Mike and Herb: Beatles Of Malaysia Make 60s Music History! By Herb n Barbara Van Dort

The late Mike Van Dort [right] and Herb Van Dort, presently in Australia. 

This article has been written by sister Barbara and Herb. 

Below is a Christmas message I received from Barbara, Herb's sister, about how the two brothers, Beatles of Malaysia, started their music career and became a household name. 

Thank you both, Barbara and Herb. It's a late posting and I have explained why, but it's better late than none at all. 

A December 2023 Christmas Letter:

Dear Andy,

My apologies for not getting back sooner, in Cairns and Townsville are just now recovering from Cyclone Jasper and it caused a lot of havoc. We lost power and flooding in the suburbs still and it hasn't stopped raining. Plenty of debris everywhere.

Now this is from Herb to you. It's been sometime since I last wrote to you.

I remember that I mentioned that I was going to tell you how Mike and his brother Herb got started in the music scene. Well it all started when we heard the Beatles song on the radio and we loved what we heard. So we went and bought  their LP record "I Saw her standing there" and learnt their song and harmony.

Image from:

https://www.etsy.com/listing/229699807/the-beatles-i-want-to-hold-your-hand-bw

Now where we lived in Butterworth, mainland - Malaysia , there was a group of guys that had formed a band  and we would have jam sessions with them and also there was Rocky Teoh (Malaysia's Elvis Presley). We became very good friends.

Now there was a live variety show that came to Butterworth with bands and performing artists. The band was the Ipoh Falcons and they backed all the singers, just to name a few Rocky Teoh (Elvis), Rubiah Lubis (Connie Francis), Rudy Locke (Cliff Richard), and a lot more other artists and of course, dancers.  The show was called "Sakura Presents",  and it had all the performing artists and all backed by the Falcons. 

The show's first port of call  was in Butterworth and they had 2 nightly shows, 6.15pm and 9.15pm and the tour was in Butterworth for 2 days. We both heard about the show and went to the 9.15pm show on the first night , mainly to see Rocky Teoh. 

On stage with the duo on a Cathay Organisation cinema stage.

The show started with the Falcons playing 2 instrumental songs and they were fantastic. Their showmanship playing got the audience in a frenzy and the Falcons were rocking and rolling . Then came the artists one by one doing their stuff  and finally when Rocky Teoh came out, we both shouted out to Rocky saying, "Knock 'em out Rocky!" 

He did a very good show and the audience kept shouting for more. He saw us and waved to us to come backstage. So during the interval, we went to see him and he asked us if we were still singing all the Beatles songs and we said, "Yes." He asked us to come to the theatre during mid-morning (2nd day and last day)  and we had a practice session with the Ipoh Falcons. So we did and  when we went to the theatre for a practice, Rocky had told the managers of the tour to listen to us perform.. 

We practiced 5 songs with the band and I can remember 3, they were, "I Saw Her Standing There, Can't Buy Me Love, and She Loves You."  We did both the 6.15pm and 9.15pm and the audience kept shouting for more and more and we did the 5 songs. (Beatlemania was everywhere. I guess Mike and Herb's performance just enhanced the Beatles popularity). As soon as we finished both the shows, the manager of the variety show asked us to sign a contract to join the troupe. 

I told him that I was still at school and Mike said that he was learning to be a diesel mechanic. The manager informed us that the show was only going for 6 days. Well, we signed  the contract and told the manager that we would be there at the theatre to be picked up. 

We went home and asked our parents if we could go on this tour; it was only for 6 days.  We asked our mum to tell Mikes' employer and my school that we were both sick and we will be away for one week. Our parents agreed and so off we went.  

Rocky Teoh Malaysia's Elvis helped to make Mike and Herb 

famous by giving them a start and allowing them 

to join his Malaysian and Singapore tours.

The manager decided to change the name from Sakura Presents to The Beatles of Malaysia with huge banners with wordings and performances on stage with 2 hours of non stop entertainment featuring Mike and Herb, Rocky Teoh other artistes, dancers, comedians. The show sold out for every performance and we had the audience screaming for more when we were singing with the backing of the incredible Ipoh Falcons. Our Beatles hairstyles just got the whole crowd into a bigger frenzy.

As I said before Beatlemania was everywhere  and that made Mike and Herb stars of the show . The show was so successful that the Cathay Organisation gave the tour to all their theatres to perform all over Malaysia, Sarawak, Brunei, Jesselton, Sandakan, Semporna and also Singapore.  

The Beatles of Malaysia show was so successful that it lasted for almost 7 months . We were performing 16 shows a week  and in the last 2 months it was 17 shows a week.

Mike and Herb accompanied by the Falcons of Malaysia,

On stage performing at a cinema in Malaysia during their tour.

2 shows 6.15 and 9.16 Monday to Friday = 10 shows.

3 shows on Saturday, 3 shows on Sunday 1.15pm, 6.15pm and 9.30pm -6 shows = 16 shows. 

In the last 2 months it was as above except Sunday , we had a 9 am show as the rest.

