Hong Kong Protests Bring Back Pop 60s Music (香港抗议 60S 音乐, 是)

This Connection Post is dedicated to my school mate Yeo Choon Meng

who loves HK Pops. Thanks, Meng, hope you enjoy the music and stories.

The poster above is for illustration only since some of the music stars have passed away.

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The Hong Kong protests and riots have lasted for some months now. It is indeed in a sad state of affairs. 

Let's hope the situation will improve and the island will once again turn on its neon lights to dazzle, sparkle and illuminate itself. In music history, HK has one of the most excellent entertainment industry on this side of the world. It must channel its forceful creativity back to the energetic island that used to spell the best in popular culture.

I have, in the past years, posted many articles about Hong Kong's 60s and 70s pop musicians and singers. Most of the artistes have strong ties with the island.

Below are some connections that may interest you.

Irene Ryder sings 'You Don't Have To Say You Love Me'. Thank you.

Shao Fong Fong:
https://singapore60smusic.blogspot.com/2011/09/shao-fong-fong-sings-in-impeccable.html

The Fabulous Echoes 1:
https://singapore60smusic.blogspot.com/2015/09/fabulous-echoes-were-called-rock-n.html

The Fabulous Echoes 2:
https://singapore60smusic.blogspot.com/2009/05/fabulous-echoes-instrumental-group-is.html

Irene Ryder (Part One)
https://singapore60smusic.blogspot.com/2014/11/irene-ryder-ryding-high-in-hk-60s-part-1.html

The Wynners: I'll Never Dance Again. One of the top HK groups in the 70s.

Irene Ryder (Part Two)
https://singapore60smusic.blogspot.com/2014/12/hong-kong-pop-music-60s-ryding-high.html

Teresa Teng, Mummy And Mahjong:
https://singapore60smusic.blogspot.com/2015/11/playing-mahjong-with-teresa-tengs-mother.html

Mona Fong:
https://singapore60smusic.blogspot.com/2014/03/mona-fong-50s-charm-still-attractive.html

Jimmy Lin Chong:
https://singapore60smusic.blogspot.com/2011/01/jimmy-lin-chong-singing-thief-from-hk.html

The Wynners:
https://singapore60smusic.blogspot.com/2009/09/wynners.html

Anders Nelson, MING:
https://singapore60smusic.blogspot.com/2009/11/blog-post_24.html

The poster above is for illustration only. The group is 'Danny' Diaz and The Checkmates.

'Fabulous Echoes' Once Called 'The Rock n Rollers'

The Untold Event About HK's Top Filipino Band

On 7th September, 2015, Ernest Dizon (left) wrote to me on the Comment page in my Fabulous Echoes posting  dated *Monday 18th May, 2009.  

He must have a reason for writing this short but interesting personal tale about Hong Kong's well-known Filipino group from the 1960's of which he was a member. 

Although I found some difficulty editing his story (especially where the informational pieces are concerned) I thought it best if I published the article and hope he would write again to verify certain items. I thank Mr Dizon for the note and for taking us back to those years when Sri Lanka was Ceylon. 

The letter has been edited for ease of read:

"The original name of the Fabulous Echoes were The Rock n Rollers and the very original members were Ernie Dizon, my brother Reny Dizon and the three Ruivivar brothers.

We started for fun on a hot summer day when we went up the roof on Kimberley Road (Hong Kong) and started singing and harmonizing. During one of our fun practices, the band leader Tony suggested that we started a proper band. So we rehearsed daily in all seriousness.

One day an agent from Sri Lanka introduced himself as an employer looking for a band to play in Ceylon.  That's the old name for Sri Lanka.  So to make my story short we managed to get the contract and boarded the ship that we were supposed to play in. It was called, **MV Victoria, The Lloyd Triestino.  We loaded our instruments into our room on the ship and for the first contract. Believe it or not, we were nine days at sea.


I was the first to notice Sri Lanka in the distance when we were about to land because I could not sleep and went up on deck to enjoy the breeze. I saw a light house on the Northern tip, got excited and started calling the other members of our band.   In the meantime, all the other passengers were clapping and shouting because we had arrived in Ceylon after a rather long and weary sea journey.  
We played at the Orchid Room and the Green Room (location not mentioned).  In a sudden twist of fate which robbed us of a chance to go to Europe our boss Donovan Andre passed away because of an ailment. He was planning to combine our cabaret acts into one single production.  Fate awaits no one and sad to say, we took a KLM airline back to Hong Kong!

