[ ]Shoaib Mansoor
Shoaib Mansoor (Full name, Shoaib Mansoor), ( ur, ; born 4 February 1951 Karachi) is a Pakistani television and film director, writer, producer, lyricist and musician of Muhajir origin.
Active in the television industry since 1980, he first f ...
will be writing lyrics for the band's anniversary album.
On 24 September, Junoon celebrated their 20th anniversary by performing a concert at the Asia Society & Museum in New York City. It was after 8 years that both Salman Ahmad and Brian O'Connell shared the same stage together to celebrate the band's reunion and anniversary. In response to the 20th anniversary of the band, former vocalist, Ali Azmat in an interview with ''Newsweek Magazine
''Newsweek'' is an American weekly online news magazine co-owned 50 percent each by Dev Pragad, its president and CEO, and Johnathan Davis, who has no operational role at ''Newsweek''. Founded as a weekly print magazine in 1933, it was widely ...
'' said that he does not want to associate his name with Junoon as there are some personal issues between Salman Ahmad and him. Azmat also confirmed that Salman Ahmad invited him to be part of the 20th anniversary reunion concert but he never replied to his emails. On 30 September, Junoon performed at the Crowell Concert Hall in Wesleyan University, Middletown, Connecticut
Middletown is a city located in Middlesex County, Connecticut, United States, Located along the Connecticut River, in the central part of the state, it is south of Hartford, Connecticut, Hartford. In 1650, it was incorporated by English settler ...
, United States and also released the first edition of their 20th anniversary album, '' Junoon 20''.
On 21 December, EMI Pakistan released Junoon's 20th anniversary album volume I in a ceremony held at Marriott Hotel
Marriott Hotels & Resorts is Marriott International's brand of full-service hotels and resorts based in Bethesda, Maryland. As of June 30, 2020, there were 582 hotels and resorts with 205,053 rooms operating under the brand, in addition to 160 ...
, Karachi
Karachi (; ur, ; ; ) is the most populous city in Pakistan and 12th most populous city in the world, with a population of over 20 million. It is situated at the southern tip of the country along the Arabian Sea coast. It is the former cap ...
, Pakistan. On 25 December, Salman Ahmad announced that he will be collaborating with former Vital Signs
Vital signs (also known as vitals) are a group of the four to six most crucial medical signs that indicate the status of the body's vital (life-sustaining) functions. These measurements are taken to help assess the general physical health of a ...
lead vocalist, Junaid Jamshed
Junaid Jamshed Khan ( ur, ; 3 September 1964 – 7 December 2016) was a Pakistani singer-songwriter, television personality, fashion designer, actor, and preacher. After graduating with a degree in engineering from the University of Engineeri ...
to record a 21st-century version of the two famous Pakistani patriotic songs "Dil Dil Pakistan
Dil Dil Pakistan ( ur, ) is the most popular patriotic Pakistani song, sung by Junaid Jamshed. It was released in 1987 by the pop band Vital Signs. The song was featured in the band's debut album, ''Vital Signs 1'', in 1987. Dil Dil Pakistan is ...
" and "Jazba-e-Junoon
"Jazba-e-Junoon" (Urdu: جذبہ جنوں, literal English translation: "the spirit of passion") is a song by the Pakistani sufi rock band Junoon. It is the thirteenth and final track from the band's album third album, '' Inquilaab'' (1996), rel ...
". Ahmad also stated that the rehearsal session was captured by Ahmad's son, Imran, with his phone. "The video and the photo contain a true emotion providing a rare glimpse of hope for the new generation. Two days ago, my dear friend and Vital Signs bandmate, Junaid Jamshed and I came together to rehearse after many years. We felt inspired to sing two anthems of our youth; 'Jazba Junoon' and 'Dil Dil Pakistan'."
On 28 April 2012, Junoon travelled on a tour to India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
performing at Mumbai
Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
. On 3 May, Junoon paid tribute to Khwaja Gharib Nawaz by performing an informal concert of Sufi songs in Ajmer Sharif
Ajmer Sharif Dargah (also Ajmer Dargah, Ajmer Sharif or Dargah Sharif) is a Sufi tomb (''dargah'') of the revered Sufi saint, Moinuddin Chishti, located at Ajmer, Rajasthan, India. The shrine has Chishti's grave (Maqbara).
Location
Ajmer Shari ...
. Followed by performing at BlueFrog in the capital city, New Delhi at a sold-out concert on 10 May. Salman Ahmed, lead vocalist of the band, confirmed, during his tour to India, in an interview that he has collaborated with singer Sunidhi Chauhan
Sunidhi Chauhan (pronounced ; born 14 August 1983) is an Indian playback singer. Born in Delhi, she began performing in local gatherings at the age of 5 and made her career debut at the age of 13, with the film ''Shastra'' (1996). During the ye ...
recording two songs, "Yaaron" and "Kaise Bolun", for Vicky Kumar's Bollywood movie, ''Rhythm''.
Collaborations (2013–2016)
Former members of Vital Signs
Vital signs (also known as vitals) are a group of the four to six most crucial medical signs that indicate the status of the body's vital (life-sustaining) functions. These measurements are taken to help assess the general physical health of a ...
and Junoon collaborated to release a patriotic song, "Naya Pakistan
The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI; ur, , ) is a political party in Pakistan. It was founded in 1996 by Pakistani cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan, who served as the country's prime minister from 2018 to 2022. The PTI is one of the thre ...
". The song is written by Salman Ahmad and Aania Shah featuring Shahi Hassan on bass, Nusrat Hussain
Nusrat Hussain (Urdu:نصرت حسین), is a Pakistani musician, airline pilot, guitarist, and keyboardist. He played guitar for the Vital Signs and keyboard for Junoon in the mid 1990s. He soon left both bands opting for a career in PIA as ...
on keyboards and percussions, and vocalist Junaid Jamshed
Junaid Jamshed Khan ( ur, ; 3 September 1964 – 7 December 2016) was a Pakistani singer-songwriter, television personality, fashion designer, actor, and preacher. After graduating with a degree in engineering from the University of Engineeri ...
. The song was recorded at Indus Music World Studios and released on 22 February 2013.
Salman Ahmed while talking about his latest project at Asia Talk on BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...
said, "For almost a decade, Junaid has always asked me not to bring guitar or to ask him to sing. When you are friends with somebody you always have to transcend differences and I respect Junaid's views. Junaid once told me that his biggest regret was not to be a part of Jazba Junoon's recording. So when we came up with 'Naya Pakistan', I asked him that this is the chance that's not going to come again so finally Junaid accepted the offer with the condition that he will sing only the opening lines with no music at all." and further added "it signifies the metaphor for unity as we have to compromise for unity in hope of Naya Pakistan."
Reception
Blogger Rabia Syed reviewed the album saying, "The reworking of the Junoon songs kept the feeling but approached each song in a new and different way, it made me fall in love with them all over again, the remix open your eyes was very powerful, I keep playing "Khwab" over and over again in my mind after listening to it, I feel it inspires me in a positive and creative manner. There is a new song "Ansoo" which is mystical and haunting and takes you into the state of trance. I feel Salman Ahmad has a healing voice and can take music to a different level, he inspires by moving forward in a new creative way with inspirational\evolved changes from the 90's."Free of Press or Hidden Agenda
Retrieved on 04 June 2017.