I have to say that it was a fantastic variety show and we had the best  times of our lives having fans chasing us and screaming and signing autographs.  It was our very good friend the late Rocky Teoh who gave Mike and Herb our start in the Entertainment Industry. 

My late brother and best friend Mike and myself Herb, once again have to thank Rocky Teoh for giving us our start. The rest is history!

Please find below the photo of Herb as Santa Claus🧑‍🎄 ready for a function. He is again booked in for the 21st Thursday 6.30pm  in Palm Cove Life Savings Club, Cairns Queensland.

Herb, of Mike and Herb fame as Beatles of Malaysia, 

dressed as Santa Claus [2023 December] 

for a Christmas show in Cairns, Australia.

In the meantime Andy, I wish you and your family a Very MERRY and BLESSED CHRISTMAS and a safe NEW YEAR. Here's hoping that 2024 is a very good year for everyone.

Kindest Regard,

Herb and Barbara.

[Copyrights Reserved]

With the late Mike, Danny Boy [drummer], 

Andy [blogger] and Herb, writer of this article

during a concert at Vivo City, Singapore in 2009.

Article and Images have been copyrighted.

If you take information from this article for your own use, 

at least credit me because copying is stealing.

Andy.

A Christmas 2024 present from Freda Hanum, 

the most active and creative member of girl group

The Teepees, from Malaysia and Singapore.

Falcons: Road Shows And Recordings (Part VI)

Article is written in good faith and part of Joseph Chin's articles on The Fabulous Falcons:

"In 1965, we toured with Rocky Teoh, the Elvis Presley of Malaysia in our road shows within Malaysia and for one road show in Singapore. In this one show in Singapore we performed alongside some of the leading bands from Singapore like The Quests . It was during this show that an untoward incident happened and the Singapore audience, being territorial, booed us throughout our whole performance. This didn’t go down well with our own Malaysian fans. Later the action of the Singaporean audience will backfire.

Later, The Quests from Singapore had a show with some other Singaporean artistes in St John’s Hall in Ipoh. Of course the Malaysian fans had not forgotten the ugly incident when Rocky Teoh and The Fabulous Falcons performed in Singapore a few months back. Halfway through the performance of The Quests, the crowd got really rowdy and uncontrollable and starting booing and taunting the band.

As a consequence, the show had to be called off and they had to be escorted back to their hotels. This was an incident I would rather forget, but somehow the story of this one incident, will be the one thing everyone wants to hear when I mention about the band much later on in my life.

Somewhere in mid-1965, we did a recording in Kinetex Studio in Singapore. It was my first recording with the band although for the rest of them, it was their second recording (the first one being Midnight Express). We spent several days in Singapore where we befriended Vernon Cornelius of The Checkmates, a Singapore band. We recorded 4 songs on two singles. Mayflower and Hotspot on one record and Lonely Star and Misty Breeze (image) on the other.

We were disappointed that we were not allowed to use our own amplifiers as it was a requirement of the studio that we use theirs. As a result we actually didn’t get the sound we wanted. That was a big let down for us. This was something that we were sore about but had to contend with.

Though we were disappointed that offers from renowned recording labels never came our way, and record sales for our singles were not up to expectations, we were still proud of the fact that we were recording artistes, at a tender age of seventeen. On hindsight now, I guess it was down to poor or non-existent advertising on the part of our band as we were inexperienced and lacked managerial expertise. (Joseph Chin)"

Click: Fabulous Falcons to read the series on this blog. For his full memoirs read Joseph Chin's Travelling Foodie and The Falcons blog:

http://thefabulousfalcons.blogspot.com/

Elvis of Malaya & Fabulous Falcons (Part I of III)

(1) "Rocky Teoh, better known as Malaysia's Elvis Presley in the 60s, was born in Taiping, Malaysia on 2nd April 1946. As a boy, he loved singing more than anything and had won many talentime contests in school and throughout Malaysia.

Rocky had been with the Fabulous Falcons for nearly 3 years which was at that time been formed. Together they have toured Malaysia performing with the Cathay Organisation Theatres for six months. They will be touring Thailand performing in popular nightclubs and theatres at the beginning of Sept. 1965 till the end of November (EAP Album 7 SE 010)."

FROM DAUGHTER ANNE TEOH'S FACEBOOK:

(2) "In 1965 Rocky also won the coveted title, 'Elvis Presley of Ipoh'. The prize included a roadshow contract to tour all over Singapore and Malaysia. He hit the road with The Fabulous Falcons and performed at Cathay's Cinemas as far away as Sarawak and Sabah.

"If you're lookin' for trouble, you came to the right place..." During a show in Singapore, Rocky and the Falcons were booed by Singaporeans. This did not sit well with these Ipoh bad boys. Later on the tour, once back in Ipoh, there was a riot in the theater when the local rabid Rocky faithfuls reciprocated with boos and obscenities directed at The Quests, a group from Singapore.

. 
The show was interrupted and canceled and the Quest had to be escorted back to their hotel to avoid a retaliatory pummelling."

Malaysia, Elvis Presley & The SILVER STRINGS! Part II of III

It was a night to remember. THE SILVER STRINGS were on The Jubilee Hall stage in Ipoh with Rocky Teoh in 1967 when they went on their Malaysian Tour. It was also on this tour that the group met MIKE & HERB.

