Kehidupan

Last updated
"Kehidupan"
Single by God Bless
from the album Semut Hitam
Released1988 (1988)
Genre Rock
Length5:03
Songwriter(s) Jockie Soerjoprajogo
Audio sample
The opening riff by Ian Antono and lyrics sung by Ahmad Albar. The hard-rock influence has been cited as a possible reason for the song's continuing popularity.

"Kehidupan" ("Life") is a 1988 single by God Bless from their third album, Semut Hitam (Black Ants).

Contents

Production

"Kehidupan" was written by Jockie Soerjoprajogo. Ahmad Albar performed the vocals, while Ian Antono was on the guitar, Donny Fattah was on bass, Jockie was on keyboard, and Teddy Sujaya was on drums. [1]

Sound

Denny MR, writing in Rolling Stone Indonesia, notes that there is a spirit of collaboration between the band members, who had spent the previous seven years pursuing individual projects. Antono's guitar riffs are inspired by heavy metal and rougher than on previous albums, while Jockie's keyboarding is smoother than his last album with the band, Huma di Atas Bukit (House on the Hill; 1976). The bass complements the other instruments, instead of simply setting the beat. [1]

The song's arrangement is not as complicated as "Anak Adam" ("Child of Adam"), from God Bless' second album Cermin (Mirror; 1981), which had been written while Jockie was on hiatus from the band. The lyrics are multi-interpretable. [1]

Release and reception

"Kehidupan" was released on God Bless' third album, Semut Hitam (Black Ants), in 1988 through Loggis Records. [1] According to Jockie, it is one of their most successful and recognisable singles; Jodhi Yudono of Kompas writes that it was a smash hit. [2]

The song was selected as the 8th-best Indonesian song of all time by Rolling Stone Indonesia in December 2009. In his review, Denny MR noted that while he was a judge in a traveling song festival in February 2009, in Makassar, South Sulawesi, high-school students who had not been born when the song was released had memorized it and performed it at the festival; when he asked them why they had chosen the song, they said that their parents had played it and they had enjoyed it. He suggested that the simple melody and hard rock chords had influenced its staying power. [1]

Controversy

After having a falling out with God Bless in 2003, Jockie refused to allow the band to play his compositions, including "Kehidupan"; [2] this extended to including performances on video recordings of the band, such as at the 2010 Djakarta Artmosphere festival. [3] In October 2011, along with information about why he left the band, he posted on his Facebook wall that the band owed him royalties for continuing to use his work. [2]

The song also allegedly plagiarized The song by the Brazilian band Kid Abelha called Lágrimas e Chuva [ citation needed ]

Related Research Articles

Jusuf Antono Djojo or Ian Antono, born Jauw Hian Ling, is an Indonesian guitarist and songwriter. He has collaborated with many other musicians, including Anggun, Iwan Fals, Nicky Astria, Doel Sumbang, Gito Rollies, Ebiet G Ade and Ikang Fawzi, he is best known as God Bless' lead guitarist since 1974. Other notable collaboration was Gong 2000, which was established in 1991 until 1996. Ian Antono was also recognized as one of the first rock guitarists in Indonesia. In 1999, Ian Antono was invited in a Formula-1 event, which was also a collaboration with G3 and rock legends, Jethro Tull.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chrisye</span> Indonesian singer and songwriter (1949–2007)

Hajji Chrismansyah Rahadi, better known by his stage name Chrisye, was an Indonesian progressive pop singer and songwriter. In 2011, Rolling Stone Indonesia declared him the third-greatest Indonesian musician of all time.

"Badai Pasti Berlalu" is an Indonesian song written by Eros Djarot and released in 1977 as part of the soundtrack of Badai Pasti Berlalu. It was originally sung by Berlian Hutauruk but has also been covered by Chrisye and Ari Lasso. Rolling Stone Indonesia ranked it as the third-best Indonesian song of all time.

<i>Badai Pasti Berlalu</i> (album)

Badai Pasti Berlalu is the 1977 soundtrack to the Indonesian film of the same name. Rolling Stone Indonesia listed it as the best Indonesian album of all time. Three of its songs, Badai Pasti Berlalu, Merpati Putih, and Merepih Alam, were listed by Rolling Stone as among the best Indonesian songs ever released.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lilin-Lilin Kecil</span> Popular song by James F. Sundah

"Lilin-Lilin Kecil" is an Indonesian pop song written by James F. Sundah for the Prambors' 1977 Youth Songwriting Competition and performed by Chrisye.

