Indonesian music loses gifted Broery Pesolima

JAKARTA (JP): Broery Pesolima, one of Indonesia's pop legends, died from a stroke at Puri Cinere Hospital in South Jakarta at 7:15 Friday. He was 56.

Survived by his wife Wanda and two children, Broery had two strokes over the past months and had undergone medical treatment at the hospital.

Born in Ambon in 1944 (some publications have different dates) as Simon Domingus Pesolima, Broery was one of a handful of professional Indonesian singers with an international reputation.

The band The Pro's catapulted his name into stardom between 1962 and 1972. The group used to perform in big cities like Singapore, Tokyo and New York.

Major international recognition came in 1981 when he signed a contract with the U.S. recording company Warner Bros. for an album titled Broery 81.

Another best-selling album, Broery, Dalam Gelora Cinta (Broery, In Passion), was recorded in London and was produced by Dimas Wahab.

After he disappeared from the Indonesian music scene for many years following his marriage to Malaysian pop star Anita Sarawak, Broery made a surprise comeback in 1991 when he won four awards at the 1991 Jakarta Music Festival.

His winning song was in English titled Once there was a love, which was then recorded on an album intended for the international market. It was not a big success but was widely acclaimed as a good try to go international.

Many of his hits were popular, including Angin malam (Night breezes), Mimpi sedih (Sad dream) and Aku begini, engkau begitu (I am this way and you are that way).

Aku begini, engkau begitu, which was written by heartthrob songwriter Rinto Harahap, won him a BASF award in 1987 after more than 75,000 copies were sold.

In 1998, Broery released an album of his duet with Dewi Yull titled Rindu terlarang, karisma cinta (Forbidden dream, love charisma). The album was a relative success despite the economic crisis.

His name has rarely appeared in the media since he was admitted to hospital after suffering a stroke. (pan)