Shirley Nair was easily one of the top singers of the 60’s. More so, she wrote and sang her own songs like “Don’t leave me” which was brilliantly backed by The Silver Strings.
Don’t leave me, If you ever go, You’re the boy, Too late for tears, Come home to me, I won’t let you see me cry, I’ll remember today, Two people.
The Silver Strings in the 60’s: Audie Ng (bass), David Chan (replaced by Dickie Tan, lead), Danny Boy (replaced by Mohammad Khan, drums) and Merlin Lim (rhythm)
(DON’T LEAVE ME)
Don’t leave me, my little baby
Don’t leave me and break my heart
I know, oh yes, I know
I could never fall in love again
Remember you said that you loved m
The promise you made to me
But now you’ve changed your mind
You are hurting me but you just don’t care
I gave you everything that I could give
My heart, my love, my soul
Another has taken you away
And now what else can I say?
Don’t leave me please have pity
I’m begging with all my heart
I know, oh yes, I know
I could never fall in love again
(From left to right: James Ong (rhythm), Jimmy Ho (lead), Peter Ho (bass), Jalek Zula (drums)
The distinction of being the first English-language recording group from East Malaysia went to Rose Iwanaga & The Avengers from Kuching. They released three very successful EPs. A splendid cover version of Too Young was probably the most memorable song by the group.
First EP (Please tell Terry, Will you love me tomorrow, Too young, Say you’re mine)
Second EP (Why, I’ll never find another you, Pretend, You belong to me)
Third EP (Oh, handsome boy, True love will come to you, Take me back again, I hope you won’t)
(TOO YOUNG)
They try to tell us we’re too young
Too young to really be in love
They say that love’s a word
A word we’ve only heard
But can’t begin to know the meaning of
And yet we’re not too young to know
For love will last though years may go
And then some day they may recall
We were not too young at all
The Jets’ line-up consisted of Edward Tan (lead), Alan Poh (bass), Harold Chiang (rhythm) and Bertie Lim (drums). Richard Tan replaced Bertie just before The Jets recorded in 1965. This first EP featured four original instrumentals. Edward composed Aurora which stayed No. 1 on the chart for three weeks. In July they released their second EP with four more instrumentals which included the very popular Alice in dreamland. The Jets went through still more personnel change over time. In 1967, The Jets with Edward Tan released its third and final EP on the Blue Star label. The band brokeup the following year.
First EP (Aurora, Meteor, Fantasy, Escapee)
Second EP (Blues away, Express train, The big bat, Alice in dreamland)
Third EP ( 500 miles, Unchained melody, When I was young, Fever)
(From left to right: Henry Chua, Vernon Cornelius, Reggie Verghese, Jap Chong and Lim Wee Guan)
The classic lineup for The Quests was: Reggie Verghese (lead), Jap Chong (rhythm), Henry Chua (bass) and Lim Wee Guan (drums). Raymond Leong was the original lead guitarist but did not record with the band. Keith Locke joined as singer and they performed together as Keith Locke & The Quests. When Keith left, Vernon Cornelius replaced him. When Henry left, he was replaced by Sam Toh. Jimmy Chan joined as keyboardist when they went to Hong Kong. When Jimmy decided to stay in Hong Kong, he was replaced by Peter Richards.
(In Hong Kong from left to right: Lim Wee Guan, Jimmy Chan, Sam Toh, Reggie Verghese and Jap Chong)
The Quests signed with EMI in 1964 and the A-side of its first record, an original instrumental composition, Shanty, quickly shot to No. 1 on the Singapore hit parade chart. Other original instrumental hits like Gallopin’, Tea Break, Pop Inn Theme, Champagne and I’m Feeling Good followed.Keith Locke, a British serviceman of Jamaican descent, then joined The Quests as the front singer. They recorded a wonderful cover version of “Don’t Play That Song (You Lied)” which left an indelible mark on the local music scene.
