Clarence Wijewardena Mawatha…

The late Clarence Wijewardena was honoured, in a very special way, on his 78th birthday.

Initiated by Rajiv Sebastian, the road, heading towards the star’s original residence, at Thalapathpitiya, was named Clarence Wijewardena Mawatha.

The ceremony took place on Tuesday, August 3rd, in the presence of MP Dayasiri Jayasekara, and the Mayor of the Maharagama Urban Council, Tiraj Piyaratne.

Known as the Godfather of Sinhala Pop, Clarence, with his group The Moonstones, later The Golden Chimes, and then The Super Golden Chimes, created a new trend in Sinhala music, which was aptly called Sinhala Pop.

Before long, his music zoomed to the very top in the local music scene, and Clarence kept churning out hits after hits.

All his creations became immensely popular, not only with the Sinhala audience but even with those who preferred the Western stuff.

His hits included ’Sihina Lowak,’ ‘Gamen Liyumak,’ ‘Uadara Niliya,‘Mango Kalu Nande,’ ‘Kandasurinduni,’ “Dilhani,’and one of his biggest creations – ‘Kimada Nawe.’

His songs contained meaningful, and simple, lyrics, and the music wasn’t just sound – very melodious to the ear.