KUALA LUMPUR: The perennial festive track Balik Kampung by the late Datuk Sudirman Arshad might just be the most sensitive song for Malaysians celebrating Aidilfitri this year.
This comes at a time when the country is currently under MCO until June 7 which prohibits interstate travel and Raya house visiting.
The sombre mood of this year's Aidilfitri festivities will surely be felt as most will not be able to experience the tradition of celebrating it back in their hometowns.
But what is interesting is that the popular pop number Balik Kampung was originally never intended to be a Raya tune.
Co-composed by Sudirman and S. Atan, the upbeat track was included in the legendary artiste's 11th studio album, Lagu Dari Sebuah Bilik, back in 1984.
S. Atan, 72, said that he created the chorus section while Sudirman wrote the lyrics that related to the excitement of being able to to return to one's hometown.
"At the time when we created the song, we never thought that it would become one of the tunes for Raya and that it would be an evergreen track that's still beloved today.
"EMI was the one that included the song in its list of Raya repertoire which was produced by the recording company.
"That was due to the balik kampung theme which was synonymous with Aidilfitri celebrations. After being played frequently on radio stations during upcoming Aidilfitri festivities, it naturally became a very recognisable Raya tune that has carried on to this day," he said in a news report yesterday.
Aside from Balik Kampung, S. Atan who has been active as a producer and composer since the early 1970s has created more than 50 Raya tracks.
Ten of them have since become evergreen hits, such as Dari Jauh Ku Pohon Maaf sung by Sudirman, Cahaya Aidilfitri (Black Dog Bone), Menjelang Hari Raya (Datuk DJ Dave), Indahnya Beraya Di Desa (Azlina Aziz), Assalamualaikum (Datuk Jamal Abdillah), Hari Mulia (Datuk Sheila Majid) and many more.
S. Atan said that he did not have any particular formula to rely on when creating those timeless classics over 30 years ago.
"I only made sure that the melodies had a Malay vibe to them. That is what's important and fitting for the Raya mood," he said.