It is said that “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery” and that Bollywood music directors have been notorious for plagiarising western music and making it their own....all in the name of appreciation and tribute to their western idols.
But what is lesser known is the imitation of Bollywood music by other musicians (apart from maybe the Black Eyed Peas) and singer-song writers....however one such artist was DJ Dave, a Malaysian Punjabi singer that made famous many Hindi songs of the 1960’s and 1970’s that he converted using Malay lyrics. Check out the compilation of his hits that I have compiled here and see if you can recognise the original Hindi songs.
A little about DJ Dave – born Sukhdev Singh, he took on the initials of his parents, Dhammi and Jagjit, and abbreviated his name to Dave, and viola, the birth of DJ Dave.
He started off as a mail sorter with Malaysian Post, with ambitions of becoming a Post Master but it all changed when one day, after singing a Hindi song at a children function. Already known as a great singer within social functions, he was asked by a young child why he wasn’t singing those beautiful Hindi songs in Malay. The very next day, he went to a recording studio for an audition and after being told he had to brush up on his Malay, he returned to studio six months later, his Malay polished and a contract! And the rest is history. Today, Dave has 35 hit music albums to his name, in five languages - English, Hindi, Malay, Cantonese and Punjabi.
The result of his success? The manager at Life, the recording company that signed him up, lost his job! Because he had overlooked tying Dave up in a long term agreement. EMI had moved in and signed Dave up for 3 years. And from then, for the next 20 years Dave stayed with EMI.
In the process, Dave revolutionized music in Malaysia by giving the local Indian and Malay people a huge inventory of great songs from Hindi movies sung in Malay. And in 1992, he started his own label Dave’s. D J Dave also goes by the name of Irwan Shah Abdullah, the name he took on when he converted to Muslim when he married his Malay wife. He received the Malaysian equivalent of a knighthood in 2005 which bestows him the title of “Datuk”.
His last album was, Mar Gaye Oye! in 2005, a collection of Punjabi songs, consisting of 8 tracks, of which three feature the famous Indian singer, Kavita Krishnamurthy.
Source:
India Glitz
DJ Dave – Ingin Bersua: A compilation of DJ Dave’s songs
1. Ingin Bersua (I’d Like To Meet)
2. Sendiri Lagi (Alone Again)
3. Mana Janji Mana Cinta (Where’re the Promises, Where’s the Love)
4. Air Mata Kasih (Tears of Love)
5. Sungguh Kau Istimewa (You Are So Special)
6. Pesan Untuk Teman (A Message For A Friend)
7. Pengantin Tiba (The Bride Has Arrived)
8. Masa Yang Lepas (Time Forgone)
9. Ku Cium Pipi Mu (I Kiss Your Cheeks)
10. Seruling Kasih (Flute of Love)
11. Kanda Dan Dinda (My Husband and My Wife)
12. Ku Tak Ingin Menangis Lagi (I Don’t Want To Cry Anymore)
13. Tuah Badan (Luck Of The Draw)
14. Maafkanlah (Forgive Me)
MUSIC #61: DJ DAVE – INGIN BERSUA 2010 (MALAY COMPILATION)
