SINGAPORE 60's: ANDY's POP MUSIC INFLUENCE IS A PERSONAL MUSIC, MEMORY TRAIL. BLOGGER DOES NOT OWN THE RIGHTS TO VIDEOS, AUDIO TRACKS AND IMAGES. THEY ARE UPLOADED FOR FUN, EDUCATIONAL, ILLUSTRATIVE PURPOSES AND HAVE BEEN CREDITED. BLOG IS NOT SPONSORED NOR ADVERTORIAL IN ANY WAY WHATSOEVER. INFORM BLOGGER OF COPYRIGHT ISSUES AND POST WILL BE DELETED IMMEDIATELY. DO NOT COPY THE POSTS; GET PERMISSION N CREDIT ME IF YOU DO. ANDY LIM LA (NOVEMBER, 2008) -
(新加坡六十年代安迪的流行音乐影响力), SUDI MAMPIR !
"Across fourteen countries and two continents... Setting us apart from the rest of the pack..." It's here. After more than four years of hard work, Jerry Fernandez's book, To Be A Rock But Not To Roll, will hit the bookshops after its launch on Sunday 12th July, 2009, at the Quality Hotel Singapore at Balestier Road.
Opening the book to look at the inside front cover, there is this beautiful map of Orchard Road, highlighting the venues or 'hot spots' where Jerry & The Neu Faces performed from 1968 to 1994. Impressive!
Haven't read the book yet but flipping through the pages, it is user friendly, has loads of photographs and information about Jerry's life, from the time he was a teenager, his years as a soccer lover and, more importantly, his established role as a musician both in Singapore and the world. He has also documented friends and colleagues who helped him along the way, on his life journey as a pop DJ, MC, singer, musician and business man. Sounds promising and could be a great read...
(Jerry Fernandez hosts the concert at Orchid Country Club this month.)
If there's anyone as good looking as Elvis Presley, it's Ricky Nelson and it wasn't his songs that attracted the American public in the beginning but his lovable antics with his family in the DC comics series called, The Adventures of Ozzie And Harriet (image), where the Nelson family, that meant his parents, brother David and the dog had their family life, sometimes fact and sometimes fiction, made into humorous episodes.
Personally, a collection was kept up to the 80s, before the comics were thrown away into the dustbin. Such a pity! Computer scanning in the 90s could have saved the beautiful and colourful images. Many Singaporean comic lovers had them too in the 50s. Anyway...
The Nelson family was also family fare on radio and TV but as he grew up, Ricky Nelson began a singing career and "became a teen idol sensation from 1957 up to 1962, where he had thirty Top-40 hits, more than any other artist at the time except Elvis Presley and Pat Boone."
"When Billboard introduced the Hot 100 Chart on August 4, 1958, Nelson's single, Poor Little Fool became the first song ever in the number one position on that chart." He also became an actor, made a few movies and appeared with Dean Martin and John Wayne.
His songs are so well-known internationally and they are perennial favourites. The songs include, Someday, Lonesome Town, Hello Mary Lou, Travellin' Man, Young World, It's Late, Stood Up, Garden Party, Dream Lover with a personal favourite, Have I Told You Lately That I Love You? Nelson was active all the way up to his death at 45 years.
Ricky Nelson - Travelling Man - from You Tube Video Like Kyu Sakamoto (Sukiyaki), he passed away in a plane crash in 1985. Cliff Richard has only 3 favourite rock and roll idols and Ricky Nelson is one of them.
Acknowledgement: Vinyl: EP/Imperial Record: 156; EP/IMP: 163; Decca: ED 2760.
Terima kaseh kepada 'womad' atas tulisan2 berkenaan blog ini. Thanks to a really, talented and kind blogger at: http://www.womad.blogspot.com/ who featured this blog. He is a fantastic artist, has unique blogging techniques and writes interesting compositions about "all kinds of everything, reminds me of you..." Do visit his blog.
Below is the extract he wrote: "Nonetheless, it's all thanks to one featured singer, Andy Young, from whose blog, had featured the event (about the Orchid Country show). Now, if you still go crazy for bell-bottoms, polka-dotted skirts or plastic headbands and earrings, I'm sure you'll go crazy when you read his blog as well. It has extensive information on Singapore's 60s music scene and also the global influence of that period.
