The Singapore F1 Formula Race next week on Sunday September, 27th takes us back to the 60s when Singapore had its lst Grand Prix in April, 1966 at Thomson Road. Previous editions were held before Singapore became independent so there was much excitement that week. Blogger remembers that the buzz phrase was, "Grand Prix" (ie, 'gron pree') but the term was verbally abused by our folks.
While the focus was on the race, the froth was also brewing on the international pop music scene in April 1966. Why? Although the Beatles reached top positions in the world charts, they didn't do too well in their own British homeland.
Another surprise was Sergeant Barry Sadler's Ballads Of The Green Berets (image) which praised Vietnam but came 42nd on the list. This song never became popular in Singapore for obvious reasons but the ballad came up to the top on the US charts in later weeks.
Singapore Top Tunes lists Nancy Sinatra's These Boots Are Made For Walking (covered by Nancy Sit and a few other local artistes) and Sounds Of Silence by Simon And Garfunkel in the top spots. Also Michelle by Billy Vaughn, and not the Beatles, was at number 3. What about our own bands and singers?
Image: Wikipedia.
YouTube Video: Konshito -Nov 2006. All time classic/original version.
Original article: Andy Lim
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