It was very difficult because nobody made any disco equipment. We had to build everything ourselves.
You read my mind. Yeah, okay. So I knew that was coming because really, we had a hard time.
I mean, you know, luckily we had the help of the Reef Efficient Engineers who said,
okay, we'll build you a mixer so that you can... Why these guys? These guys are magicians, man.
Yeah. They did that.
What? So Larry, you know something? I was just telling you just now on the ride here, right?
And you know, I mean, it's so exciting because you're one of my heroes.
And I'm actually having you here next to me in the studio. It's so exciting. Can you imagine
how excited I've been? I've been telling people, guess what? Larry Lai is coming on the show, man.
And I've been so excited just to have you here. Really, man? Yeah.
You are so kind. And I've been so excited.
And to hear your voice right here in my cans, wow.
An old man's voice. No, no, no, no.
Thank goodness that the voice hasn't quite aged as the rest of me.
No. I can tell you, man, it sounds so good right in my ears.
Mm-hmm. Yeah. It's the familiar Larry Lai's tone.
The familiar tone. And you're one of my heroes, you know? The people I've been so blessed because
ever since I started the show, this is a tribute show. And this is my tribute to you.
Oh, great. Thanks.
There have been others before you that I've paid tribute to, upon which some of those that I have
grown up listening to, watching, admiring, striving to be just like these guys.
Oh, wow. And I remember when I was a kid
in the late 70s and into the early 80s, sitting at home with my folks watching TV,
then I see this man, larger than life, on my TV set with those big glasses.
Yeah, right. And that suave, silky voice, you know? I mean, and I go, what the hell? Who is that?
And I said to myself, you know, you're one of those responsible for me,
without you knowing, a lot of people didn't. And you're one of those. Then I went and I said to myself,
I want to be that guy. I want to do shows like that. I want to dress up like that and do stuff
like that, you know? And you were part of this big influence on guys like me. And I was like,
what's the big influence on guys like me? You may not know this. And I'm pretty sure there are others
out there as well, guys of my generation, perhaps, who've gotten behind the microphone. And Larry Lai
was also partly responsible for that. Really? Yeah. Good to know. And that's the reason why
I invited you here. And I want to pay tribute to you to say thank you. Wow. And also on behalf
of all, you are the voice of that generation. So kind of you to say.
How did you get into this? Actually, quite accidentally. Really? Because in school,
well, just before leaving school, people ask me, what do you want to do when you leave school? And
I really wanted to be a journalist. Okay. You know, but at the time when I left school, it was 1958.
Okay. There were two English newspapers in Singapore at that time, the Tiger Standard.
Do you remember that? No, not at all. And the straight signs. The straight signs, we all know.
But the Tiger Standard is new to me, man. Tiger Standard closed in 1958. Okay. The year that I
left school. So I knew there wouldn't be any room for a cub reporter like me starting out. Which school
were you from? Utrim. Utrim Secondary? Yeah, Utrim Secondary. Okay. It was a first government
government school? Commercial school. Oh, okay. Yeah. Right. And I, my father forced me there
because he wanted me to start work, you know, right after school. So that was it. The school was
already popular, especially with banks because of bookkeeping classes that we had. Right. And
the banks actually sought us out. They came, you know, went to the school, approached the school
and said, hey, send me your graduates. Wow. Okay. Right. But you didn't go to the bank instead?
No, I didn't. You wanted to be a journalist. Okay. And what happened after that? Tiger
Standard closed down. Yeah. So I decided, no, I wouldn't go that route. How about the straight
signs? Why didn't you go to the straight signs then? No, at that time, as I said, you know,
with the Tiger Standard closing, all the good reporters are absorbed by the times. Right. By
ST. Okay. So I said, ah, don't waste my time. You know, so I took the first job that was offered to
me. It was a friend of my father's and it was a trading company and they actually started a
whole department for me. But it was a one man show. Okay. At that time, if you remember, it was the
time of the exodus of the British families, all going home to England and lots of packing and
baggaging business to be done, packing all the household effects. Right. So for logistics move back home,
back to home. So that was a good move on my father's friends. He was quite smart. You know, he
lept in, he was the first to go in there and we did a lot of packing and baggaging. Right. And I was
the only guy in the office. I took the calls. I made the appointments. I had a team of packers,
you know, that I sent out and that was it. And after a while, I think I worked at it for nearly a year.
And I got a little tired of it. Sorry to just stop you here for a bit, Larry. How old were you at
that time when you were working in a trading company? 20. 20. Yep. Okay. I left school at 19
and I started work at 20. Wow. Okay. So for a year you were there? Yep. For a year I was there.
Okay. And then somebody told me, hey, Rediffusion's looking for announcers. Wow. Would you like to
apply? I need to stop you there. For viewers and listeners, especially if you're not from Singapore
and especially if you're really young and you would not know this, Rediffusion was this little box
that a lot of households actually had back in the day. Yep. And it's cable radio. So it has only two
switches on the box. One that can switch to a Chinese channel and one that switches to the
English channel. That's gold and silver. And then after that you've got gold and silver. Correct.
Gold was English, wasn't it? No, gold was Chinese. Silver was English. Right. And then the other knob
is the volume knob. Wow. Because it doesn't consume any electricity, you can leave it on all day.
Yep. And people think that there's people at home. And it was a stereo, wasn't it? No, it wasn't. It
was a mono. Yeah, and it was not hi-fi. It was more like low-fo. Low-fo. And so you went to
Rediffusion. How did that happen? How do you get into Rediffusion? Well, as I said, a friend told
me that they're looking for announcers and would like to try. So I said, why not? Okay, I'll give
it a shot. So I went in there and there was a whole series of auditions from vocal, you know,
verbal to written. Right. And there were 300 of us applying for the two posts. Okay. And the other
guy who got in with me was Sui Leung. Tan Sui Leung. Wow. Yep. One of my best friends. And one of my
longest friends until he passed a few years ago. I know. At the old Saints Home. I know that one.
Let me just tell you a little story about that. Short, a little short story. I was asked, I was
approached to host the opening of the old Saints Home in Yishun years ago. And it was a charity show.
So I have, I make it a point. Every year I do at least one charity show for free. Good for you.
I know. I do that too. I've learned it from guys like you. Because a lot of guys from your
your generation and after all do the same. And I heard from the organizers, they were very clever.
