Showing posts with label Anita Mui. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Anita Mui. Show all posts
November 5, 2023
October 30, 2023
20,000 vinyl LPs 338: Anita Mui ~ 淑女 (Lady)
~
vinyl LP front cover
cover photo by 毛澤西 (Lü Houmin)
photo of cover by Styrous®
This month is the birthday of Hong Kong singer and actress Anita Mui. She made major contributions to the Cantopop music scene and received numerous awards and honours. She remained an idol throughout her career, and is regarded as a Cantopop diva.
She was dubbed as the "daughter of Hong Kong" and is considered an
iconic Cantopop singer. She once held a sold-out concert in Hammersmith, London, England, where she was dubbed the "Madonna of the East" (東方麥當娜),
which brought her to further international fame. That title stayed with
her throughout her career, in both Eastern and Western media.
Anita Mui
was born on the 10th of October in 1963 in Hong Kong; her brothers and
sister were born in China. At the age of 15, due to the frequency of
performances at different
venues (up to six venues per day) her voice was affected
due to the development of nodules
on her vocal cords.She took a year
off and when she started performing again discovered her voice was lowered by an octave.
Mui released 50 albums in total. Her best-selling album was the 1985 Bad Girl (壞女孩),
which sold over 400,000 copies (platinum 8x by Hong Kong's standards).
In 1994, she sold over 10 million albums. She was invited to sing at the
1988 Summer Olympics opening ceremony in Seoul together with Janet Jackson.
Mui performed the song Bad Girl (a Cantonese cover of Strut by Sheena Easton) in Guangzhou, China,
where it was banned, as it was considered pornographic in nature. The
government authorities in Guangzhou were infuriated when she chose to
sing the song on the last day of her concert.
The album cover is has a gatefold format . . .
淑女 (Lady) opens the album and it, with 莫問一生 (Don't ask for a lifetime), are two of my favorite cuts; Lifetime is a rollicking gallop that rushes on at a furious pace brimming with cultural influences from the Middle Easter, South America, Indian, etc., from time to time. I've added YouTube
links to them as well as other songs I've liked.
Mui did a cover of a 1940 Mandarin popular song composed by Chen Gexin and first recorded by Yao Lee. An English-language version whose lyrics have little in common with the original Mandarin was later recorded by Frankie Laine in 1951 (links to both below). Her 淑女 (Lady) album is one of my "Desert Island" choices (link below).
. . . and there is a magazine included with the album with images.
Anita Mui
never married and On 5 September 2003, Mui publicly announced that she
had cervical cancer, from which her sister had also died.
She held a series of eight shows at the Hong Kong Coliseum from 6–11
November and 14–15 November 2003, which were to be her last concerts
before her death. She never married and her symbolic act was to "marry
the stage", which was accompanied by her hit song Sunset Melody (夕陽之歌) as she exited the stage. The last song she performed on stage was Cherish When We Meet Again (珍惜再會時), a rendition of The Manhattans song, Kiss And Say Goodbye on November 15, 2003. She died on December 30, 2003 at 2:50 am Hong Kong Time.
Tracklist:
Side 1:
Side 1:
A1 - 淑女, Lyrics By – 潘偉源, Producer, Music By, Arranged By – 鮑比達* - 3:35
A2 - 傲慢,Lyrics By – 林夕*, Producer, Music By, Arranged By – 徐日勤 - 4:56
A3 - 幾多個幾多, Lyrics By – 潘源良, Producer, Music By, Arranged By – 郭小霖* - 3:44
A4 - 轉走舊時夢, Lyrics By – 黎彼得, Producer, Music By, Arranged By – 黎小田* - 4:05
A5 - 朝朝暮暮, Lyrics By – 林夕*, Producer, Music By, Arranged By – 徐日勤 - 4:03
A2 - 傲慢,Lyrics By – 林夕*, Producer, Music By, Arranged By – 徐日勤 - 4:56
A3 - 幾多個幾多, Lyrics By – 潘源良, Producer, Music By, Arranged By – 郭小霖* - 3:44
A4 - 轉走舊時夢, Lyrics By – 黎彼得, Producer, Music By, Arranged By – 黎小田* - 4:05
A5 - 朝朝暮暮, Lyrics By – 林夕*, Producer, Music By, Arranged By – 徐日勤 - 4:03
Side 2:
B1 - 黑夜的豹, Lyrics By – 林振強*, Producer, Music By, Arranged By – 倫永亮* - 4:45
B2 - 曾被我擁有, Lyrics By – 鄭國江, Producer, Music By, Arranged By – 郭小霖* - 4:30
B3 - 戀愛 Part-Time, Lyrics By – 陳少琪, Producer, Music By, Arranged By – 黎小田* - 3:06
B4 - - cs By – 周禮茂, Producer, Music By, Arranged By – 倫永亮*, 3:41
B5 - 今夜只因你, Lyrics By – 潘偉源, Producer, Music By, Arranged By – 鮑比達* - 4:13
Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Capital Artists Ltd.
