Last week we read about how former Toorak resident Colin Deoki and his friends formed a group called Ulysses in a little tin shack in Suva.
They were inspired to immerse themselves in the music of an American rock band called Iron Butterfly.
The US group’s single New Day struck a chord with Ulysses because of its message of unity – something that Fiji was struggling to come to terms with in the ’60s and ’70s.
We were pining for a new day in our country which would be based on mutual love and respect for each other without any strings attached.
In those days we didn’t have a music cheat sheet or the internet so we could record or download stuff to learn chord progressions. Learning how to play the song from listening to the vinyl record was the only way.
And it was a delicately painstaking process. It required lots of patience with a hit and miss approach as we tried to work out the chords by ear. We also had to be very gentle with handling the arm of the record player so that the diamond stylus needle wouldn’t accidentally fall on to the disc and damage the grooves.
Learning a repertoire of 30-plus songs the old fashioned way from a record player was not only stressful but we had to ensure, more than anything, we wouldn’t damage the groove on the disc and leave ourselves in the lurch.
Because for starters, the album wasn’t available in the country, and we didn’t have the backup of the internet in those days to quickly download the song or the chords. So, the album was irreplaceable, but we had one more challenge.
Every individual in the band had to learn their part the same slow painstaking way. Trying to figure out everyone’s part meant playing the song over and over again. And at times, we had to deal with the frustration of trying to get the notes and chords right.
We eventually got to play the song for the first time in a public setting, thanks to Ken Janson (owner of the then Golden Dragon night club on Victoria Pde). He had a room on the third floor of the nightclub which wasn’t being used.
So, he gave us the opportunity to strut our stuff. While we were chuffed to be given the chance to play in the hallowed halls of the Golden Dragon, we were very nervous. The Golden Dragon was the birth place of some of Fiji’s finest musicians.
And to be perfectly honest, we were in awe of legends like guitarist Waisea Vatuwaqa, bassist Joe Heritage, keyboardist Eroni Paspatu, drummer Paul Stevens and, of course, the maestro, Ken Janson.
But we did it anyway and it turned out to be an awesome experience. Ken’s generosity has birthed so many amazing musicians who’ve moved on to play at some of the best venues locally and overseas.
They were our heroes in the music business. And these guys could play. Coming back to Metamorphosis, it simply means the process of transformation from an immature form to an adult form in two or more stages for a person or something in nature.
When I think of Metamorphosis, my mind pictures the transformation of a caterpillar into a beautiful butterfly. This mind boggling transformation of something that starts out in life as a little crawling insect then dies, reincarnating into a beautiful butterfly is one of nature’s miraculous mysteries.
The strange phenomenon still blows me away because there’s a powerful lesson in the life and death process of a caterpillar morphing into a butterfly. So, where am I going with this?
Most of us will experience different stages of metamorphic transformation in life. Some of it might be through personal choice. But a lot of it can be because of outside forces we have no control over.
Sometimes, those forces can begin pushing us into places that are overwhelmingly challenging and emotionally stressful. At other times, outside forces can be a blessing. But because we feel so nervous and challenged, we can miss their motive.
I’m no different to anyone else when it comes to major change. Many of us have been in that awkwardly uncomfortable place. Some of you may be there right now. Maybe it’s time to push past your fears. Sometimes we need to be like a caterpillar and die to the things that terrify us so that we can reinvent ourselves.
I’ve had to reinvent myself several times, especially in my working life. I’ve failed in lots of things in life. When I was learning to play guitar, I was never in the same league as many of the amazing guitar players Fiji has spawned.
My strength in music lay elsewhere. But it was something I had to learn and grow into with lots of frustration.
• To be continued next week
