Lucky Ali sings for himself. Yep, it’s true! I own (& treasure) all his albums, right from his very first, ’Sunoh’ to ’Sifar’ & then this beauty. And what’s evident to me after listening to his haunting melodies is that, Lucky Ali sings for the pure joy of it. He makes music because he loves making music. Like he’s just picked up his guitar and is strumming on it & singing to himself at home! All right, this isn’t supposed to be an ode to Lucky Ali! So let’s talk about ’Aks’ then.
’Aks, ’ like other Lucky Ali albums tends to take you on a journey. Right from the foot tapping, mood enhancing music of ’Tere Mere Saath’ to the sombre ’Tu Kaun Hai, ’ your first impulse, if you love travelling that is, will be to pick up your haversack and arm yourself with a map and set off on a road trip. If I were a music video director ( & yes, if wishes were horses!)...I know I’d show the singer, in a Range Rover, driving along a lone highway in the middle of some god-forsaken place, to the tune of ’Ek Na Ek Din.’ Or maybe strumming his guitar by the fireside and humming ’Sandesh’ while he reflects on the days of yore.
Lucky Ali may not exactly be Kishore Kumar, but when he croons ’Kaisi Tanhai’ and ’Kitni Haseen Zindagi’ you can’t help but sing along with him. ’Looking Back ....Looking Ahead’ as the cover of the album suggests, is one thing you will definitely do as you let the music from ’Aks’ take over your senses. A teensy weensy piece of advice from li’l ol’ me: puhleease don’t be doing anything else, if you’re just introducing yourself to the Lucky Ali brand of music. Sit back and enjoy! This one’s definitely ’paisa vasool.’