Singapore Top Tourist Spots - 'Silver Strings' Pop Concerts [2008 - 2019] Part 1

The Esplanade where great music comes.

NEW POST - UP TO 1,400 VIEWS

In the past 12 years or so, from 2008 to 2019, the Silver Strings had performed at top tourist spots in Singapore. Below are only some venues, recorded at random.

Media Corp Studios ['Not The 5 Show' Channel 5 TV] 

Media Corp Studios ['Rolling Good Times' Channel 5 TV]

The Esplanade

Kallang Wave [National Stadium]

Kallang Theatre

Conrad International Hotel

RELC International Hotel [2015]

RELC International Hotel [2019]

Sentosa Beach Resort

Cruise Ship, Aegean Paradise [on board]

The Promontory, Marina Bay Sands

National Library, North Bridge Road

Silver Strings Latest Line Up 2019

2015

Silver Strings appeared twice for

 'Rolling Good Times' and 'Not The 5 Show'

on Channel 5 TV, MediaCorp, together with

Rick Astley and Dick Lee.

2009

The Esplanade where Silver Strings performed with

Brian Richmond helming the evening.

2016

The Strings at Kallang Wave, where the sports action is; 

this venue is part of the Kallang Stadium near the East.

2018

Conrad International Hotel in the city, 

a gig near the poolside.

Silver Strings Line Up November 2013 with charity shows

at Boys Town and a Malay old folks home.

2018

Kallang Theatre, one of the oldest venues

in Singapore commanded musicals like

'Phantom of the Opera', 'Les Miserable', etc.

2016

An open space where fans danced to the beat 

of the Strings playing in the Sentosa moonlight.

2016

The National Library, right in the heart of old Singapore; 

a senior spree at the foyer filled up 

the space when the Strings played 60s music.

2015

The Promontory at Marina Bay Sands had MCs

Moe Alkaff and Irene Ang singing in the rain with

 the crowd, to  the beat of the Strings pop songs.

2014 and 2019

Two shows were held at the RELC International Hotel beside 

the Orchard Road tourist belt. Larry Lai and Jerry Fernandez 

commanded the stage.Car parking costs as much as ticket prices.

2019

Silver Strings went on board the Aegean Paradise

to perform to a live audience, Las Vegas style, amidst 

jack-pot machines, casinos and music lovers.

Silver Strings Line Up March 2019

To find out who the SILVER STRINGS band members are, 

the reader needs to browse on the posts within this blog. Cheers.

https://singapore60smusic.blogspot.com/search?q=silver+strings+orchard+road

We shall continue to PART 2 soon.

Images - GOOGLE. 

Disclaimer - This post is a personal one.

No intention for any commercial benefit.

Rolling Stones Celebrate Chap Goh Meh In Singapore

UP TO 3,100 VIEWS. 24 COMMENTS

A Chap Goh Meh Posting 2018

A Chap Goh Meh Treat 16 February 1965

This story has been told many times but not from the man himself because he was there on stage with his own group and facing a crowd that was so huge you think it was a free show. Big money to pay for a performance which cost as much as $8 per head. It was the 60's.

I must thank Audie Ng, leader and bass guitarist of the Silver Strings for penning his experience when he appeared with one of the most exciting bands in the world.

An illustration of The Rolling Stones on stage which mostly result in healthy chaos and noise.

In 1965, The Silver Strings was invited to be the introductory band for the hugely successful and well-publicised Rolling Stones performance at the Singapore Badminton Hall on February 16. 

It was Chap Goh Meh and you can imagine the crowd, noise and fanfare the whole show created. It was chaos night with fire-crackers on the streets outside at Guillemard Road and twanging guitars with screaming Mick Jagger at the microphone and his troupe on stage.

The Badminton Hall during its hey-day when it was used daily for a different purpose.

The Straits Times headlines the next day read, Stones Lose To Firecrackers. Pandemonium At Badminton Hall As British Pop Group Clashes With Chap Goh Meh.

The show was held sometime after Veronica Young won the Millie Small Competition at the Sky Theatre at the Great World Amusement Park, Kim Seng Road. Accompanied by The Strings, she achieved instant stardom and all were invited to play with the Stones after that.

The second line up of the Silver Strings during the Stones concert at the Stadium. 

Kingsley Morando was the show manager and assisted by Wilson David (Singapore's Elvis Presley impersonator in the 1960's) the Rolling Stones were contracted to perform in Singapore by Singstar's Freddy Eu (Eu Tong Sen Street was named after this family.)

