Call of the Valley

1001 Albums to Listen To: album 103

How do I even review something like this? I am very unfamiliar with this style of music, only having heard it's influence in modern music styles rather than full-on classical Indian on it's own. I have to say though, it's absolutely wonderful.

The main portion of this record tells the tale of a young lad's journey from his home, to Kashmir. This is done entirely through instrumental music, and using various styles of raga to convey the parts of his journey and the settings as well. I'm sure if I were more well-versed in traditional Indian music I could point this out more effectively and really appreciate the finer details that went into the compositions, but as I am a mere ignorant westerner, I can only comment on how amazing it sounds.

Guitars, flute, santoor and tabla make up the sounds on this LP, and they all come together to produce wonderful timbres and textures that captivate the ears as well as the soul. One aspect of the music I found to be very refreshing was it's timelessness. It did not feel like I was listening to music from the 60's, nor did the recording quality indicate that it was recorded more than 50 years ago. It is truly a wonderful work of art.

If you can find a way to listen to this original recording from 1968 I would urge you to. It seems the only versions on streaming are done by different musicians recorded at a later time. I can't speak for the quality of those performances, but if you can find the CD of this for sale (or heck, even the vinyl) please give it a shot. You haven't heard anything quite like this before.

3. Enjoyable, but it would take many listens to be able to discern it from others of the same genre.

I don't feel qualified to opine on this record, as I don't have enough exposure to its genre. However, I can say the album's soundscapes are lush and beautiful, and the masterful guitar playing feels cathartic and deeply atmospheric.

7/10 [KEEP]

Gentle, pretty, unremarkable.

Wiki meldt dat Dylan, Beatles en Byrds fan zijn van het album. Nou lekkere reclame...Die scoren bij mij gemiddeld 1,9 sterren per album...

Maar goed; dat ze fan zijn, betekent niet dat we het met hun muziek kunnen vergelijken. En los van wat Aziatische invloeden op een nummertje hier en daar staat dit natuurlijk ver van de Europese pop. Zo ver, dat het totaal niet in dit lijstje hoort. Het lijstje heet nou eenmaal geen "1001 favoriete albums van zeurende zangers".

Daarmee is een beschrijving of reactie van mij als leek op dit muziekvlak simpelweg waardeloos. Ik kan het er bij houden dat het voor mij vergelijkbaar is met eerder voorgeschotelde Indische klanken, die zogenaamd verwesterd zijn, omdat er een een westers instrument bij zit. Ik schat toch in dat het niet zo is dat het album van Cornershop in India in hun 1001 albums is beland, omdat er een dholal en een sitar zijn gebruikt...

Het aantal sterren is wel weer goed vergelijkbaar met het aantal sterren van de fans van dit album.

First listen. It’s a cool morning and I’m floating through the river in my canoe. I am surrounded by mountains. I am small.

I listened to a version that is on Apple Music. I hope it’s the same thing.

It wasn’t the same thing. I found the correct one.

I’m back to floating through this valley and the mountains have returned. I am small once again.

mas eh CLARO que os noiado dos beatles eram fãs desse aqui
enfim, pelo menos as cordas aqui foram muito bem tocadas. é bonito e contemplativo. um pouco ambient demais pro dia de hoje, não me pegou mto não. mas eh bom pra quem gosta!!

For those playing on Apple Music, this appears to be the link to the proper version from late 1960s of the album, rather than the 2007 one that is linked (?made by one of the player's sons?)

https://music.apple.com/us/album/call-of-the-valley/1789340619

This was a pleasant meander through the Himalayas, with lots of recognisable Indian-type sounds, but still accessible for Western audiences. I can't say I'd be rushing back to listen to this, but if I decide to take up meditation and mindfulness, this will be my first stop. Although the last track took too long meandering and devolved into random Hindu noises that was approaching some kind of Indian jazz, but not in a good way. Might’ve been a 4, but drops down to a 3

Nice to have something not from the European and African musical traditions in the list. But this is quite unspectacular though.

I love traditional Indian music, so of course I'm enjoying this. I love the way the instruments interweave and shift between fast and slow passages, and the layers of rhythm that are provided by the tabla and dulcimer-like santoor. Although there's a guitar on it, it isn't there to water this down with European music ideas; I might be wrong here, but it seems like the guitar is occupying the same position as a sitar might on some of these pieces.

(You know, now that I think about it, I’m pretty sure that I have a copy of this record; the whole thing sounded familiar. I really need to dig back into my "world music" stuff.)

Myślę, że nie mam wystarczającego kapitału kulturowego żeby docenić tę płytę głębiej niż 'przyjemna muzyka z zupełnie obecego mi klimatu'. I nie wiem czy kiedykolwiek osobie z tej części Europy będzie to dobrze grało. Ale niedziele miło spędziłam!

I have every respect for those who have grown up with Indian classical music and are naturally attuned to its drones and melodic structures. But to my ears, while pleasant enough in small doses, listening to a whole album becomes something of a chore.

Like one of Pavlov’s dogs, I’ve also developed an unfortunate tendency to associate this kind of music with a mouth-watering Chicken Bhuna.

This was ok. Took me to another place a bit, but was mostly just 3 people diddling around. 3/5

Not the vibe

Sweet but I'm never going to revisit this

Very nice, ethereal, can see how it blew everyone in the 60s away. Can’t say it was the best active listening experience but nice to have on in the background.

I don't think this is a traditional album of songs. From what little research I did, this was a concept piece that was built on a loose narrative of a shepherd's day in Kashmir, moving from dawn to dusk. Apparently, the "tracks" aren't songs so much as they're ragas, which are traditional Hindustani classical music that ties specific ragas to specific times of day. So this isn't really so much of an album as it is a script for a day.

So what did I think? I think I think it's good but this is so far removed from my comfort zone and knowledge base, it's hard to know for certain.

Obviously difficult for me to judge on purely technical grounds, & I hesitate to admire Call of the Valley from the point of view that it happened to have a major influence on a bunch of white musicians (Dylan, Crosby, Harrison, McCartney). I can only go for aesthetic & somatic reasons, which I guess we should be going for anyway. Something along the lines of 'peaceful' & 'meditative' are the most evident descriptors, but one ought to add to that 'dangerous,' 'preparatory,' & 'slice of life.' Energized by the tranquility of a natural setting, the album is likewise a human story, & in this story I trace the outlines of a birth, a battle, & many bits of everydayness. Of course, it is no more than a feeling (or a strong suggestion) of coherent storytelling.

Great background music. Nothing to not like.

This is the kind of album I wanted to pick up the project for. Something I likely wouldn't have heard otherwise. It's brill to hear classical music from cultures so different to my own, and the music was really relaxing and pleasant.