Discoveries while Unemployed.

It's been almost a week since my last day at work at SJ Burnout, and I have discovered a few things:

(1) Daytime TV in London plain sucks!

(2) Sleeping through the afternoon on one day f*cks up a day's sleep patterns... which only makes you want to dance away that night like a demon and f*ck up yet another week's worth of shut-eye...

(3) There are only so many times you can play and replay the campaigns on Rome-Total War (that's a computer RTS war game for the uninitiated!) before you see little red dots scurrying around every time you close your eyes, and your dreams include charging cavalry slashing their way through the long overgrown grass in your garden, and battalions of legionaries overtaking and killing your neighbour's cat...

Worst of all Reader, I have a terrible confession! See that Total War game was going so magnificently in my favour that I clean forgot that yesterday was my country's national day!!! ALAMAK! So while some of you did that little Stand-up-for-Singapore-routine and scanned the skies for fireworks and screaming aircraft, I buried myself in my computer and schemed world domination over sprawling and scrawling green and red megabytes...

Such idle behaviour riverman!!! You should be ashamed of yourself!!!

(Oh.. But just in case you wanted to know: I slaughtered the Britons, routed the Germans and smeared the remains of the Thracians all over Carthage... [insert very very evil laughter here...])...Not bad for two days of Napoleonic ambition!

I know... I know Reader: I do need to channel my blood-lust in a more productive way!

See here... it does not help in the least that I have navigated the Harry Potter Seven-Book-Odyssey, and no, I will not spoil it for the rest of you who may be still clambering over the rocky ridges and plot-holes and stumbling towards the ráison d'etre of Ms Rowling's universe. So, take your time fellow pilgrims. It is worth it all!

And when you reach the very last words of the last chapter, and that sick'n' sour withdrawal sets into your stomach as you contemplate summers without those delicious wedges of Harry and Volderrr...He-Who-Must-Not-Be Named; go over to your bookshelf and pull out the very first in the septology - "Harry Potter and The Sorcerer's Stone" and start all over again just as I have done today.

Pretty little dreamers we are, aren't we?!

There's a little more excitement on the horizon however.... Yes, and since all great things should be repeated, especially when one is unemployed and with nothing better to do...

JUNGLE JAZZ FEVER

31st August 2007.

Melaka at 27 Ropemaker's Field E14 8BX

Tel: 020 7536 9256
Nearest station: WestFerry DLR

Music starts at 8.30 pm and continues till late
(or at least until the beer barrels run dry!)

From the same outrageous bunch that brought you the Summer Jazz Jam a couple of months back, here is yet another opportunity to jive with Gary aka Bob who promises to drum up Afro-Latino rhythms that Big Foot could dance the salsa to; Melf who will work a fever all over those bass frets to keep up with Adam's flying fingers, and Gracie who promises to skit 'n' scat 'n' "outdo-the -cats" till the wee hours of the morning...


