Tukang Taip

Anita Sarawak

The face of the song. The vocal of the song. The star of the song.

Performer

S. Atan

The song starter. The mind behind the beautiful melodies.

Composer

Haron Abdul Majid

Lyricist

Usually containing ethnically and culturally based instruments.

Ethnic

EMI Music Publishing Malaysia Sdn Bhd

Joget Gila Bayang

SUPERSTAR. Entertainer Extraordinaire. Woman of all seasons. Diva......
Call her what you like and it seems that no adjective can best describe Anita Sarawak.    

Born in Singapore in 1952, Anita is no stranger to the Asian music scene. Indeed, one of the best to have come from this region, Anita is easily the grand dame of show business who is still pulling in crowds by the droves.    

Energetic and sophisticated, Anita has performed the world over since the 70's. At a time when local singers can only dream of playing in the international arena, Anita has been there and done that, mesmerizing audiences from Monte Carlo to Munich, Australia to Abu Dhabi and Japan to the United States.    

Coming from a famous show business family - Mum was the primadonna of the silver screen, the late Siput Sarawak, while Dad was the incumbent actor, the late Datuk S.Roomai Nor - it is no wonder that Anita would follow in their footsteps.    

After all, showbusiness also ran in her stepmother's, Datin Umi Kalthum and sister's Noorkumalasari blood!     

Anita's foray into the world of entertainment did not happen by chance. When she was 14, her mother Siput got her into acting, where Anita acted alongside Mat Sentul in the often-repeated Dua Kali Lima but Anita decided that acting was not for her then. Having to wait for hours on end for a shoot was not her style. When the opportunity to sing presented itself to her, Anita grabbed the chance and has never looked back.     

When she turned 17, Anita had her first recording. Ironically her debut was an English effort titled Lets Go O Soul. Before long, her Malay albums followed suit and Anita was fast making a name for herself, recording album after album. In the earlier part of her career, she often teamed up with the Tom Jones of Singapore, Ismail Haron, where they'd perform together.     Indeed one of their famous numbers was Menunggu Nasi Minyak.    

Often compared to many a Western singer, one reporter wrote that watching her perform was like watching Carol Burnett, Tina Turner and Madonna all rolled into one. Some even said that her renditions of English songs were better than the original singers, like Never Never Never (popularised by Shirley Bassey) and Love Me (Yvonne Eliman) but Anita's rise to fame really took place in the 70's when she engaged an international manager. Anita was among the first to pack Kuala Lumpur's Stadium Negara in a solo concert more than once.  

Although she recorded two international albums in Germany - Anita Sarawak (featuring the hit Na Na Na Na and Take What You Find) and For The Love - Anita never forgot to record Malay songs. S.Atan and lyricist Haron Abdul Majid remembers vividly how Anita took only one day to record the album - Gayamu Biar Sederhana - featuring a string of hits including Joget Gila Bayang, Semenjak Ayah Pergi and P.Ramlee's Dengarlah Ini Cerita.     

Her next effort saw her pen her very first and only song to date called Damai. Indeed, at a time when love songs flooded the charts, Anita was ahead of her time as Damai tells the sufferings of war victims.  The 80's saw Anita performing overseas, but she would always come back with new repertoire and new acts. When she cut Asmara, it was a much-anticipated effort as the album went on to achieve Gold status, selling in excess of 30,000 copies in Malaysia alone. That, while she was still engaged to Caesar's Palace, Las Vegas. The album featured a string of hits including Cintamu Muzik Di Hatiku, Joget Sayang Di Sayang, Akhirnya Kini Pasti and Tika Dan Waktu.    Her follow-up album Cinta Nan Satu proved that Anita's strength lay in both fast and slow ballads as she chalked up success through Cinta Nan Satu, Lagu Cinta Kita, Cinta Kontra and Sangkar Berduri.    A few years later, Anita came back to record another great album, Antara Yang Manis featuring Dave Koz as a special guest. The album churned up hits such as Bisikkanlah Cinta  Remaja Teknologi and Terasing which is a special tribute to her friend, the late Sudirman. Incidentally, the two had recorded a song together earlier - Bercanda Di Pasiran Pantai where a cute music video featuring the two superstars became a hit.   After performing for nearly 20 years in Las Vegas, Anita finally returned to Malaysia in 2000 and recorded Seksis under KRU Music.

Kalau dah tengok, jangan lupa LIKE & SUBSCRIBE! 

Follow Universal Music Malaysia on 
Instagram : https://www.instagram.com/universalmu... 
Facebook : https://www.facebook.com/universalmuz... 
Twitter : https://twitter.com/UMDomestic Youtube : https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7Hs...

#getarannostalgia #anitasarawak

Diskograf

Joget Gila Bayang

Writers