Straight Off The Cuff - Or - The Sleeves Speak

SOME SLEEVES SPEAK:

While there are many Singapore artistes and personalities who are approachable and willing to tell their stories about Singapore 60s music, there are others, for reasons of their own, who are not.

Then again, it is difficult to agree to a specific time and place to meet the willing ones. For some people, due to personal reasons or ill-health, they cancel appointments.

Because of the challenges faced these last two years, I shall be unwillingly copying off sleeve-covers to document what recording studios write about their artistes.

I will be calling these postings: Some Sleeves Speak. Many of these vinyls are not availabe in the second-hand market; others are available for very cruel prices.

So for those who do not have these vinyls, they will now have a chance to read about Singapore's own pop 60s music stars straight from the horse's mouth. Or to be exact, straight from the loud-speaker's mouth.

It starts in the next posting.

(If you have vinyls to lend, I shall return them after copying the information from the sleeves.)

Original article: Andy Lim

Image from: http://recordrevirginizer.com/vinylpics.html

Ismail Haron: Vigilantes, Guys, Anita (Part II)

Part Two:

In 1970, Ismail Haron went solo with his first EP under EMI titled Kehilangan Chinta (Without Love). As the year progressed, he took a break from recording and for a few months did live shows in Hong Kong.

By this time, he was under the management of Quill Organisation. They decided to form a group and had Roland and Eddie from The Guys, saxophone player Andrew Oh from Pink and Purple, John Choo with keyboard, saxaphone and percussionist Philip Koh from The Blackjacks.

They were even spotted by Robert Stigwood who was manager of Bee Gees and ex-Cream. They played in Bangkok at Montieth and at Udon Thani further North. Udon was a US base and they were playing in clubs for US soldiers and officers.When they came back to Singapore, they continued playing the clubs in 1971 and 1972. The band changed members again a few times.

Finally the group broke up but Ismail continued to record a few more solo albums: Ismail Haron & Maria (1972), Ilham Pujangga (1972), Ismail Haron (1972), Antara Pujangga Dan Insan Biasa (1973), Sutra Mulia (1974), Hulurkan Tangan (1975) and Potret Sindiran (1975).

Among his popular hits within this period were Dendam-ku Kerana Maria (I Did What I Did For Maria), Antara Anak Dan Ayah (My Boy), Tolong Damai-kan (Mammy Blue), Ilham Pujangga, Wati, Persembahan-ku, Hey Hey Sunny, Junainah, Kehilangan Chinta and Apa Khabar Sayang (Hello Darling). Again the songs were English hits with Malay lyrics, a trend that put local artistes in the popularity charts.

Between 1972 and 1976, Ismail Haron recorded a few duets with diva Anita Sarawak. The songs included Kesah Dol Di-Suatu Petang, Rahsia Mu Rahsia Ku (Sealed With A Kiss), Wanita Dan Pakaian and Pemain Piano on EMI/S-EGEP 750. Also, Alam Terpuja (You Make Me Feel Brand New), Janji Tetap Janji (My Girl), Gabus Tarbus (House Of Bamboo), Rahsia Di-Ayer Jerneh and Menunggu Nasi Minyak.

Another EP had: Keluarga Bahagia, Tiada Jodoh, Asmara and even La Aube, the Kassim Selamat greatest hit on (EIM/S-EGEP. 781). Music compositions for EMI recordings were usually by Reggie Verghese.

Many thanks to the writer who provided this very extensive article on Ismail Haron's music career and vinyl recordings.

Image/Vinyl Info/Edits: Andy Lim.

Information: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ismail_Haron

Hindi Song: Dil Mein Chupake Pyar Ka - Aan

'Dil Mein Chupa Ke Pyar Ka' Mohammed Rafi.

From movie, 'Ann'.

YouTube Video by 'Gold Vintage'.

  UP TO 1,200 VIEWS, 

20 CHATS, COMMENTS

SONGS I LOVE:

Another 50s Hindi song that kept playing in my head was from the musical, Aan (or Pride - image). I had tried for some time to check out the song from movie websites and from friends but to no avail.

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So a visit yesterday, with my Music Meister friend, to a neighbourhood coffee shop at Serangoon proved fruitful when his Indian friend wrote out the full song title in romanised Hindi. That did the trick and I heard it again for the first time after many years. *Mohammed Rafi's: Dil Mein Chupake Pyar Ka came alive on You Tube.

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In those early years of Hindi movies in Singapore the re-runs were either at the Garrick Cinema in Geylang Serai or the Queen's Cinema in Geylang Road. Aan or Savage Princess was called a 'swashbuckling, romantic film', that became a block-buster. The unique English title was used to draw US audiences who were always keen about the 'mysterious' East.

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The movie was produced in 1952 and was the first Indian film in 'Technicolor'. It was directed by the legendary Mehboob Khan and starred Dilip Kumar and Premnath (big stars they were). Music was by Naushad.

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Again it was my Malay neighbour who persuaded me to see the film after drumming the song into me for days. To appease him, we queued patiently for tickets at the Garrick and managed to get the 50-cent seats. We were 6 rows away from the screen, had to lean back and look upwards for the duration of the movie. I couldn't remember the plot, I could this particular song.

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I came out of the cinema with a stiff neck. Hamid laughed when I complained but I must thank him for the humbling experience and beautiful song. In Singapore, the interest and love for Bollywood movies never waned. Even today Singaporeans of all races watch them on television, DVDs and in the cinemas to 'escape the harsh realities of everyday life.' Similarly 50s and 60s Indian pop evergreens are still in demand in the music shops.

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*Mohd. Rafi was an Indian playback singer (doing voice-overs for movie stars) for four decades. Versatile and talented, he could sing in English, Persian and 10 Indian languages. Rafi had been honoured many times by the Indian government, Bollywood and other movie industries for his capability and music contribution.

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(Apparently Hindi and Tamil movies are just as popular in the 60s as it is today, especially in Singapore because Tamil is one of the four official languages. In fact, for non Singapore readers, this island has both a TV channel and radio station that broadcasts only in Tamil. The songs are popular too.)

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You Tube Video by: 

ddffx.

Thanks to yuanyuanyuanyin for You Tube videos and comments.

Image/Movie information: 

Wikipedia and Websites.

Original article: 

Andy Lim.

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For: 

Music Meister, Eusoof Angullia, Salma, Ahyar Jammari, Azizah and Abdul Hamid (wherever he is.)

Anyone with an extra copy of the vinyl?