題目 Jamal Abdillah’s Senandung Semalam title

名前

日付
Chan Cheong Jan Name and date
20 June 2016

導入 Introduction
Though lesser known today, Jamal Abdillah (b. 1959) was a
基本情報を提供 Provide basic
nationwide icon in Malaysian broadcast, especially in the 1970s information: who,
and 80s. Senandung Semalam, or the ‘Croon of Yesterday’, as whay, where, and
shown in the Youtube link1, was one of the symbolic songs that when

opened up the Malay pop-rock era, and is a tune originally created

記述
by a famous band called the Alleycats. Jamal’s warm but somewhat
• 声について
dry voice is charming at the low register. His crying out at high Description of
• 歌い方につい
て registers across the long phrases is pretty addictive. This style of • his voice quality,
• 歌詞について singing has been a feature in the Malay pop ballad until today. The • his singing

lyrics expresses an indulgence in the heartbrokenness of a lover, style,

• the lyrics
and a lament that focuses only the past without a glimpse of
brightness. This is clear as the lyric goes “Kenangan tinggalah
kenangan, Dikau pergi ditakdirkan”, which means “let the fond
memories stay as they are, your leaving was predestined”.

討論 Discussion
Malaysia, as a post-colonial nation, experienced rapid development
relating to larger
より広い視点に in the 1970s and 80s. These were times when cars and electrical
perspective
appliances began to be common and the living of ordinary people
私が受けた印象
underwent modernization. Jamal’s songs and the Malay pop ballad
感じたこと
that developed in the same era, however, interestingly displays a
great sense of pessimism. The slow tempo, and the crying way of my impression,
社会問題に持っ
singing differs from American pop counterparts that sound a little how I feel
て行く
brighter to my ear even if they are sentimental songs. Jamal and his
songs gave testimony of a more shadowy side of a time in
Malaysia, which could not be coincident with his struggle with
connect to social
drug addiction2. In this light, the controversies of the pop arena issues
might be the explanation behind widespread social perception in
Malaysia that associate music itself with immoral behaviours.

1. Listen to the songs at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s8U-3UvmBCk

2. Refer to a newspaper article published in 2009.
http://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2009/11/30/jamal-abdillah-aims-
to-lead-a-better-life-after-drugs/