Old Favourites Came Alive
“Mangala Mohothin Pembarayeku ha heta ma pitawenawa”
(“Tomorrow I am leaving with my bridegroom in the Wedding Moment”)
Sweetly sang Mignonne Fernando accompanied by “The Jetliners” at their Farewell Concert on Sunday, 3rd March 2013 at the Musaeus College Auditorium.
Mignonne recalled that she wrote the song in 1972 and received a resounding “Yes” when she asked the audience if it was still popular. Three girls from the award-winning female choir “Soul Sounds” sang the chorus of the song.
“Well, she was just seventeen, if you know what I mean,
I couldn’t dance with another
Oh when I saw her standing there…”
Sang Conrad de Silva of the “Jetliners”. The band played to a packed audience which showed their enthusiasm as they clapped and sang along.
The show could not start on time as the lifts could only take in six persons at a time. Those who built the auditorium should have thought of that. Also soft drinks were sold at the entrance but people were not allowed to take food and drink into the hall, not even water!
David Roberts from UK, a Cliff Richard lookalike, sang many Cliff favourites, beginning with “Dynamite” followed by “I’ll be Looking for You”(where he used actions too) and “Do You Wanna Dance”.
The “Jetliners” were influenced by the band “The Shadows” and they played instrumentals beginning with “The Quartermasters’ Store”. It was followed by “Ghost Riders in the Sky” and “Wonderful Land”.
“Love is like candy on a shelf…
My heart has love enough for two, so help yourself…”
Sang Conrad echoing the Tom Jones’ hit song “Help Yourself”. He then rendered “Man Without Love” soulfully, complete with hand movements.
“I cannot face this world that’s falling down on me…” he sang.
Mignonne first appeared in a shimmery black outfit complete with ankle-high black boots as she sang,
“These boots are made for walking”. She reminisced that she had sung “My Boy Lollipop” at the “Coconut Grove” in 1965.
Mignonne then sang a song in honour of her late husband, “Hopelessly Devoted to You” echoing the words,
“My head is saying, ‘Fool, forget him.
My heart is saying ‘Don’t let go…’”
Conrad then appeared in shirt and tie and sang “I’m Coming Home” with a lot of feeling and said that he misses Sri Lanka as he is domiciled in Melbourne, Australia. He said that his son Andrew who recovered miraculously from cancer won an Australian award as a singer.
After the interval, Conrad sang “Delilah” and asked the audience to join in. Dave then sang “The Young Ones” , the perennial Cliff Richard hit.
The show ended with Mignonne singing “Bombay Meri Hai”
Indra Raj of “The Jetliners” has his own band in Switzerland and will be performing in Sri Lanka in August 2013 along with David Roberts. So fans of the “Jetliners” can look forward to the show.
Comments from the audience
Mrs.Nirmali Wickremesinghe, Principal of Ladies’ College, said, “The show was wonderful. It transported us back to our schooldays.”
Sudath Jayasundera, director,’Harischandra Mills’ said, “The “Jetliners” were influenced by Cliff Richard and the “Shadows” and I loved their music. We must thank Damayantha Kuruppu of “DK Promotions” for bringing the members of the group down.”
His wife, Sharon, an Advertising Executive at “Bates” said, “My husband is more of a Jetliner fan than I. We came here to enjoy and go back in time. It was amazing.”
Terence Anandappa said, “I’ve played with the Jets in the days of the ‘Coconut Grove’. I played drums for “The Bohemians” at the sundown dances. I thought the Jets were still very very good. They were just the same as before.”
Melantha Perera said, “The show was fantastic. I play for the band “Mirage” and it was really great hearing “The Jetliners”.
Gayathri Swaminathan said, “It was an excellent show. I really enjoyed the old songs.”
Mahlon Adaman said, “I’m a huge fan of “The Shadows” thanks to my Dad and when we heard the Jets were playing, we all bought tickets and came.”
Padma Maharajah said, “It was a fabulous show.”
Reviewed by Sirohmi Gunesekera
Pics by Kithsiri De Mel
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0 Comments
Dushyantha.Dias. Abeyegunawardene says:
May 23, 2013 at 12:00 amI am an ardent fan of the Jetliners -from those days, and it was great to see this group playing, and it brought memories of the Coconut Grove days. Their presentation was sheer class. There are still the best band in Asia.
I hope they will come back again to perform?
Manel Menon says:
May 24, 2013 at 12:00 amMy husband and made a special trip to Watch the show.We used to go to Coconut Grove to watch them. It was a great show..
Johnny Fernandes says:
Oct 04, 2013 at 12:00 amThe Jet Liners played at the Taj Mahal in Mumbai (Bombay) and had come up with an LP record by anychance is there and CD available of this LP Thanks
Denis Vaz says:
May 03, 2014 at 12:00 amYour HD DVD does not play on my DVD player. Also recording quality was not very clear on the demonstration DVD. I bought the DVD from Music Planet At Majestic City. Can I return it and get a refund? Or can it be converted to a regular DVD. Awaiting your reply. I am from Mumbai.