Shubh - Ananda Shankar

Shubh is a 15-minute, 54-second instrumental composition by Indian musician Ananda Shankar. Released as part of his self-titled debut album Ananda Shankar in 1970, the track exemplifies his fusion of traditional Indian classical music with Western psychedelic rock and funk. The album appeared on the Reprise Records label in the United States and EMI India in India.

Shankar composed and arranged the piece, blending the sitar with electric guitar, bass, drums and synthesizers. The track opens with an alap-like sitar introduction before transitioning into a rhythmic section driven by a funk-inspired bassline and drum groove. The interplay between sitar and electric guitar forms the composition’s core, with Shankar performing the sitar leads. The recording features session musicians from both Indian classical and Western rock backgrounds, though specific personnel credits for this track remain partially undocumented.

The album Ananda Shankar marked a departure from conventional Indian classical presentations by incorporating amplification, studio effects and extended improvisational passages. Shubh became one of the record’s most recognized tracks, later sampled or covered by artists in electronic and hip-hop genres. The original vinyl release positioned the composition as the B-side’s closing track, following the more widely circulated Snowflower.

No official single edit of Shubh exists, and the full version remains available only on the original LP and subsequent reissues. The album’s 2005 CD reissue by EMI included remastered audio but retained the 1970 track sequence. Live performances of the piece are not documented in Shankar’s concert recordings, suggesting it remained primarily a studio creation.