The Silver Strings line-up included Audie Ng (bass), David Chan (lead), Merlin Lim (rhythm), Danny Boy (drums) and Veronica (vocals). Apparently, the instruments used that evening were supplied by the event company and amplifiers belonged to The Dukes but this information was unconfirmed.

A Rolling Stones $2.00 ticket stub from the website The Lion Raw.

Audie remembers that the show opened with Veronica Young singing her signature hit, My Boy Lollipop followed by Stupid Cupid, These Boots Are Made For Walking, Where The Boys Are and See You Later Alligator. These songs were at the top of the 50's and 60's hit parade and brought the capacity crowd to pitch rock and roll fever. It was just the ignition key as to what was to follow.

The Rolling Stones rolled into the Stadium late because of the traffic jam and the tremendously energetic Chap Goh Meh (literal: 15th night) crowd on the streets. 

It was the last night of Chinese New Year and the community was celebrating it with vigour and the unbelievably loud explosions of firecrackers. The whole of Guillemard Road, from Geylang Road and the Kallang area, was overflowing with merry-makers. Since the Badminton Stadium was easy to access from most parts of Singapore - they converged there - you can imagine the pandemonium it caused.

"I doubt this phenomenon can ever be repeated in Singapore!" remarked Audie when I interviewed him for this story.

For illustration only: The Rolling Stones - during their early days when young, raw and hot.

Well I told you once and I told you twice

But ya never listen to my advice

You don't try very hard to please me

With what you know it should be easy...

From the opening lines of The Last Time, the show erupted like dynamite, this time from the top English band of the century. 19th Nervous Breakdown, Honky Tonk Women, followed and the crowd went wild. Even the ballad, As Tears Go By had no had no calming effect on the crowd. They were swooning and singing every line as if they were the composers of the songs.

Nobody really sat on the wooden chairs that night. From the jumping and screaming British servicemen and their families to the sensible Singaporean fan, there was no time to relax. Some of the younger Caucasian girls sobbed on bended knees and broke down hysterically. Even our local teenagers were screaming throughout the concert, enjoying live rock music that was a rarity those years.

Rolling Stones Singapore Concert 1965 promo acetate. Video from Parlogram YouTube.

When Satisfaction came on the sound system to announce it was the grand finale; the crowd wanted more. The packed stadium was like a burning furnace in Singapore's weather. The only factor that saved the evening was the breeze that came in through the huge window-like openings above the hall; natural ventilators they were since the twirling fans bedecking the high ceiling didn't help much. 

The Straits Times report about the show that evening attracted many newspaper readers.

An incident mentioned was the gatecrashers who tried to come in and a gate collapsed as the police (or mata-mata) were called in to help with the milieu that resulted. I understand the Black Marias and Ang Chia (Red Vehicles) were outside the stadium too. These were huge vans that would transport rioters and put them in lock-ups.

Now those were the days of rock and roll in Singapore in 1965 when our tiny island left Malaya to become an independent city-state and boys were still roaming the streets with long hair. What a way to go.

The more expensive $8.00 ticket with row and seat number. It was a lot of money those years.

The performance described was only part of the whole story. Many people saw this show and it was an unforgettable double happiness, Chap Goh Meh evening and the Stones presence.

Did you attend this particular concert and do you have something to say? We need some more information. Do write on the comment page. This concert was also the first time the Stones performed in Singapore. They came a few more times afterwards. 

Any comment?

Thanks to Dr Steve Farram (Darwin U.) for the inspiration, after enticing me with the video and ticket as bait, to write this article.😉

Article: All Rights Reserved.
Images: The Straits Times and Google.

Blog Statistics Record High: Singapore 60's Music Stories Appeal To International Readers

UPDATED TODAY: 7 September 2017

VIEWERSHIP: 1,432,419

Writers who contributed to this blog

Allan Thompson, John Cher, Michael Bangar, Henri Gann,

Crystal Abidin, Joey Koh, Fabian Foo, Steve Farram, Horace Wee.

I have a dream, a fantasy
To help me through reality
And my destination
Makes it worth the while...
(Abba)

The number of supporters for this blog is staggering.
Readers and technical know-how from social networking services include:

Blogspot
You Tube
Google+ 
Twitter 
WhatsApp 
emails
John Cher's Facebook 
Larry Lai's WhatsApp

Because of these connections, this blog has blossomed by 20,000 viewers, from a mere 36,000 monthly reads in October to 56,000 by December. Big for a small niche like Singapore pops and its influence.