We truly regretted the loss of our boss.  He was such a pleasant, humble person and so simple in his ways.  He was also very kind to us. We stayed in Wallace Place in Colpya, Sri Lanka (unidentified location).  It was a very memorable trip for all of us."

But the rather tragic story did not stop the members from carrying on to become the fabulous group that it was afterwards. 

Thanks again Mr Dizon for the very generous contribution and the story that not many people know about. Please write in again if you read this posting.

Footnote:

* http://singapore60smusic.blogspot.sg/2009/05/fabulous-echoes-instrumental-group-is.html

The Fabulous Echoes were just as famous as the Filipino group D'Starlights here in Singapore 60's.

**http://www.lastoceanliners.com/cgi/lolline.pl?LLO

"On board it is as if you were staying at a Riviera hotel ... On this small but complete floating city, passengers will have the opportunity of spending their days absolutely free of care without any need to forego their most cherished habits."   Built in 1953, it was sold and ended its service in 1974.

Images: Ernest Dizon Google+; Google.
You Tube Video: from shatinterry.

********************************

SLIP NOTE: 15th September, 2015.
Breaking News:

Clean City Singapore Smothered By Others

The haze in this region seems to be getting worse year by year. At its most unhealthy level last night @ PSI 240+.  A neighbouring country doesn't seem to be able to do much controlling it. When Singapore offered assistance their authorities turned it down.  Perhaps a little bit of soap for face, and lots of water for fire, might help? I have a piece of advice, "Jangan suka dong, malu malu kucing... (pop 60's Indonesian song)."

Hong Kong Pop 60s Music - Queen Kong Ling

Kong Ling (image) never looked back when she was the winner in an inter-school singing competition in the early 50s in HongKong. Within three years, she became just as popular in Singapore as she was in HongKong when she became a resident song bird in a local nitespot.

Like many singers in the 60s, Kong Ling gained popularity by covering pop English songs translated into Chinese dialects and Mandarin.

In 1960 she cut her first album, but her second Long Playing record, “Theme from a Dream," made her part of the 60s family when Diamond Records had a full studio orchestra to back her.

Like Sakura Teng, Rita Chao and other Mandarin pop singers, Kong Ling has this distinguishable Cantonese diction and grammatical swings when she sings her English covers, but it's part of the Eastern charm many fans find enduring. She's best singing in Mandarin and dialect. "Roses are red, my love, violets are blue." Off beat and cha-cha-cha! But definitely not off-colour!
(Image: A rare find indeed).

Hong Kong 60s Music - The Fabulous Echoes

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The Fabulous Echoes were three Filipinos, a Scotsman and Sri Lankan lead singer Cliff Foenander. They were the most successful of these early 60's bands in Hong Kong, appearing on two Diamond Record albums fronted by Kong Ling and on four other albums proving themselves as a rock n roll show band.

The Fabulous Echoes line-up was: Tony Ruivivar (guitar), Bert Sagum (tambourine, vocals), Terry Lucido (piano), Stan Robertson (bass), Danny Ruivivar (drums), and Cliff Foenander (lead vocals). 

Cliff Foenander, their lead singer, was Sri Lanka's "crooner king" in the late 50's and 60s. He joined them and their first hit, "A Little Bit of Soap" (1964 - Diamond Records) was for 25 weeks at #1 on the Hong Kong Charts and a hit in Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, The Philippines and Sri Lanka.

Some of their more familiar hits were: "Dancing on The Moon," "Sukiyaki," "'The Wedding,'" "Skip to My Lou," "Way Back When" and "This Land is My Land." They have also accompanied Hong Kong singer Kong Ling with the Diamond Music Company Studio Orchestra.

The group changed their names in 1968 and called themselves The Society Of Seven. They were contracted to play in Las Vegas and became as familiar as Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr., Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald and Pat Boone.

Ed Sullivan signed them up for two shows and when telecast, was seen by an audience of more than 40 million viewers. The group played in Vegas and for more than three decades, kept the pace. Foenander passed away in late 2000 but the group, with a new line-up, are still playing.

Images Google.

A Little Bit of Soap: Fabulous Echoes.

YouTube Video by: candy60s1