Come on over and have fun!

~~~

Thank you!

Ladies and Gentlemen, Boys and Girls! It's a little bit late, but just as heartfelt: A big thank you to you wonderful people who helped create magic on that hot and sunny Sunday afternoon on the 10th of June at Melaka! Here are some outstanding and remarkable people who should get knighted for their efforts!

Gary Thank you dear, for all that support and for pushing me to get out on stage and get the exposure. You played a mean set of drums on the day, and the Girl from Ipanema definitely came a walking and everyone went "H-a-aa-a-a!". Let's keep on jamming together Boi!

Melf Gal, I don't know where you learnt how to play the bass like that... but if it really was in church, I have to start attending every Sunday! Promise me we will get "Fever"ed together again!

Adam Thank you for agreeing to do it for bananas! You made the rest of us actually sound professional. Betcha won't forget those A minor/-7 chords or that chilli sambal in a hurry!

Lau My main man!!! You practically dreamt this whole thing up and orchestrated it from day one. Thank you for being the optimistic person you are and actually believing in us. Oh, and thanks for lugging all the equipment back and forth!

Shah The world needs more astute businessmen like you Shah! Thank you for taking a risk on us actually being able to deliver what we promised, and thank you for not kicking up a fuss when we depleted your stocks of Tiger Beer in your restaurant!

Tina Thank you for your wonderful folk music and for the tambourine shaking and for the belly dance and for the Elvis compliment! Let's try and do this again shall we? If anything - at least the belly dance!

Jacqueline/Jacque Thank you for being patient with us and for getting all that publicity done during your manic period before your deadline. Give us another chance, and we will get more bananas for our little friends in Sandakan (see - now I know how to spell it!).

Dex Hey boy! You and I should definitely do a duet together the next time. Thanks for being such a lovely surprise when you wrenched the mic away from my greedy fingers. That will teach me to hog all the songs!

Ian Thank you for that wonderful artistic flair you have. I just saw the video you filmed on the day, and it is Cannes calibre!

Finally - A BIG MUSHY THANK YOU to YOU! Yes You ... Reader... Supporter... Friend.... Thank you for listening to the music I love and for encouraging me to perform, clapping wildly and cheering whenever I do and pretending not to get bored everytime you hear it again and again and again! Thank you for the telephone calls and the e-mails at all hours of the day asking me when and where and what time and what you could do to help out, or simply to wish me the best (sometimes from as far away as Washington DC and Singapore! - you know who you are, you gems!)

Thank you for one of the best days I have had so far, and for making this a wonderful summer jazz jam!


Here are some photos from the day (Jacque - I stole these from your blog... bloody low class I know... but I don't have any, see - as I was on stage all the time singing for your little furry friends! So I know you will excuse this!) For more pictures and more of a write-up on the event, do visit Jacque's blog http://www.pushinglimit.blogspot.com/


Watch out for the YouTube link which I will embed on the blog when I get it from Lau/Jacque as soon as they work out the technical issues!

THAT WILD AND CRAZY JUNGLE JAM...

What a day this has beenWhat a rare mood Im inWhy, its almost like being in loveTheres a smile on my faceFor the whole human raceWhy, its almost like being in loveAll the music of life seems to beLike a bell that is ringing for meAnd from the way that I feelWhen that bell starts to pealI would swear I was fallingI could swear I was fallingIts almost like being in loveOh, the shark, has, pretty teeth, dear....and he shows them, pearly whiteJust a jackknife, has macheath, yeah.....andhe keeps it, out of sightWhen the shark bites, with his teeth, dear....scarlet billows start to spreadFancy gloves, though, wears macheath, yeah..so theres not a trace, hmmmm of redOn the sidewalk...sunday morning, ...lies a body oozin lifeSomeones sneakin round the corner...is the someone, mack the knife? From a tugboat.... by the river..... a cement bags, droopin downYeah, the cements just for the weight, dear...bet you mack, hes back in townLooky here louie miller, disappeared dear...after drawing, out his cashAnd macheath spends, like a sailor...did our boy do, somethin rash? Sukey tawdry, jenny diver..lotte lenya, sweet lucy brownOh, the line forms on the right, dears.....now that mackys back in town
Birds flying high you know how I feelSun in the sky you know how I feelReeds driftin on by you know how I feel(refrain:)Its a new dawnIts a new dayIts a new lifeFor meAnd Im feeling goodFish in the sea you know how I feelRiver running free you know how I feelBlossom in the tree you know how I feelDragonfly out in the sun you know what I mean, dont you knowButterflies all havin fun you know what I meanSleep in peace when day is doneThats what I meanAnd this old world is a new worldAnd a bold worldFor meStars when you shine you know how I feelScent of the pine you know how I feelOh freedom is mineAnd I know how I feel Never know how much I love you,Never know how much I care.When you put your arms around me,I get a fever that's so hard to bear.You give me fever,When you kiss me,Fever when you hold me tight.Fever! In the morning,Fever all through the night.Sun lights up the daytimeAnd moon lights up the night..I light up when you call my nameAnd you know I'm gonna treat you rightYou give me feverWhen you kiss me, Fever when you hold me tight.Fever! In the morning, And fever all through the nightEverybody's got the feverThat is something you all knowFever isn't such a new thingFever started long agoRomeo loved JulietteJuliette she felt the sameWhen he put his arms around her he said,"Julie, Baby , you're my flame"Thou giveth fever"When we kisseth"Fever with thy flaming youth"Fever! I'm afire,"Fever, yeah, I burn, forsooth."Cap'in Smith and Pocahontas had a very mad affairWhen her daddy tried to kill himShe said,"Daddy, oh, don't you dare!"He gives me fever"With his kisses"Fever when he holds me tight"Fever! I'm his missus, So"Daddy, Won't you treat him right?"Now you've listened to my story,Here's the point that I have made:Chicks were born to give you fever,Be it Fahrenheit or CentigradeThey give you feverWhen you kiss themFever if you live and learnFever! 'till you sizzlewhat a lovely way to burnwhat a lovely way to burnwhat a lovely way to burnwhat a lovely way to burn
