FOUR years ago, groovy veteran singer Datuk Jeffrydin came up with an album to mark Hari Raya Aidilfitri.
While this album ,i>Debaran Rindu was a collaboration with big names in Malaysian music — Datuk M. Nasir and Azmeer co-produced it and wrote its six songs together with Ad Samad, S. Amin Shahab and Tam of Spider — its attraction was that Jeffrydin performed the title track as a duet with his biggest fans from Sabah, the award-winning hip-hop and pop trio One Nation Emcees.
“One Nation Emcees is full of zest and creativity. It is passionate and soulful when it comes to making great music, like myself,” said Jeffrydin back then.
Jeffrydin supported One Nation Emcees in the TV3 talent search Gang Starz Season 2 in 2008, and was overjoyed when it won.
He added: “Back then it did an excellent cover of my hit song Mas Mona in a hip-hop style — the members are superb entertainers and my family enjoys watching them perform live.”
KEEN OBSERVER
Jeffrydin’s willingness to collaborate with new artistes and embrace the latest trends in music, is the reason behind his longevity and popularity in the industry.
“While I’ve been singing for 55 years now, I’m as much in love with music as I was when I first started. I may be a specialist in retro pop, or pop yeh yeh as we usually call it, but I’m always open to collaborations with musicians and singers from all ages,” he said.
Some music fans may think that retro pop has seen its days but Jeffrydin strongly disagrees.
“Look at the Beatles, its music continues to be appreciated till today, likewise Tan Sri P. Ramlee. Music lovers will always open their hearts to good music!”
A keen observer of local bands, old and new, he praises Hujan and Monoloque for embracing traditional Malay pop and Beatles-style music. “They’re very creative, blending retro sounds with contemporary ones in the same song. This helps keep music from my time relevant!”
The song which stamped Jeffrydin’s name on Malaysian music history is Mas Mona, a catchy number in which the male singer pines for the love of a mysterious and beautiful woman.
“It’s my favourite song, too, because it rocketed me to nationwide fame. In 1999, I came up with Mas Mona II, the sequel to the Mas Mona story in which I still pursue the mysterious beauty, and get to know her better!” he said.
Mas Mona II was part of his successful 1999 album, Jeffrydin ‘99 which combined the sounds of 1960s and 1990s pop.
“My dear friend, the late M. Shariff produced that album, and other composers who worked with me were the late Datuk Adnan Abu Hassan, Raja Kobat and Ricky Koes.”
Other hits from that album were Setulus Murni, Untuk Kasih Ku, Gadis Bertudung Sutera, Dusta, Unggas Di Rimba, Perhentian Cinta, Rohila, Sesal Cinta, Dikau Puspita Ku and Ku Mohon Kedamaian.
The album’s number ‘99, was coincidentally ‘66 turned upside down, 1966 being the year Jeffrydin began his career as a solo recording artiste, after beating fellow singers M. Osman and A. Ramlie in Juara Kugiran, a competition organised by the Singapore Youth Association.
“For the album cover, I even did a new pose with my trademark white suit and trousers alongside my favourite car, the Volkswagen. This was a timely update of a much earlier album cover, when I still had a lot more hair!”
OLD SOLDIERS NEVER DIE
Jeffrydin has 30 albums to his credit and his best-known hit songs include Kenanganku, Seruling Bambu, Sendiri, Seruling Anak Gembala, Pertemuan, Siti Haida and Kasihku Pergi.
American World War II hero General Douglas MacArthur’s famous saying that “old soldiers never die, they just fade away” rings loud and clear in Jeffrydin’s ears. He readily substitutes “soldiers” with “singers” and bucks the “fade away” trend by getting to know the current crop of artistes as much as possible.
“Artistes should always be friends, seniors befriend their juniors, just as juniors respect seniors. While I’ve got a lot to share with my juniors in music, I never stop learning new things from them,” he said, adding that besides pop yeh yeh, he was also mesmerised by Malaysian rock and hip-hop music which are “100 per cent homegrown”.
“One thing we artistes should always have is passion for our craft. If we have it, we will go far in our careers by coming up with better songs over the years,” he advised.
MAN IN WHITE
Jeffrydin, whose real name is Raden Jeffrydin Raden Imbrosukaman, was born in 1947 in Singapore, of Javanese Raden (royal) descent.
Married to Rashidah Abdullah and a father of three, he began singing in 1962 as the lead vocalist of the Rhythm Boys and later The Siglap Five.
Jeffrydin was awarded a Datukship by the late Sultan Azlan Shah of Perak in 2002.
Often dubbed Malaysia’s “man in white” for his trademark suit and trousers, he has vowed to stick to his favourite style of dressing as long as he sings.
This year, he sang in two celebrations of pop yeh yeh organised by Istana Budaya in March and August.