IT has always been a joy to watch Malaysia's undisputed rock queen Ella in action. Ella or Norzila Aminuddin may have been rocking for 34 years, since she was an adorable 18-year-old, but she has hardly “aged” physically, mentally and, most of all, vocally.
Her husky but spellbinding voice remains as crisp as ever, and despite donning the tudung since 2016, her energetic movements on stage are uninhibited and as good as it gets.
Ella's first acoustic concert at Istana Budaya, Ella Unplugged proved that there was no stopping this ageless beauty from Klang. Taking brief sips of water, she gave the packed main hall of the national theatre a rocking good time for slightly more than two hours.
Backed by a team of seasoned musicians comprising guitarists Aji and Ritz (whom she described as a cat lover), bassist Fly Halizor, drummer Ujang, percussionist Paang, keyboardist and violinist Ude Wahid, and three back-up vocalists Baby, Jat and Eja, Ella emerged on stage at 8.45pm sharp, dressed in a star-studded black outfit that looked almost like a sci-fi film costume.
And it was in this masterpiece created by fashion designers Syomir Izwa, Ezzati Amira, Kit Woo and Joe Chia, that she kept fans, including VVIP guest Sultanah Nur Zahirah of Terengganu, under her spell with 23 songs divided into three segments.
The segments titled Peace, Love and Rindu comprised acoustic pop, Asli and rock songs respectively, and their names were derived from Ella's trade mark greeting “peace, love, rindu” which she has used to “sign off” every concert from day one.
She kick-started her show with Peace, specifically a medley of Nuri and Permata Pemotong Permata. This got fans cheering, and after she waved at the crowd, Ella delivered a more upbeat medley that comprised Cinta Dusta, Esok Selamanya, Aku Kau Dia, Tiada Tangis Lagi and Penjara Misteri.
“Love you guys!” she said. “Now sing along with me in the next one!”
The fans sportingly did so without hesitation, as it was Layar Impian, one of her most karaoked anthems about peace and love. It was here that Ella swayed and pranced around the stage, and occasionally played peek-a-boo with fans from behind her tall musician buddies.
After another medley of the heartfelt songs Demi and Cinta Selembut Sutera, she got more fans to sing with her in Rama-Rama. And she finally revealed the mystery behind this song's cryptic lyrics which included “ekspresi dirimu menawan hatiku”.
“Rama-Rama is a philosophical song, really. It's about the end of one's life, or the end of an era. May we all have good, happy endings!” she said, blowing a kiss to the audience.
Ella's next song, the poignant Sepi Sekuntum Mawar Merah about lost love and loneliness, was also a sing-along with fans. “Do you want more?” she asked, and they replied in the positive.
She then introduced a family member as her first guest singer for the evening, and fans instantly knew who he was. They cheered “Korie! Korie!” until Ella's younger brother and Hanya Kawan co-star Azhari “Korie” Aminuddin, 49, emerged with his latest, Kenny G-style hairdo.
Ella and Korie sang the romantic duet Pergilah Sayang, after which he thanked fans for remembering him all these years. Korie may have been under the showbiz radar for two decades, but he proved that he was very much a rocker, now with a much manlier voice a la Rahim Maarof.
Another family member came on stage next, her pilot husband of seven years Azhar Ghazali. Ella jokingly described her next duet partner as Captain Azhar whose full-time job was “being her husband and life partner”.
Dressed stylishly in a black jacket, Azhar, 38, proved a good singer with a deep and caressing voice to match Ella's husky and melodious one. They delivered two of her popular songs Mendung Tak Bererti Hujan and Peace.Love.Rindu, to a standing ovation.
“You rock, Ella and Azhar!” cheered some the fans. “Love you too!” replied Azhar and Ella.
Ella began her Love Asli segment with a medley of Sayang Di Sayang and Keroncong Kemayoran. She was accompanied by 20 young female dancers whose graceful moves and stylish purple, green, black and gold dresses matched hers.
