(by Kailasham)
Yuvan’s compositions, especially the background score, have gone to serve as the backbone for an impressive array of movies that released in the 2001-2011. These pieces burnished the names of the movies into the audience’s consciousness and contributed to building the image of the heroes in these pictures. Think what Thimiru, Sandakozhi and Thamirabarani did for young Vishal’s career. Manmadhan and Vallavan for STR’s. ThulluvadhoIlamai, KaadhalKondaen, and Pudhupettai for Dhanush’s. ParuthiVeeran and Paiya for Karthi’s. It is natural for artists to enjoy a special bond with certain fellow performers, with these special connections often pushing them to set new standards. What amazes me most about Yuvan is the sheer number of synergies that he enjoys with other artists in the industry. Think of his projects with Ameer, Vishnuvardhan, Venkat Prabhu, Selvaraghavan, and M. Rajesh, to name a few.
I find it natural to refer to Rahman and Harris Jeyaraj when talking about Yuvan because their scores are the musical bedrock of childhood and teenage. With ARR shifting attention to Bollywood, and later to Hollywood in the mid noughties, Yuvan and Harris ensured that for a golden stretch of 7-8 years, Rahman’s absence would not be felt too sharply. Rahman and Harris managed to follow their breakthrough albums with a string of sustained successes: Roja begot Gentleman, Duet, Kaadhalan, Karuthamma and Indira. Minnale and Majnu were soon followed by Saamy, 12B and KaakhaKaakha. With Yuvan, however, not only was his debut a low-key affair, even a hit like PoovellamKettupaar did not gain him enough traction in the industry. It took a Dheenafor him to really mark his territory, and there hasbeen no looking back since then. This story of struggle and late recognition first endeared me to Yuvan, the artist, and is relatively easy to relate to.

Yuvan’s brand of experimentation is one of a sustained slow-burn variety: think “Boom Boom” from Raam, “KannaiVittu” from Pattiyal, “Jalsa” from Chennai 600028, “Loosu Penne” from Vallavan, and “Thee Pidikka” from “ArindhumAriyaamalum”. It is also probably because these songs released in an era when only living things went viral, and even when they did, it was never good news. Judging from the response to “Rowdy Baby”, who knows how the above songs might have panned out had they been released a decade later.
Scarcely had anyone in the Tamil film industry used the concept of remixes to such great effect, adding pep while retaining the soul of the original. His latest addition to this list, “Per Vechaalum”, is another testament that he remains the undisputed master of the remix territory.
Playing the anchor to a huge chunk of Yuvan’s melodies is the Zen-like lyricism of the late Na. Muthukumar. It would take a whole another article to describe what NM means to Yuvan fans, and I would like to refer interested readers to a small piecethat [Note to editor: Here is the full URL:https://kailasham29.blogspot.com/2016/09/in-memoriam-na-muthukumar.html] I had written to overcome the shock of his untimely demise. The shock-value of Yuvan’s tunes, combined with the staying power of NM’s words made them an irresistible combo. “Pesugiraen” from SathamPodathey and “OruNaalil” from Pudhupettai deserve to be bottled and sold over the counter at pharmacies.
Here is praying for the man’s good health, and wishing for many more great albums.
vijay
September 21, 2021
yedho, yuvan paadama irundha sari. The more he sings, the more auto-tuner/pitch correction software companies would be tempted to hire him to beta-test their next versions before release.
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Jeeva Pitchaimani
September 21, 2021
Elaame okay. Per vechaalum remix la Yuvan oda contribution ennadhu ? Pardon me if my question is ridiculous. Enaku music sense illa nu solluvaanga . So I just want to know.. what did Yuvan do to the old song to make it better? Does it really sound better than the old one ? What was the whole point ?
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Voldemort
September 21, 2021
Pesugiren is a lovely song, but I guess it never got the attention it deserved.
Also, you have missed 7G. What a magnificent album that was! Ninaithu Ninaithu was the Channa Mereya of those days 😛 The piano and sax prelude in the beginning of the song itself evokes so much pathos, and combined with the fantastic lyrics, it makes me mist up every single time. Apart from Ninaithu also, 7G had many beautiful songs – Kana Kaanum Kalangal and the BGM is a triumph. Yuvan’s best album IMO.
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Anand Raghavan
September 21, 2021
7G BGM was almost same as Johny BGM.
