Asha Puthli is a singer-songwriter, producer, and actress born on February 4, 1945 and raised in Bombay, India. She has recorded solo albums for

EMI EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At the time of its break-up in 2012, ...

, CBS/

Sony , commonly stylized as SONY, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. As a major technology company, it operates as one of the world's largest manufacturers of consumer and professional ...

, and

RCA The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent pool, patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse Electric Corporation, Westin ...

. Her recordings cover blues,

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' (G ...

, rock,

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun '':wikt:soul, soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The ea ...

, funk, disco, and

techno Techno is a Music genre, genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally music production, produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempo often varying between 120 and 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central Drum beat, rhythm is typ ...

and have been produced by Del Newman and

Teo Macero Attilio Joseph "Teo" Macero (October 30, 1925 – February 19, 2008) was an American jazz saxophonist, composer, and record producer. He was a producer at Columbia Records for twenty years. Macero produced Miles Davis' '' Bitches Brew'', and ...

Early life

Puthli was born into a Hindu family. She is a niece of

Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay (3 April 1903 – 29 October 1988) was an Indian social reformer and freedom activist. She was most remembered for her contribution to the Indian independence movement; for being the driving force behind the renaissan ...

. Her father was a businessman, and her mother was a homemaker. Like many upper middle class Hindu children at the time, she attended

English-speaking Speakers of English are also known as Anglophones, and the countries where English is natively spoken by the majority of the population are termed the ''Anglosphere''. Over two billion people speak English , making English the largest language ...

Catholic schools Catholic schools are pre-primary, primary and secondary educational institutions administered under the aegis or in association with the Catholic Church. , the Catholic Church operates the world's largest religious, non-governmental school syst ...

. Puthli began training at an early age in

Indian classical music Indian classical music is the classical music of the Indian subcontinent. It has two major traditions: the North Indian classical music known as ''Hindustani'' and the South Indian expression known as '' Carnatic''. These traditions were not ...

and opera. She listened to jazz and pop music on the radio, which led to her interest in fusion. At thirteen she won a contest in which she sang "Malagueña". The victory encouraged her to begin improvising with a jazz band at local tea dances.

Ved Mehta Ved Parkash Mehta (21 March 19349 January 2021) was an Indian-born writer who lived and worked mainly in the United States. Blind from an early age, Mehta is best known for an autobiography published in instalments from 1972 to 2004. He wrote fo ...

described her singing in his book ''Portrait of India''. She went to a university in Mumbai.

Music career

After receiving her degree, Puthli worked as a

British Airways British Airways (BA) is the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom. It is headquartered in London, England, near its main hub at Heathrow Airport. The airline is the second largest UK-based carrier, based on fleet size and passengers ...

flight attendant. For her training, she spent two months in

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

where she later recalled she "would get to hear real jazz". While vacationing in America, she auditioned for a dance scholarship from

Martha Graham Martha Graham (May 11, 1894 – April 1, 1991) was an American modern dancer and choreographer. Her style, the Graham technique, reshaped American dance and is still taught worldwide. Graham danced and taught for over seventy years. She ...

, which she received. She resigned from British Airways and relocated to New York. John H. Hammond at

Columbia Columbia may refer to: * Columbia (personification), the historical female national personification of the United States, and a poetic name for America Places North America Natural features * Columbia Plateau, a geologic and geographic region in ...

had read Ved Mehta's portrait of her in ''Jazz in Bombay''. After hearing a rough demo, he signed her to CBS Records. She sang lead vocals on the Peter Ivers Blues Band's cover version of "Ain't That Peculiar" which was reviewed favorably in ''Cashbox'', ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its co ...

'', and ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

''. The single released in 1971 entered the Billboard charts. But ''Take It Out On Me'', the band's album featuring Puthli, was finally released in 2009. Hammond sent her to audition for avant-garde jazz saxophonist

Ornette Coleman Randolph Denard Ornette Coleman (March 9, 1930 – June 11, 2015) was an American jazz saxophonist, violinist, trumpeter, and composer known as a principal founder of the free jazz genre, a term derived from his 1960 album '' Free Jazz: A Col ...

, who was looking for a singer for his album ''Science Fiction'' (1971). For the album, Puthli sang on two songs, "What Reason Could I Give" and "All My Life". For her work on ''Science Fiction'', she shared the ''Downbeat'' Critics' Poll award for Best Female Jazz Vocalist. Puthli's popularity grew not in the U.S. but in Europe where she signed a record deal with CBS. Her solo albums reflected her interest in pop, rock, soul, funk and disco. She gravitated toward the glam world of

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, pianist and composer. Commonly nicknamed the "Rocket Man" after his 1972 hit single of the same name, John has led a commercially successful career a ...

and

T. Rex ''Tyrannosaurus'' is a genus of large theropod dinosaur. The species ''Tyrannosaurus rex'' (''rex'' meaning "king" in Latin), often called ''T. rex'' or colloquially ''T-Rex'', is one of the best represented theropods. ''Tyrannosaurus'' liv ...

