Monday, June 28, 2010

(C) The Stylers Story: Recordings A Plenty

UP TO 2,200 VIEWS

CHATTING WITH RANDY LEE (FOUNDING MEMBER, RHYTHMIST):

I used to meet Randy Lee when he comes over from Indonesia to visit. We would go for a drink. And we would chat...

The Stylers would have *recorded so many albums that only a serious collector could answer a difficult question like, "How many albums do they have to their name?" Even Randy Lee, Stylers founding member and rhythm guitarist, was not able to provide a figure because, as he explained, they were with more than one recording company and it would have been impossible to collect statistics as to the number of albums pressed.

Randy and I were at a food outlet having satay and dessert when a group of young men and women converged on the place to enjoy a late night supper. As they gathered and sat around us, a young lady noticed the gleaming CDs on our table. She looked at one as said, "I know the Stylers!" Deja vu I screamed to myself. 

Randy was surprised. "But you are so young," he remarked. "True," she said, "but my mother is a fan and she has a good collection of your records." An older gentleman and also a member of the group remarked, "Yes, the Stylers are very popular, especially amongst the Chinese educated in the region." And so the conversation went.
Randy is on the extreme right with glasses.

The rather large group was getting noisier and some of them joined in my conversation with Randy, so in my enthusiasm for figures Randy mentioned, "I cannot recollect the actual numbers but they are estimated to be in the hundreds."

The mostly popular songs they recorded also went into the hundreds and as Randy rattled off the titles, I realised there were too many to document. "John (Teo/band leader) is remarkable. He did the music arrangement for every song, but because he is such a gifted musician, he did it with speed and accuracy," said Randy. "The change in group dynamics over the years did not affect us very much because it was a simple matter of working hard and achieving our targets.
The youngsters milling around were very noisy and the weather too warm, so we said our goodbyes and promised to meet again the next time he visited Singapore. Randy, by the way runs a very successful company in Indonesia but it has nothing to do with music.

*Albums recorded and not copies sold (which would have been more.)
Image: Randy Lee Collection.
Original article: Andy Lim.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

I was flattered and delighted when I stumbled across this clip on Youtube of an excerpt from my Lucky Cat radio programme.

It's on The Styler's Band Channel - the 1960s/70s Singaporean band (who along with the Quests were very big on the East Asian music scene).

I am playing their groovy tune I Love Boh Boh Cha Cha and you can hear Joey Leung from Terracotta Film on the clip too (he was on the show to discuss the upcoming Terracotta Film Festival).

Oh, and by the way I wasn't googling myself, I found the clip because I was searching for the amazing Chinese Reggae singer Cha Cha, and I cam across it that way - honest guv!

Learn more about The Stylers:
@ Questing Bandstand
@ Radiodiffusion
@ Singapore 60s Andy's Pop Music Influence

Posted by Lucky Cat Zoë at Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Anonymous said...

John Teo is a telent in his guitar & organ even he can compose songs.The band New Stylers shdn't disband they have at least have another ten to fifteen years at that time.No other band can fixture
it.With today 2013 their music still many people hear.When it come to getai shows found memories in their performance in late 60s,70s,80s.Hope they are still healthy,happy & prosper.Regards.

ANDY: Pop Music Not Pills. © said...

Thank you for your comments. I agree with your view. The band should not disband so early but as Randy Lee told me they have their own agenda and parted as friends.

Yes, Stylers music is popular with Getai shows.

Except for Robert Song who has passed away, I think the rest are still healthy and happy.

Please visit this blog again.

ANDY: Pop Music Not Pills. © said...

Thank you for your comments. I agree with your view. The band should not disband so early but as Randy Lee told me they have their own agenda and parted as friends.

Yes, Stylers music is popular with Getai shows.

Except for Robert Song who has passed away, I think the rest are still healthy and happy.

Please visit this blog again.

Anonymous said...

Hi,Andy
thanks do keep in touch with Randy Lee & and the rest although they have parted way after more than 25 years together, their record album in music still in good shape.Most of the singers with stylers at that time can sell well.

Best Regards.

ANDY: Pop Music Not Pills. © said...

Thank you very much for visiting and commenting about The Stylers. I am keeping in touch with Randy and we meet when he comes to Singapore.

ANDY: Pop Music Not Pills. © said...

This posting is revived today, end of June 2016. Best wishes to Randy Lee, as active as ever on FB as he is with his health business.

Stylers, one of the most successful recordings artistes in Singapore from the 60's onward.