They told me, do you know who's in our home? I said, who? Sui Leung. And they went, no. I said,
yes. Then, and I said, okay, I'll tell you what, I'll do it. I'll do the show. Now that I know that,
you know, Sui Leung is there under your care. Hold on. I visited him so often. Where was it?
In Yishun, wasn't it? The old Saints Home. The old Saints Home. Yeah. And I know also quite a number
of people actually visit him frequently. Guys like, and shout out to you too, Peter Baldwin. Yeah,
yeah. He goes there to visit as well, Sui Leung. And when I heard that, I said, no, I gotta do my
bit. At least I don't know him. I don't know, I'm too young. I don't know Sui Leung. Of course,
I know of him. Yeah. I've seen him. I've heard him. It's like you, you know. And I put my best foot
forward and okay. I did the show. And that's my story. Yeah. I promise to have kept it short. I
hope I kept it short. Okay. And interesting. Yeah. I was with Sui Leung until he passed. And
that hit me quite badly. I'm sorry. Anyway, well, lost so many good friends over the years.
Sui Leung's one of them. Yep. Yep. And you're friends with Mike Ellery as well, right?
Oh yeah. We started off with him being my boss. Mike Ellery was your boss? Yes, he was. What a
voice man. And then he became my partner because I started the mobile disco business and I invited
him in and we were partners on Moby Dick. Moby Dick was yours? Yes. Oh, you didn't know?
No. I didn't know. I chose the name Moby Dick because one, my favorite book by Melville. Yeah.
And two, it's a natural short form for mobile disco. Right. I know Moby Dick. I know. I mean,
I heard so much about Moby Dick. Wow. Wow. That's a revelation to me. I didn't know it was yours.
Well, at first, when we first started, nobody would talk to us. Nobody understood disco. Right.
Really, I don't know. Nobody would really. Yeah. You guys were like the pioneers. Yeah, we were.
We started the very first mobile disco. May I just ask? Sure. If Moby Dick was in the forefront
or the pioneer, one of the pioneers, right? How about Paul Cheung? No, Paul Cheung worked for us
at first. Oh. So did Brian Richmond and Bernard Silosa. They all started with Moby Dick and then
they saw that it was quite profitable so they branched out on their own. So Larry, Uncle Brian,
I have to call you Grandpa Larry now because I call Brian Richmond Uncle Brian. Yeah. So can I call
you Grandpa Larry? Yeah, why not? Okay. I am a grandfather anyway. Of course you are. Yes. But you came
before Brian, Uncle Brian? Oh yeah. I'm seven years older than him. But you started on air
before Uncle Brian? Yes. I started at 20 and he came in. You are the grand daddy of all of us.
Not really. Hold on. Anybody else older than, no, I thought they were the most.
There were others before you? Oh yeah. Well, my hero was Mike Ellery. Okay. So Mike,
Mike, is he still with us? No, unfortunately. When did he pass? Quite a few years ago. I
didn't know that. Not in Singapore, right? No, he passed in London. In London. After he decided to
retire, I sort of bought him off his share of the business and he went back to England.
And he got sick. He had some knee problems first. Okay. It was in a wheelchair.
And after that, he just got sicker and sicker, you know. Who was really close to him at that time,
at that phase in his life was Vernon Cornelius. Okay. Vernon used to call him and talk to him
very often. Vernon Cornelius is the guy that never answers my calls or answers my texts. Really?
Yes. Okay. I'm saying it. I thought it was Brian who doesn't answer.
Well, Brian, Uncle Brian was actually slaughtered to come on this season with me. But for some
reason, I think obviously he has his good reason for it. He can't make it. Yeah. I heard he's not
well. Okay. I've been trying to contact him but he never answers his phone. Oh dear. And he never
replies to WhatsApp. I hope he's, I hope he, I hope and that's not true. I hope he's okay. I hope
he's, I hope so too. I heard he's got some vision problem. Right. That's secondhand news though.
Okay. Secondhand news please. Not fact checking. But really Uncle Brian, I hope you're fine. I
would have loved having you here. And I'm so happy to have you again, you know, Larry. I mean,
grandpa Larry. Yeah. I really gotta call you that. I gotta call you that. Okay, let's go back to that.
Chronology again. So you went there, you best friends with the late Tan Sway Liang. Great
voice too. I mean, my goodness. Football was great having him around too. Yeah, right. And you guys
had it working. Your boss was also the late and what a voice, Mike Allery in Rediffusion. In
Rediffusion. Okay, how about Eric Lim? Eric Lim came a bit later. Ah, okay. There's another man of a
fantastic voice. Yeah. Yes. Okay. I think he's in Australia now. He's an ostrich farmer, isn't he?
He comes back every now and then. But he never says hello so I don't know what's up with him.
What a hell of a voice, you know, he's got. Okay, so grandpa Larry is there in Rediffusion. Mike
Allery, the boss. But which means that it was never in your, never on the cards for you to really
be that a voice on air. No, it wasn't my first ambition in life, no. Then when you landed in
Rediffusion and you started doing it, how did you feel about it? Well, we had three months of so-called
training. It wasn't really formal training. It was just double banking. That's a term we use for
sitting down and watching the other senior announcers through their work. Right. We just sit through
with them, keeping them company through the night shift. That sounds like me too. About a month ago,
I was in a media corp in Go 905 training to be part-time on air for them. I don't
know whether it's going to come true or not, but it was fun. I was great. I sat down with
Philip Chu just before he announced his retirement. And you know, I think I was the last guy he trained.
So I was in the studio and also the same like you, you know, watching how work is being done
and how they work this stuff. But back then when you were watching, what were these guys using?
Turntables? Yep, turntables. There's this great picture of you. Larry on Rediffusion, can we have
that picture up please? Not that one. This one. Yeah. There we go. That's studio two. That's our
Conti studio. This is Credit 2 goes to Straits Times for this picture. So I got to say that.
Can we have that up again, please? Just keep it up there for a bit. I just love looking at that picture.
Okay, not that one, Kai. That one. Yeah. Okay. That, but just hold it there for a bit. So you
were working on turntables. Yep. And the telephone's there for call-ins? Yes. And call-outs, you know.
Okay. How many turntables? I see that. I count three. Three. Gosh. Two and a spare one.
So you're playing music, you're pulling out records, and you're putting it on, and you're playing.
