Thank you for the music* - Abba

Alright, this is really late. But better late than never?

This is my post as a tribute to the King of Pop! The reason why this post came up so late is because i needed to locate some really old photos - and then scan them so that i can post them up. Yeah, scroll down and look (and laugh!) at photos of me which were taken almost 20 years ago!!!

Was i a fan? Well, i guess so. Everyone around my age would be a fan! We grew up listening to his music and loving them all!

The earliest song i heard from him must have been "One day in your life". I loved that song. It could - and still can - move me to tears!

Then during my early secondary school life, he came up with Thriller!!! And along with it, his classics like Beat It, Billie Jean etc. There was also a point of time when everyone was singing We are the world - a song he co-wrote with Lionel Ritchie. Listening to that song again brought back so many memories.

i can go on and on and on about his songs - how he entertained me as i grew up. How he entertained all of us with his songs, his dance moves, his wonderful video clips!

The best - if i had to choose - would be Black Or White. If only for the memories attached to it. I was at Summit the other day and one of the shops was playing the video to it. I stood and watched it - and shivers ran down my spine while tears formed in my eyes! It was still soooo good, after all these years.

What made it so special? Well, during our first year as law students, we together with the 2nd year students performed a dance using that song and inspired by the music video. In the video, MJ dances with all kinds of people from all over the world. We decided to add a Malaysian touch to it. So we got Michael to dance with different kinds of ethnic dances!

It starts off with a Malay dance, followed by a Chinese fan dance. Then, there was an Indian dance. By the time that finishes, it would have reached the rap part of the song so we had a group doing a modern street dance with Michael. After that, it would be a Punjabi Bhangra dance!!!! The finale will be everyone reappearing in their costumes and dancing in unison til the song ends!

I was part of the bhangra team! here we are together with a lecturer from UEL


2 guys doing the modern dance flanking me and Chris who was doing the fan dance


That's me, 'Michael', Stephan and Caryn (Indian dance)

We practiced so hard - and we won the best item!!!! :-)

Everyday, after class, we would stay back and practice over and over and over again. Meaning that we would have listened to that song countless of times!!!! We knew which part was meant for who. And we had so much fun!

On top of that, i thought the song was pretty meaningful! Don't discriminate based on our colour - "I'm not gonna spend my life being a colour"!

What can i say now except to thank him for his songs and music. He had his issues and problems. And i feel for him sometimes. I watched a documentary last December when i was in the UK about him. And seeing the kind of life he had, the abuse he received, the influences from his family members, it is no surprise that he turned out quite abnormal. But perhaps it was because of all that he managed to emerge as a musical genius. I guess we'll never know for sure? I mean if he grew up as a normal kid, would he be just as successful?

But let me end off with the lyrics of a song which arguably the most famous one now - Man in the Mirror. The lyrics - you cannot deny - are so relevant to each of us today.

I'm Starting With The Man In The Mirror
I'm Asking Him To Change His Ways
And No Message Could Have Been Any Clearer
If You Wanna Make The World
A Better Place
Take A Look At Yourself, And Then Make A Change

*Their final UK single released in1983