King of Chutney

Sundar Popo - Chal Kechal (from Greatest Hits vol 2)

East India in the West Indies has been on my mind ever since I heard this, and these Soca infused Bhajans are really hitting the spot lately. Sundar was greatly responsible for popularizing Chutney music, a genre born in Trinidad and Tobago consisting of songs sung usually in Hindi over a beat rooted in Calypso. While the music is usually dance floor friendly, a lot of it especially in the early days was anything but secular music. Sundar mixed folk music from the island with his own agenda and sang love songs that changed Indo-Caribbean music forever. This track isn't as Soca flavored as some of his others, but his vocals are so great I had to put it up. The man released plenty of music in his lifetime (15 albums!) so next time around I'll throw one up that you can mesh easily with Montano.