This year the writings, You Tube videos and local 60's music information from:

Allan Thompson (UK)
John Cher
Michael Bangar 
Henri Gann Trekkers (US)
Horace Wee
Steve Farram (Aus)

CYLin
Laurence Lim
Su Go (Aus)
Joey Koh
Crystal Abidin (Aus)
Fabian Foo 

Audie Ng
Mike n Herb (Aus)
Happy Tay (Can)

and others 

were contributing factors to the success of this blog. Names are not in any order and two ladies wish to remain anonymous. Let me know if I left your name out 😔.

                Larry Lai, Audie Ng, CYLin, Su Go, Happy Tay, Laurence Lim

                                              Mike and Herb

Of course when the big guns came in to support both directly and indirectly, the blog had a blast. 

Stephen Fry
Scott Page
Russell Hitchcock
Rick Astley
Rex Goh

and local stars like: 

Dick Lee
Jack Neo
Moses Lim
Chua En Lai

and Silver Strings' Singapore TV appearances helped much to boost the ratings.

Comments from regulars too played a great part towards increasing readership. A whole lot of you guys, thank you.

Less texting? Yes but more blog reading, especially this blog. I dare say, no other active Singapore 60's music stories than what you can find from here.
Short of boasting 😮...

You can see the wonders of a fairy tale
You can see the future even if you fail
I believe in angels
Something good in everything I see...


Thanks to local and international readers, contributors, friends and fellow countrymen. You made my dream.

Happy New Year 2017.

Songwriters: ANDERSSON, BENNY GORAN BROR / ULVAEUS, BJOERN K.

'I Have A Dream': lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group

STATISTICS BELOW CAPTURED ON 2nd JANUARY 2017

Readers today:

1,158,364

31st December, 2016

57,000+ readers today.

24th December, 2016

54,000+ readers today.

TWITTER

Abba: I Have a Dream

GOOGLE +

Images: A Personal Collection and Google.

Channel News Asia: 50 Years of Singapore Music

On Screen

MORE THAN 3,200 VIEWS, 15 COMMENTS

In February 2015, John Leong (below), anchor for Singapore Tonight, introduced a special news piece on Channel News Asia where Dick Lee, Yiren Cai, Audie Ng and I were interviewed regarding 50 years of Singapore Music.  The programme was in conjunction with this year's SG50 celebration. 

What has been music to Singaporeans' ears? The show takes us down memory lane to see how the music has evolved through the years and where bands like Silver Strings, Black Dog Bone, Sweet Charity, Siglap Five and singers Anita Sarawak, Stefanie Sun, A-Do, JJ Lin, Mavis Hee and Shirley Nair were discussed.  The song You're The Boy remains steadfast as a background anthem during our interview.

Behind The Scene 

We had pretty and sophisticated CNA producer Syahidah Othman (below) to conduct the whole affair with much calm and decorum.  The camera was positioned for appropriate angle shots; the white guitar was placed in a strategic position behind the interviewees (image above) and photographs were selected for the news documentary. Ms Syahidah was also the narrator on screen.

As it was usual, although the chat lasted for a few minutes on TV, shooting took some time. The interview was held on a lovely afternoon and we enjoyed ourselves throughout in the large, airy and air-conditioned hall.

Many thanks to Mr Malvin Chua (image below) who coordinated the afternoon's project with a quiet but experienced eye.  Some snaps on my iPhone were taken by Malvin.

Video footage on right side-bar from Channel News Asia:

Excerpt below from:

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/swinging-to-50-years-of/1669930.html

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/video/50-years-of-singapore/1632746.html

“Even though some songs were so-called ‘imports’, the local bands still made it their own."

In fact, a home-grown 1960's pop band did just that. The Silver Strings stood out with their stylish silver suits and blue guitars. But it was not just their image that made headlines. The band also started the trend of playing alongside female singers like Shirley Nair and Anita Sarawak.

Their biggest influence however, was a performance in 1961. "When Cliff and the Shadows came we saw them on stage, with three flashing red guitars,” said Andy Young of The Silver Strings. “And I said to myself that I want to be like Cliff Richard; I want to sing like him."

The Silver Strings played their biggest shows when they opened for the Rolling Stones at the Singapore Badminton Hall and in front of 20,000 spectators in a Malaysian stadium for the Miss Universe pageant.

But as the heady days of the 1960's came to an end, so did The Silver Strings. In recent years, Young, who was one of the band's pioneer members has begun keeping a blog about those memories. "It's so important that we all get together, gel and become one nation,” said Andy.

His fellow band member from The Silver Strings is fully supportive of the blog. “It will be good for the younger generation,” said Audie Ng. “At least they can go through his blog and learn about sixties music. And at the same time, they will get to know us; otherwise we will just fade away."

Images from Marcus Loh Collection and A Private Collection.