You gotta be kidding me, man. No. And the thing is, sometimes we don't even get to hear the song
that is actually playing because we're monitoring the second one. Right. Yeah. Well, you know,
monitoring, choosing the tracks. So we're listening to the, to the alternate turntable. Yeah, the next
song is going to be coming up. That's right. But you don't mix it in, right? Like a club DJ does.
Oh, no, no. And not at that time. At that time, we didn't know how. Right. It was just end to end.
So just chopping it in? Yeah. Okay. And only, only records or are there other stuff that you guys use?
Well, we had tapes. Uh-huh. Not cassette tapes. No, just cartridges. Not cartridges. We, we didn't
use cartridges. Uh-huh. Because it's hard to queue up. Okay. Yeah. So we, we use open reels. Open
reels? Yep. I mean, isn't that a lot of work? I mean, you gotta put,
you gotta put, you gotta put a record. You gotta put record for songs. No. Uh, when, when we use
the tape, it was just probably one time because the tape will probably run for at least a quarter of
an hour. Ah, and all the advertising's on that? Uh, no. No commercials and stuff? No, no. Commercials
are played on a homemade disc. Uh, Radio Fusion had a record maker. Uh, and they had a record
uh, Radio Fusion had a record maker, you know? Really? Yeah. It was huge. It was like 12 inch,
no bigger than 12 inch. It was larger than 12 inch. What is that thing? 18 inch. 18 inches? Yeah. What,
what is that thing? What's it called? Just a record player. But it's 18? Recorder, recorder,
and player. The disc was that big and very fragile actually. So that's where the commercials come
from. Yeah. So you've gotta play, you gotta play song. Song. Song. Reel. That 18 inch thing for
commercials. Yep. Is it anything else that you gotta do? No, there's time in between this.
But it's, that's quite comfortable. That's so much work. Yeah, but you're, you're pretty agile.
Yeah. Had to be. Back in the day when, when, when, when DJs on the airways are like
octopuses, man. Yeah, right. Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow. Respect. Respect. Big respect. I mean,
these days with new technology and all, you don't need anything for a couple of fingers.
So grandpa Larry ends up in Reel-i-Fusion, becomes an octopus, so all these things. Gets
really good at it. Three months into training. How did you feel? Did you feel good? You feel happy?
You doing this? Did you like the sound of your tone? Did you ever think that your voice was so
silky? No, we never even thought of that. Really? When you say we, you're representing the rest of
the guys? True. I mean, I don't think we ever consciously think of a, you know, how good our
voices sound or what, you know. Goodness, really? Really? Goodness. Because like I mentioned earlier,
the sound of the show, right? I mean, I mean, all guys like me is so, and I know some people I know
will sit down and just be in awe of the voices of the names, the voices and the names of the people
we've just talked about. And we go, oh, you know, it's like magic. And you guys never thought of
that? No, not really. Even the late Bernard Silosa. Come on. No. That voice. Well, we never talked
about it, not openly anyway. Maybe they thought to themselves, I wouldn't know. But as I said,
we never discussed it. You know, my, you know, when, when, when my grandmother was alive,
my late grandmother, and we were watching, watching the shows you've, you hosted on TV,
and she would go, oh, Larry Lai, his voice. Oh, wow. Oh, a lot of ladies at home had a crush on
you, man. I can tell you. Yeah. I met some of them. They're old ladies now.
Doesn't matter if I'm back, way back when they were not. Way back when they were kind of young.
Yeah, true, true. But really, I mean, it was so captivating that your generation of DJs and
presenters were so captivating. I will never forget. And everything's about those standards,
you know? You guys brought the standards into, and I say this so often on this show,
to so many people, names are dropped all the time. Even, even, I gotta say this, I gotta say this,
Peter Baldwin, great voice. Yep. Wonderful voice. I'm saying it, Peter. Give me a call.
Yeah, so yeah. And it's marvelous, really. Yeah, okay. So, Rediffusion,
didn't think about it that way. It was a job then. Yes, it was. And how long were you at Rediffusion?
I was there for a long time, more than 18 years. Wow. And I had to think about
leaving because if I didn't leave before I was 40, I might lose the courage.
So you left at about what, 35, 36? 39. 39. About that, yeah. I left in 1978. I was eight years old.
Ah. And then, then started part-timing on radio and TV. Part-timing. Hang on. So you ended up in
you ended up in SBC or RTS? RTS, SBC, whatever the name was then. They've gone through so many
changes. Oh yeah, yeah. I know, man. I mean, RTS, radio, television, Singapore, then to Singapore
Broadcasting Corporation, then to Television Corporation Singapore, TCS, and then now Media
Corp. Yep. And okay, back then, if I recall, probably it was RTS. Possibly. Yeah. I can't
remember. Okay. So when you were, you were part-timing? Yeah, I was a freelancer. Oh, you were?
Yeah. Could have fooled us because we, I would have thought you were full-time. I know. Even the
security guard thought we were full-time because we were there so often. This is Caldecott Hill,
right? Caldecott Hill. Right. Okay. And you, and you left Radio Fusion full-time because you wanted
to go further. You wanted to take it somewhere instead of being stuck in one spot, right? That's
true. And also to develop the business I started while at Radio Fusion. Ah, now we're getting
somewhere. Okay. When I started the mobile disco in 1969, would you believe, when nobody even heard
of the word disco? 1969? 1969. As I said, at that time, nobody would talk to us. Nobody understood
what a discotheque was. Well, I don't blame them. I don't think anyone would, yeah. What the heck was
disco? Yeah, right. Disco came to its head, especially in my mind, Saturday Night Fever. I know.
That's the starting point. Yeah. When it really took off. Yeah. Abba, Boni M, you know, at that time.
Mm. But 1969, it was still like the Beatles just, you know, went to Hare Krishna or something.
Yellow Submarine, you know, and it wasn't disco yet. No. It was hippie. No, it was already disco.
I mean, we made sure people knew the word. But as I said, you know, nobody would talk to us because
they didn't know that dancing to records was what's going to be a thing. So this idea of mobile,
the mobile disco, how did you get that idea? I didn't get it. I copied it from the Americans.
So the Americans had that concept. Well, they had the record hops, the school dances. Yeah. You know.
Like the German hops in the universities. Yeah. Right. So that's how it started. So can I ask you,
Grandpa Larry, when you started the mobile disco thing, it had got to be, how should I put this
across? It was very difficult because nobody made any disco equipment. We had to build everything
ourselves. You read my mind. Yeah. Okay. So I knew that was coming because really we had a hard time.
