When Andy 60s Music Goes Roaming In Singapore Meeting Friends.

It's March 2025 and there's been delays in posting 

photographs on this blog. Here are a few taken 

near the end months of 2024.

No showing off; just camaraderie!

"Old friends, old friends

Sat on their park bench like bookends

A newspaper blown through the grass

Falls on the round toes

Of the high shoes of the old friends..."

[Simon n Garfunkel]

The guitar champ.

With Ivor Lesslar, lead guitarist, black cap. 

We were @ Novena Square. August 2024.

The Pop Pianist n Singing Wife.

With Mr. Sammin Ang and his wife Esther, two very accomplished musicians. 

Of course there's Mr. Everywhere Jimmy Yap in the flowered shirt.

It's at a Singapore HDB coffee shop neighbourhood.

September 2024

The Elvis of Vancouver, BC, Canada.

Tall Happy Tay, the Vancouver Elvis and James Kwok 

after a coffee session at Clementi Mall in 

Singapore when Happy visited our island.

August 2024

I saw this sign in another country. Can't remember where. 

Could be Thailand or Japan. Not a bad idea but I don't drink.

Singapore Recording artiste Tony Goh

With the very talented recording artiste Tony Goh who owns 

a huge recording studio himself near the business district 

around Shenton Way. Tony was from the pop 70s group, 

TONY, TERRY and SPENCER. The vinyl costs some today.

Jean Granger/France and the Late Alfred Wong

With Jean [John] Granger from France and the late 

Alfred Wong who passed away in late 2024. We

were at a music pub in the Novena area. Alfred used

to provide free jam sessions at his apartment 

with coffee, milk and a huge spread.

'Old Friends': Simon and Garfunkel

YouTube Video by: kylecrazyford.

Which song are these lines from? 

Have a guess.

Mr Tan's Mystery Singer n Dancer

Tan Soo Khoon's [left] garden party guests in February, 2025.

One lady was a well-known singer, the other a dancer.

Know them?

Another verse of lyrics from a well-known song. 

Can you guess the title? Roaming in the desert?

"Riwayat mu-ini..."

We met by the Bengawan Solo River near

Serangoon Gardens in February, 2025.

                With Jimmy Yap, Larry Lai, Andy, Trevor Nerva and Terry Nair.

When Ricky n Rickie Meet

Fun jamming at Ricky Wong's [far right] home with friends 

that included Ricky Chng [checked shirt] and others. Meals were provided. 

Comments are always welcome.

And Alphonso Soosay 

sums it up on 3.3.25:

"Buddy Andy Young. Missing our 60’s days and catching up with our Ole friends fills our hearts with bittersweet nostalgia as our memories linger on as You have always shared with keeping closeness even though we are a distance away. Cheers."

Images: A Private Collection. Copyrights Reserved.

It Warms The Cockles & Mussels Of Our Hearts

Jamus Lim's now famous English saying (which many of us learnt during our school days) has brought some memories to surface. One of them is James Kwok who sent me the video Cockles and Mussels, a song from way back Brit times in Singapore schools. It was one of many tunes we had to learn during the  colonial days. These were songs that were totally British, Irish, Scottish or Welsh using words and terms we could not understand but had to remember. It was fun.

As school boys and girls, "It warms the cockles of our hearts..." is a phrase many would be familiar with. Now the children have grown up and have become Seniors today. 

But let's read what James has to say:

Back in primary school in the 1950s we had music class when we learnt to sing British songs such as Molly Malone and Sing a Song of Six Pence a Packet Full of Rye. I didn't know what's Six pence or rye, but just sang along, after my negative experience with the British national anthem. 

Early in the year we were taught to sing. God Save the Queen. I remember asking music teacher Miss Lee what's happened to the queen and I was given an angry stare and told to behave myself and to shut up. Things were different then, that's Pr 1, 1954. 

The famous Molly Malone with 'Cockles and Mussels', one of many songs we had to learn as a child during British colonial times in Singapore. Sung by Ruby Murray above. YouTube video by IAN ANDERSON. Thank you.

Then came self government and Majulah Singapura and in secondary  school we had the Victoria School song plus other Singapore songs with subtle nation-building themes composed by  Pak Zubir Said and others who inspired us with their works. 

Back in my Pr 1 days, a song  which I loved to sing and was considered harmless is now judged by some to be politically incorrect, even racist, so its title has been altered to BAA BAA SHEEP SHEEP.  Things are different now, this being 2020.

Colonial Vocabulary Or Nouns Unlearnt:

tuffet

curd 

whey

rye

sixpence

counting-house

parlour

Written by: James Kwok.

Images: A Google Mix Bag.

Communists In Singapore: Western Pop Regressive! Rediffusion Yellow Culture

Good friend Mr James Kwok wrote to me about his experiences as a young boy in Singapore when communist cadres were present in his own family. I thought his tale intriguing. Here it is in full bloom. 

Thanks, James for the contribution. Below is his article:

"Back in the 1950's (and into the 60's) the adults in my family regarded China as their homeland: to them, the greatest thoughts in the world were those of chairman Mao. 