Copyright © – Capital Artists Ltd.
Credits:
Art Direction – Kinson Chan
Bass – Rudy*, 林志宏, 梅啟新
Drums – 張健波, 陳偉強
Guitar – Danny Leung, Dong Dong*, Joey*, 蘇德華
Hair – Ben Lee (15)
Keyboards – Alexander Dela Cruz*, 倫永亮*, 鮑比達*, 黎小田*, Siu Lam Kwok, 郭小霖*
Mixed By – 倫永亮*, 鮑比達*, David Ling Jr., 黎小田*, 郭小霖*, Tom Brown (27), 徐日勤
Percussion – 甘仕樑*
Photography By – 毛澤西
Programmed By – Martin*, 梁偉基
Recorded By – David Ling Jr., Martin*, Philip Kwok, Tom Brown (27), Sum*, 黃紀華*
Saxophone – Ding Basbas*
Stylist – 劉培基
Notes:
Gatefold sleeve.
梅艷芳* = Anita* – 淑女
Label: 華星唱片 – CAL-04-1079
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album
Country: Hong Kong
Released: Feb 4, 1989
Genre: Rock, Pop
Style:Ballad, Cantopop, Pop Rock
Label: 華星唱片 – CAL-04-1079
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album
Country: Hong Kong
Released: Feb 4, 1989
Genre: Rock, Pop
Style:Ballad, Cantopop, Pop Rock
Viewfinder links:
Hue Lee ~ Rose, Rose, I Love You
YouTube links:
Styrous® ~ Monday, October 30, 2023
Sheena Easton - Strut
Frankie Laine ~ Rose, Rose, I Love You
The Manhattans ~ Kiss and Say Goodbye
Anita Mui ~
Anita Mui articles/mentions
October 27, 2023
45 RPMs 75: Ben E. King ~ Stand by Me
~
45 RPM record in sleeve
photo by Styrous®
Sixty years ago today, on October 27, 1960, Ben E. King recorded his first solo songs after he left the Drifters. They were Spanish Harlem (link below) and Stand by Me.
Stand By Me was written by King with Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, who together used the pseudonym Elmo Glick. According to King, the title is derived from, and was inspired by, a spiritual written by Sam Cooke and J. W. Alexander called Stand by Me Father, recorded by the Soul Stirrers with Johnnie Taylor singing lead. Stand By Me went to number one on the R&B charts and was a Top Ten hit on the US charts twice—in its original release, entering the Billboard chart on May 13, 1961 and peaking at number 4 on June 16, 1961.
The personnel on the song included Romeo Penque on sax, Ernie Hayes on piano, Al Caiola and Charles McCracken on guitars, Lloyd Trotman on double bass, Phil Kraus on percussion, and Gary Chester on drums
The song was covered by The Drifters and Aretha Franklin in 1971. The Drifter's version is a little faster while the Franklin version is way faster and a bit jazzier (links to all below).