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anonymousviolin20
September 21, 2021
@Jeeva:
It seems like Yuvan’s only contribution to the song is to re record the arrangements in higher quality. The actual notes in the arrangements are the same. He didn’t change the vocals either. Personally, while I do appreciate the higher quality, I don’t see why this should even be called a remix when his own creativity didn’t really come into play.
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Madan
September 23, 2021
Yup, this is more like a modern rerecording of the song with the original vocals retained. That said, this is probably the only kind of remix that Saar would give his blessings too (though he did seem to appreciate the Thaikkudam Bridge interpretation of Om Sivoham).
As for U1, in my upcoming book on film music, I write in the end, in somewhat more polite words, that the boredom that Harris and U1 induced in me finally drove me away from film music and to seek out new adventures in the world of Western music. So I should be thankful to the both seeing as Western turned out to be such an endless treasure trove of music for me.
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Madan
September 23, 2021
I like the abbreviation U1. It evokes U2 and the vocals of U1 and Bono have certain similarities.
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Anand Raghavan
September 23, 2021
@Madan : Did Anirudh/Santosh/GVP rekindle the interest or is it a point of no return as far as film music is concerned ? 🙂
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Macaulay Perapulla
September 23, 2021
“As for U1, in my upcoming book on film music, I write in the end, in somewhat more polite words, that the boredom that Harris and U1 induced in me finally drove me away from film music and to seek out new adventures in the world of Western music. ”
Congratulations Madan! Excited to lay hands on your book.
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Madan
September 23, 2021
Macaulay Periapulla : Thank you. Self publish only. I have no idea what is the scene in publishing post covid but I am sure it’s grim. So just going ahead and rolling it out myself. I have a lot of flexibility unlike when I wrote novellas for Kindle contest so this time I hope the presentation of kindle and paperback both will be more than acceptable.
Anand Raghavan: I do like some of Santosh’s stuff. But you guessed correctly. It’s out of my orbit now. Once in a while, I come across good songs in spaces like these and I will listen. Especially as I am much more patient and open minded NOW than my twenty year old self who wrote off U1 and Harris. But it’s just been much easier to keep discovering more and more Western stuff I like so I am not emotionally invested in current film music goings on unless, well, it’s a Raja or Rahman play and selectively based on the project they are working on at that.
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Jayram
September 23, 2021
Looking forward to your book, Madan. Will it be available outside India?
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Sanjay Shankar (@sanjayshankar)
September 23, 2021
In spite of his many brilliant compositions, I think he is going to be remembered for his atrocious renditions ruining many a song. Of late, it has become absolutely unbearable. I’ve loved some of his songs. ‘Iragai Pole’ from ‘Naan Mahaan Alla’ and ‘Kadal Raasa’ from ‘Maryan’ come to mind. Most of the others, I just skip immediately. If ARR and Harris normalized the mispronunciation of lyrics, Yuvan has taken it to a whole another level. I don’t think Santosh Narayanan would have sung this many songs without Yuvan already taking us to that ‘how much worse can it get?’ state of mind.
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Madan
September 23, 2021
Jayram: As long as Amazon permits, yes, it will be available outside India.
Sanjay Shankar: “I don’t think Santosh Narayanan would have sung this many songs without Yuvan already taking us to that ‘how much worse can it get?’ state of mind” – Hahaha
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Yajiv
September 24, 2021
@Madan: This is super cool! Congrats on the upcoming ebook. Please drop us a note on this blog when it releases. Hope to get some of your musical gyan via osmosis.
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Voldemort
September 24, 2021
Congratulations and good luck for the book, Madan. Have been a fan of all your writings. The Gamestop – demonetisation article in particular was fantastic, insightful and the best that I came across on the topic.
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Voldemort
September 24, 2021
7G BGM was almost same as Johny BGM
I’d only heard Johny’s songs, hadn’t heard the BGM or watched the movie. Heard it on youtube now and yes it is so strikingly similar! Thanks!
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Madan
September 24, 2021
Yajiv: Thanks! Yes, will certainly leave a ‘notification’ when I release it.
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Madan
September 24, 2021
Voldemort : Wow, thank you!
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Karthik
September 26, 2021
Congratulations, Madan!
Your analyses of music— film and otherwise, have always been great to read! Look forward to reading the book.
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Madan
September 26, 2021
Thanks Karthik! Will certainly post an update when it’s out.
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