SummertimeAnd the livin' is easyFish are jumpin'And the cotton is highYour daddy's richAnd your mamma's good lookin'So hush little babyDon't you cryOne of these morningsYou're going to rise up singingThen you'll spread your wingsAnd you'll take to the skyBut till that morningThere's a'nothing can harm youWith daddy and mamma standing by My baby dont care for showsMy baby dont care for clothesMy baby just cares for meMy baby dont care for cars and racesMy baby dont care for high-tone placesLiz taylor is not his styleAnd even lana turners smileIs somethin he cant seeMy baby dont care who knowsMy baby just cares for meBaby, my baby dont care for showsAnd he dont even care for clothesHe cares for meMy baby dont careFor cars and racesMy baby dont care forHe dont care for high-tone placesLiz taylor is not his styleAnd even liberaces smileIs something he cant seeIs something he cant seeI wonder whats wrong with babyMy baby just cares forMy baby just cares forMy baby just cares for me Another bride Another JuneAnother sunny honey moonanother season, another reasonfor makin' whoopeeAlot of shoes alot of ricethe groom is nervous he answers twiceits so killin that he's so willin'To make whoopeePicture a little love nestdown where the roses clingPicture the same sweet love nest Think what a year can bringHe's washing dishes and baby clothesHe's so ambitious he even sowsbut don't forget folks thats what you get folksfor makein whoopee Tall and tan and young and lovelyThe girl from ipanema goes walkingAnd when she passes, each one she passes goes - ahWhen she walks, shes like a sambaThat swings so cool and sways so gentleThat when she passes, each one she passes goes - ooh(ooh) but I watch her so sadlyHow can I tell her I love herYes I would give my heart gladlyBut each day, when she walks to the seaShe looks straight ahead, not at meTall, (and) tan, (and) young, (and) lovelyThe girl from ipanema goes walkingAnd when she passes, I smile - but she doesnt see (doesnt see)(she just doesnt see, she never sees me,...) You make me feel so youngYou make me feel like spring has sprungEvery time I see you grinIm such a happy individualThe moment that you speakI want to go and play hide-and-seekI want to go and bounce the moonJust like a toy balloonYou and i, are just like a couple of totsRunning across the meadowPicking up lots of forget-me-notsYou make me feel so youngYou make me feel there are songs to be sungBells to be rung, and a wonderful fling to be flungAnd even when Im old and grayIm gonna feel the way I do todaycause you make me feelso youngMy story is much to sad to be toldBut practically everything leaves me totally coldThe only exception I know is the caseWhen Im out on a quiet spree, fighting vainly the old ennuiThen I suddenly turn and seeYour fabulous faceI get no kick from champagneMere alcohol doesnt thrill me at allSo tell me why should it be trueThat I get a kick out of youSome like the perfume from spainIm sure that if I took even one sniffIt would bore me terrifically tooBut I get a kick out of you( some like the bop-type refrain )( Im sure that if, I heard even one riff )( it would bore me terrifically too )( but I get a kick out of you )( some they may go for cocaine )( Im sure that if, I took even one sniff )( it would bore me terrifically too )( but I get a kick out of you )I get a kick every time I see you standing there before meI get a kick though its clear to see, you obviously do not adore meI get no kick in a planeFlying too high with some gal in the skyIs my idea of nothing to doBut I get a kick out of youOld pirates, yes, they rob i;Sold I to the merchant ships,Minutes after they took iFrom the bottomless pit.But my hand was made strongBy the hand of the almighty.We forward in this generationTriumphantly.Wont you help to singThese songs of freedom? -cause all I ever have:Redemption songs;Redemption songs.Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery;None but ourselves can free our minds.Have no fear for atomic energy,cause none of them can stop the time.How long shall they kill our prophets,While we stand aside and look? ooh!Some say its just a part of it:Weve got to fulfil de book.Wont you help to singThese songs of freedom? -cause all I ever have:Redemption songs;Redemption songs;Redemption songs.Somewhere beyond the sea,Somewhere, waiting for me,My lover stands on golden sandsAnd watches the ships that go sailing;Somewhere beyond the sea,He's (She's) there watching for me.If I could fly like birds on high,Then straight to his (her) arms I'd go sailing.It's far beyond a star,It's near beyond the moon,I know beyond a doubtMy heart will lead me there soon.We'll meet beyond the shore,We'll kiss just as before.Happy we'll be beyond the sea,And never again I'll go sailing!The days of wine and roses laugh and run away like a child at playThrough the meadow land toward a closing doorA door marked nevermore that wasn’t there beforeThe lone-ly night discloses just a passing breeze filled with memoriesOf the golden smile that introduced me toThe days of wine and roses and youThere are many many crazy thingsThat will keep me loving youAnd with your permissionMay I list a fewThe way you wear your hatThe way you sip your teaThe memory of all thatNo they cant take that away from meThe way your smile just beamsThe way you sing off keyThe way you haunt my dreamsNo they cant take that away from meWe may never never meet again, on that bumpy road to loveBut Ill always, always keep the memory ofThe way you hold your knifeThe way we danced till threeThe way you changed my lifeNo they cant take that away from me!!!Like the beat beat beat of the tom-tomWhen the jungle shadows fallLike the tick tick tock of the stately clockAs it stands against the wallLike the drip drip drip of the raindropsWhen the summer shower is throughSo a voice within me keeps repeating you, you, youNight and day, you are the oneOnly you beneath the moon or under the sunWhether near to me, or farIts no matter darling where you areI think of youDay and night, night and day, why is it soThat this longing for you follows wherever I goIn the roaring traffics boomIn the silence of my lonely roomI think of youDay and night, night and dayUnder the hide of meTheres an oh such a hungry yearning burning inside of meAnd this torment wont be throughUntil you let me

spend my life making love to youDay and night, night and dayEverytime we say goodbye I die a little Everytime we say goodbye I wonder why a littleWhy the gods above me Who must be in the know Think so little of meThey allow you to go When you're near There's such an air Of spring about itI can hear a lark somewhereBegin to sing about it There's no love song finer But how strange the changeFrom major to minor Everytime we say goodbye There's no love song finer But how strange the change From major to minor Everytime we say goodbye...

