It is a band with a difference, according to Barry Upton, who is a successful hit songwriter, arranger, musician and producer of many different forms of popular music, as well as being a local DJ. Barry spoke to the Pattaya City Expats Club at their Sunday, March 29, meeting on how he has formed such a band.
Barry has spoken and performed at the Pattaya City Expats Club meeting twice before. He has his own “Behind The Music” weekday show on 96FM – Yes2day (Pattaya, Thailand). He has also appeared at the Blues Factory and other Pattaya venues. He has spent over 30 years as a musician, music producer, music arranger, songwriter, performer, nightclub DJ, and radio/TV presenter.
Barry Upton entertains his PCEC audience with a few songs during his presentation about forming a Band with a Difference.
Barry has been involved in his new project; putting together a new pop band. It’s something that he thought he would never do again, because it is so difficult, he said. He mentioned his previous experience in creating pop bands including, in the 1990s, the “Steps,” a dance-pop group known for their line-dance numbers. Barry co-wrote a song for them, “5, 6, 7, 8,” which was a big success and can be viewed on You Tube at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4NO-h9PFum4. It went as high as No. 1 in Australia, and is still a big hit today in the Philippines.
Barry noted that several record companies and producers declined to sign the “Steps” to a recording contract; including Simon Cowell (twice). Cowell is a music and television producer and is well known for his appearances as a judge on American Idol and for having created the X-Factor television music competition franchise. Barry said that even though he turned down his group, he still gets along well with Cowell; they made a deal together to produce records for kids (5-8-year-olds). Barry said he tried to form another group, an all-female surf band, but that one never got off the ground (so to speak).
MC Richard Silverberg presents Barry Upton with the PCEC’s Certificate of Appreciation for his most interesting and entertaining presentation at their March 29 meeting.
Recently, Barry had a guest on his radio morning show who was involved with the TV series “Lady Boys,” which was very popular in the UK. That gave him an idea: Why not form a lady boys’ band? He did some research and discovered that there had been a couple of attempts to form such a band but, either they were not very good or the performers didn’t come across as being lady boys.
PCEC member Darrel Vaught talks about the latest news from Thai Immigration including the recent announcement of the availability of online address reporting as of April 1.
With his idea in mind, Barry approached the production company about doing something similar about the formation of a lady boys’ band. He said they thought it was a terrific idea. So, last September and October, auditions were held, finalists were chosen, and the winners were selected at an X-Factor-style event held at the Coliseum on Sukhumvit Road. The band is called “Gurlz.”
Barry had written a song for the band, called “Treat Me Like a Lady.” After the band was formed, they had two days to rehearse the song before performing it on a popular national Thai TV program. The performance was very well received to the delight of Barry and the Gurlz. A video of this performance was presented to the delight of his PCEC audience.
The documentary on the formation of the band will air on Sky TV in the U.K. at the end of June. A single will be released in September and the band will do shows in the U.K. that same month. Barry said that he has written 14 songs for the band. He gave club members an exclusive preview of a music video featuring one of the songs. Barry said that nothing has gone up on You Tube yet, and won’t until after the documentary is aired.
During his presentation, Barry also entertained the audience with a few songs, some by video and others live – including “I Got You (I Feel Good)” by James Brown. He did one song karaoke style: “Save Your Kisses for Me,” which won the Eurovision Song Contest in 1976 and which, Barry said, is the biggest selling Eurovision winner ever.
PCEC member Richard Smith comments on the progress of the English Conversation for Thais courses and mentions that because of the number of locations and participants at least two more volunteer teachers are needed.
To learn more about Barry, visit his website at www.barryupton.com. He is also the composer of the popular song Pattaya Wonderland – to enjoy it on You Tube visit: www.youtube.com/watch?v=jOsAr_Fjswk.
After the presentation, MC Richard Silverberg brought everyone up to date on upcoming events and called on Roy Albiston to conduct the Open Forum, where questions are asked and answered about Expat living in Thailand, especially Pattaya.
For more information on the PCEC’s many activities, visit their website at www.pcecclub.org.
