SINGAPORE 60's: ANDY's POP MUSIC INFLUENCE IS A PERSONAL MUSIC, MEMORY TRAIL. BLOGGER DOES NOT OWN THE RIGHTS TO VIDEOS, AUDIO TRACKS AND IMAGES. THEY ARE UPLOADED FOR FUN, EDUCATIONAL, ILLUSTRATIVE PURPOSES AND HAVE BEEN CREDITED. BLOG IS NOT SPONSORED NOR ADVERTORIAL IN ANY WAY WHATSOEVER. INFORM BLOGGER OF COPYRIGHT ISSUES AND POST WILL BE DELETED IMMEDIATELY. DO NOT COPY THE POSTS; GET PERMISSION N CREDIT ME IF YOU DO. ANDY LIM LA (NOVEMBER, 2008) -
(新加坡六十年代安迪的流行音乐影响力), SUDI MAMPIR !
Since January 2025 till today, 1st July, half the year has gone by. Enjoy your life as much as you can in this very turbulent, crazy and difficult world. But try to keep your peace; not easy though...
January To June,
Not Much Peace In Tune.
Now It's July,
Sun's High In The Sky!
Enjoy while you may,
It's not ours to say.
Simon and Garfunkel: 'Leaves That Are Green'.
YouTube Video by: kylecrazyford.
I was twenty-one years when I wrote this song
I'm twenty-two now, but I won't be for long
Time hurries on
And the leaves that are green turn to brown
And they wither with the wind
And they crumble in your hand...
[From a 1965 album by Paul Simon. Later added with Art Garfunkel and instruments. The A side is 'Homeward Bound'.]
Posters produced and posters sent to me
through daily chats via What'sApp.
Yes, never stop sending those 60s music stories...
A rare combination that never happened but it could have
if they had met. Elvis and Bruce, peaceful people who just
wanted a happy and strong world through music and self-defence.
While Staying In the Kampong, Yes Our Family Had Dogs.
There Was One At the Next House Used As A Store Room. This Dog Was Very Friendly With Everyone. It Was Not Suitable As A Guard Dog But He Was There Because Of His Size, To Act As A Deterrent, Hoping To Fool Any Intruder.
There Was Another When I Was A Seaman On Board A Ship. While in Hong Kong, With Boats Loading And Unloading Cargoes Alongside Our Vessel We Found A Dog On Board Our Ship The Next Morning. Someone Had Abandoned What Resembled A Chow Chow, And Disappeared.
While On Board The Ship, Yes Our Crew Nursed A Dog.
The Doggie Was In Bad Shape. We, the Crew, Took Care And Nursed Him Back To Health. So The Doggie Sailed With Us From Hong Kong To Singapore, The Straits of Malacca, Indian Ocean, On To East Africa, i.e. in Kenya And Tanzania, Eden And Up To the Red Sea, Then Back To Singapore.
The Background Beach Scene, Reminded Me Of The Six Crew Members From Our Anchor Ship When We Paddled Our Dinghy To Shore, Including One Guy With Doggie Swimming Alongside. We Had Fun.
While On The Way Home, Yes Our Family Adopted The Dog.
Before Our Trip Back To Shanghai, I Took It Back Home, Because No One On Board Wanted To Take Responsibility. I Had To Take It Home First Because If It Bit A Chinese Worker While In Shanghai Or Anywhere Else, We Would All Be In Trouble. But Thanks To The Doggie It Took A Liking And Stayed Close To My Father. So The Chow Chow, Born In Hong Kong 😊, Became My Father's Protector, While I Continued On My Journey Across The Seas...
I Remember When Dad Was In Bed, Doggie Would Be At Dad's Feet And When Mum Was Around It Would Growl To Protect Dad. A Very Protective And Loyal Pet It Became...
I Started Working On Board Ship Doing On The Job Training With Zero Knowledge. Somehow, For Those Old Seafarers, That Was Good, Because I Didn't Have To Carry Some Of Those Useless Excess Baggage So It Was Easier To Teach Me.
I Worked My Way From OJT, To Sailor; Quarter Master And Boatswain, All the Time Having Tremendous Respect For Those Old Seafarers. They Had the Experience And Knowledge And I, The Youthfulness To Present Their Ideas Into A Safe Working Environment. The Camaraderie Worked Very Well. All's Well That Ends Well.
Author: Merlin Lim.
[This story, as in all original stories on this blog, has been rightfully copyrighted.]
While Reading His Story, Yes, I Thank Merlin For This Dog Post.
"Sailing,
Takes me away to where I've always heard it could be
Just a dream and the wind to carry me
Soon I will be free..."
Christopher Cross
Thanks Merlin for the inspiration you gave. Life is NEVER all music and nothing else. Your sailing period was truly an achievement. Not many Singaporean musicians could have done what you did and still stand today to tell your Salty Doggie Tale Of Joy...
Comments are welcome!
Merlin Lim, retired today, was an adventurous sailor boy,
a successful recording artiste and a contributing author for this blog.
There was a request for dog songs and since there was one previously, this post is an obligation but it's a short one. We could do cats next time?
You've heard of Hound Dog by Elvis but you haven't heard of It's a Dog's Life by the King. And Little Richard too with his song, A Dog That Can't Wag It's Own Tail.
