House Of Rising Sun, Endless Love 不了情 Says Hair Stylist

                     

Here's the final Part 2 about Ah Kim's Journey and his love for 60's music:

Between 1984 - 2000 Ah Kim had 3 small saloons all located in the suburbs of Sydney, Australia and it was only in the year 2000 that he managed to buy a small property of his own which housed both a saloon and a hair-styling school.

Before he started on this 'Long and Winding Road' he had 3 simple dreams.

1. To own a nice house 

2. To drive a beautiful car 

3. To learn how to swim. 

Believe it or not, he failed in the simplest of all 3 dreams. It was only after his return to Singapore in 2102 that he managed to stand on water.

Today Ah Kim spends much his time innovating  and creating different hair styles for international hair shows. In his own words, "I am not a commercial hair stylist; I am a fashion hair stylist."

He was the finalist for the Alternative Hair Award in 2014 and 2016 in London and was one of the 16 finalists to be selected out of 900 hairdressers in the world. Ah Kim was the only Singaporean to be in the finals and for the record, the only Singaporean in the finals in the last 30 years. 

Hopefully at this renowned event Singaporeans will stand up with pride that among the world's best in coiffure and in this tiny Red Dot City we call Singapore we have in our midst a non-celebrated, giant.  

Cheers to Ah Kim and we wish him all the best for his next show in Singapore and the next big hair fashion competition in London in 2017.

Andy Lim with Ah Kim:

During Andy's interview with Ah Kim, he was kind enough to provide the former with a copy of his book, AHKIM (image) where beautiful and creatively coiffured hair styles of his work were presented in vivid images. 

Besides the glossy photographs, the publication has insights about Ah Kim from his teachers, friends and experts in the industry and a foreword from retired newsman Yeo Toon Joo, Peter.

When asked about his free time, he said he loved listening to Rediffusion in the 1960's. Here's a paragraph from his book where his Gan Eng Seng School classmate, Raymond Chong reminisced:

Our friendship continued to grow throughout our working life. Together with our friends in Chinatown, we used to visit the cinemas and spend time at cafes. Those were the usual activities of youth then. We also listened to Rediffusion and radio programmes, together making requests and dedicating songs to each other. 

  His Publication: AHKIM Copyright 2012. Designer: Eranga Tennekoon.

Urged on about his love for 60's music Ah Kim  revealed his love for the Beatles, The Animals, Simon and Garfunkel and the Rolling Stones with their hits: I Want to Hold Your Hand, A Hard Day's Night, House of the Rising Sun, The Sound of Silence and As Tears Go By.

His favourite singers are Marianne Faithful, Cliff Richard and Elvis Presley. He loves local singers like Huang Qing Yuan, Sakura and his favourite Rita Chao. The Chinese songs are *Endless Love, Wine and Coffee, Flowing Water, Manli, Night and Fog and Peach Blossom River. 

*(不了情, 美酒加咖啡, 水長流, 曼莉, 黃清元, 尤雅, 潘秀瓊).

When he visited a nightclub during his early years and they were rare, he would go with his friends to the Golden Million Club at Peninsula Hotel in Singapore. His friends would usually treat him for the evening. Ah Kim remembers and would return the treat when he had the opportunity in later years. 

He appreciates the vitality and style of Vidal Sassoon and the mini-skirt when it was in fashion, loved the short Bob Cut and Classic Bob hair style, together with the unique Asymmetrical and the Geometric hair cut. 

        Andy Lim (Blogger), Ah Kim and Larry Lai (60's DJ).

During the interview with Andy he revealed he would love to meet Larry Lai, Rediffusion 60's DJ. 

Andy told him, "Surely," arranged a meeting and above is a snap of the three.

Wish hard enough but work harder and dreams will morph into reality. All the best Ah Kim in your unending journey. You've made it, but there's more...

Click below to read Part 1.

http://singapore60smusic.blogspot.sg/2017/01/long-and-winding-road-fashionhair.html

Images and Article:

A Private Collection; Book AHKIM and Art of Hair Inter Coiffure.
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