Without a doubt, Remo Fernandes is one of Goa’s largest legends – the energy, showmanship and unfettered passion for music floating blatantly across the stage to audiences at every performance. Yet, there’s a man beneath it all, crossing paths with every mortal affliction.
This time, he hasn’t poured his thoughts out into lyrics or even poetry as he would have normally done, but in a 500-page autobiography chronicling his life peppered with discoveries of himself and the world around him. All of this led by the draw of music.
The Autobiography of Remo Fernandes brings scenes of Portuguese Goa to life through a young boy’s eyes, the cultural nuances and changing tides during Liberation and his initial shock at the miasma of poverty in Bombay.
Through the book, fans encounter the Remo of the past, his influences, errors and the decisions that made him who he is today. He freely discusses his disillusionment with religion and architecture, his exploration of hippie life and sexual freedom, and rather anti-climactic visit to his namesake city in Italy.
Remo’s honest opinions are bared frankly as he divulges his cultural immersion during a two-and-a-half year European and North African trip, providing an inside view of a young Goan man hitchhiking through Europe, Tunisia and Algeria in the 70s.
Sprinkled through the autobiography are notes about his advancements in music, from the instruments he learnt to play by ear to the technical equipment he picked up over time to improve his sound quality as finances permitted – a Revox tape recorder in Paris, a Fender twin reverb back in Goa, an eight-track spool Fostex, to a 48-channel Mackie mixer and further on.
Read the full article in ‘Viva Goa’ magazine copy.
Viva Goa magazine is now on stands. Available at all major book stalls and supermarkets in Goa.
