King & I - 60s Music - Precisely My Cup Of Tea

No music blog is complete without discussing musicals, especially the ones that have been made into movies. In Singapore in the 60s, there was hardly any theatre or stage to accomodate musicals from Broadway in New York or the West End in London.

Audiences in Singapore depended on movie musicals imported from the United States of America. Some of these were so popular that they could run for weeks in the larger cinemas in town like the Odeon or Capitol at North Bridge Road. The Cathay too had its selection of musicals.

One of the most popular was "The King And I", produced in 1956, which starred Yul Brynner and Deborah Kerr (image). Many Singaporeans may remember the songs that became hits on the radio. The ones usually aired were, "Shall We Dance", I Whistle A Happy Tune," the hauntingly beautiful, "Hullo Young Lovers," and the singalong, "Getting To Know You."

The record shops along North Bridge Road sold out their Rodgers and Hammerstein's Long Play vinyls very quickly and the nightclubs and cabarets played the melodies from this musical.

Image: http://www.lovefilm.com/

Original article: Andy Lim