What makes a great rock song? It may be different for different people. But often the best rock songs are those that have:
- A heart-pumping beat
- A catchy melody
- Easy-to-learn lyrics you can sing along with
In the 2008 film Rock On!, the team of Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy along with lyricist Javed Akhtar composed several songs that meet this criteria.
In the film, Arjun Rampal, Farhan Akhtar, Luke Kenny, and Purab Kohli star as members of the Mumbai-based rock band, "Magik" (formed in 1998) who split then reunite in 2008.
The title track "Rock On!" was sung by Farhan Akhtar in his first singing role. This song was one of their hits from their early years which offers a good beat, a catchy melody and some lyrics anyone can sing, regardless of whether you know Hindi or not.
Farhan Akhtar's vocals - a bit rough around the edges - are perfectly suited for "Rock On!" and he performs it like a rock star. Glamsham gives the song a positive review, writing:
Farhan Akhtar makes the maximum impact with his voice as his thriving vocals find a brilliant match of electric guitars, bass guitars, drums and keyboards in youthfully energized title track "Rock On". Undoubtedly the best number of the album; it signifies the feel of four 'rock-stars' as their outrageously bizarre emotions are well emoted with zany "hard-rock" flows. The finely plucked electric cum rhythm guitar strumming followed with rhythmical drum-patterns delivers a harmonic signature feel of the film. S-E-L deliver a gem of hard-rock number that has the firing thrust of setting the concert floors on fire. This highly animated title track is likely to be having maximum takers among urbane listeners and do find it to be scaling high on charts in coming weekends.
In the film, Farhan Akhtar gets a lot of audience participation - which makes the song even more entertaining. The lyrics to "Rock On!" are fun and simple, translated to english as:
Na-Na Na Na, Na Na-Na Na Na
Na-Na Na Na, Na Na-Na Na NaOne of my laundry bills
An unfinished novel
Na-Na Na Na, Na Na-Na Na Na
A girl's phone number
A useful piece of paper
Na-Na Na Na, Na Na-Na Na Na
In my deck, a king of hearts
And one of my silver rings
When I look at what I lost this last week
Somedays I laughed at myself and somedays I cried.Na-Na Na Na, Na Na-Na Na Na
Na-Na Na Na, Na Na-Na Na NaI got a gift, a watch
that I loved so much
Na-Na Na Na, Na Na-Na Na Na
A packet of Mary Jane
My old denim jacket
Na-Na Na Na, Na Na-Na Na Na
Two passes for a cricket match
My brand new sunglasses
When I look at what I lost this last week
Somedays I laughed at myself and somedays I cried.Na-Na Na Na, Na Na-Na Na Na
Na-Na Na Na, Na Na-Na Na NaHow do I forget?
On day seven, someone introduced you to me at a party
What was in the moment when I saw you for the first time ...When we first met I felt that love was
I lost my senses and my heart, too
Somedays I laughed at myself and somedays I cried.
That was everything I lost this last week
Farhan sang live on stage and after the release of the film in 2008, the foursome held concerts in Mumbai, Pune, Delhi and Dubai - in some cases as charity fundraising events. In early August 2013, the Rock On! cast appeared together once again in a concert in Kolkata.
The film and songs are still close to Farhan Akhtar's heart. He recently tweeted:
5 years since Rock On!! released.. Lagta hai Magik ko re-unite karna hi padega.. What say?
— Farhan Akhtar (@FarOutAkhtar) August 29, 2013
Here is the title song "Rock On!" from the 2008 film, featuring Arjun Rampal, Farhan Akhtar, Luke Kenny, and Purab Kohli.