She has not been known to sing traditional Malay songs, but Ella proved at home in this genre. Her “rock chick” moves were fluidly transformed into graceful dance moves that matched those of the dancers.
Ella's star turn for the evening also came in this segment. With lots of meticulous rehearsals since the beginning of the year, she cleverly sang an Asli version of her trade mark rock song Sembilu, to a standing ovation.
Ending the segment with her hero Tan Sri SM Salim’s timeless song Tak Seindah Wajah and Zapin Pematah Hati, another Asli gem, the rock queen then got her production team to screen a brief congratulatory message from Asli music icon Noraniza Idris, an old friend and contemporary.
“Congratulations Ella! I've always known you to be a versatile singer, and it's great that you're equally good in traditional music,” said Noraniza.
Ella began her final segment Rindu with the catchy and fast-paced Permata Biru and the inspirational Kitalah Bintang, both of which were sing-alongs with fans.
“These songs are about you, guys! Hold on to your dreams always!” she said, before introducing two ‘otai’ guitarists who are young at heart — Lord Lokman and Edrie Hashim.
Lord and Edrie both received roaring applause as soon as they came on stage, and Ella paid tribute to Lord as her “big brother and teacher” who showed her the ropes when they were a band called Ella And The Boys back in the mid-1980s.
As the musicians showed off their electrifying instrumental prowess, Ella hid behind them and after a few seconds, reappeared to belt out her definitive “rock chick” numbers Puteri Kota and Dua Insan Bercinta.
The infectious Dua Insan Bercinta was a sing-along almost all the way, and fans readily waved their arms to the catchy chorus which went “Jagalah dirimu selalu”.
Before her final songs Cinta Berakhir and the spiritually-themed Sujud, Ella introduced her musicians, and thanked fans for their sporting ways.
“I've just had a great time, thank you all for making my dreams come true!” she said, to the chants of “we want more”.
The audiences got their wish. Before Ella called it a night, she returned, this time with Korie and Azhar, and belted out four more songs — Kesal, Bayangan, the popular Pengemis Cinta and the rousing finale Gemilang which famously welcomed National Day 1997 at Dataran Merdeka.
“I actually felt quite nervous before this show,” said Ella at a press conference later. “But when I came on stage, I just decided to ‘go all out’ and things began to fall in place.”
She admitted that rockers from the Middle East inspired her dance moves, and she watched them in action on social media to “familiarise herself with hijab rock”.
“Prancing around on stage isn't easy, but I rehearsed every day since New Year, and also exercised regularly to keep healthy for my big day,” said Ella.
She admitted that her Asli version of Sembilu was a “bold innovation” which her husband encouraged her to “give a shot”.
“At first, I didn't think it would work, but Azhar thought otherwise. I'm so glad I listened to him!”
Known for her down-to-earth and playful ways, strong stage presence and trade-mark husky voice Ella has won the hearts of many since she formed Ella And The Boys in 1985.
She stayed with the group led by Lord until 1988, when she embarked on a solo career.
Ella became the first Malaysian singer to record an album in the United States, Ella USA which was released in 1994.
In 1998, she serenaded sports fans with the hugely popular theme song for the Kuala Lumpur Commonwealth Games, titled Standing In The Eyes Of The World.
Her live performance in the National Stadium, Bukit Jalil, is fondly remembered by Malaysians from all walks of life.
Ella has also proven herself a good actress, and her first movie was Bayangan Maut (1999), directed by Datuk Yusof Haslam.
Her other films included Pemburu Bayang and Hanya Kawan in which she played the love interest of Datuk Hans Isaac.
Last year, Ella received the Brand Laureate Icon Celebrity Award in recognition of her contributions to Malaysian music.
Ella Unplugged proved entertaining from the word “go”. Beginning and ending with a bang, it once again proved that the rock queen's stage magic has been consistent throughout her illustrious three decades in music.
And like all Ella concerts, it reached a helping hand out to the less fortunate. Proceeds from the three-day concert's ticket sales were channelled to the Malaysian Autism Foundation.