Expatriates entertain Indonesians at Ancol

Expatriates entertain Indonesians at Ancol

By Dini S. Djalal

JAKARTA (JP): Does anyone remember the last time they went to
Ancol recreation park in North Jakarta?

Remember the long, torturous drive through kilometers of
merciless traffic? Remember the multiple fees charged (Rp 9,000
or US$4 at last count for a party of two) when waltzing through
Ancol's copious gates?

I do, having made the trip last Saturday to attend the
"Concert of Nations" at Ancol Art Market. By the time my weary
frame slumbered to the open-air stage, my zeal for all things
musical had evaporated along with the fuel in my gas tank.

It couldn't get much worse. Having received no information
about the concert's intent or content, I soon discovered it was
amateur night for country-and-western singers. More specifically,
expatriate singers were fronting ensembles of mostly-Indonesian
musicians.

"We're performing in celebration of the Ancol Art Market's
21st anniversary," said concert organizer Anto Soemartono of
Ikapari Country Music Association.

Celebration was the last thing on my mind. My stereo system
welcomes a spectrum of musical genres, from salsa and swing to
rap and opera, but a Kenny Rogers retrospective has never been a
priority purchase. Neither is a tribute to Dolly Parton. You can
take country to the girl, but you can't take the girl into the
country.

So imagine my surprise (and self-reproach) to find my tired
feet tapping halfway through the concert. Was I joining the ranks
of Willie Nelson devotees? Had Ancol's surrealist atmosphere (it
is called Dreamland) overpowered my senses and legitimized any
behavioral idiosyncrasies? What in Little Richard's name was
going on?

Maybe it was just good fun. Winking under their best Stetsons,
the performers howled and do-si-doed to their hearts content,
making me feel guilty for being a snooty sloth. Their enthusiasm
was admirable, especially considering the crowd. Comatose and
clueless best describes the mostly-Indonesian audience, who
struggled to make linguistic sense of Achey Breaky Heart, the
Billie Ray Cyrus hit performed by English teacher and aspiring
crooner Ben Dawson.

Perhaps my companion could have helped them out, as he sang
along to both Jimmy Buffet's Margarita Fields (sung by Travelodge
General Manager David Fletcher) and Charlie Daniel's The Devil
Went Down to Georgia.

"You've never heard of Jimmy Buffet?" my companion complained.

"Huh? No," I answered with questionable regret. I am familiar,
however, with Kenny Roger's The Gambler (sung by Ben Dawson) and
Patsy Cline's Crazy (sung by Kai Michelle), but any survivor of
the early 1980s could not have escaped these two country
classics.

No eyes could escape the outrageous Kai Michelle that evening.
Wearing a pink sequined mini, matching cowboy hat and silver
boots, Michelle walked away with the evening's award for best
getup.

Honolulu-born Kai Michelle also made heads turn with her
rendition of Norma Sanger's Gembala Sapi. These Indonesian-
language songs were the highlights of the evening, whether it was
a West Sumatran folk song sung by French physician Pierre Jolly
or Ebiet G. Ade's ballad Untuk Sebuah Nama (for a name) sung by
Ben Dawson. Their Indonesian was at times so flawless that MC
Anto Soemartono asked Ben Dawson, "Where did you learn your
English?" to which Dawson answered, "On the street."

Clear enunciation, however, didn't deter the audience from
giggling.

"It's so weird to hear expats sing in Indonesian," said 20-
year-old Santi. "They just sound funny," she added between
laughs.

"We organized this concert in the name of friendship,"
explained concert organizer Retno Windrati. "We wanted to both
attract the expat community to Ancol and make local audiences
more familiar with foreign musicians," she said. Ikapari's team
of musicians has also performed on Indosiar.

The local musicians, however, held their own. Savvy violinist
Hendri easily stole the show. Drummer Iskandar also took over the
stage with his foot-stomping version of Jimi Hendrix's Stone Free
during the show's rock section, performed with Japanese guitar-
wizard Toshia Ansai. In his jeans and sneakers, Ansai looks like
your average Judo instructor (his day-job), which makes his
roaring growl all the more mind-bending. I could barely decipher
the words to Voodoo Child, but, with my ears rocked to noise
Zion, I couldn't care less.

Thunderous is the only word to describe the vocals of Sue
Bonnington, singer of Blues Breaker. The band's name is
misleading, however, because she sings country, salsa, rock,
blues and whatever she entwines round her booming Joplin-esque
voice. Anyone can catch Blues Breaker on March 18 at Elvis Bar's
jam session, organized to raise funds for the families of
deceased musicians.

"Most Indonesian musicians make hardly any money with no
pension plans, so when they pass away their families face
bankruptcy," explained Bonnington. Bonnington is currently
writing songs in Indonesian.

When asked why most of the musicians were Indonesian while the
singers were non-Indonesia, Bonnington answered, "If the
musicians were expatriates, it means they were working for a
job."

Bonnington added that it doesn't make much difference who
sings what songs in whatever language.

"The point is not to make money, but to have fun working
together," said Bonnington.

So when the band belted out The Rolling Stones' You can't
always get what you Want, the lyrics rang relevant.

A country music concert isn't my preferred way to spend a
weekend, but if you try sometime, you just might find, you get a
good time.