Meeting American singer-songwriter-guitarist Don Hammontree at the Café Arpeggio in Fall River, Massachusetts, USA was an interesting experience indeed. Mr. Hammontree has recently re-entered the news after six years, when the song he wrote, in tribute to Bollywood actress Juhi Chawla hit the airwaves. It appeared on his CD 'This' and is appropriately called, 'Juhi Chawla'. He was inspired to compose the song after seeing a striking poster of Juhi on a store window in the Devon Street section of Chicago and henceforth watched several of her films, like 'Yes Boss' and 'Ishq'. The song even mentions Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan in the lyrics.
At the time he was working as a copy editor for the India Tribune, so he had the opportunity to immerse himself into the Bollywood scene. This, coupled with a trip to England, introduced him to, as he says, 'the hottest Bollywood star there is; Karisma Kapoor.' Karisma, ironically, reminds him of a brunette version of an old girlfriend, who wasn't Indian at all. He immediately became smitten with the actress and her work. A subsequent trip to Massachusetts afforded him the opportunity to see Karisma, and his wife to see her favorite Bollywood actor, Aamir Khan in concert, with seats second row from the stage. His hopes of interviewing Mr. Khan about his 'cross-over' film 'Earth-1947' unfortunately didn't pan out, but the concert itself made a lasting impression nonetheless.
Afterwards, Don wrote his tribute song to Karisma, entitled, 'Karisma Comes to Lowell.' It's a song about an NRI who becomes homesick and seeing Karisma helps him make the connection back to India. And although it doesn't carry an Indian inflection, it can be described as a Nirvana-ish tune.
Both songs have received great reviews and are now available on his new CD called 'Mumbai EP', along with several other great tracks titled, Subterranean Homesick Indian, The Queen's Necklace, No Turning Back and Ankle Chains. The actresses have been sent a copy of the songs, which they inspired as well. Keep watching this site to hear their reactions.
Being a fan of A.R. Rahman influenced him, as he especially enjoyed the amazing soundtrack of 'Dil Se' when it released. He also hopes to visit and experience India firsthand, within the next year. Maybe it will have enough impact on him that it will turn him into a crossover musician himself. He would like to get a band together too. {Any takers?}
In the meantime, he will be continuing with the 'open mike scene' at various locations promoting his new CD, 'Mumbai EP'. He has performed in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, Illinois, Indiana, Virginia, Washington DC, South Carolina, North Carolina and Ohio. We wish him all the best on his journey.