I mean, you know, luckily we had the help of the Reef Fusion engineers who said, okay, we'll build
you a mixer so that you can. What are these guys? These guys are magicians, man. They did that?
You can just spin one record on turntable A and then cross over to turntable B with a mixer.
And they built that. And they built that from scratch.
And lights, don't talk about lights. The only disco lights available at that time
were the ultraviolet and strobe lights. I mean the ultraviolet, the neon lights, the signs.
No. What they call the black light then. Okay. It's ultraviolet and you know, you send under it.
And you start looking pink and stuff. Yeah. Right. And if you have any false teeth, that will show.
And white hair. If you dye your hair, it will show too. Yeah.
Can you attest a hundred percent, Grandpa Larry, that Mubi Jake in Singapore's history
is indeed the first mobile disco in the land. Yes, definitely. Oh, whoa. But as I said, it was
not an original idea. I got the idea from the American. It doesn't matter. You were the original
here. Let me tell you. I mean, my late dad, yeah. I'm so happy to hear this because these things
excite me. My late dad was quite a figure in the police force back in the day. People know him as
Inspector Ensign. Okay. When he left the force, he was from the straight settlement police,
colonial police. When he left the force, a couple of years after he left the force, he started
Singapore's first security and private investigation business. In the end, he started, he founded
it as a chairman of the association. And today, in the last couple of years, they began this.
The highest award to a security and private investigation company is called the Alexander
Hansen Award. So my dad started the first in that business, that sector, security and private
investigation. And now I'm sitting next to a man who started something that is in my blood,
because I've been doing that for coming 40 years. I mean, 40 years, not coming 40 years. Really? Yes.
In the events business, or as an entertainer, as an emcee, as a singer. Heck, I do a lot of things.
And you were the granddaddy of it all. Yes. In fact, when I asked Mike to be my partner on
Moby Dick, that was only because he was my boss at Rediffusion. And we were using Rediffusion records.
Well, you were being so politically right there, man. He was the right politics to play. Yep.
I'm sure Mike knew that. I'm sure he did too. But in the end, you know, he agreed and we used to take
the mobile disco out every weekend. And we would take turns. He'll take it up one weekend, I will
do the next. So you were the guys that were not just helming the business, but you were also
operating the shows. Yes. I tell you, the disco equipment would fit into the back of my car.
I had to get a Ford Falcon, you know, with a large boot and a big back seat.
And that's it. We would carry all the records, all the lights, everything into the car. And we'd go
there to the venue at about maybe three or four in the afternoon and set it all up. That was hard
work. Oh yeah, I know. I know all about that. And then actually do the show from like 7 p.m. until
midnight or whatever. Then tear down everything on the stove and put it back in the car.
Yeah, you're going to end up in Adam Road for too long. Yeah right. Oh I know all about that.
But it's amazing. Amazing that you guys were really the grand daddies of it all, man. Thank you.
Thank you, Larry. You are welcome. Thank you very much. Oh, I forgot. At the back seat, everything
goes in there. All the records, all the lightings, everything. And in the front seat, we had a bench
seat in front. Two go-go girls. I mean, how much better can life get? Well, we had to, you know,
just for 50 bucks. And they end up dancing near the console. They dance on table tops. Oh man.
And we thought we were funky now, man. You guys were funkier. Wow. Oh wow. And they had, they wore
bikinis and we had day glow paint all over them. Hey, Singapore, you know what you guys are missing?
Seriously? You don't know what you've missed, man. And this was way back in 69, 70. Oh man. Now at 85,
coming 85. Don't mind me, I'm mentioning your age. Sure. I don't keep it a secret. Yes sir. Thank you
for that. Being 30 years my senior and looking at things today, and you must have read the articles
in the last maybe week or so, or last two weeks. You know, Stephen Francis and Rob Collins, they
were on the show last week. We talked about this. I think I'll be speaking about this too to the
guests coming on this series for the tribute show to SG Music Icons, people like Jeremy
Montero and all that. I will ask the same question I'm going to be asking you now and then ask of the
rest before. Nightlife in Singapore, is it dying or dead? It's different. It has evolved. Back in
the day when disco was going, it was in the mid 70s. Right. Because when we started the mobile
disco, we were mobile, really. Every week we just took our equipment out, set them up and played at
different venues. And the only people who would talk to us were the expatriate clubs, the American
club, the British club, you know, people like that. Right. None of the locals would have anything to
do with us because they haven't even heard of the word disco. You know, so that really that was a
hard time. It was a hard time starting up. Wow. But we enjoyed it. Wow. So your challenge back then
for the mobile disco business is that the locals didn't understand it. Yes. And only the Masalas
and the Angmohs understood that. But the challenge we have today is that we know it exists, but people
either want to lowball us. I don't know if you understand the term lowball. Yes, of course. And at the same time,
or for clubs and bars and clubs and bars and even hotels, just like I said to Stephen and Rob,
to me it's unforgivable. It's budget. Right. Because of rents. Yeah. So it's tough today.
It was as tough for you guys when Singaporeans didn't understand disco or the concept of mobile
disco. But in a way, it was lucky for us because at that time, good bands were hard to find. Right.
They were either very expensive or they were no damn good. You know, so nightclubs had to import
talent from Indonesia, Philippines, groups. Oh, wait, wait, wait. Sorry, I've got to stop you there,
Grandpa Larry, because back in the 60s and 70s, you were talking about, weren't there great bands?
I mean, like there were great bands, but they were very expensive. For example, I was actually
staying and working at the Hyatt for two years. That was when my house was being torn down and
being rebuilt. So I had no place to work or live. So actually they tore the house down, all of it,
except for one room. And in that one room were my wife, my two kids, my mother-in-law and the
Ama. Oh, wow. Five of them in one room. And this lasted for, wow, close to a year. Okay. And
I had to have somewhere to work. So I called Hyatt and I said, Hey, I need a place to work.
And they said, okay, come back to Pete's place. That's where we were playing records before.
Okay. That's how I met Peter Botwin. And when I, after I met him and I heard him, I said, Hey,
don't waste your time here. Go on radio, go on TV. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So I then introduced him to
some people in the radio and TV and that's how it got started. So it was from Pete's place.