. Her self-titled debut was produced by Del Newman, and it included cover versions of songs by JJ Cale and

Bill Withers William Harrison Withers Jr. (July 4, 1938 – March 30, 2020) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He had several hits over a career spanning 18 years, including "Ain't No Sunshine" (1971), "Grandma's Hands" (1971), " Use Me" (1972) ...

. She hired Pierre LaRoche (makeup designer for

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...

and

Freddie Mercury Freddie Mercury (born Farrokh Bulsara; 5 September 1946 – 24 November 1991) was a British singer and songwriter, who achieved worldwide fame as the lead vocalist of the rock band Queen. Regarded as one of the greatest singers in th ...

) and photographer

Mick Rock Michael David Rock (born Michael Edward Chester Smith; 21 November 1948 – 18 November 2021) was a British photographer. He photographed rock music acts such as Queen, David Bowie, Waylon Jennings, T. Rex, Syd Barrett, Lou Reed, Iggy Pop and ...

to shoot the cover. The album included a disco version of "I Am a Song" by

Neil Sedaka Neil Sedaka (; born March 13, 1939) is an American singer-songwriter and pianist. Since his music career began in 1957, he has sold millions of records worldwide and has written or co-written over 500 songs for himself and other artists, collabo ...

Film and fashion

Her first film was short with Indian director

Mani Kaul Mani Kaul (25 December 1944 – 6 July 2011) was an Indian director of Hindi films and a reputed figure in Indian parallel cinema. He graduated from the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) where he was a student of Ritwik Ghatak and ...

in 1968. During the 1970s, Puthli starred in lead roles in

Merchant Ivory A merchant is a person who trades in commodities produced by other people, especially one who trades with foreign countries. Historically, a merchant is anyone who is involved in business or trade. Merchants have operated for as long as indust ...

's ''

Savages Savages may refer to: Films * Savages (1972 film), ''Savages'' (1972 film), by James Ivory * Savages (1974 film), ''Savages'' (1974 film), an American TV film * The Savages (film), ''The Savages'' (film), a 2007 film by Tamara Jenkins * Savage ...

'' which was screened at the

1972 Cannes Film Festival The 25th annual Cannes Film Festival was held from 4 to 19 May 1972. The Palme d'Or went to the Italian films '' The Working Class Goes to Heaven'' by Elio Petri and '' The Mattei Affair'' by Francesco Rosi. The festival opened with the French fi ...

and

Bruno Corbucci Bruno Corbucci (23 October 1931 – 7 September 1996) was an Italian screenwriter and film director. He was the younger brother of Sergio Corbucci, and wrote many of his films. He was born in Rome, where he also died. The vast majority of ...

's ''

The Gang That Sold America ''The Gang That Sold America'' ( it, Squadra antigangsters) is a 1979 Italian "poliziottesco"-comedy film directed by Bruno Corbucci. It is the fifth chapter in the Nico Giraldi film series starred by Tomas Milian. The Italian progressive rock ban ...

'' (Italian title:''Squadra Antigangsters''). She also appeared in a

Louis Malle Louis Marie Malle (; 30 October 1932 – 23 November 1995) was a French film director, screenwriter, and producer who worked in both French cinema and Hollywood. Described as "eclectic" and "a filmmaker difficult to pin down," Malle's filmog ...

cinema verite film as “Nadja” based on Andre Breton’s novel, and German documentary “Reden it’s mien Drouge “ for

Norddeutscher Rundfunk Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR; ''Northern German Broadcasting'') is a public broadcasting, public radio and television broadcaster, based in Hamburg. In addition to the city-state of Hamburg, NDR broadcasts for the German states of Lower Saxony, M ...

NDR on her life. Her sense of fashion brought her visibility. A headliner at

Studio 54 Studio 54 is a Broadway theater and a former disco nightclub at 254 West 54th Street in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City. Operated by the Roundabout Theatre Company, Studio 54 has 1,006 seats on two levels. The theater ...

