Press & Reviews

The Star - Tuesday August 15, 2006

Flow of old favourites and current tunes

SINGERS and celebrities kept shoppers entertained with a continuous flow of old favourites and contemporary songs at the launch of Little Penang Street Market.

Kicking off the entertainment were veteran performing artiste Mohd Bahroodin Ahmad alias Cikgu Baha and comedienne Joanne Kam Poh Poh, who introduced guest-of-honour Muhammad Farid Saad, the Penang Bumiputra Tourism Committee chairman.

Helping to keep the show going through the day was former RTM deejay Jerry Pryde. In between acts, the sounds of keroncong, gamelan, joget, P Ramlee compositions and Chinese orchestras swirled through the tents of the market, helping to remind everyone of the wonderful street heritage that is Penang.

Various performers followed suit, serenading crowds throughout the day, starting with Australian-based songstress and actress Norleena Salim who sang Lagenda, a Sheila Majid hit.

Popular Penang Eurasian duo The Rozells took us back to the past with some Country ‘n Western oldies. They also paid tribute to two great modern Malaysian composers with Getaran Jiwa, one of the most famous songs by Tan Sri P. Ramlee, and Putera Puteri by Jimmy Boyle.

Mary Carlos, singer and former Mrs Malaysia, accompanied by Berkeley-trained musician Michael Kay, thrilled the crowds with songs from different ethnic origins.

The younger musicians were represented by student Simon Christopher and Joni Tham who took the visitors through a medley of contemporary pop songs, accompanying themselves on guitars.

The Jazz Quartet is a group of four young Penang musicians, aged 11 to 14, who tackled classic jazz piece Take Five. The quartet comprises Aaron Teoh on saxophone, his brother Matthew on bass guitar, Jordan Scully who played the drums and ET on the keyboard.

The event also served to highlight Penang’s musical lineage through the participation of different generations of the same family. Anyone old enough will remember Antonio Vincent, lead singer of local band Sweet September. Calling themselves The Mixx, he sang some duets with his daughter Rina and keyboardist Bala.

Christopher Elstrop, 23, son of Cathy Rodriguez of The Rozells and grandson of jazz guitar player Larry Rodriguez, demonstrated his versatility with keyboards and vocals.

By the time Jazz and Broadway singer Rozz took to the stage with his backing band The Jazz Trio, evening was descending. Rather aptly, as he launched into his third song, Judy Garland’s Somewhere Over the Rainbow, strong winds were blowing the clouds in from across the sea, causing organisers to call it a day.

“It was a very good start,” said James Rozell who played a key role in putting together the entertainment for the day.

“Penang has a rich musical history which must be kept alive. We also want to use this monthly event as a showcase to encourage upcoming new talent,” he added.

To find out more about the music performances, call James at 017-486 1885 or 04-8900262.

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