COE Prices Singapore: The Beatles, Deep Purple, Joe Bonamassa. Wen Hing's Song, RIDE.

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Because of the strict rules and regulations, traffic jams 

in Singapore are manageable but could be just 

as frustrating like in other countries.

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Ride

The recent COE prices [date published: 7.7.22] have soared right back up to pre-COVID days, and who can blame us. Owning a car in Singapore will always be our dream. With a car-per-capita ratio of 1:5, Singapore ranks right in the middle of about 200 countries on the list. But if we use the car-per-kilometer ratio, our ranking shoots all the way up to number two! For a land-starved country like Singapore that says a lot about our love for cars.

And our love for songs about cars and driving too! Although we don’t get to cruise our beloved marquees on the autobahn or on the highways - with the top down and the wind on our faces; we can almost get the same experience from songs such as “Drive My Car” by the Beatles or “Drive” by Joe Bonamassa. But how can I leave out “Highway Star” (Deep Purple)!? Although this song may be deemed too “heavy” for this blog, it certainly is a beloved song that many - including me, grew up with. It is a classic for many a Purple fan, but for a greenhorn like me I had always wondered what it is like ‘racing it to the ground’. 

Highway Star: Deep Purple 

YouTube video from Jan Plexy

Driving in Singapore is stressful, and racing is a definite no-no! Music is always there to take our minds off the bumper to bumper situation we often find ourselves in. An interesting incident happened last year (2021) which may be a sign of just is how stressed out road user here are. This gentleman rode on a motorbike on a busy road buck naked! He must had been going through a really rough patch, and like most netizens I was both amused and sympathetic of his antics. I think he must have had music piped in through his helmet, so much so that he was totally oblivious of his actions.

The funny thing was when I read about it and saw the photo, the song “Drive” by Joe Bonamassa suddenly started playing in my head. Being a songwriter wannabe, I couldn’t resist and wrote a new set of lyrics for this song based on the story of the naked rider - sorry about that Joe. So here is my take on JB’s Drive - I named it "Ride".

Joe Bonamassa: Drive

YouTube Video from:

 JoeBonamassaTV

Ride

[Composer: Chow Wen Hing]

Man I’m slowly going crazy
Watching the same old show
It’s time to feel the wind on my face
I’m going to take off my clothes

And ride
Onto the PIE onto the PIE
Don’t close your eyes
Put on some rock and roll
And let all my troubles go
And ride

Man I’ve been indoors way too long
I can’t feel my toes
It’s time to burn me some rubber tonight
But first let me take off my clothes

And ride
Onto the PIE onto the PIE
Don’t close your eyes
Put on some rock and roll
And let all my troubles go
And ride

*Repeat till you hear the police sirens

I’m glad to inform readers that this gentleman is now being given the help and support that he needs to resist the naked urge. I wish him well and hope that he can rejoin the Singapore dream-chasing regime soon. In the meantime, let Rascal Flatt’s “Life Is A Highway” guide us on, and let’s all enjoy our mode of getting around - be it driving or riding.

An Original Article by: Wenhing    

Singer, composer and writer Chow Wen Hing.

Beside singing, Wenhing is a composer too and I can't thank him enough for another one of his well-articulated articles for this blog; he has written a number of them these past years together with many original songs.

His articles and songs have received heavy-weighted, positive feedback and comments. Kamsiah Mr. Chow. You'll be one of Singapore's well-known  composers soon.

[Click his name under LABELS below to read them.]

Images: Google

YouTube Videos and Webpages:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_vehicles_per_capita

https://www.nationmaster.com/country-info/stats/Transport/Vehicles/Per-km-of-road

https://youtu.be/kfSQkZuIx84

https://youtu.be/Wr9ie2J2690

https://www.musicgrotto.com/songs-about-cars-driving/

https://youtu.be/euMNVyuqmwo