Peter Botwin was spinning there? Yes. Okay. Yep. Okay. Well, that's news. Okay. Let's get back to
you then. Yeah, sure. So you're saying it's different today, right? Okay. We understand the
reasons why and how difficult it was for you way back when, when you first started Moby Dick. When
you were in Radio Fusion, when you were there, you started the business while you were there.
Yeah. Radio Fusion did great for you because they helped you set it up. Yep. So to speak.
Yes. In fact, I offered them, you know, the business. I said, I'm thinking of starting a
business of doing a disco business, bringing out records to places and playing them for people to
dance to. And I said, would you like to come in? And they said, no, good luck. So I went my way.
Right. So anyways, after which you left Radio Fusion, after 18 years, you were continuing with
the Moby Dick mobile disco business and you were part-timing the freelancers. Except we weren't
mobile then. We were then housed in hotels. People started hiring us in a permanent basis.
So you became like the entertainment for outlets. Just like what TMF did later on in years,
the music force. Yes. So you guys started that concept. Yes. We started the boiler room
at the Mandarin. Mandarin. When the Mandarin hotel opened, they had two full pages of advertisement.
Right. Every outlet was mentioned except for the boiler room. We were not given any publicity at
all. Right. So we had to just play to whomever walked in accidentally and kept them there,
you know. So lots of kids came in and took over, especially from Jackie's Bowl next door.
Jackie's Bowl was next door to the Mandarin? Yes. I thought Jackie's Bowl was in Kato. Oh,
there are two Jackie's Bowls. Right. The one that I'm familiar with, the one next to my old school,
which is in Patrick's. No, that's another one right there next to the Mandarin. Right. And what else?
Oh yeah. Okay. So you started going into managing the entertainment for different outlets then,
right? And the Mandarin is so strange because I had quite a relationship with the Mandarin
and the Mandarin group for a number of years. Yes. When I was really in my head and we had a
microphone on stage. I used to do a lot of shows for the Mandarin. Okay. So you did that and then
you were freelancing on TV and were you on radio as well? Yes. Radio One? Yeah, Radio One, I think.
Can't remember now. How different was that working on Radio One versus Radio Fusion?
Not much difference, you know. We just played the records. Same thing, same concept. Yeah, same
thing. Same concept. Okay. Okay. When I left Radio Fusion, I said, hey, what am I going to do for work?
So I approached four companies to sponsor a one-hour program a week. So I had four programs a week
for which they paid me a thousand dollars a month. So I had four. So that was good enough. At that
time, this was 1978. Right. You know. So you were doing radio and then how did this happen
when the rest of the Singaporean household back then got their eyeballs glued to the TV sets
for this particular show? Can we please play that one? The video.
The video. Go ahead. POSB.
Good evening and a heartiest welcome, ladies and gentlemen. It is truly my pleasure to share with
you an evening of songs and dance together with guest artists Adeline Adnan, Bill Haley's Comets,
the St. Cecilia's Choir, and of course the fabulous Singapore Swing. Anyway, we're going to have an
exciting hour of fun and entertainment and not forgetting the loads of prizes to be won. But
first let's meet my co-host who'll be handling the draw. Ladies and gentlemen, Larry Lye.
Thank you, Anita. Good evening, everybody. How are you, Larry? I'm quite fine. Thank you very much.
And how is yourself? I'm fine, thank you. How do you feel to be part of this show? How does it feel?
Now let me think. It feels like a feeling you like. So have you got any money in the bank?
Yes, a little bit. A little bit. What about you? Well, maybe less than that.
Anyway, we hope our numbers will come up tonight, right? Well, I'm sure the audience must be feeling
the same way. Oh wow. Wow. Wow. Wow. Wow. I mean, look at you, man. I mean, how could a young guy, young boy like me,
sit down there in front of the screen and go and not be, who is that guy, man? So I have a question
I've always been, I've been dying to know the answer to. The glasses. Oh, I wore glasses
since I was 12. Okay. Because I used to read a lot and when I read books, I just read right into the
twilight and forgetting about the lighting and all. So my vision kind of decayed. So it wasn't, it wasn't
just, okay, fine. I know that is probably naturally for vision purposes, but it became kind of a brand
for you. Well, was it? I wasn't aware of that. I mean, people around me used to talk about, oh no,
the guy in the glasses, the guy in the glasses. I know Mike Ellery wore glasses, right, on set. Yes.
But everyone seemed to be more thrilled by yours. You're like the Elton John or something. Like, why
is the glasses so big? The big square ones. So I thought maybe it was deliberately done for branding
purposes. No, it wasn't. I can't remember my optician so long ago, but I remember all my clothes
were all made by Danny Taylor. Okay. In East Coast Road. And he made a lot of money off me. In fact,
most of my, the pay packet that I used to get from the shows went to him for the clothes I wore.
Oh, damn Taylor's man. I know. Tell me about that. Yeah. So really, I wasn't aware of anything else.
Really? It's so funny because people have, you know, perceptions, right? People would draw
certain things out, you know, and we would go, oh, I think there we lie, the guy in the glasses,
you know, the big glasses, he's always wearing the big glasses. And the POSB show, being a part-time
presenter, how did you land up doing the POSB show? They invited me to, you know, to be the MC,
and I accepted. And you thought nothing of that? Like, this is a big deal? Really? No, I started
off with the Rado show. Yeah, I know. Put up the picture, please, Kai. How can anyone forget about
the Rado show? Yeah, that was a live show, so it was really baptism by fire. You did great. Look,
I remember, if memory serves me well, you know, people around Singapore, most people were wearing
Rados. Were they? Yeah. Like, this thing was so hyped up, the Rado show, there you go,
right? It was so hyped up. There's so many people wearing Rado watches. Yeah. Yeah, it's amazing,
don't you think? So, both the Rado show and the POSB show, you landed up doing it. And so did Mike,
didn't he? I don't remember exactly, no. Mike did some shows, but I'm not really aware of them.
Who was with you? I know Anita was with you. There was Anita Sarawat earlier. Yeah, right. Anita Sarawat,
one of my other co-hosts was Jenny Teo. Jenny! Yeah, okay. And a few others, you know, they all
fade from memory now. Okay, yeah, yeah, yeah. Jenny, Jenny, nice girl. Yes. I can't say girl. Nice lady.
She was on my last podcast show. Yeah, that's my guest. How is she? I haven't seen her for years.
Well, to be fair, I've not seen her. Maybe the last, first and last time I met her was for that
show. And that was, she was my guest and that was about five years ago. She was okay then, you know,
I hope she's still fine today. Yeah. And it took me a while to realize that she was the Jenny Teo.