, she was dressed by designers

Michaele Vollbracht Michaele Vollbracht (November 17, 1947 – June 7, 2018) was an American fashion designer who worked under his own name and as head designer for Bill Blass Limited from 2003 until his resignation in 2007. He was well known as an illustrator, thou ...

and

Manolo Blahnik Manuel "Manolo" Blahnik Rodríguez (; born 27 November 1942) is a Spanish fashion designer and founder of the eponymous high-end shoe brand. Biography Blahnik was born in Santa Cruz de la Palma, in the Canary Islands (Spain), to a Czech father ...

and photographed by

Richard Avedon Richard Avedon (May 15, 1923 – October 1, 2004) was an American fashion and portrait photographer. He worked for '' Harper's Bazaar'', '' Vogue'' and ''Elle'' specializing in capturing movement in still pictures of fashion, theater and da ...

Andy Warhol Andy Warhol (; born Andrew Warhola Jr.; August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987) was an American visual artist, film director, and producer who was a leading figure in the visual art movement known as pop art. His works explore the relationsh ...

and appears in the center fold of Francesco Scavullo's book of photographs 1948-1964. In the twenty-first century, she sang on ''Asana Vol. 3'' by

Bill Laswell William Otis Laswell (born February 12, 1955) is an American bass guitarist, record producer, and record label owner. He has been involved in thousands of recordings with many collaborators from all over the world. His music draws from funk, ...

and ''Hey Diwani, Hey Diwani'' by Dum Dum Project. In 2005, she returned to the UK charts with "Looking Glass" from the album ''Fear of Magnetism'' by Stratus. Her song "Space Talk" from the 1970s, a popular tune with

David Mancuso David Paul Mancuso (October 20, 1944 – November 14, 2016) was an American disc jockey who created the popular "by invitation only" parties in New York City, which later became known as " The Loft". The first party, called "Love Saves The Day", w ...

's ''The Loft'' crowd, has been sampled by

P.Diddy Sean Combs (born Sean John Combs; November 4, 1969), also known by his stage names Puff Daddy, P. Diddy, Puffy, or Diddy, is an American rapper, actor, record producer, and record executive. Born in New York City, he worked as a talent directo ...

The Notorious B.I.G. Christopher George Latore Wallace (May 21, 1972 – March 9, 1997), better known by his stage names the Notorious B.I.G., Biggie Smalls, or simply Biggie, was an American rapper. Rooted in East Coast hip hop and particularly gangsta ...

Dilated Peoples Dilated Peoples is an American hip hop group from Los Angeles, California. They have had little mainstream success in the US, with the exception of the song " This Way", a 2004 collaboration with Kanye West. Better known in the UK, they reached t ...

, Governor featuring

50 Cent Curtis James Jackson III (born July 6, 1975), known professionally as 50 Cent, is an American rapper, actor, and businessman. Born in the South Jamaica neighborhood of Queens, Jackson began pursuing a musical career in 2000, when he produced ...

, and Redman; and her cover of George Harrison's "

I Dig Love "I Dig Love" is a song by English rock musician George Harrison from his 1970 triple album ''All Things Must Pass''. A paean to free love, it marks a departure from the more profound, spiritually oriented subject matter of much of that album. Mus ...

" was sampled in 2005 for the chart-topping track "Reload It" by UK Mobo award winner Kano. She has co-writer credits with Jay-Z,

The Neptunes The Neptunes are an American songwriting and production duo composed of Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo, formed in Virginia Beach, Virginia, in 1992. Williams often provides additional vocals on records and appears in the duo's music videos ...

Jermaine Dupri Jermaine Dupri Mauldin (born September 23, 1972) is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, record executive, entrepreneur, and DJ. Early life Jermaine Dupri Mauldin was born on September 23, 1972, the son of Tina (Mosley) and Michael ...

, SWV, and

on the track "The World is Filled" from the multi-platinum album, ''

Life After Death The afterlife (also referred to as life after death) is a purported existence in which the essential part of an individual's identity or their stream of consciousness continues to live after the death of their physical body. The surviving ess ...

''. In August 2006, she headlined Central Park Summerstage in New York City on an eclectic bill with

DJ Spooky Paul Dennis Miller (born September 6, 1970), known professionally as DJ Spooky, That Subliminal Kid, is an American electronic and experimental hip hop musician whose work is often called by critics " illbient" or "trip hop". He is a turntabl ...

Talvin Singh Talvin Singh OBE (born 1970) is an English musician, producer, and composer. A tabla player, he is known for creating an innovative fusion of Indian classical music and drum and bass. Singh is generally considered involved with an electronica s ...

, Outernational, and

Prefuse 73 Guillermo Scott Herren is an American producer who has been based in Atlanta, Barcelona and New York City. Herren releases music under the aliases Prefuse 73, Delarosa & Asora, Ahmad Szabo, and Piano Overlord, and is also part of the groups Sa ...

