Lakshmi Shankar - Evening Concert (1993)

Lakshmi Shankar has a heavenly voice, sweet and clear. The "Khyal in Raga Dhaani" is in a blues-like pentatonic scale, and the romantic "Thumri" are delivered in an innocent, direct, lyrical melodiousness. The bhajan "Gopala," by the 16th-century poet Nidhiram, is totally engaging in its pleading yet devotional quality, with Shankar beginning at a high point right from the onset. "Janama Marana," by the saint/poetess of the 16th century, Mirabai, who gave up her life as a queen for devotion to Lord Krishna, has a loving, serious quality. It is a thoroughly enjoyable album.