Yeah, she was, I think my co-host on Talent Time. Talent Time 82, I think. So you hosted Talent
Times as well. Yeah. Just one or two years? No, I did two series, 1980, 1982. Okay. Who were the
winners for those two years you recall? Oh my goodness. Was it Othman Hamza and all? Othman
Hamza, the name rings a bell, but no, it doesn't strike me. Okay. Talent Time was also a very big
deal in the Singapore homes, you know. Talent Time, Rado Show, POSB Show. I mean, I mean, I mean,
the hype was so good. Not just that, but there was nothing else, you know, in the tournament field.
You know something? If only Media Corp brings it back now. Mel Ferdinand was saying the same thing.
Bring it back. Talent Time. We really recognize our local musels, you know. They come in to compete.
Look at the people that came in and out of Talent Time. Dick Lee, Jacinta, Clement Chow, Mel, Dixie,
Joe, Ferdinand, the Ferdinand brothers. And so many that came and went, right? Yeah. Even
Sean DeMello was now back as a musician playing for his band GMT at Mel's place. And you know,
so many people were founded from that show. Yep. So I think, you know, if you do Singapore music,
at least the music seemed good by bringing this back. And to have a bank like POSB, you know,
come up, drum up their own show. And Rado come up with their own show together with, in partnership,
of course, with a broadcaster. I think it's amazing. It was an amazing thing. That's why guys like,
we didn't forget. So today, we still haven't forgotten. So, you know, I think it's really,
really brilliant, you know, what Media Club or back then, RTS and SBC were doing at the time.
Do you think you can actually attribute what you've done back then to a mentor or anyone that inspired
you? Not consciously, no. Okay. Although I did have my idols on radio, I used to listen to
Martin Block. Do you remember the name? No. The American Top 20. No. Not even the 40. That was
Casey Kasem. Casey Kasem, yeah. Yeah. Mike's dad, yeah. So Martin Block was really the grandfather
of the top tunes. You know, I've never heard of the dude. Martin Block. I gotta go. I gotta go look
that up. Look that up. Martin Block. And what about Martin Block? Well, he hosted the American Top
20 two nights a week. The first broadcast is on a Saturday night and a repeat on a Wednesday
afternoon. I used to follow the, you know, the series the whole time, very, very closely.
What else? Locally, I would say Mike Ellery and there was another guy, another European.
And gee, the name escapes me now. Okay. It'll come back to me. Okay. When it does, just feel
free to just pop it, slide it right in. Yeah. Moby Dick continued for and thrived for how long?
I sort of gave it up when I retired. And how many years has the business been in operations
until that time? From 1969 to 2000. What? Yeah. You mean it was just 2000 that you? I retired.
I was really burnt out at that time. If I didn't retire, I think I would have croaked.
So Moby Dick ran to 2000.
I can see your eyes twirling around. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. Because when I was active, it was
in the nineties, more so the nineties, part of the 2000s. Yes, I've heard of Moby Dick, but I
didn't really realize that it was still gunning away the business. But we had permanent homes by
then, you know, no longer a mobile disco. Right. Although we still did the mobile business for
events like official openings, factory openings, you know, stuff like that. And so when at that
time, you just said that if you didn't retire, you would have croaked. Yeah. What do you mean?
I was burnt out. I was working mornings on radio, nighttime at discos, hardly had time to sleep.
You know, and when I... In 2000, you were still doing that? Yes. I was, as I said, I was burnt out.
Okay. I was really burnt out. I had to retire for my health. Looking back,
what are you most proud of having achieved in your career? Is there a particular moment
that stands out somehow? I haven't really thought about it, you know. Really. Now is the time.
No better time than now. I suppose my debut on TV possibly would be quite memorable.
But aside from that, no, not really. Do you think you've accumulated a fan base over
the years you've been doing this? So they tell me, but I'm not really physically aware of it.
Okay. So no one has like approached you or any fan, you know, came and tell you a story or...
Besides myself, that is. I mean, I'm not really aware of it.
They have done that. Yeah. I had people come up to me and tell me story of their lives
and how they got into the business because of me. So I'm not the only one, right? No. There you go.
Yeah. Anyone notable, if you don't mind me asking? Let me see. Gee, I'm such so bad at, you know,
names. Really, I forget names. Okay. Don't worry about it. Don't worry about it.
What are you most grateful for, Larry, in your life and in your career?
I think I'm most grateful for my wife. Okay. Yeah. I met her.
I know her name. Selena.
Selena. Okay. Yeah. I met her when I was in college. I was in college.
I know her name. Selena. Selena. Okay. Yeah. I met her in 1961
and we got married in 1965 and she is truly a remarkable woman. She's really a good woman.
And I, if I had to do it all over again, I would still marry her.
Yeah. And she's always been your rock.
Yep. She has. She's honest. She's really, you know, intelligent. And she's everything I've
always admired in a person. So, yeah. Okay. Kudos. Kudos.
I'd like you to meet her one day. Well, I would. It would be my pleasure to meet her,
really, really. And Mikasa Sukasa, you're welcome here anytime.
Yeah. She's two years younger than me. So she'll be 82 now.
Yeah. You're both welcome anytime. What are you passionate about these days? What are you up to?
What keeps you busy? Well, a lot of people ask me that question. What do you do after you've retired?
And my pet answer is the three M's. Movies, Music, and Mates.
Okay. Yes. M-A-T-E-S.
Yes. I realize.
Yes. Don't worry. Nothing else is crossing my mind.
Okay. Good. Not true with a lot of people. They say what? Filipino or Thai?
I would have gone Macan, you know. It's amazing. Music, movies, and Macan.
True. I do enjoy food. Although I don't have the figure to show for it.
You were talking about the poetry you were hunting high and low for.
That was my wife's favorite, actually. More so than mine.
So, you're not doing anything creative these days? Are you behind the microphone again?
Yes. Do you listen to vintage radio?
The app, Vintage Radio. Okay.
Well, on Monday to Fridays.
So you're on every day?
Yep. From 8 a.m. to 12 noon.
So you're still behind the microphone?
Yes. I think I'm the oldest DJ.
Oh, Lois's time. You're quite clever, are you? Okay. So, Aloy got you back into the fold.
Yes.
Right. Okay. And you're on Vintage Radio and you're doing a morning slot?
Yep.
