Johnny Tan - Love Potion No. 9

This is a strangely designed little EP I bought a few years ago. I do not anything about the singer, Johnny Tan, but the backing band, Charlie and His Go Go Boys, recorded several instrumental A-Go-Go EPs.

Swan Label is one of the many indie local labels in Singapore. Did you know there were a number of independent record labels in Singapore/Malaysia in the 60s? Besides the big 2 (EMI and Philips), these indie labels recorded our local musicians too. I have some other Swan label releases by other singers, mostly Mandarin, which I will need to check if I've digitised already. (I can't find the cables I used to digitise from vinyl after moving house!)

Johnny Tan - Love Potion Number 9

Teo Xiao Yun and Lim Teck Chuan - I Should Have Known Better

One of my favourite Chinese Beatles covers. I always have a soft spot for female vocalists covering male songs.

Teo Xiao Yun and Lim Teck Chuan - I Should Have Known Better

U900 - Walk Don't Run (Isogabamaware)

A dear old friend gave me this cd last weekend.

Cutesy covers by a girl singer playing ukulele. My friend knows my taste.

I've not heard of them before, but apparently this Japanese duo U900 were an Internet viral sensation in 2009 because of quirky videos like this.

U900 - Walk Don't Run (Isogabamaware)

The Teardrops

First post since 2008! And what prompted me to revive this blog?

My new year's resolution is to spend less, and that includes spending on music. Fortunately there is Spotify, whereabouts I discovered this stunner.

Previously all I knew of The Teardrops was the song Tears come Tumbling, a track from Where The Girls Are Vol 7.

I love this song's guitar which comes in from first 8 seconds onwards, which sounds like Beatles + Girl Group.

Mod-ified Music Ep 18

My latest Mod-ified Music radio show (we're now onto episode 18!!) is available for download here. Among the thrilling songs played in this episode is TypeWriter's very Joe Meek-sounding "For Your Everything", with its Beatlesque chorus. Download the song here, and visit their MySpace!

And do check out Unpopular.Radio here.

Mareva!

I've blogged about her before, but now I've finally got her cd. Mareva Galanter makes for addictive listening!

Mareva Galanter - Les Cornichons

Mareva on wikipedia, here.
There are several Mareva clips on Youtube. This is my favourite:

The Vampires!

The Vampires were an all-girl group in the Singapore 60s music scene. According to the sleeve (paraphrased and roughly translated with assistance): this EP features Du Di Na on vocals, backed by The Vampires. Du Di Na joined The Vampires as singer 2 years prior to the release of this EP, and the group has won many fans among the young.

The Vampires - Han Yu Qu (Chilling Rain Song)

Interesting side note: the above picture was taken at Cavenagh Bridge, which is still standing in Singapore today.

Easy Rider...

Because I can't read Chinese characters, when it comes to deciphering names of singers and song titles, I'm lost. Hence when picking my choice of blogging material, it's always easiest to stick to recognisable covers of pop songs, or at the very least, singers with English names. In this example, I don't know the singer's name, but this is too awesome a cover not to share! And check out that terrific sleeve art!

It Never Rains On Southern California

Sweet Stevie Loraine!

I'm back after a long blogging hiatus. And with new music to share, as you've gathered from the recent posts (& more to come, I promise). I still love local Singapore 60s, and it's with great pleasure that I present one of my favourite buys of this year!

This is Stevie Loraine, backed by The Clansmen, comprising: Abdullah Abu (lead), Derrick Nunis (rhythm), Philip Monteiro (drums), and Raymond Lazaroo (bass). I'm guessing it was released (or purchased) in 1967, because that's scribbled in marker on my sleeve. Prior to this EP, Stevie Loraine recorded one backed by The Dukes, and you can view the sleeve here.

Stevie Loraine & The Clansmen - If You Always Say (EDIT: now a Box.net link)

Singapore 60's Pop Music Hall Of Fame is a recent blog, with lots of sleeve art and short writeups. Must-visit here!
Another single featuring The Clansmen, here.

Something Special!

Something special for the girl pop fans! A chirpy Dusty Springfield cover by the late Irish singer, Maisie McDaniel. I just found this vinyl yesterday, and it's a song I can't wait to share!

Maisie McDaniel - Something Special (EDIT: now a Box.net link)

Maisie McDaniel's orbituary write up, here.

Go Go West!

A recent quirky local 60s find. This EP is best described on its sleeve as 4 "Country and Western numbers with the a-go-go beat". Says the sleeve:

"Rocky Wong, the 'Singapore Hill Billy Singer', also nicknamed as the 'Cowboy from Pasir Panjang Hills', and whose style of singing resembles that of Slim Whitman, is no stranger to the music scene. Rock had competed in the "All Malaya Amateur Talentime Competition" during the 1950s and had since then appeared in many variety shows, nite clubs, the British Forces, Radio and Television."

