Listen to the voice that soothed India for decades

Choosing her most important songs is surely one of the most hazardous tasks involved in writing about Lata Mangeshkar—the first is describing her voice and its influence.

Quartz, nevertheless, is giving it a shot. The legendary singer who died this morning in Mumbai has left behind a body of work that itself could take years to sieve. But for those who are yet unacquainted with her voice, here’s a good place to start (we are not even getting into her duets with playback giants like Mohammad Rafi, Kishore Kumar, and Manna Dey):

“Aayega aanewala,” Mahal (1949)

Composer: Khemchand Prakash

“Ye zindagi usi ki hai,” Anarkali (1953)

Composer: Chitalkar Ramchandra

“Rasik balma,” Chori chori (1956)

Composer: Shankar-Jaikishen

“Aaja re pardesi,” Madhumati (1958)

Composer: Salil Chowdhury

“Haaye re wo din kyun na aaye,” Anuradha (1960)

Composer: Pandit Ravi Shankar

“Sansar se bhaage phirte ho,” Chitralekha (1964)

Composer: Roshan

“Naina barse,” Woh kaun thhi? (1964)

Composer: Madan Mohan

“Suno sajna,” Aaye din bahar ke (1966)

Composer: Laxmikant-Pyarelal

“Raina beeti jaaye,” Amar Prem (1972)

Composer: RD Burman

“Piya bina,” Abhiman (1973)

Composer: SD Burman