And wasn't that Uncle Brian's slot?
Yes, it was. And then he gave it up. For what reason? I don't know. I've been trying to call.
He gave it up and you took over.
Well, sort of. I'm not very clear about that.
He's being such a busybody. Okay.
Yeah, because I tried calling him. I tried what's apping him, but I received no answer.
I don't know.
Okay.
I really would like to talk to him about it, because I don't feel comfortable being in his
place without his knowledge.
Without his knowledge?
Well, we haven't talked about it.
Okay.
Yeah, I'm sure he knows it.
Yeah, I'm pretty sure he does.
Yes.
But anyway, well, not that you're on back behind the mic. Great Larry Lye is somehow,
not Airways, but even better, something digital, right? And yeah, it's great, man. It's great to
hear that.
In fact, it's better than radio because it's on the internet.
Yeah.
And you can get the program anywhere in the world.
Correct. And it's there forever. That's the reason why I do what I do here.
Yeah.
It's online forever. It's forever and ever going to be there. The show is always going to be there.
The channel is always going to be there. And yeah, it's wonderful. How different do you feel it is
besides that? You come on, you're still music being played and stuff, right?
Yes. Well, it's also different now. We'll use the spin records physically.
Yeah.
But now everything's on a panel, on a template.
Right.
And all you need to do is to just go to the empty voice slot and say something there.
And that's it. And you press a button and boom, you go to the next one.
I mean, if someone who's a senior gentleman like yourself can still manage that, he's ace, man.
Well, I was nurtured on the internet from pretty early days, you know, in the late 1970s.
So you're still a voracious learner.
Yes, I am.
Never stopped, huh?
I never stopped. I never stopped.
When I grow up, I'm going to be like you.
I started out on the internet with a friend of mine who was pretty good on the net. And we used to
conjure up games, you know, like catchphrases.
Oh, right.
He's an artist, so he's able to draw some caricatures.
And, you know, we make people guess, you know, what's that word? What's that phrase?
Right. That's really like I said, when I grew up, I really was going to be like you, man.
Keeps me going. Look at you. You're so sharp.
You know, the questions I ask you, the answers you give you, so sharp.
Oh, man. What do you think are the most important qualities, Grandpa Larry,
for someone starting out in broadcasting today? What advice would you give someone like me?
You, you're a veteran already.
No, I wouldn't say that. I mean, Media Corp have said,
oh, Chris, you're new. You have never been on radio before. And that's true.
I've never been on radio. It's not wrong for them to say that. Though I've been around,
I've been around the block. Not on radio. Been around the block for a long time.
So someone like me, newbie, what kind of qualities do you think someone like me would know?
What qualities would you need? I don't know. The things I live by would be,
you have to be loyal. You have to be honest. And you must not be obscene.
Oh, oh, oh. That's it. So taste is very important.
Yeah. Not that you touch a raw nerve. When you said the word obscene, I don't think I'm obscene.
I'm a straight shooting guy. And I am, and I put my, lay my cards all on the table and I'll call a
spade a spade. Just that I need to tell you though, grandpa Larry, with a lot of reverence,
I am typically on almost nine and a half out of 10 of my episodes and my shows that we shoot here,
being a podcast, right? I am very free with my potty mouth linguistics.
You're just being naughty. That's all. Yeah. Yeah. I've never directed at anyone.
But as forms of expression, but today, if you notice, not a single F-bomb have I dropped.
No. Because I am in awe of you and it is out of complete 100% respect, sir. And it's reverence.
Okay. So, so good that you know, though, but naturally it also shows that I have the self-discipline
to hold back on the profanity. Yes. Good. That's a must. Watch it. So, so I can, I can hold it back
and I do know when I can let it go. Yeah. So, but today, not today, not with grand Polly, I rely.
No way. Not gonna happen, man. Not gonna happen. I mean, it's just, to me, it's just, no, man,
no, can't happen. I just, it's like having a, it's like having my granddad sitting next to me.
Yeah. I'm old enough to be your granddad. Oh, yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Certainly. And that's why I,
no, I can't. No. Much if I, even if I try, I can't. You've achieved a lot, you know. I mean,
really, I mean, the stories you just mentioned to me, movie dick especially, and, and the stuff
that I've never even heard of. And it's quite, that's quite something because I, I thought I
heard it all. You've achieved so much. What are the things, are there still things you still hope
to do or experience? I'll take life as it comes, really. No ambitions in, in any way. Okay. Well,
and you're having fun doing what you're doing now every morning, right? Yes. On vintage radio? Yes.
Okay. Well, I don't do it in the morning. Quiet. I do it at home at my own time. That's a little
bit of magic I'm giving away. Okay. That is you being naughty. Here I am trying to tell, here I am
telling you that I've been really, I've been really good today, you know. I've been taking deep breaths,
man, Chris, stop it. No funny linguistics. No, the thing is I record the program at home.
Housing estate, as you know, you're wide open to all the noises from outside. You really record
it at home? Yes, in my bedroom. No way. I do. I shut the doors, shut the windows and pull down
the curtains. I've got heavy curtains just to keep out the sound, but you still have noisy
neighbors. Definitely, definitely, definitely. Yeah. Upstairs will be moving furniture at odd
hours of the day. Yeah, yeah. And there's somebody playing piano. Yeah, taking piano lessons.
Airplanes, that's the worst. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And they last a long time. Yeah.
As it flies over your block, you know. And sometimes it happens right in the middle of what you're
doing. Yeah, I know, I know. So you have to stop and wait until it flies over. Yeah, I trust me.
I know you're sitting in my studio right now. Yeah, yeah. No matter how you see all the paddings,
you see all the soundproofing, believe me, sometimes it's not perfect, you know. Yeah,
I get it. I get it. So you, but do you enjoy that? Yes, I do it in my own time. I usually start
recording at night after 10 o'clock when everything's quiet and people are sleeping.
That's the best time, yeah. Yes. And because of what I do, I'd like to do some research
on the artists, all the songs. So discography, yeah. Yeah, because otherwise, you know, we just
announce the titles, it's no fun. Yeah, absolutely. Yes, yes. So I go on the internet, I do some
research and find out some little bits of info that I can share with the listeners. And that
is what takes the time. Actually, recording is a breeze, you know. I can do it in an hour,
if I didn't have to do any research. But because I do that, I work until maybe three, four
o'clock in the morning. Show prep, this for the show prep. Right. So Grandpa Larry, you said
something that was very interesting on the ride here in the car. And you said,
that aging is agony. Well, aging is always agony. Okay. Yeah, unless you're in your 20s. Okay,
that's a good way to age. You've got a 25-year-old guy telling us that, you know, I'm going to smack
him across the head, you know. I mean, I'm 25 years old, and you're telling me aging is agony?
