Lou Majaw in concert. Picture by Eastern Projections

Lou Majaw is like good wine, to use a cliché. The grand old man of rock music in India can only get better with age as he has shown over and over again all these years, wooing fans all over the country with his brand of music.

The showman was in his elements once again during a solo performance at Vishwaratna Hotel in Guwahati on August 30 — the occasion being the gala evening of NICT 2007 — the region’s biggest information technology and communication exposition.

The Khasi guitarist-singer — dressed in his trademark impossibly short shorts and a cut-off T-shirt — had the select crowd in raptures with his electrifying performance, peppering the show with a selection of classics including his favourite, Bob Dylan’s.

Like all good performers, the best thing about Majaw is his stage presence, gliding effortlessly from one corner to the other, strumming his guitar in great style and belting out classics with his 100-watt smile.

Dylan’s hits like Blowin in the wind and Forever young flowed with amazing grace and had crowd shouting “encore”.

Waving his shoulder-length salt-and-pepper hair in gay abandon, Majaw also belted out other hits like Eric Clapton’s Knocking on heaven’s door.“For all the beautiful ladies in the audience — this is for you,” hollered Majaw to the crowd and crooned Beautiful women.

Those who are familiar with Majaw and his work know by now that this Khasi singer was born to a poor family which did not even have a radio.

A young Majaw would visit his friend’s house to listen to Bill Haley and Elvis Presley. He learnt the guitar by himself before he had the confidence to move to Calcutta in search of greener pastures.

It was in 1966 that Lou had his first brush with Bob Dylan’s work and the rest, as they say, is history. An inspired Lou returned to Shillong and organised the first “Dylan’s birthday concert” in Shillong on May 24, 1972. After that, there has been no looking back for this ageless singer.

For Northeast’s own Tambourine Man, it has been a roller coaster ride in life. And in his own words, he sums up the story of his life, “I’ve known hunger since I was ten/ Loneliness is my good friend/ I’ve learnt to laugh when I feel sad/ When I see good times turnin’ bad”.

On that balmy August evening, Majaw had the crowd dancing to his music, like he has always done wherever he has performed.