It’s New Year’s Eve, and time to party. So here’s a random selection of 10 songs to set you in a dance mood. We chose a couple each from the 1960s and 1970s, but the focus was on the disco-driven era in the early 1980s.
1 Aaja Aaja – Teesri Manzil (1966)
This is a good way to begin a dance party. R.D. Burman used a peppy tune sung by Mohammed Rafi and Asha Bhosle. Dilip Naik was on electric guitar and the song had vibrant drums and alto saxophone too. Shammi Kapoor and Asha Parekh led the dance, swaying to Majrooh Sultanpuri’s words, “Aaja aaja main hoon pyaar tera, Allah Allah inkaar tera”.
2 Aaj Kal Tere Mere Pyar Ke Charche – Brahmachari (1968)
Music directors Shankar-Jaikishen came up with this extra-catchy rock n’ roll number which had smart electric guitar and saxophone. Rafi and Suman Kalyanpur were the singers, and the song was filmed on Shammi, Mumtaz and Pran. Lyricist Hasrat Jaipuri wrote, “Aaj kal tere mere pyaar ke charche har zabaan par, sabko maloom hai aur sabko khabar ho gayee”.
3 Yeh Jawani Hai Diwani – Jawani Diwani (1972)
R.D. Burman composed this song sung by Kishore Kumar, who used nonsensical words like ‘gili gili akkha’ and ‘bili bili’. Randhir Kapoor was seen following Jaya Bhaduri on a motorcycle. Anand Bakshi wrote the lines, “Yeh jawani, hai diwani, hat meri rani, ruk jaao jaani, dekh zara peeche mudke”.
4 Lekar Hum Deewana Dil – Yaadon Ki Baraat (1973)
A perfect party number composed by R.D. Burman, and sung by Kishore and Asha. It was filmed on a guitar-wielding Tariq with a young Neetu Singh dancing. Majrooh wrote, “Lekar hum deewana dil, phirte hain manzil, kahin to pyaare, kisi kinare, mil jaao tum andhere ujale, tarumpum lekar hum deewana dil”.
5 Om Shanti Om – Karz (1980)
Rishi Kapoor did a charming dance on this Laxmikant-Pyarelal number sung by Kishore. Words were by Bakshi. The song began with a stretch where the actor asked the audience, “Hey tumne kabhi kisise pyaar kiya, kabhi kisiko dil diya, maine bhi diya”. Addressing them as ‘Meri umar ke naujawanon” he continued with a long mukhda.
6 Aap Jaisa Koi – Qurbani (1980)
Composer Biddu teamed up with young Pakistani singer Nazia Hassan on this super-hit filmed on Zeenat Aman in a club, with Feroze Khan in the house. Lyricist Indeevar wrote, “Aap jaisa koi meri zindagi mein aaye toh baat ban jaaye, haan haan baat ban jaaye”. The song was one of the highlights of the disco phase of the 1980s. The other songs in the film were composed by Kalyanji-Anandji.
7 Saara Zamana – Yaarana (1981)
Kishore teamed up with Amitabh Bachchan on some brilliant peppy songs. This one was composed by Rajesh Roshan. Here Amitabh started off in a white suit then got into a lit-up dress inspired by Robert Redford in The Electric Horseman. Lyricist Anjaan wrote, “Saara zamaana haseenon ka diwana, zamaana kahe phir kyon, bura hai dil lagana”
8 Apni Toh Jaise Taise – Laawaris (1981)
This was another popular dance number by Amitabh, who had some characteristic steps. Sung by Kishore, it was set to music by Kalyanji-Anandji and written by Bakshi. The opening lines were, “Apni toh jaise taise, koi aise ya waise, kat jaayegi, aapka kya hoga janaab-e-aali, aapka kya hoga”. The song was both a radio hit and party hit.
9 Disco Station – Haathkadi (1982)
When it came to party numbers, music director Bappi Lahiri had some gems. This one was sung by Asha with chorus. The set consisted of a dance floor with a railway station theme. Reena Roy did a dazzling dance. Majrooh wrote, “O chhodo chhodo meri raahein, meri baahe aa, yeh hai pyaar ki hathkadi”, with the words ‘Disco station’ being repeated.
https://youtu.be/9fZ0UTAy75M
10 Koi Yahaan Aaha Nache Nache – Disco Dancer (1982)
The film Disco Dancer had huge Bappi hits like the Anjaan-penned ‘I Am A Disco Dancer’ and ‘Jimmy Jimmy’. But it was Usha Uthup who totally rocked on ‘Koi Yahaan Aaha Nache Nache’, a rehash of the Buggles hit ‘Video Killed The Radio Star. Faruk Kaiser wrote the lyrics and the ‘Awwa Awwa’ catchline was a rage. It was set as a group dance led by the outstanding Kalpana Iyer.
https://youtu.be/bAipM6942Xs
This could only be the beginning. The 1970s and 1980s had many dance numbers from ‘Dum Maro Dum’ to ‘Hari Om Hari’ to ‘Laila O Laila’ to ‘Jaawani Jaaneman’. Take your pick. The night is still young.