Spanish Harlem lyrics
There is a rose in Spanish Harlem
A red rose up in Spanish Harlem
It is a special one, it's never seen the sun
It only comes out when the moon is on the run
And all the stars are gleaming
It's growing in the street right up through the concrete
But soft and sweet and dreaming
A red rose up in Spanish Harlem
It is a special one, it's never seen the sun
It only comes out when the moon is on the run
And all the stars are gleaming
It's growing in the street right up through the concrete
But soft and sweet and dreaming
There is a rose in Spanish Harlem
A red rose up in Spanish Harlem
With eyes as black as coal
Then look down in my soul
And starts a fire there
And then I lose control
I have to beg your pardon
A red rose up in Spanish Harlem
With eyes as black as coal
Then look down in my soul
And starts a fire there
And then I lose control
I have to beg your pardon
I'm going to pick that rose
And watch her as she grows in my garden
And watch her as she grows in my garden
I'm going to pick that rose
And watch her as she grows in my garden
And watch her as she grows in my garden
La la la, la la la, la la la la
(There is a rose in Spanish Harlem)
La la la, la la la, la la la la
(There is a rose in Spanish Harlem)
(There is a rose in Spanish Harlem)
La la la, la la la, la la la la
(There is a rose in Spanish Harlem)
Source: LyricFind
Songwriters: Jerry Leiber / Phil Spector
The "B" side on this record, Taste of Love, actually started out as the "A" side with Spanish Harlem on the "B" side. By the time this record was issued, the switch had been made.
First Taste of Love was written by Doc Pomus, who wrote songs for many blues and rock singers, and Phil Spector, record producer, musician, and songwriter who developed the Wall of Sound, a music production formula he described as a Wagnerian approach to rock and roll.
Tracklist:
Side 1:
A Stand By Me, written by King*, Glick* - 2:44
Side 2:
B On The Horizon, written by Leiber, Stoller* - 2:18
Companies, etc.
Published By – Progressive (3)
Published By – Trio (8)
Published By – Adt
Lacquer Cut At – Atlantic Studios
Credits:
Side 1:
A Stand By Me, written by King*, Glick* - 2:44
Side 2:
B On The Horizon, written by Leiber, Stoller* - 2:18
Companies, etc.
Published By – Progressive (3)
Published By – Trio (8)
Published By – Adt
Lacquer Cut At – Atlantic Studios
Credits:
Arranged By, Conductor – Stan Applebaum
Producer – Leiber-Stoller*
Producer – Leiber-Stoller*
Notes:
Both sides recorded at Bell Sound Studios, New York City on October 27, 1960
Barcode and Other Identifiers
Matrix / Runout (Side A label): 60C-5164
Matrix / Runout (Side B label): 61C-5442
Matrix / Runout (Side A runout, etched): 45-60-C-5164-13 AT W
Matrix / Runout (Side B runout, etched): 45-61-C-5442-11
Rights Society: BMI
Matrix / Runout (Side B label): 61C-5442
Matrix / Runout (Side A runout, etched): 45-60-C-5164-13 AT W
Matrix / Runout (Side B runout, etched): 45-61-C-5442-11
Rights Society: BMI
Ben E. King – Stand By Me
Label: Atlantic Records – 7-89361
Label: Atlantic Records – 7-89361
Format: Vinyl, 7", 45 RPM
Country: US
Released: 1961
Genre: Rock, Funk / Soul
Style: Rock & Roll, Soul, Rhythm & Blues
Country: US
Released: 1961
Genre: Rock, Funk / Soul
Style: Rock & Roll, Soul, Rhythm & Blues
Viewfinder links:
50srockin ~ Bell Sound Studios N.Y.C
YouTube links:
The Drifters ~ Spanish Harlem
Ben E. King ~
Styrous® ~ Friday, October 27, 2023
March 27, 2014
78 RPMs 2: Hue Lee ~ Rose, Rose, I Love You
photo by Styrous®
Rose, Rose, I Love You is a song that is dear to me because when I was in Junior High I was seriously in love with a girl named Rose. I was 15 (how serious can a 15 year-old be?). Although the song is about a romance in China, it was our song; however, the theme of the song proved all too prophetic. Our "love affair" ended when I went off to High School and her folks moved back to the Philippines taking her with them, of course.
