“ALPHABETICALLY YOURS” (Especially for eLanka) – By Des Kelly

This is a very special “Series” of musical-memories for all eLankan readers everywhere. The “title” tells the story. The music, both vocal and instrumental has been chosen by me, mainly to bring back precious memories to all of you, out there. The World, chaotic, as it is, cannot go on, without music. Of course, I do realize that music in general is entirely “catholic”, “to each, his own”(as the title of still another song admits), but, as the very proud editor of the best “on-line” website for Lankans in Australia, I now refer to “our mob” especially, and, for you, folks, I’d like to present you with all the very best of music, alphabetically.

I am doing this for two very good reasons. Firstly, I LOVE good music, as does my good friend, Neil Jayasekera, the owner of the eLanka website. Not only is he a specialist in his own field of endeavour, (the Internet), Neil is also a well known music DJ (disc jockey) of Sydney, Australia, spending hours of his time entertaining the “party-lovers” in his part of town with the music of their choice, via his discs.This tells me that his “music-library” must be extensive.

Secondly, during the “good old days”, as I call them, between the ages of five & seventy five, I could truthfully claim a repertoire of over at least five hundred songs that I knew “by-heart”, never ever needing either lyric sheets or musical arrangements to carry around during my personal entertaining career, which unfortunately ended rather abruptly at age sixty eight, after a bad fall in which I fractured my right shoulder and left me with a spinal complaint, leaving me unable to even move around too much. However, life goes on, & more importantly, my music (together with my”writing”, goes on), keeping my mental faculties in good order, where my physical faculties are, to put it politely, completely f…inished!!.

It is a well-known fact that my forte is “Country Music”.This is why I prefer to call it “The Music Of Life”. However, my Alphabetical Series of music clips for all eLankans will include all types, but ONLY listenable, memory-inducing, magical music. Music that will make your day, replay after replay. This much, I promise you, but to hear and enjoy these “gems”, as I call them, (I pick only the very best), you folk have to become members of eLanka. Do it soon, and ou won’t be sorry.

I know I know. There exists “Spotify”, plus various other internet “on the spot” music-providers, at a “click” on your keyboard, my friends. Think of a song or music that you like and Spotify will get it for you, BUT, (and that’s a big butt, in the corner), my friends. Which VERSION of the song will come up for you ?. There are many varied versions of songs, but the D.K.Special is different, “Aye” (Alphabetically Yours eLankans), simply because I go through every single version of any song I present to give you the very best, for your enjoyment.

The first song presented on eLanka in this series was titled “Another Bridge To Burn”, written by Harlen Howard, first recorded by Little Jimmy Dickens in 1963, then, by more than half a dozen others, nothing wrong with that, as it was a great song, but the D.K.S. is certainly the best, because it was recorded by the great Waylon Jennings c/w a different beat. I picked that one for you, as I did, with the beautiful Steel Guitar version of Apache by Douglas Beaumier. Many versions, on many instruments, but, in my opinion, this song was meant for the “Steel-Guitar”, plus, it was superbly played by Doug.

This leads us to “ALPHABETICALLY YOURS” “B”, coming up, next issue, folks.  Thank you for listening.

Desmond Kelly
 Star of eLanka
(Editor-in-Chief).