Check out some songs here about our Bow, Wows! and their singers like The Stones, Monkees, Cat Stevens and The Byrds. I am sure you only know a few of these songs about man's best friend. Fifteen songs are a lot of woof, woof...
There are many amusing songs from the 50s and 60s, so here are four of them with lyrics that I enjoy. Only a part of the song has been displayed for each one. You need to check the full lyrics from the Internet and it's worth the time.
The first song is about the location of a baby's dimple; the second is about the clicking of high heel shoes affecting some teens? And the third explains how Tarzan has guitar lessons. The fourth song is a newer version of 'Goodness Gracious Me', by Rowan Atkinson and company. Originally it was sung by Peter Sellars and Sophia Loren. It's funny, truly.
Watch. Comments are welcome...
Here they are: [1] cute, [2] amusing, [3] silly and [4] funny...
Following the trend, I am re-living comments from blog readers, friends and highlighting them. And we chat about nightclub drinks and lamsing, er dancing.
For action dancing we chose the cha-chas 'Rico Vacilon' and rock n roll hits. For the lamsing we chose slow number waltzes like Cliff Richard's, 'When the girl in your arms.'
Check them out.
Sometimes it's too close for comfort.
But it was the 60's and nobody bothered!
Patrick Chan says:
Hi Andy,
Good reminiscent. Actually, when we go to a night spot in the 60s, it's not such much for the drinks but to see the band n 'lamsing' [dancing closely] as you said. For some, they don't really know what bar drinks to order. So following others was a safe bet without looking 'sua ku' or a country boy. [2017].
Yes, I remembered Bacardi n rum coke were top of the list. But if you want to be a bit 'sekit atas' [a little bit classy] then you order Gin Tonic to impress the girls. lol. Surely you will get one or two asking 'what drink is that'. So this drink is an ice-breaker that gets you up close with the girls for the evening.
Now you know why Gin Tonic has been my favourite pouring ever since.
Andy, next time you try order gin tonic and see what happens. For the girls, if you want to be seen as a sophisticated you order Baby Cham.
The late Ms Chong YL says:
Andy,
In those years, did many ladies take to liquor? I was no night bird - had a very strict father. It was only when I started working that I did go to West Point in Pasir Panjang a couple of times. Don't remember if I tried any hard drinks. Years later, some lady friends introduced me to Campari and Seven-Up. Even then I didn't take to that well-developed some kind of allergy.
So you can imagine a situation in New Zealand when I attended dinners with the Kiwis. When asked to drink, I declined - giving the reason that I would develop a rash. When offered coffee at the end of the meal, I said no - I won't be able to sleep. I asked for 'Adam's Ale' - warm. What a 'suaku' from Singapore.
Today I quite enjoy ice-cream with some liqueur such as Lychee Martini, Kahlua Krunch, Baileys Choc Chips from Daily Scoop. [2017]
Jane Dick [Manitoba, Canada] says:
Hi Andy,
Fun to read your memories of your youth and local nightclubs; brought back some of my own memories.
Rum and Coca Cola, is one of the favourite songs, so delightful to listen to it. Years ago, I was working for an organisation that had a booth at the annual Wedding Show in Winnipeg, and I did a shift during one weekend.
During the fashion show, with lovely models showing off bridal gowns, one piece of music they played over and over was, 'Rum and Coca Cola ...' a song about streetwalkers ...! I thought that was pretty funny. [2017].
Daisy Koh says:
Oh Yes Ambassador n Airport Nightclub. Only $5 cover charge inclusive of the Rum n Coke. So packed those days, no place for fanciful dance steps. Just “Move the refrigerator,” as they say in Hokkien or 'lamsing'. I still have an old cutout or photo of the packed Airport dance floor somewhere.
We also grew up twisting away in the 60's. We girls spent afternoons practising with talcum powder on the floor to facilitate the moves. So much fun … Twist and then Ago-Go. The Twist music is still alive today… incorporated into Line-dancing and Zumba 🤣. [2024].
Xavier Cugat and His Orchestra: Rico Vacilon.
YouTube Video by: felixbautista
Stephen Han says:
I remembered dancing at the Ambassador Hotel and the Paya Lebar Airport. Rum Coke and Baby Champagne were the drinks of choice. I also recalled the sexy and lovely stripper, Eva Kim from South Korea shedding her clothes though not totally naked. I learned she bared all in private functions.
There was also a dance venue at West Point. Another one was at the Singapore Hotel where the City Plaza now stands... 2017].
*Singapore English or Singlish:
lamsing = dancing or literal meaning 'to hug' in Chinese: 'lam' with the English Continuous Tense 'sing'.
suaku = a Chinese Hokien dialect that means: 'mountain [sua] tortoise [ku]' or a country bumpkin; someone who isn't trendy or up to date.
sikit atas = a Malay phrase that means, 'a little bit classy' or literally: 'a little up there...'
BTW, 'Adam's ale' = water 😅.
Dancing = lamsing = move the refrigerator. And 'chiau sng tu' is Hokien dialect for 'move the refrigerator'. 'Move the refrigerator' was coined to describe the awkward way in which couples without basic dancing skills moved around the dance floor.