Rocky Wong & The Dick Day Group - I Remember You (EDIT: now a Box.net link)

Eux Autres!

Eux Autres is a brother-sister duo, Nicholas and Heather Larimer, from Portland. If you're a fan of happy cheery 60's-inspired pop tunes in the vein of Saturday Looks Good To Me, you won't be disappointed. Their second full-length album, Cold City, was released in 2007. I just got my copy last week (ordered it from Darla.com!) and I'm excited about sharing this wonderful find!

Eux Autres - The Deadball Era (Megaupload link)

Eux Autres' official site, here.
Allmusic's review of Cold City, here.

Nicholas Larimer directed and animated this pretty video for 'Anne Boleyn':

Hey, Baby!

Dusty Springfield called Baby Washington her all-time favourite singer. With her powerful, moving and soulful voice, it's easy to see why. Baby Washington sang first in a vocal group, The Hearts, before branching out as a solo singer in 1956.

Baby Washington - Hey Lonely (Megaupload link)

Baby Washington on Wiki, here.
Baby Washington's Sue Singles, at Amazon, here.

Zouzou!

Zouzou is an iconic French model, actress and singer of the 1960s and early 1970s. She dated several famous men in her heyday, including Brian Jones, and Jack Nicholson.

Zouzou - Il Est Parti Comme Il Etait Venu

More about Zouzou at Wikipedia, here.

Mod-ified Music Ep 12 - 17 June 2008

Mod-ified Music Ep 12 on Unpopular.Radio

Tues / 17 June 2008 / 10PM - 11PM

Listen

Above shows a film still from 'Blow Up', which Modcentric is super excited to catch this Thursday at the National Museum. Film features 60s Beat Girls Jane Birkin and Gillian Hills! And not forgetting The Yardbirds!

(yousendit links below):

Gillian Hills - Qui A Su
Jane Birkin & Serge Gainsbourg - La DÈcadanse

Youtube Finds:

Blow Up Trailer


The Yardbirds in Blow Up.

Holiday In A Totebag!

A chance find in Bangkok. I thought this was a compilation at first (and the cd came bundled with a cute tote bag too), but Melting Holidays turned out to be a twee pop band from Japan. And their lead singer has a whispery voice, exactly like Kahimi Karie! Their last album was released in 2005, but they have contributed to several compilations since. While I'm at it, I must say that Smallroom label is a Thai indie pop fan's dream, as they locally distribute tons of international indie acts (lots of twee pop eg. Elefant releases) besides Thai indies. Do keep a lookout the next time you visit Thailand.

Melting Holidays - Rainbow, Rainbow

Melting Holidays on Wiki, here.
And their official website, here.

More Be My Baby!

Be My Baby is still one of my absolute favourite songs. And discovering new cover versions of your favourite songs is always something special. French Ye Ye girl Sophie covered this in her 1963 EP.

Sophie - Reviens Vite Et Oublie (Be My Baby)

Read about Sophie at Ready Steady Girls, here.
More Sophie sleeve art, here.

Mod-ified Music Ep 10 - Local by Locals

My latest radio show over at unpopular.radio is a must-listen for all those who enjoy local 60s Singaporean pop. As many of you would have realised, it was popular for Asian acts in the 60s to cover international hits (eg. Nancy Sinatra, The Beatles, etc). But there were also Singaporean acts who chose to cover other local acts. So in this episode of Mod-ified Music, you'll hear covers of Naomi & The Boys, Shirley Nair (above), and others. It's Singaporean music covered by fellow Singaporeans. How cool is that?

Download here:
Mod-ified Music Ep 10

Mod-ified Music show on unpopular.radio runs every alt. Tues at 10pm-11pm (SG time). Do tune in Live if you have the chance, elsewise you can download the recorded episode from the unpopular.radio site by the following week. The next show is on 3rd June.

To download my previous episodes, check out unpopular.radio's Broadcast Repository here.

Chicas Ye Ye!

This is not a genre I'm very familiar with, but this compilation is a good introduction to the world of 'Chicas Ye Ye'. I was lucky enough to stumble on it on eBay, and I'm most pleased with it. Volume 1 presents songs by Adriangela, Silvana Velasco, Ivana and Lorella.

Adriángela - Me Gusta La Gente

ChaChaCharming has a fascinating article on the Spanish Girl singers scene, here.

Sing The Bossa!

I found this curious cd while on holiday last week at Bangkok. Holidays for me are a great chance for music shopping, and this trip was no exception. So I got this cd primarily based on the pretty cover, not knowing much about the "teen idols" performing the bossa-nova covers. While in all honesty, this cd is nothing much to shout about (some of the arrangements and instrumentation sound very karaoke), this track got the ye-ye fan in me excited.

Laura - La Plus Belle Pour Aller Danser