, and special guests

Dewey Redman Walter Dewey Redman (May 17, 1931 – September 2, 2006) was an American saxophonist who performed free jazz as a bandleader and with Ornette Coleman and Keith Jarrett. Redman mainly played tenor saxophone, though he occasionally also played ...

and

Dres (rapper) Andres "Dres" Vargas-Titus (born March 18, 1967) is an American hip hop artist. He is known for being the lead rapper of the alternative hip hop duo Black Sheep, before recording as a solo artist. Career Dres formed Black Sheep in 1989 with Mi ...

of the hip-hop group

Black Sheep In the English language, black sheep is an idiom that describes a member of a group who is different from the rest, especially a family member who does not fit in. The term stems from sheep whose fleece is colored black rather than the more comm ...

Praise by critics

Music critic

Ann Powers Ann K. Powers (born February 4, 1964) is an American writer and pop music critic. She is a music critic for NPR and a contributor at the ''Los Angeles Times'', where she was previously chief pop critic. She has also served as pop critic at ''The ...

in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' called Puthli a "fusion pioneer". Music critic

Robert Palmer Robert Allen Palmer (19 January 1949 – 26 September 2003) was an English singer and songwriter. He was known for his powerful, soulful voice and wikt:sartorial, sartorial elegance, and his stylistic explorations, combining Soul music, so ...

called her singing "extraordinary". Her third solo album, ''The Devil is Loose'', was called an instant classic by ''The New York Times''. Thom Jurek of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the dat ...

called it " a masterpiece of snakey, spaced-out soul and pre-mainstream disco."

Discography

* ''Asha Puthli'' (CBS, 1973) * ''She Loves to Hear the Music'' (CBS, 1975) * ''The Devil Is Loose'' (CBS, 1976) * ''L'Indiana'' (CBS, 1978) * ''1001 Nights of Love'' (Autobahn/Philips 1979) * ''I'm Gonna Kill It Tonight'' (Autobahn 1980) * ''Only the Headaches Remain'' (Woorell 1982) *''Hari Om'' (Sony 1990) * ''Lost'' (Kyrone 2009 ) * ‘’Je crois c’est ca l’amour’’ (MKMM 2021)

As guest

* ''

Science Fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imagination, imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, Paral ...

'',

(Columbia, 1971) * ''Mirror'',

Charlie Mariano Carmine Ugo Mariano (November 12, 1923 – June 16, 2009) was an American jazz saxophonist who focused on the alto and soprano saxophone. He occasionally performed and recorded on flute and nadaswaram as well. Biography Mariano was born in ...

(Atlantic, 1972) * ''Squadra Antigangsters'' (

Cinevox Cinevox is an Italian record label specializing in the release of motion picture soundtrack albums. Founded in 1966, the label has released more than 200 titles, including numerous works by Ennio Morricone, Pino Donaggio, and various Dario Argent ...

, 1979) * ''

Easily Slip Into Another World ''Easily Slip Into Another World'' is an album by saxophonist/composer Henry Threadgill, recorded for the RCA Novus label in 1987. Recording and music The album was recorded at Mediasound Studio, New York City, on September 20, 1987. The album f ...

'',

Henry Threadgill Henry Threadgill (born February 15, 1944) is an American composer, saxophonist and flautist. He came to prominence in the 1970s leading ensembles rooted in jazz but with unusual instrumentation and often incorporating other genres of music. He ...

(Novus, 1989) * ''Export Quality'', Dum Dum Project (Times Square/Groovy, 2001) * ''Mpath - Wanderer'',

Gardner Cole Gardner Cole (born Gardner Kain Christopher Cole) is an American songwriter, keyboard player and music producer. He is best known as songwriter of 1980s and early 1990s songs for Cher, Michael McDonald, Tina Turner, Jody Watley, and Madonna. He ...

(Triloka, 2003) * ''Accerezzami'',

Fausto Papetti Fausto Papetti (Viggiù, 28 January 1923 – San Remo, 15 June 1999) was an Italian alto saxophone player. A jazz musician by formation, Papetti became widely known for producing instrumental covers of some of the most famous pop and jazz songs. ...

(2003) * ''Asana Vol 3: Peaceful Heart'',

(Meta, 2003) * ''Fear of Magnetism'', Stratus (Klein, 2005) * ''Asana OHM Shanti'',

(Meta, 2006) * ''Asha's Kiss'', Raveena ( Asha's Awakening, 2022)

References

External links

Official Site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Puthli, Asha American actresses of Indian descent American actresses American electronic musicians American musicians of Indian descent American women musicians of Indian descent American women singer-songwriters American jazz singers American singer-songwriters Indian emigrants to the United States Living people Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda alumni 1945 births American women in electronic music Singers from Mumbai Women musicians from Maharashtra American Hindus 21st-century American women