Rose was a Chinese popular song, Méigui méigui wǒ ài nǐ (玫瑰玫瑰我愛你), first recorded by Yao Lee (姚莉) in 1940. The song is also known under the titles Shanghai Rose and China Rose. Yao Lee's Mandarin version was also released in the US and UK in the early 1950s by Columbia Records, catalog numbers 39420 and 2837 respectively. Yao Lee was credited as "Miss Hue Lee" in this release. Other early releases have also credited her as "Yiu Lei." The original Chinese lyrics were by Wu Cun (Ng Chuen; 吳村 Wú Cūn) and the music was credited to Lin Mei (林枚), a pen name for popular song composer Chen Gexin (陳歌辛).
Rose and I listened to the English version which was recorded by American singer Frankie Laine and the Norman Luboff Choir, with Paul Weston and his orchestra, on 6 April 1951, and released by Columbia Records as catalog number 39367. The English-language lyrics were written by the British radio presenter Wilfred Thomas. The English lyrics have little in common with the original Mandarin, but they pay subtle tribute to the titular Mandarin phrase "méigui méigui" (lit. rose petal) by including the English phrase "make way," with its normal English meaning.
English lyrics:
Rose, Rose I love you with an aching heart
What is your future, now we have to part?
Standing on the jetty as the steamer moves away
Flower of Malaya, I cannot stay
Make way, oh, make way for my eastern Rose
Men crowd in dozens everywhere she goes
In her rickshaw on the street or in a cabaret
"Please make way for Rose", you can hear them say
All my life I shall remember
Oriental music and you in my arms
Perfumed flowers in your tresses
Lotus-scented breezes and swaying palms
Rose, Rose I love you with your almond eyes
Fragrant and slender 'neath tropical skies
I must cross the seas again and never see you more
Way back to my home on a distant shore
All my life I shall remember
Oriental music and you in my arms
Perfumed flowers in your tresses
Lotus-scented breezes and swaying palms
Rose, Rose I leave you, my ship is in the bay
Kiss me farewell now, there's nothin' to say
East is east and west is west, our worlds are far apart
I must leave you now but I leave my heart
Rose, Rose I love you with an aching heart
What is your future, now we have to part?
Standing on the jetty as the steamer moves away
Flower of Malaya, I cannot stay
(Rose, Rose I love you, I cannot stay)
Songwriters:
Henry Thomas Wilfred, Christian Langdon, Traditional,
The song reached #3 on the Billboard magazine music charts in 1951. At the same time Columbia released Yao Lee's original Mandarin version in the US and UK under the English title, Rose, Rose, I Love You. The song was covered by Petula Clark with new lyrics under the title May Kway (I mean, REALLY!) which entered the UK charts on May 5, 1951 and peaked at #16. Hong Kong singer Anita Mui sang the Cantonese cover of the song in 1989 and was featured as the theme song of the Jackie Chan film, Miracles. Mui also sings this song in the 1988 film Rouge. Aneka also covered Laine's version in the early 1980s, adding new original English lyrics with an almost but not quite disco tempo. This single was released by Ariola Records but did not chart. The original Mandarin version of this song was also covered by Taiwanese singer Joanna Wang in her 2009 album Joanna & 王若琳.
Dato' Zainal Alam sang it in English, Malay, Chinese & Tamil (it's a pretty interesting rendition). He began his career in broadcasting as an announcer for the British Radio Station in Penang. Soon after the British returned, he was made Station Manager and sent to England to study Broadcasting Management. Zainal Alam then went to USA to take up a Government Management Program. After the 1957 independence, he was given the task of managing the entire northern states. Just as Malaysia was incorporated, he was appointed the Regional Director of Broadcasting. The 'Whites' refer to him as the Bob Hope of Malaysia and the 'Blacks' as the Bing Crosby. He died on 12th December 1991.
~ ~ ~
Rose, Rose I Love You on YouTube:
Anita Mui on YouTube
Aneka on YouTube
Joanna Wang ~
Aneka on YouTube
Joanna Wang ~
I still think with fondness of my lovely Rose from all those many, many years ago.
Styrous® ~ Thursday, March 27, 2014
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