Bingkai Karya– Benny Soebardja is one of the most well-known rock musicians in the country, yet he is not given enough credit. Other 1970s rock bands like AKA, God Bless, and The Rollies overshadow him.
Benny’s actions at the time were, without a doubt, considered to be exceedingly daring in comparison to the general trend at the time. For example, most other bands copy well-known songs from other countries. Benny and other staff members innovated musically with Shark Move, a 1970 Bandung, West Java band he created. They released an album of original songs.
Shark Move recorded their first and last album, “Ghede Chokra’s,” at Musica’s Studio on January 2, 1970. Benny (vocals/guitar), Soman Loebis (keyboards/piano), Janto Diablo (flute/bass), Sammy Zakaria (drums), and Bhagu Ramchand lead the band. The album is called ‘Great Session’ in English. “My Life,” Benny Soebardja’s 1973 album piece, was a standout. The nine-minute song is progressive rock and psychedelic. It’s possible that this is what was formerly frequently known as “art rock.”
The New “My Life”
More than fifty years later, guitarist and music director Dewa Budjana revived “My Life” this year. This version features an acoustic string quartet and a Benny Soebardja-Andy /rif voice duet. Newer and modern. At Benny Soebardja’s vinyl launch event at Record Store Day Indonesia in Senayan Park (Spark), Jakarta, in April 2024, Budjana, drummer Budhy Haryono, and Irvan Temons (The Temon’s Berkesenian) got the idea to recycle “My Life”.
The three of them spontaneously remarked, “Let’s record a tribute CD to Benny Soebardja!” We initially planned to collaborate with other arrangers on a new record. Budjana explained, “We selected Budhy Haryono as the coordinator to the (supporting) musicians.” On the other hand, the project has only just begun with the release of the single “My Life.” This is due to the fact that there are various obstacles to overcome.
Dewa Budjana has been a fan of Benny Sorbardja’s work since elementary school, which is one of the reasons he is working on this tribute project. In Benny’s next band, Giant Step, as well as in Shark Move. “On vacation in Surabaya in fifth grade, I watched Giant Step, the first band. Since then, I’ve liked them. My first brother, a Bandung student, liked bringing Harry Roesli, Shark Move, and Giant Step CDs to Bali. I’ve memorized Giant Step.” Budjana calls “My Life” his childhood song.
String Quartet
Since Benny Soebardja’s “Ghede Chokra’s,” Giant Step’s 1975 debut album includes “My Life” again. With guitarist Albert Warnerin, bassist Adhy Haryadi (Menstrel’s), drummer Janto Soedjono, and pianist Deddy Dores (God Bless), the arrangement was more rock-oriented. The last two names were from Harry Roesli’s Philoshopy Gang.
According to Dewa Budjana, Benny Soebardja was a major rock musician. “Compared to the general band that was formed at the time, he was innovative and productive with a variety of musical choices, and Benny Soebardja’s vocals (were also) excellent for pop songs.” Benny Soebardja’s performance of “Apatis,” from the compilation album “Lomba Cipta Lagu Remaja 1978,” was popular. In the modified version of “My Life,” Dewa Budjana included a string quartet and acoustic elements. “My Life” may be restructured, he thought.
Budjana added, “After all, they have never made this format.” Rama Nalendra, Benny Soebardja’s son, designed “My Life.”‘s cover for Rockpod Records, which re-releases his father’s recordings.
About Dewa Budjana
With addition to playing guitar with GIGI and Trisum, Dewa Budjana has been a solo croosover/multi-genre musician. He has released over ten instrumental solo albums blending jazz, rock, progressive, and world music. Several of his records feature Marco Minnemann, Mohini Dey, Jordan Rudess, Mike Stern, John Frusciante, Tony Levin, Guthrie Govan, Vinnie Colaiuta, and Peter Erskine.