They participated wholeheartedly in the anti-yellow culture campaign to remove decadent western influences (such as jukeboxes, striptease shows and the yellow press) in early self-governing Singapore. 

Those communists cadres in my family considered western pop music as regressive and mentally-retarding - because they had promiscuity-promoting words like love, kiss and darling.

So, to catch the forbidden music I had to sneak to an Indian neighbour's house to listen to Rediffusion Silver Network's request programmes and scribble down the words of the latest English pop songs. 

Back in my house, right in the face of the communist cadres, I would sing the memorised songs silently to protest victoriously against the oppression. And back in school, coming up first with the complete words of the latest pop song (for the others to copy) did give me bragging rights. 

There's also a side benefit - my doing well in English spelling and dictation. All those British and American pop singers were my heroes, and their songs were my motivational anthems, in my personal civil rights movement."

By James Kwok (image above) who has written a few articles for this blog.

Songs that have the words 'love', 'kiss', 'darling.' and music (such as rock'n'roll) that promotes "decadent western yellow culture" was banned by the PRC-loving communist cadres I had to live with.

So the prohibited list included such popular songs as Paul Anka's I Love You, Baby, and Diana; Petula Clark's I Love You With All My Heart; Elvis Presley's Jailhouse Rock and Kiss Me Quick; Neil Sedaka's Oh Carol; Bill Haley & His Comets' Rock Around The Clock and Shirley Bassey's Kiss Me, Honey Honey, Kiss Me.

Even a slow number like Russ Hamilton's We Will Make Love wasn't spared, because of that offensive last word in the title.

NB:

James Kwok Facebook site:
https://www.facebook.com/james.kwok.391?fref=nf

Read about:
China's National Anthem by Edwin Goh (Former Director of RELC in Singapore.)
https://singapore60smusic.blogspot.com/2017/10/chinas-national-anthem.html

Rock n Roll 50's Mix: Video from djdirtybeat: 51 million viewers of Yellow Culture. 😊

(The photographs are for illustrative purpose only. There is no intention to promote nor degrade any ideology.)

School Bully: Stopped By 'Trailers' Band Member

James Kwok helps this blog with stories of his own about Singapore in the 60's. After reading about the Trailers and their Phoenix Song 50th Anniversary reminder and success, he wrote me a letter about rhythm guitarist, Edmund Tan.

James recalled his primary education at Rayman School (established in 1954) situated @ Rayman Estate. Following its closure in 1984, the school was converted into a center for disabled people (VAPC). Rayman Estate today is known as Whampoa Estate.

                              The Trailers (Edmund Tan: sits right)

NEARLY 8,200 VIEWS, 20 COMMENTS

Hi Andy,

The Trailers guitarist Mr. Edmund Tan Teck Chiang (image: sitting right) was my Primary Three classmate in Rayman School at Whampoa (its premises has been taken over by the Handicapped Welfare Association).

Rayman School in what used to be called Rayman Avenue, off Towner Road which today is  Whampoa Drive. (Towner Road still exists today, but the section from Balestier Road to under the CTE is now Whampoa Drive).

Our teacher in Primary 3B (1956) was a Ms. Alice Tan, the teacher in charge of Girl Guides. After the three exams, she would gather her Guides in our class to practice songs. Naughty boys like Edmund and me would imitate them, and change some of the words to the songs to make them sound funny.  

Recently after visiting the FOY (Friends of Yesterday) website, I met an old friend, who told me that Edmund Tan is one his cousins, but have lost contact with him ever since Edmund went overseas.  If he has been working in Singapore perhaps my friend doesn't know that. 

I told him that I wanted to get in touch with Edmund, who was a kind of a big brother protector to me. I received a double promotion from Primary One in 1955 to Primary Three in 1956, so I was the smallest boy in class. But I still managed to come out first in class after the first term examination (image left: James Kwok). 

I became the target of some unhappy boys who did not do well, but somehow Edmund got them to leave me alone.

My friend told me that he has lost contact ever since Edmund got married.

Cheers,

James Kwok.

PS: 

So Mr. Edmund Tan from the pop 60's band The Trailers and a former Rayman Primary School student, wherever you are, James wants to meet you again.

Footnote:

"Bullying In Singapore Schools Today:

Results showed that approximately 1 in 5 primary school students surveyed was a victim of bullying, defined as any action apparently intended to victimize and repeated at least twice every single month over a span of one school year. 

Bullies and their victims tended to be of the same gender, the same ethnic group, and in the same class at school. However, more bullies and victims were boys than girls, and there was the greater tendency for boys to bully girls than for girls to bully boys. 

 Benny Koh warns, Don't Laugh You'll Cry with the Trailers: 1960's

Students of any ethnicity were equally likely to be bullied. Similar proportions of children reported being bullied at each primary level - A Survey of Bullying in Singapore Primary Schools (2007)."

Children's Society’s website at
 http://www.childrensociety.org.sg

Images: A Private Collection.