Calling 'The Woodlanders' - You've Got Mail

TWO PEOPLE WHO WANT TO GET IN TOUCH WITH 'THE WOODLANDERS':

Letter #1:

Hi Andy,

It reminds me of my younger days when I was about 12 years or so. Used to follow my dad who managed this band called The Woodlanders. They played regularly at the Anzuk Club in Admiralty (Sembawang).

PS: Aloysius Soh played for The Woodlanders periodically in the 70s. I am his nephew - Michael.
January 3, 2010 12:25 PM

Letter #2 and 3:

penesmallbrook said...
I lived on the Naval Base from 1968 until 1971 and my father (Arthur Smallbrook) was friends with Bobby Tan in The Woodlanders. He worked in my father's department on the Naval Base before moving to Singapore Glass and often used to come to our house.

They were a great band, we used to love going to dances where they played. Would love to know what he is doing now... retired I guess.
May 29, 2010 10:45 PM

penesmallbrook said...
I lived on the Naval Base in Singapore from 1968 to 1971 and The Woodlanders often played at dances at the CPOs mess. Bobby Tan the lead singer used to work in the same department as my father (Arthur Smallbrook) and often came to our house.

They were a great group, we loved the music at that time. Wasn't Barry Walker one of the Walker Brothers... Do a search on YouTube and you will be able to hear some of their music. Would love to know where and what Bobby is doing now... retired I guess. If you are in touch with him, say, 'Hello' from Penny Smallbrook.
May 29, 2010 10:49 PM

(If anyone out there is familiar with this group please write in. Thanks, Andy.)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:RAF_Sembawang_entrance.jpeg

From Tuesday, December 29, 2009 Posting:
(1) British/American Servicemen Music Influence In 60s Music Scene At Military Base

(B) The Professionals: Stylers' Story Continues

When the Stylers began their musical journey they played for home parties around the Geylang and East Coast areas. While the stars were just glimmering for the group at the beginning, they showered their brilliance when The Stylers took second place in the finals of The Shadows Competition at the Sky Cinema at Great World (1962) where they had participated. The Stompers were first and The Trekkers third.

But they didn't care because the publicity they received from the show opened doors for them. So with a resounding, "Let's Go!" and John Teo leading the pack, Randy Lee providing the rhythm, Frankie Abdullah pounding the bass and Osman commanding the drums, they never anticipated, that for the next 15 years or more they would be one of the top instrumental groups in the country in terms of record sales and financial gains.

The team's line-up changed and group dynamics improved when former Flamingos and Checkmates veteran Robert Song (vocalist/percussionist) joined them. Then Douglas Tan (bassist) and Alvin Wong (drummer) joined the S-Team too.

As they turned professionals and record sales soared, their income individually, reached 4 figures a month and as businessman Randy puts it, "It was the 60s and more than the amount we were getting in the administrative services we were working for!"

Randy gave up his post even when he was about to be promoted and his boss encouraged him to quit his position when he heard the amount Randy was earning.

And as their journey continued, their musical experience included stints where they performed with the prestigious Radio Television Singapore (RTS) Orchestra.

The group had worked together with home-screen celebrities like, Winston Filmer (bass), John Lee (tenor sax), Renaldo Lachica (alto sax), Olimpio on trumpet (deceased), David Chen (trombone) and Bonny de Souza (piano) who was not from RTS.

Information/Images: Randy Lee Original article: Andy Lim

'Banana Boat Song' Calypso Music 60s (Pt I)

SONGS I LOVE:

UP TO 2,000 VIEWS

(While searching for songs to entertain my grandson, I remember The Banana Boat Song with its sunny island rhythm, bongo backing and repetitive lyrics. Up till today his, "Day-o, day-o," has kept many neighbours wide awake.)

In the 50s and 60s when calypso music (from Trinidad) made its debut in Singapore and when Harry Belafonte (image below) became a household name with his signature song, nearly every Singaporean went crazy with this Jamaican folk.

Just as busy and in the limelight today Harry Belafonte is a thinker, a civil rights activist, a political and humanitarian activist and chairs many seminars dealing with racial prejudice.

Although its origin is not completely known, it is calypso and usually sung by Jamaican banana field workers who work on plantations and banana dock workers who load the fruit on the boats. They improvise the lyrics from time to time but the most common reference is "daylight come and we wan' go home".

Explanation:

1) Come Mr Tally Man, tally me banana/Daylight come and we wanna go home = when daylight comes and the shift is over, they want their work to be counted (tally) so that they can go home.

2) Six foot, seven foot, eight-foot bunch = the length of banana combs.

3) Hide the deadly black tarantula = these spiders are found on the bananas.

For younger listeners, the song was used in the comedy film, Beetlejuice where during the dinner scene, the possessed guests sang and danced,

*The Banana Boat Song.

