QUOTE
I CAN still remember that night in 1994. I was a young and ambitious record executive trying to find that new sound that could define the up-and-coming independent music scene bursting behind hidden walls in a handful of KL music dives.
But nothing prepared me for what I was about to hear. The music that came out of the demo tape was so inch-perfect in R&B vocal harmony that I nearly stopped the car, right there and then, in the middle of the highway. It was an amazing a capella rendition of All I Ask Of You by a group called Coming Of Age.
I had never heard anything like that coming out of Malaysia. Trembling, I quickly called up my friend’s friend who was in the group and found out they were about to jam at Hard Rock Cafe that night.
I did a quick stop at Hard Rock Cafe and met up with the guys. I couldn’t stay for their jam session but got invited to one of their rehearsals the next day.
And so began a love affair with the group, who eventually called themselves Innuendo. As I sat in on rehearsal after rehearsal, I became fast friends with the group, who constantly changed their lineup until it finally became the four that we know: Reymee, Taj, Pot and Sam.
The four of them created the sound of Innuendo that we know and love so well. Reymee with his higher-pitched tone, always ready for that technically difficult soulful ad lib on any melody, Pot with his steady tenor, driving down the mid-section perfectly, his pure sincerity shining through any song, Sam with his supremely sublime-yet-powerful voice, adding the shiny vocal lustre on top of the group harmonies and Taj rounding it off with his luscious deep baritone, always able to reach deep into one’s soul.
...
Of course, when Belaian Jiwa was released as the second single, all hell broke loose. The group became famous literally overnight as the song became a hit across all listeners, regardless of race. In these days of fragmentation, a hit like that would be an amazing feat. I still get comments to this day, from people of all races, that Belaian Jiwa is their favourite Malay song of all time. Soon after that, we released Selamanya, which of course became another massive hit.
The album made a huge impact.
In AIM 1998, Innuendo won a record-breaking six AIM awards out of an incredible nine nominations, a feat not repeated until today. It was an even more incredible achievement considering English albums couldn’t qualify for a lot of categories including the much-coveted Best Album. That night in 1998 was the crowning achievement to the launch of Innuendo. On top of all that, the album went platinum.
Read more: FOR THE RECORD: Magical days - Tech - New Straits Times http://www.nst.com.my/life-times/tech/for-...3#ixzz286m5J7VW
But nothing prepared me for what I was about to hear. The music that came out of the demo tape was so inch-perfect in R&B vocal harmony that I nearly stopped the car, right there and then, in the middle of the highway. It was an amazing a capella rendition of All I Ask Of You by a group called Coming Of Age.
I had never heard anything like that coming out of Malaysia. Trembling, I quickly called up my friend’s friend who was in the group and found out they were about to jam at Hard Rock Cafe that night.
I did a quick stop at Hard Rock Cafe and met up with the guys. I couldn’t stay for their jam session but got invited to one of their rehearsals the next day.
And so began a love affair with the group, who eventually called themselves Innuendo. As I sat in on rehearsal after rehearsal, I became fast friends with the group, who constantly changed their lineup until it finally became the four that we know: Reymee, Taj, Pot and Sam.
The four of them created the sound of Innuendo that we know and love so well. Reymee with his higher-pitched tone, always ready for that technically difficult soulful ad lib on any melody, Pot with his steady tenor, driving down the mid-section perfectly, his pure sincerity shining through any song, Sam with his supremely sublime-yet-powerful voice, adding the shiny vocal lustre on top of the group harmonies and Taj rounding it off with his luscious deep baritone, always able to reach deep into one’s soul.
...
Of course, when Belaian Jiwa was released as the second single, all hell broke loose. The group became famous literally overnight as the song became a hit across all listeners, regardless of race. In these days of fragmentation, a hit like that would be an amazing feat. I still get comments to this day, from people of all races, that Belaian Jiwa is their favourite Malay song of all time. Soon after that, we released Selamanya, which of course became another massive hit.
The album made a huge impact.
In AIM 1998, Innuendo won a record-breaking six AIM awards out of an incredible nine nominations, a feat not repeated until today. It was an even more incredible achievement considering English albums couldn’t qualify for a lot of categories including the much-coveted Best Album. That night in 1998 was the crowning achievement to the launch of Innuendo. On top of all that, the album went platinum.
Read more: FOR THE RECORD: Magical days - Tech - New Straits Times http://www.nst.com.my/life-times/tech/for-...3#ixzz286m5J7VW
http://www.nst.com.my/life-times/tech/for-...l-days-1.150523
Oct 2 2012, 11:24 AM, updated 14y ago
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