I think at times, some of us take blogging for granted and less appreciative towards our content. In short, it's grateful that someone like him takes the time to record all of his knowledge to our music into the world wide web." by Wan Mohammed Haddad.
Chatting with Audie Ng (Silver Strings/leader/bassist) and Ronnie (of The Burns) some time ago, we discussed about wearing 60s outfit for the show, an idea brought about by 'womad' in his comment on this blog.
Mike and Herb with Veronica Young (image: left) will be appearing too with The Silver Strings. Their songs have recently been released on the 100 Greatest Singapore 60s Definitive Collection.
Mike & Herb will sing, I've Been A Fool and Let Em Come and Veronica Young may sing, Thank You For Your Kindness, Lollipop and Shirley Nair's Too Late For Tears.
Karen Lim, movie star and vocalist, sings her interpretation of local Chinese and Hokkien-Pop.
Karen is well-known among Singapore viewers who are familiar with locally made Chinese movies as she has acted in a few. She performs at many of the gertais all over Singapore and has the reputation of being able to attract the younger Chinese crowd. Of course seniors enjoy her singing too. There are many UTube videos on Karen Lim.
Image: Sunday State Travels Website/Sunday, August 26th, 2007.
She's here again! Don't forget your date with Rahimah Rahim at the Orchid Country Club on the 23rd and 24 of July, 2009. She will be singing your 60s Malay favourites.
Rahimah needs no introduction as the show business blood is in her. The late Rahim Hamid, Singapore's Nat King Cole, was her father. She is well known for singing songs in Malay and English and has recorded with Panda and Senada.
She was married to one of Singapore's top soccer players Mohammad Noor and was a past student of Cairnhill Primary School and First Toa Payoh Secondary School.
This song has come back to haunt many listeners since the present on-going spread of the corona virus (6 February 2020) in the world. Read on to understand why.
One of the greatest pop songs by an Asian during the 60's music era; it's one that will live forever for both the singer and the song.
Singaporeans still remember the song today but some do not know the history behind this international 60's hit. It was number one in 1963 for Kyu Sakamoto and 6 weeks on the US Chart.
The song was initially released in Japan in 1961, and after a British record company heard the Japanese version, had one of their artistes record it under the title Sukiyaki, a title which had absolutely nothing to do with the song. Again, the yearning for anything Eastern struck a chord with the West because Sukiyaki is actually a Japanese beef meal, popular in the west.
The actual title is Ueo Muite Arukou which means, "I Look Up When I Walk". It tipped the US chart because a disc jockey, Rich Osborne (KORD radio) in Washington State, who heard the British version, had started playing the original record by Sakamoto. Sakamoto, born in Kanagawa, Japan in 1941, died in a crash on Japan Airlines 747, flight 123 near Tokyo on August 12, 1985. He called his wife two minutes before the crash to say goodbye. 43 years old at the time of his death, he made his debut in show business in 1960. Sakamoto was also known as Kyu Chan for his charming smile and sincere nature. He recorded many other songs which became just as popular at home and internationally but Sukiyaki remains the biggest international hit by a Japanese singer to this day. Many artistes have covered it in Japanese, English, French, Dutch and the artistes include, The Blue Diamonds, The Fabulous Echoes, and others. The lyricist is Rokusuke Ei and music by Hachidai Nakamura.
12 JULY 2016: Prominent Japanese lyricist Rokusuke Ei has died at 83 years. Of Chinese descent, he was best known for his work on the worldwide hit, Sukiyaki (1963), which protested against US military presence. The song was released in 1961 and topped US Billboard charts with 13 million copies sold around the world. An established author and radio broadcaster, Mr. Ei published several books, including a novel about death and illness which sold more than 20 million copies. FROM MICHAEL BANGAR:
Hi Andy, As a school kid in 1961, it was the pre-Beatles era. I was in Primary 6. The kampong days was a time of poverty. Our neighbour had their Rediffusion set switched on the English station all day. That's how I got to know the song SUKIYAKI and loads of other songs. It's a great favourite till today, on Brian Richmond's show Sunday mornings.
Then in 1963, the year The Beatles and The British Invasion bands came along. They invaded the US and changed popular music from then up till now. I won't be surprised when they were paying their dues, the above bands played the song. They had SUKIYAKI in their sets. I am sure The Beatles did, cause they played a wide genre of music. That's why they earned the title, THE BEST BAND EVER. I listened to my neighbour's Rediffusion set through a 'lobang' (hole) that the wooden wall had that separated our two homes. Come to think of it I never got the chance to thank them all for the music I picked up through their Rediffusion set. Ha, ha, ha.
