Remo Fernandes - Early Years and Musical Influences

Early Years and Musical Influences

Remo Fernandes was born to the well-known Panjim family of Bernardo and Luiza Fernandes on 8 May 1953. Although brought up in a Catholic family, Remo says 'When I turned 18, I started thinking for myself; and I realised that god is beyond religion.' Remo's first introduction to rock was at the age of seven, when a cousin returned from London with "Rock Around The Clock", a record by Bill Haley & His Comets. He claims that it changed his life forever. He spent the next decade listening to music of that era's most popular icons:

"After about a decade of going crazy over Elvis Presley, Cliff Richard, The Shadows, The Beatles and The Rolling Stones, one of the greatest influences in my life was the psychedelic music of the 70s, especially the movie 'Woodstock', which I watched over and over again. That was the era when rock broke all barriers and became experimental; Jethro Tull fused it with western classical, Blood Sweat & Tears fused it with jazz, Santana fused it with Latin, Osibisa fused it with African... rock truly became the voice of global youth, no more the prerogative or monopoly of America."

— In an interview to 'The Week'.

In school Remo developed natural guitar playing skills and along with a talented group of friends, Alexandre Rosario, Tony Godinho, and Caetano Abreu, formed a school band named the "The Beat 4". He wrote his first songs around this time, at age 14, winning 1st prizes in all-Goa competitions for best composer, best vocalist, and best lead guitarist. After graduating from school Remo went on to earn a Bachelor's degree in Architecture from the city of Bombay (now called Mumbai). His love affair with music continued, often bunking classes to work on his technique, when he figured out a way to tune and play the guitar to make it sound like the Indian sitar. He continued writing his own songs, playing solo or playing with different bands including one of India's top most recording artists, 'The Savages'.

Mumbai being one of the few cities in India at the time with a niche audience for Rock Music, he played in concerts and venues such as Shanmukhnanda Hall, Rang Bhavan, and in all the major college campuses of Bombay. While most young Indian musicians were happy sounding exactly like their American heroes, Remo brought an Indian element to his music with his Sitar/Guitar, and taught himself to play the Indian flute.

After graduation, Remo returned to Goa and immersed himself in its once famous Hippie culture. He met a group of traveling European artists who named themselves the Amsterdam Balloon Company, playing at their full moon concerts at Baga. Much later, Remo would team up in Amsterdam with Lucas Amor, the violinist in this group, and cut a song called Venus And The Moon.

Between 1977 and 1980, Remo traveled in Europe and North Africa, hitch-hiking around eight countries during a span of two-and-a-half years, supporting his travels by singing and passing a hat around in underground stations and pedestrian streets.

"I'd met a lot of European hippies in Goa; I wanted to be an Indian hippie in Europe"

— Remo commenting on his first trip to Europe.

He performed in shows with fusion rock bands, such as "Rock Synergie" in Paris. Almost settling in the West for good, he changed his mind and returned to Goa on Christmas Day, 1979. "Traveling and living abroad made me see clearly where Home really was" he says.