~~~

BIG PLANS!

Gosh... I am excited! I have BIG PLANS...

See, there is nothing like looking forward to and preparing for your first summer jazz gig in London!

So how did it all happen, you ask me? Well, actually, nothing has happened yet Reader! It's simply BIG PLANS... and like all BIG PLANS - a product of too much time , too much beer, too much food and too much bravado on a Bank Holiday weekend!

What is a Bank Holiday? Put simply, it is London's excuse for not celebrating every Catholic festival like the Italians, and refusing to give us more than one day off for Chinese New Year. The essential thing to celebrate about a Bank Holiday, is that we London-lackeys get a three day weekend with all the dancing-distraction and debauchery we can squeeze into it!

And that means quite a bit of debauchery!

Then again, why not engage in a little sin! Is it not "... May... May... The Lusty Month of May ... That darling month when everyone goes blissfully astray?- ing away from the topic, as I am now doing?! Let's get back to it!

Sheesh! See what happens when I get excited?!

-------------------------------------

Like all good things... the BIG PLAN started with a good lo-o-o-ong marinade...

6 pm on Friday evening saw me frantically flinging e-mails out into the ether, desperate and determined to clear my in-tray. I have found that the prospect of my Friday pint promotes wonderful efficiency... and at 6.30 sharp, as anticipated, I had my hands wrapped around a tall "blonde" with a pretty head!

The next stop was Annex 3 or "Annex trois" - apparently owned by a ménage à trois of gay men with a penchant for chic-bohemia, strong cocktails and what can only be called a gypsy-motived-kasbah dressed in a motley mosaic of colours and textures.

So for the next four hours we sipped Japanese Scribbles and Mohitos, and held our glasses the oh-so-Chi-Chi-way (please see the adjacent picture for Ling's demonstration of this fine art), and polished off four courses of all manner of animal, vegetable and mineral.

In between mouthfuls, I discovered that I was in the company of a pop singer, a pianist, a violinist and a drummer. My friends merrily introduced me as the "Jazz singer", which naturally resulted in a barrage of "So where do you sing?" - "When will we hear you?" - "What is your style?" "Are you a soprano?" - "Wanna go Karaoke?" ...