When Keith returned to UK, Vernon Cornelius took over. The band kept it up with more original vocal hits like Silly Girls and I’ll be your man. The band’s fame and fortune continued to soar high as the new song Roller Coaster Man topped the charts all over the region including Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei and Thailand. The Quests had reached the pinnacle of their career locally. They needed to expand and grow. The group, now with Sam Toh and Jimmy Chan, set out to conquer Hong Kong, the “Pearl of the Orient”. There were an abundance of local favorite bands in H.K. The Quests played to a discerning audience but soon, had their No. 1 hit Mr. Rainbow and their own TV show on HKTVB. The group disbanded in 1971.
Being fine musicians and playing very tight as a group, The Quests were regularly sought out to provide backing for other singers. The legacy of Quests music is not complete without the inclusion of the band’s brilliant interpretation and solid performance on the Mandarin covers of popular English hits sung by Rita Chao and Sakura Teng.
(DON’T PLAY THAT SONG)
Don’t play that song for me
It brings back the memory
Of days that I once knew
Those days that I spent with you
Oh no, don’t let it play
It fills my heart with pain
Please stop it right away
I remember every word you said
You said it (Darlin’ I love you)
You know that you lied!
(Darlin’ I love you)
You know that you lied!
(Darlin’ I love you)
Woe baby you lied, you lied, you lied, lied, lied, yeah, yeah
*Remember on our first date
I kissed you and you walked away
You were only seventeen
I never knew that
You’d act so mean, my darlin’
You told me you loved me
You told you cared
You said I’ll go with you darlin’, almost everywhere
But darlin’ (Darlin’ I love you)
You know that you lied!
(Darlin’ I love you)
You know that you lied!
(Darlin’ I love you)
Woe baby you lied, you lied, you lied, lied, lied, yeah, yeah
You are currently browsing the QUESTING bandstand blog archives for the day Wednesday, November 8th, 2006.
Introduction
NOTE: We are online again. Enjoy!
This blog is intended for showcasing the best of the local singers and bands in the Far East in the 60's. To display Asian characters properly, you may need to update your browser for additional language support. Since the music files are constantly being updated, you also need to refresh and clear the cache in your browser to hear the changes. I encourage listeners to actively support the local artists and recording companies. You can do this by purchasing commercial re-release of the songs if you have enjoyed them here.
Contributing articles and info are welcome and will be properly credited.
1) The Quests, Part 1
2) The Quests, Part 2
3) The Quests in Malay (with Malay artists)
4) The Surfers
5) The Thunderbirds
6) Susan Lim & The Crescendos
7) Naomi Suriya & The Boys
8) Heather & The Diamond Four, The Thunderbirds
9) Shirley Nair & The Silver Strings
10) Rose Iwanaga & The Avengers
11) Suyin (舒雲) & The Quests
12) The Fabulous Echoes
13) Off-beat Cha Cha with Kong Ling ( 江玲) & The Fabulous Echoes
14) The Early Years: Wong Ching Yian (黄清元) & The Melodians. The Stylers
15) Radio show – Retrospective Part 1 (The Decade)
16) Radio show – Retrospective Part 2 (Instrumentally Yours)
17) Radio show – Retrospective Part 3 (A Spiritual Sojourn)
18) Sakura Teng & The Quests.
19) Rita Chao & The Quests, The Surfers
20) Hot August Nights: Rockin’ with “RJ” in Manila
21) QBS Christmas Party (Keep Christ in CHRISTmas!)
22) Gong Xi Fa Cai! (Chinese Year 4714)
23) Happy Valentine’s Day
24) Happy Mother’s Day
25) Reg Guitar 乐雅吉打乐队 (Part 1)
26) Reg Guitar 乐雅吉打乐队 (Part 2)
27) Remembering Jap Chong (of The Quests)
28) The Inimitable Teresa Teng (鄧麗君)
29) The Tielman Brothers (Andy Tielman)
30) Remembering Reggie Verghese (of The Quests)
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