Audie, the bandleader, remembers: "Rocky sings like Elvis and he was very popular with the crowd, had a fantastic fan base in Ipoh and the rest of Malaysia. We enjoyed our gig there too as the audience was warm and cheering for us when we appeared."

Rocky Teoh has cut 2 singles, 12 EPs and 2 LPs during his reign from 1965 to 1967 with the Falcons. According to a website dedicated to him by his daughter Ann Teoh, "Rocky's quality, power-packed stage performances were a real treat to watch in the good old days."

One song, "Jacqueline," is dedicated to his wife and based on a Chinese oldie, "Yeh Lye Xiang". Rocky has passed away in 1990 but like The King, his music lives on. Rocky is one of the better tribute artistes in Malaysia.

Image: from Andy Lim Collection.

Malaysia's Answer To Elvis - ROCKY TEOH Part III of III

 

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"Rocky Teoh Beng Hock (1949-1990), better known as Malaysia's 1st and best Elvis Presley Impersonator and sound alike was born in Taiping, Perak on the 2nd of April 1946. As a boy, he loved singing more than anything. He was greatly inspired by his hero, the American Super Rock n Roll King Elvis Presley.

Young Rocky won many school Talentime contests and also, later on, won many "Elvis Champion" titles throughout Malaysia. At age 18 he was already singing and doing "live" shows in and around Taiping and Ipoh. 

A year later, a local Recording Company signed him up. He recorded his first 45rpm 2 tracks Single when he was 19 years old. Both songs were his personal Elvis favorites, "Crying In The Chapel" b/w "There's Always Me". It sold quite well. In the above video, Teoh sings, "A Pocketful of Rainbows."

In 1965, he released his 1st EP (Extended Play) 4 tracks Record. The title tune, JACQUELINE a self-penned composition which he dedicated to his childhood girlfriend who later became his wife. Of-course her name was Jacqueline. She was a very pretty girl, also from Taiping.

The EP record went to No.1 in the local Radio Charts. "Jacqueline" was the biggest golden hit of his career. In 1965 someone even started a Rocky Teoh Fan Club at Jalan Huge Low, Ipoh.

Today when you mention Rocky Teoh, older folks still remember him fondly and also remember those catchy hit songs of his "Jacqueline", "Selina", "Goodbye" and "Thinking Of You."

He made a total of 9EPs and 2 LPs (Long Playing) vinyl reord albums. Rocky and his excellent band The Fabulous Falcom toured around Malaysia and Singapore from 1965 to 1967 performing in Cathay Organisation Theatres playing to packed audiences everywhere. They also toured Thailand in September 1966.

Rocky Teoh's quality power packed stage performances were a real treat to watch in the good old days. In the 60s nobody else but only Rose Chan, another Malaysian Legend can top Rocky Teoh, but that's another story."

Posted by: HT Long on 9 October 2006. HT Long is today's answer to a Malaysian Elvis Presley as he makes a name for himself in the local pop circuit. And he's just as good or even better. 

When I met him at the end of 2014 in a church in Geylang in Singapore I realized he is also a good speaker, works and evangelizes in churches in this part of the world. Check HT Long under Labels below.

Thinking of You YouTube Video by elvisalexwong.

Rocky Wong Parts 1 and 2. Connect to read:

https://singapore60smusic.blogspot.com/2009/03/blog-post_15.html

https://singapore60smusic.blogspot.com/2009/03/rocky-teoh-malaysias-elvis-presley.html

Like the Mercedes Benz beside him, ROCKY TEOH is a brand name to contend with. Although made in Malaysia and long gone, Rocky is still a challenge to many current and would be Elvis Presley impersonators. In fact I find him fascinating to listen to despite the screams and shouts in some of his recordings by his back-up group but many of the tracks are well-worth listening to.

With the charitable act of which only a Malaysian friend could provide, I managed to get a copy each of Rocky Teoh's albums, 'Cool Wind' (image) and 'Kiss Me Once' both a Tung Poh Records pressing.

Thank you very much SNOOKHAWK who not only gave me his stack of 45 vinyls but his heart and soul when, over laksa and tim-sum, he told me stories of Malaysian pop singers.

Listening to these recordings makes me realise that Rocky's fans will surely remember him like they do of The King himself.

About Rocky Teoh:

"ROCKY TEOH BENG HOCK better known as Malaysia's 1st and best Elvis Presley Impersonator and sound alike, born in Taiping, Perak on April 2, 1946, his father was a successful pork salesman. Hock was the eldest of six boys and of Hokkien descent.

Rocky was something of a teruna (Malay slang for an "adolescent male all up in it") in his late-teens. It was common knowledge that he lived above Tai Chien Coffee Shop where he could be heard rehearsing with a band.

Check out Steve Farram's write-up and music posts at http://www.garagehangover.com/ and Rocky's daughter, Ann Teoh's website at: http://www.rockyteoh.com/

Facebook: Rocky Teoh.

YouTube: key in: rocky teoh malaysia