<i>Sabda Alam</i> 1978 studio album by Chrisye

Sabda Alam is a 1978 Indonesian album released by Musica Studios. It is Chrisye's second studio album and his first after signing with Musica. The album was written in collaboration with Guruh Sukarnoputra. It was well received and, in 2007, was listed by Rolling Stone Indonesia as one of the 150 best Indonesian albums of all time. Actually, this album was scheduled to be released in August 1977, but it was officially released in early 1978.

<i>Guruh Gipsy</i> 1977 studio album by Guruh Sukarnoputra and Gipsy Band

Guruh Gipsy is a 1977 Indonesian studio album released by Guruh Sukarnoputra in collaboration with the band Gipsy, consisting of Keenan Nasution, Chrisye, Roni Harahap, and Oding Nasution. Mixing modern instruments with traditional Javanese and Balinese music styles, it is now considered a landmark album. In 2007, Rolling Stone Indonesia voted it the second best Indonesian album of all time.

"Indonesia Maharddhika" is a song by Indonesian progressive rock band Gipsy, consisting of Chrisye, Keenan Nasution, Oding Nasution, Roni Harahap, and Abadi Soesman, together with Guruh Sukarnoputra. It was released in 1976 on the album Guruh Gipsy with the names of its contributors hidden in the bilingual lyrics. In 2009, Rolling Stone Indonesia selected it as the 59th best Indonesian song of all time.

<i>Puspa Indah</i> 1980 studio album by Chrisye

Puspa Indah is a 1980 album by Indonesian singer Chrisye, working in collaboration with Guruh Soekarnoputra. It was his fourth studio album and the third with Musica Studios.

Jockie Soerjoprajogo was an Indonesian musician and songwriter. Jockie began his musical career while a junior high school student in Balikpapan, East Kalimantan. After working with bands in Jakarta and Surabaya, in 1973, he joined with Ahmad Albar, Donny Fattah and Ludwig Leeman to form God Bless; he would remain with this band intermittently until the 2000s. Jockie also worked with artists such as Chrisye and Iwan Fals, ultimately writing two songs—"Kehidupan" ("Life") and "Kesaksian" ("Witness")—that were listed by Rolling Stone Indonesia as among the best Indonesian songs of all time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ahmad Albar</span> Indonesian rock musician

Ahmad Syech Albar or better known as Ahmad Albar is an Indonesian rock musician and vocalist of mixed ethnic Arabic and Javanese descent. He is the founding member of God Bless.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">God Bless</span>

God Bless is an Indonesian rock band founded in Jakarta in 1973 by Ahmad Albar, Jockie Soerjoprajogo, Fuad Hassan, Donny Fattah, and Ludwig Lemans. It continues to be active and has received several awards from the Indonesian music industry.

Vina Dewi Sastaviyana, better known by her stage name Vina Panduwinata, is an Indonesian singer and actress. The song "Kumpul Bocah" is cited as her signature song. Her song "Burung Camar" was listed by Rolling Stone Indonesia as the 28th-best Indonesian song of all time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Giring Ganesha</span> Indonesian political figure

Giring Ganesha Djumaryo is an Indonesian vocalist and political activist. He is a former lead singer of the Indonesian rock band, Nidji. On 31 December 2017, he announced his resignation as Nidji's lead vocalist in order to focus on his political journey. Giring is the former Leader of Indonesian Solidarity Party (PSI). He was previously Acting Leader to cover for Grace Natalie while she pursued her master's degree.

Nicky Nastiti Karya Dewi, better known by her stage name Nicky Astria, is an Indonesian musician.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chrisye discography</span>

During his 40-year career, the Indonesian pop singer Chrisye (1949–2007) released 20 studio albums, 2 tribute or cover albums, 2 soundtrack albums, 10 compilation albums, an indie album, and 56 singles. He also recorded the soundtrack to three feature films, acted in two, and released 26 music videos. In 2008 Rolling Stone Indonesia listed five albums to which Chrisye contributed as among the best Indonesian albums of all time.

"Kebyar-Kebyar" is a 1979 patriotic song by the singer Gombloh. In 2009 it was listed by Rolling Stone Indonesia as the second best Indonesian song of all time.

<i>Resesi</i> 1983 studio album by Chrisye

Resesi is a 1983 album by the Indonesian singer Chrisye. Recorded in collaboration with Jockie Soerjoprajogo and Eros Djarot after the latter's return from Germany, Resesi, which is Chrisye's sixth studio album, was inspired by the sound of The Police and featured songs influenced by CB radio and social criticism. It was a commercial hit upon release, selling 350,000 copies and being certified silver. In 2007 Rolling Stone Indonesia listed it as the 82nd best Indonesian album of all time.

Rif which stands for Rhythm in Freedom, is an Alternative rock band formed in Bandung, Indonesia in 1995.

References

Footnotes
Bibliography
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.