't mind accepting a beautiful gift which happens to be a little different from the one you opened last time, you'll like this CD.

Peace to all.