Guitar Hero of Rattlesnakes to do his 'finger gymnastics'

Chamikara Weerasinghe

Rattlesnakes, does that ring any bells? They played Deep Purple's Black Night the most among the other rock classics they played on stage a few years ago when rock music was just a babe in arms of a few fans.

Rattlesnakes was a band which made a huge impact on rock audiences of Sri Lanka with Thilak Dias on base, Keerthi Fernando on vocals and Sarath Fernando on lead guitar.

Although Rattlesnakes did not last long as a unit owing to many disputes among its members, the outfit made a strong impression that rock music was not dead in Sri Lanka.

Sarath Fernando, played the role of the "guitar hero" in the Rattlesnakes.

As an individual, Sarath has been a cool guy but one can never expect him to be cool with a guitar in his hand. He has still got his red fender, which he used to play those lead riffs of legendary rock bands like the Deep Purple, Rainbow, Dire Straits, Santana, the Bad Company and Queen.

The news is Sarath will be in concert tomorrow (Sunday) from 6.30 p.m. at the Lumbini Theatre in Havelock Town. "Sarath in Concert" will feature guitar recitals, rock classics, reggae, pop and Baila. He will be on vocals as well.

"This will be a compact musical show, which will feature all genres of music. I have arranged music for a couple of guitar solos and duets to be performed at the concert," he said.

Sarath will also sing his father's songs.

I asked Sarath how he developed finger agility or finger gymnastics to play his instrument (guitar) with lightning speed and how he transformed himself to play reggae following rock music.

"I have practically been involved in music for the past 25 years and I think it all happened during the three years I played with the band, Playboys which I joined in 1980," he said.

Then I joined the Exodus, led by Lucien Rode, who was on vocals. He went abroad asking me to take his place as the leader of the band.

"I came a long way with Exodus. We were playing at Browns Beach Hotel, Negombo, the Saxophone and many hotels," he said. The band went on to play reggae after the demise of Bob Marley in 1981. I was performing at beach restaurants such as WhyNot, Vibrations, Top Secret and Baseline in Hikkaduwa at the time.

"There was a special demand for reggae music of Bob Marley at the time I played in these restaurants. So we thought of adding reggae to our repertoire," said Sarath.

"It was worth the effort we gave. In fact we were appreciated for our playing by the crowds who came to see us perform at these restaurants," he said.

He remembered the public in Hikkaduwa and foreigners who appreciated them with gratitude. Sarath will also do a few originals at his show on Sunday.

Ketchup Girl with an oriental touch

Has Anne Deborah Judith White Gingerly sidestepped from the Western music scene?

"No, but I am very much involved with the oriental music field than I was before," she said adding that she is working on a new album.

By ginger, it's she who used to steal local audiences across the country by singing the pop dance hit, the awesome "Ketchup Song" by Las Ketchup.

It's simply a treat to watch when Anne White or 'Ginger' does this song. In fact her singing and dance, complemented by her gifted beauty made her a symbol of delight on the stage. Ginger's voice is not much heard on open air venues or hotels these days. She has this to say when I asked her why.

"They don't pay enough money for what we do."

"It's very unfair by the singers. Besides there is nothing big happening in the Western music field in Sri Lanka except that the shows are organised in big hotels," she said smiling. I am with the oriental scene because that's where the money is. You do your bit and you get paid, she explained.

In the Western scene, the outlook is great, but the singers won't get paid enough.

If the organisers can pay colossal sums for the venue why cannot they do the same for the artistes, she asked.

- Chamikara

'Bachelor Boy' here soon

Pop idol Cliff Richard is to make a tour here shortly to enthral his numerous fans with those evergreen hits that took the Western Music world by storm in the swinging 60s.

Music lovers of a different vintage would no doubt be taken down memory lane by Cliff, now Sir Cliff Richard, that would evoke nostalgia with such hits such as Young Ones, Summer Holiday and Bachelor Boy just to name a few.

The uniqueness of the Cliff Richard is that his hits are still in demand four and a half decades after he first burst on the scene with the song "Move It" in 1959.

Since then he held his vast fan club spellbound by his captivating voice and the haunting melodies of songs rendered with musical backup from the famous Shadows.

'Cliff and the Shadows' became a household name in the music world and they rode on a crest of popular wave that elevated the handsome singer into iconic status.

That was a time when the Western Music world was taken by storm by the likes as Elvis Prestley, Tom Jones and Engelbert Humperdink not to mention the redoubtable Beatles. Cliff Richard held his own among these legends.

Music lovers of Sri Lanka would be afforded a rare opportunity to savour the voice of one of the greatest artistes who dominated the Western music scene for nearly half a century.

Cliff who stood the music world on its head with the unique quality of his renditions will no doubt make this trip an event to remember for his numerous Lankan fans.