This song is not from the 60s but some singers are, and as a tribute to Michael Jackson, it has to be posted. It is one of the greatest pop songs and it helped to raise much money for the poor in Africa.
We Are The World was written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie, produced and directed by Quincey Jones and performed by 45 of the best of America's current pop singers. Island In The Sun, 60s Calypso singing sensation Harry Belafonte suggested it, and proceeds from the single and album helped relief organizations in Ethiopia, Sudan and other African countries.
Michael Jackson skipped the American Music Awards ceremony that night, to record the chorus of the song, as a guide to the other singers. The lyrics and melody are similar, but each star put his or her own style of delivery. The whole gigantic effort, Hands Across America raised about $100 million for famine relief. Both the single and album won 1985 Grammies for Song of the Year and Album of the Year.
The singers, starting with Lionel Ritchie were, in order of appearance: Stevie Wonder, Paul Simon, Kenny Rogers, James Ingram, Tina Turner, Billy Joel, the late Michael Jackson and Diana Ross.
Then a new verse with Dionne Warwick, Willie Nelson, Al Jarreau, Bruce Springsteen, Kenny Loggins, Steve Perry, Daryl Hall, Huey Lewis, Cyndi Lauper, Kim Carnes, Bob Dylan and the late Ray Charles.
Backup singers were: Dan Aykroyd, Harry Belafonte, Lindsey Buckingham, The News, Sheila E.,Bob Geldof, Jackie Jackson, LaToya Jackson, Marlon Jackson, Randy Jackson, Tito Jackson, Waylon Jennings, Bette Midler, John Oates, Jeffrey Osborne, The Pointer Sisters, Smokey Robinson.
Watch out for the Springsteen, Wonder combination and the final fade out, going one full circle with Lionel Ritchie. Quincey Jones conducted and those who didn't turn up were: Linda Ronstadt, Madonna, Pat Benatar and Prince.
Vlietzicht Rijswijk - 16 Aug 2013: 'The Jumping Jewels Revival Band'. The song "Ajoen Ajoen" was played as a tribute to Willy Wissink (Willy and his Giants) who died on July 9, 2013 in his home in The Hague.
With Paul Selier on bass guitar, Peter de Vos on rhythm guitar, Pete Korving on lead guitar, and for this special occasion; Will Wissink Jr behind the drums. Thank you Hans (van Eijk) for this beautiful memory!!
Will
The late Willy Wissink [9/7/2013] started in 1959 with a group called, The Real Rhythm Rockers from The Hague in Holland. Then in early 1962, he recorded his first instrumentals for Artone Records with his new band The Giants. Willy Wissink's rock version of the Indonesian/Dutch folk song, Ajoen, Ajoen was released and became successful in many countries. Huckleberry Beat was the vinyl's flipside.
Japan was overwhelmed with this group and Ajoen, Ajoen sold more than 100,000 copies. Accompanying the success together were other popular Indonesian songs that were already hits on their own, namely, *Terang Boelan and Sarina. The country had a pressing of its own to sell to the group's fans in Japan recorded by Teichiku Records in 1963 [image below].
Personally, while going through the collection of vinyl, the chance discovery showed a singles pressing of Ajoen, Ajoen(DR25163), a traditional folk song, with its flipside, Sarina (DR25177A), composed by Bill Buysman. It is produced by Life Record (4-003), with permission from the original by Artone Gramophone in Holland. Willy (solo guitar) and His Giants have also recorded covers like, Baby Love, GreatPretender, One Night and High Noon.
Their selection is different from The Jumping Jewels and they are not as popular in Singapore, but like the Blue Diamonds and Anneke Gronloh, they have certainly made some impact with their Indo/Dutch influence. They are as active as ever and, according to the website, have been doing revivals. Indo-pop is also known as Neder-pop (Netherlands).
*The tune, Terang Boelan [the bright moonlight], is now the National Anthem of Malaysia with different lyrics.
Images from: Willy & His Giants/Ajoen Ajoen Website which is in Dutch.
Information from: Dutch Instro Rockin'/Electric Guitars by Piet Muys.