...and it was finished off with a stern parting shot: "Go get a gig, gal!!!" And so the seeds of the soon to be BIG PLAN were carefully planted in the mushy depths of my well watered mind...

We ended off the night at Sketch Bar... which proved to be a predictable cesspool of chaos and carnage. After another Molotov cocktail of poison, I curled on one of those very comfortable armchairs and drifted off to dreamland while a hypnotic twist of arms, legs and faces whisked around the room.

At around 3 am I was safe at home and in bed - pulling both my duvet and oblivion over my head... and I didn't even wince when the rising sun pierced through my blinds in the morning.

I greeted Saturday with a groan and a mother of a hangover and the disappointing discovery that the weather man had revoked his promise of blue skies and songbirds in the trees over the weekend. All plans for cycling and outdoor activities had to be shelved, and so I made my way over to a friend's house to vegetate in front of the TV and medicate my tender head with (yes... you know me so well Reader!) MORE alcohol.

The sun decided to tentatively javelin a a few rays our way in the late afternoon, and that proved enough to transform us into park-bench yobs albeit with a Waitrose-edge. We came equipped with a bottle of Rose, assorted nuts and strawberries, and plastic champagne glasses. Classy ey?!

Joggers and miscellaneous health freaks passing by stopped to stare at our little pavement picnic. So we dangled strawberries in front of their faces as they cycled / ran / jogged / walked past, and they rewarded us with a few queer looks... Spoil-sports!

We felt hungry after a while, (what with all that wine in our tummies threatening to turn into vinegar), and so we made our way to this newly opened Malaysian restaurant called Melaka in the Docklands for some chow and to meet another mate.

We took a look at the 30 items on offer on the menu and in around 15 minutes, half the list materialised on our table in all its savoury glory.

What could I say?! "Dismantle the diet... unbuckle the belt... bring on the chilli sambal!" It is after all not everyday that we get to eat an amount approximating the annual food consumption of a very small third world country.

An hour later, the five of us ambled down to this little Jazz club called Bootys. It was there that the real fun began...

So there was this pianist and singer belting out very soft jazz/pop. My mates being my mates, decided to hoist me up on stage, and they succeeded. It started with half a song, and then that half a song grew to a solo session, and they actually liked it! I was grinning when I got off the stage to be congratulated by a little crowd of happy people.

Then the BIG PLAN which had been quietly sprouting in the undergrowth... unnoticed... fairly shot up into the air and hit us in the face:

Why not put up our own gig??? Well really now... why not!?

On the way home and in the car, it was all jabber-jaw on ideas on who to ask, and what to play, and where and how and when... and why in the world didn't we think of that before!? Needless to say when I got home I was too excited to sleep and sat around playing my guitar till 5 am - which is what an hyper-tense riverman does...

On Sunday afternoon we trundled down to Melaka again, this time to do a little public relations with the proprietor over a bottle of beer and a smoky barbecue pit. We decided within the space of 1 hour of heated discussion in Lau's car that our summer jazz debut would take place in Melaka's beer garden to a capacity crowd of around 50-60 people... which in my opinion is large enough for me to feel a little Woodstock about it, and intimate enough for me to be myself...

Next thing I know I was tucking into a lamb burger and swigging a bottle of Tiger ... and that is when the "and thens" began... at a dizzying pace:

...and then I got the all-systems-go from Shah (the proprietor)... and then Alan (a baritone singer with a world of music contacts who happened to turn up on the day) promised to get me any musicians I wanted - pianist, percussionist, double bassist... and then Gary (that talented guitarist I met at my barbecue) told me he wanted to help out as well... and then Lau appointed himself my publicist ... and then we decided we would do it for the Orang Hutan sanctuary in Sandakan err... and I insisted...also for Ah Meng... and then 10th June from 2 till 6 pm was fixed upon... and then Ling said she would do an instrumental medley on the day... and then I was reminded that the first practice would be this coming Saturday ... and then I realised that lots of people were talking about it ... and then Shah said he would open up the beer garden to cope with the prospective crowd ...and then... and then... and then...

Wallah! There you have it!

BIG PLANS...

and hopefully the beginning of something truly fantastic!

So, watch this space Reader... it can only get more exciting...

... and keep your fingers crossed for the riverman~~~