Day-o, day-ay-ay-o/Daylight come and me wan' go home/Day-o, day-ay-ay-o/Daylight come and me wan' go home

Work all night on a drink of rum/Daylight come and me wan' go home/Stack banana till de morning come/Daylight come and me wan' go home/Come, Mister tally man, tally me banana/Daylight come and me wan' go home/Come, Mister tally man, tally me banana/Daylight come and me wan' go home

Lift six foot, seven foot, eight foot bunch/Daylight come and me wan' go home/Six foot, seven foot, eight foot bunch/Daylight come and me wan' go home/Day, me say day-ay-ay-o/Daylight come and me wan' go home/Day, me say day, me say day, me say day/Daylight come and me wan' go home

Beautiful bunch of ripe banana/Daylight come and me wan' go home/Hide the deadly black taransla/Daylight come and me wan' go home/Lift six foot, seven foot, eight foot bunch/Daylight come and me wan' go home

The black taransla = tarantula. These spiders are found in between the 6,7, or 8 bunches.

Six foot, seven foot, eight foot bunch/Daylight come and me wan' go ho
me/Day, me say day-ay-ay-o/Daylight come and me wan' go home/Day, me say day, me say day, me say day/Daylight come and me wan' go home/Come, Mister tally man, tally me banana/Daylight come and me wan' go home

Come, Mister tally man, tally me banana/Daylight come and me wan' go home/Day-o, day-ay-ay-oDaylight come and me wan' go home/Day, me say day, me say day, me say day....ay-ay-o/Daylight come and me wan' go home...

No underlying meaning. The slow version lulls my second grandchild to sleep. A beautiful song indeed. But maybe it's not a song for children? "Work all night on a drink of rum..." But the version by Wiggles group from Australia dismisses it all.

More than 6 foot, 7 foot or 8 foot. They are bunches of bananas, rhyming beautifully with the song. Below pix shows DICK YIP, our ukulele champion singing the same song beside his own bunch in his own garden. Cheers.

Image: From Andy Lim's Kitchen.

*http://www.digihitch.com/road-culture/music-lyrics/419

**http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KqFSXcrPdyw

Gramophone Man David Row - Collection (Pt II)

AMi Continental 2 Jukebox (1962)

As my friend Billy and I approach the entrance of David Row's cute and neat cottage (a converted terrace house) at Teachers' Estate, we notice on the left wall of the living room, shelvings up to the ceiling. They are filled with variations in model, size and colour of vintage gramophones and what looked like old but larger sized 78rpm records.

On the floor, to complement his array on the shelves, stands a large Victoria Cabinet Gramophone. As we sit on the lounge chairs on the right wing of the living room and sip our tea, David, who has retired since 1988 explains that when he started his collection that year he had about 20 gramophones; today he has more than 100.

 "And that's not all," he remarks with glee, "I have more than 2,000 records that includes a wax cylinder recording of Stanley Kirby's Tipperary (1914), and a copy of Meet Me Tonight In Dreamland."

It is a larger and thicker than usual Pathe record that can only be played from the centre outwards on the rare Pathe gramophone. And as David explains, he demonstrates, "Only two people in Singapore have this machine, which has the stylus moving from the inner grooves of the record to the outer grooves. Watch!"

The collection of 78rpm records also includes, Momo Latiff's, Bunga Sakura and Zainal Alam's Rose Rose I Love You. There's also Bonnie Lou's, Seven Lonely Days, Danny Thomas', Aint We Got Fun, Guy Mitchell's, My Truly, Truly Fair, Gene Kelly's Singing In The Rain and Dean Martin's That's Amore. And these titles are a mere fraction of what's in his cabinet.

A Record Collection

As we view his gramophone collection in greater detail, David explains that while others buy originals and pay a fortune, he usually gets his from Sungei Road and antique dealers and restores them in his workshop behind the house. Taking us to the kitchen, David shows us a large colourful jukebox standing beside the refrigerator.

Victoria Cabinet Gramophone.

"And this..." he says proudly, "is a fully restored AMi Continental 2 Jukebox made in 1962. I bought it from a friend for about $2,000 in 1989." And as I hummed Elvis Presley's Mean Woman Blues in my head, remembering the juke box in the coffee house fight scene in Loving You, David's Continental roars, "I got a woman mean as she can be..." The jukebox is playing the 45 RCA single. At nearly half a century old, it is still rockin' and rollin' without a flaw.

"Your wife cannot be that mean," I remark, "allowing you to put your collection around the house." David agrees and chips in, "Because everything works in this place." Then he leads us to his workroom next to the jukebox.

From the ceiling to the floor, his little workshop has nearly four walls of tools, gadgets and spare parts. It was mind-boggling to see the amount of tiny screws, nuts and bolts that he has, all contained and organised in boxes and shelved so neatly in his room. You must visit this place to believe how this man's mind works.

I thanked David as my friend and I made our way to the front porch. I realised that I should spend more time with an interesting hobby like his...

"You know... I help at the hospice too..." volunteered David, "and that's another way of using your hands."

"Would you like to discuss it?" I asked.

"Another time, Andy. Not today."

Image from Google.