Alleycats

Alleycats
Alleycats logo
Background information
Origin	Penang, Malaysia
Genres	Pop Soft Rock Pop-Rock Adult Contemporary Funk Disco
Years active	1969–present
Labels	Polygram Records
Members
David Arumugam (vocals) Glenville Charles Salay (vocals) Priyadashini Loganathan (vocals) David John (drums) Nazaruddin Abdullah (guitar) Prawing Aroonratana (keyboards) Loh Kum Swee (bass)

The Alleycats is a Malaysian band which was formed in 1969,^[1] and gained popularity in the late 1970s.^[2] They consist of musicians from Penang who were popular in their home state earlier on in their career.^[2]

Band members

The original members of the band were:

• David Arumugam on vocals
• Loganathan Arumugam on vocals
• Tan Chin Hock on drums
• Shunmugam Arumugam on lead guitar
• Chester Anthony Passerella on saxophone
• Khoo Fook Sin and Grenville Pereira (Gren) on keyboards
• Frank Ong on bass guitar.

The current members are:

• David Arumugam on vocals
• Glenville Charles Salay on on vocals
• Priyadashini Loganathan (also known as Dasha Loga) on vocals
• David John on drums,
• Nazaruddin Abdullah on lead guitar
• Loh Kum Swee (also known as Jimmy Loh) on bass guitar
• Prawing Aroonratana (also known as Mike Prawing) on keyboards.

Their music is said to be influenced by Air Supply, Phil Collins, Bee Gees, Billy Joel, David Gates & Bread, Santana and Paul McCartney.^{[citation needed]}

Most of the Alleycats albums were produced by Eric Yeo. Most of their hit songs were penned by music supremo M. Nasir with the lyrics composed by S.Amin Shahab. The M. Nasir/S.Amin combination were most noticeable on hit songs such as Hingga Akhir Nanti (Till The End), Andai Aku Pergi Dulu (If I Go Before You), Sekuntum Mawar Merah Sebuah Puisi (A Red Rose And A Poem), Setahun Sudah Berlalu (A Year Has Passed), Seribu Bintang (A Thousand Stars), Nota Terakhir (This Last Note).

History

There were earlier line-ups of this band but the original line-up mentioned was the one that given the opportunity to achieve a higher level of achievement with their music^{[citation needed]}. The Alleycats were always on top of the musical scene in Malaysia even before they were signed up as recording artistes.

This line-up secured a performance contract in the Mocambo Club situated in Central, a business sector on Hong Kong island in 1976. It was supposed to be a three-month contract but their success in wooing the crowd earned them three yearly contracts bundled with TV and concert appearances as means of promoting the band. They became a hit with the locals in Hong Kong. It was not until they left Hong Kong to start a new performance contract in Singapore that they were spotted by major recording companies.

The Alleycats started out in 1978^[1] by signing a contract with Polygram Records-Philips to produce an album.^[2] They went to Hong Kong to record their album in Dragon Studio. Later, Lion Studio in Singapore was responsible for mastering the Alleycats' albums. Their first released album was Terima Kasih (Thank You), with their first single Senandung Semalam (Yesterday's Serenade).

The existence of this band was vital to the Malaysian music industry. They had contributed to the development of the Malaysian music industry and, even today, are still regarded as one of the legendary Malaysian pop music bands of all time. Despite the changes in the current line-up, it is still active in performing and recording. The Alleycats have a strong fan base from all walks of life in Malaysia, Indonesia, and Singapore.^[3]

Passing of Loganathan

Loganathan Arumugam, a vocalist of the Alleycats, died on June 4, 2007 following an 8 month battle with lung cancer.^[4] His death was deeply mourned by Alleycats fans as reported in the press and media.^[2]

An Alleycats Music Video Competition, held as a tribute to the late Loganathan Arumugam of Alleycats was conducted between 25 June 2006 - 25 July 2007. This was jointly organised by NGT Solutions (M) Sdn Bhd and Universal Music Malaysia, with the support from Multimedia Development Corporation (MDeC). It was in line with the government’s initiative in encouraging contentpreneurs to develop local content and to be able to identify creativity in the minds of Malaysians.

A year after the loss of Loga to lung cancer, the Alleycats will be the lead artistes in a concert organised by the Lung Foundation of Malaysia (LFM) to raise money for its activities. Established in November 2005, LFM is a non-profit Foundation geared towards offering support for patients afflicted with lung diseases to enable them to lead a better quality lifestyle with minimal suffering. The Foundation’s funds are generated solely from generous donations from corporate organisations, charitable bodies and the general public. The contributions will be used to provide monetary relief for underprivileged patients to undergo the necessary treatment. LFM will also fund scientific research, education and training to enhance the knowledge, skills and care for patients in Malaysia.)

Discography

www

References