60s Music Vinyl Records For Sale At Night Markets [Pasar Malam]: By Foo Jong Fook.

The writer himself, or a friend, at Albert Street Night Market 

during the 60's in Singapore, checking out vinyl records to buy.

Fabian Foo Jong Fook reminisces:

When The Record Shop Comes To You:

I was born in Albert Street, currently the Albert Food and Hawker Centre. During the day Albert Street was just an ordinary road but in the evening from 6pm to 10pm, it became a very busy Pasar Malam or Night Market.

There were many makeshift stalls selling everything we needed [last image below]. What was more an attraction to me were the record stalls, blasting music from the vinyl of our many Singapore bands like The Stylers, Travellers, Melodians and Chinese singers who sang in Mandarin, like Rita Chao or Sakura Teng. 

Vendors would come early to set up their stalls [last image below] and as the sun set, people who live around the area would come by after their dinner for their evening stroll and check out the shopping mall that visits the residents. 😄

The songs the vendors played were mostly Chinese pops. We kept hearing the same songs every night when those LPs [Long Play Records] and EPs [Extended Plays] were hot on the market.

Chinese records like these sold well among Singaporeans in the 60s who find them entertaining and the record covers were attractively designed to show off the musicians and singers.

Hawkers' food [image below] was at every corner, but I was too poor to eat night snacks. Only on special occasions were we able to buy these titbits with some extra pocket money that we had. The extra funds that I used to save were spent, not on food, but to buy records at Kwang Sia Records at North Bridge Road. But that's another story.

"Those were the days my friend; I thought it'll never end..."

Any experience on night markets in your own country? 

Comments are welcome.

16.11.19.

Food stalls @ Albert Street Night Market in 1966. 

Photo from 'flickr' by David Ayres.

Vendors come early to set up their record stalls; the 

early bird too gets his share of vinyl selection in broad daylight.

One could buy almost anything at a night market.

Do we still have them around in Singapore today?

Author and good friend:

Fabian Foo Jong Fook.

Read another 60's music story about vinyl records:

Click below:
.: Singapore 60s Chinese Records Are Disappearing