I'm going to pop, that's it. I'm going to smack the guy across the head. But when you said that,
I'm, would you care to expound a little bit more on that? Well, when you age, you tend to have little
aches and pains. Yeah. And I was hit by sciatica nerves on my leg, which is why I use a walker.
Right, sir. But other than that, you know, my health for my age is still okay. Yeah. Okay.
But so it's not agony then? There is still some aches and pains that you can't help.
You know. Sure. But Uncle Larry, come on. You're in great shape, man. Let me tell you, it's not
agony. Okay. I mean, I really, when I grow up, I really must be like you. You're lucid, you're sharp,
you're still active as heck. You're still learning. Come on. Hey, active SG, this guy you got to talk
to, man. This is the man you got to talk to. So have you perspective, how has your perspective,
whether it's, whether it really is happening or not, or happened, how has your perspective on life
changed? Or has it changed over the years? I don't think it really has, you know, I sort of
flow with the goal and nothing really affects me badly. Okay. Yeah. I keep up with the news.
Of course, most of the news are bad. So, but it's okay. That's life, you know. I let it go by.
What brings you the most joy these days? My standard answer, three M's. Oh, they're still back
to that. Okay. But make it four, makan. Yeah. Okay. I'll grant you that. I do enjoy food.
What do you hope your legacy will be? Did I think of it? Even think of a legacy. Yeah, I know.
Yeah. It's really kind of refreshing to, first of all, you said that you guys, you,
Sweet Young, Mike Ellery, never thought about your voices. No. You know, and then now you're saying
that I never thought about legacy either. I mean, it's, it's, it's so refreshing to me. We just live
life the way we want. And as long as our conscience is clear, right, then it's okay by us. If you could
have a conversation with any person alive or dead, who would it be and why? Oh, dear. Wow. That's a
loaded question. Oh yeah, I know. Who would I like to talk to? Hmm. Probably Elvis Presley. Oh, me too.
Oh, he's right there. Right here. You see, you see, he's right here. I didn't notice him.
I didn't notice him really. This is Elvis. Yeah. There you go. Let me just give you a closer look.
There you go. Elvis Presley. Yes. Now I see him. The 68 Comeback Special, yeah? Yeah. Right.
What do we do without Elvis, man? There you see, he's all over my studio too.
Yeah, true. Now I see it. Heartbreak Hotel. There you go.
Elvis Presley, why? Why? Why do you want to talk to the King? Well, he's got an interesting life.
He's got a life. And I don't know. He's just, you know. Someone that you really idolize?
From my school days. When I was in school and he had his first record out, Heartbreak Hotel,
wasn't it? That was it. Yeah. He and Pat Boone. Oh my goodness. Two complete opposites. Yes,
complete opposites. One that goes, one that goes, let me see. I know what you mean. Oh, Bernardine.
And another one goes, since my baby left me. Yeah, I know. But those were my two idols growing up.
Okay. Okay. So you'd rather speak to Elvis and Pat Boone then?
Yes, I actually met Pat Boone and he did a show in Singapore at the
Harbor Pavilion. Uh-huh. Somewhere near there. Right. And he's ordinary. He doesn't know all
that interesting. Okay. And this is not just now when we played the video for the POA's B show.
Anita Sarawa was mentioning that the artists that were coming on the show,
and she mentioned Bill Haley in the Comets. Did she? Yeah, she did. I didn't hear that. She said
Bill Haley in the Comets and I was going, really? On the POA's B show? This is what she said just
now. Really? Yeah. I didn't catch that. When I was cutting that film, right, I noticed that from the
onset. And she did say that, which means Bill Haley in the Comets did appear on the show.
Oh. And I wanted to ask you, how were they like? Because you probably met them. No, I didn't.
Who else did you meet in your career? Notable artists, superstars. Notable artists. I've met
quite a few actually. Harry Belafonte. Oh. John Mills and the daughter Haley. Right. Yeah.
Haley Mills, John Mills, yeah. I interviewed them on stage at the Odeon. Oh, the old Odeon?
The old Odeon. Theater. Yeah, theater. Okay. Yeah. I spent a lot of time there. Who else?
Oh dear, as I said, I'm very bad with names. It's okay. We're going to come to the end of the show.
But right now, Larry, I'm going to ask you to do us all a favor. We've got
Mahani Muhammad. Mahani Muhammad. Okay, she's a singer. She was on your show, on the POSB show.
She sang the song by Shirley Bassey, Never Never Never. And do you think Mahani Muhammad is a name?
Can I just have Grandpa Larry Lai announce for her to end the show?
Mahani Muhammad singing Never Never Never by Shirley Bassey. Okay. Can we do this? Okay, sure.
Okay, then we can end the show. You've been watching the Chris Hansen Conversation.
I'll see you again real soon. Bye-bye. Here's Mahani Muhammad to sing Shirley Bassey's Never
Never Never to end the show for us. Thank you very much for being with us. And ladies and gentlemen,
you have just heard Mr. Larry Lai and I'm going to tell you something. That voice was the voice
of a generation in Singapore. I'd like to run away from you, but if you never found me,
I would die. I'd like to break the chains you've been around me, but I know I'd never wait.
You stayed away and all I do is wonder why the hell I wait for you. But when did common sense prevail
for lovers where a new way never way. Impossible to live with you but I know I could never live
without you. Oh, whatever you do, I never ever ever want to be in love with anyone but you.
Never treat me like you should, so what's good in loving as I do?
Although you always love and love, but nothing else would be good enough for you.
It's impossible to live with you but I know I could never live without you.
Oh, whatever you do, I never ever ever want to be in love with anyone but you.
You made me laugh, you made me cry, you made me live, you made me die for you.
You made me sing, you made me sad, made me glad, you made me mad for you.
I love you, hate you, love you, hate you, but I want it so this wall stops turning.
Oh, whatever you do, I never ever ever want to be in love with anyone but you.
I love you, hate you, love you, hate you, but I want it so this wall stops turning.
Oh, whatever you do, I never ever ever want to be in love with anyone but you.