Song of the Week: Native Beijinger

Song of the Week will be a new feature highlighting a great Chinese song (or two) that we've had on our mind (or that's been burning up the charts) over the past week. In this week's edition, I'm going with the excellent pop hop song 北京土著 (Native Beijinger) by Zhang Bohong.

The song's been out for a long time (2 years+) and I vaguely remember it when it came out, forgetting it, then recently hearing it used regularly as background music on Beijing tv, caused me to scramble to find it again. After that, I was hooked. It's really catchy and a great example of Beijing hua. Not the best song, but I love the Beijingness of it and the mix of old and new. It's also made its way around the expat blogosphere and so, for those in need, a quality English translation was recently posted. The artist, 18 at the time, is an interesting story himself and a Beijinger who grew up in the hutongs he sings about in the song.

Enjoy the mp3 and have a great weekend!

Girl Power

There has been no mp3 post in awhile, so I was going to make this one about the excellent girl's rock band, Hang on the Box. However, like a lot of "underground" (if you want to call it that) rock music in China, the web doesn't exactly have a ton of their songs and I felt too lazy to upload them to a server. Hehe, it would also allow me to include their great opus, "For Some Stupid Cunt on a BBS," but at this point I can honestly say I'm no longer bitter, isn't it amazing??? Me? Not bitter? What is going on with the world?

So then what is the exact opposite of these punk girls:
these pop tarts:
So here's the music:

S.H.E. - Superstar
This is one of the few Chinese songs that I listen to and it kind of gets me pumped up, the sort of thing I'll play before a game. Makes me want to play and be someone's superstar. It is the one song of S.H.E.'s that I actually really like.

S.H.E. - 我爱你 : S.H.E. - I Love You
This is a decent song and it has a similar feeling as Superstar, kind of gives the feeling it isn't written by someone who is heavily influencehttp://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gifd by the traditional pop music of the Chinese market (I know Superstar was written by a German producer, not sure about this song, but it wouldn't surprise me).

S.H.E. - 他还是不懂 : S.H.E. - He Still Doesn't Understand
This has the maddening trend in Taiwanese songs of starting out with a Japanese (Korean?) speaking voice at the very start. This is a decent, typical Chinese pop song.

S.H.E. - 不想长大 : S.H.E. - Don't Want To Grow Up
This is the nightmare that occurs when pop music goes wrong, a disaster....

"Since Most Kids Are Spoiled Today, We Let 'em Have It"

The one comment I get on a regular basis is about my music selection, its too old. I always considered myself a hip, happening individual, but I guess when it comes to Chinese music, I'm like Carlton from the Fresh Prince (complete with goofy dancing). So you want new music, taking a cue from Dilated Peoples, I'm giving it to you...


孙燕姿 - 我怀念的 : Sun Yanzi - I Cherish
I'm not a hater, she does have some good songs, but to me, this isn't one of them, its like all the other songs out there, especially all of her other songs. However, it's the most popular new song according to Baidu.

何洁+黄雅莉 - 花儿开了 : He Jie and Huang Yali - The Flower's Bloom
So I like the optimism of this song and the fact that its spring and so "topical." As a northerner, the fact they sing it as "hua er" instead of the more appropriate "huar" is annoying to me, but what the hell, spring is here, love is in the air, and I'm happy!

周迅 - 伴侣 : Zhou Xun - Partner
I'm a huge fan of Zhou Xun's acting career, though her singing leaves something to be desired. Amongst the "Four Flowers," I think Xu Jinglei is the only one not to have released some kind of music album. Its kind of different, especially her voice, so out of all these, its probably the best.

萧亚轩 - l.o.v.e : Elva Xu - L.O.V.E
This is the classic example of American pop (think Britney Spears) influencing Taiwanese pop music. It's catchy if you listen to it enough I guess, but who actually enjoys this stuff?

黄征 - 春梦 : Huang Zheng - Spring Dream
I needed a song from a guy so I went with this. Not sure what I can say, though it does stay within the theme.

So there you go, new music and even a theme, let's call it "spring love." Do you prefer this or my older choices of good music focusing on a certain singer or theme? Personally, much of this music isn't what I enjoy listening to, but that's what happens when you look at the most popular new music. It caters to such a large swath of the population, otherwise known as teenage high school girls across China, that its simply blah. Not good, not bad, just blah...

Music of Minorities 1 - Siqin Gerile （斯琴各日乐）

Its hard enough coming up with good content for the blog, but mp3 posts are particularly difficult, especially putting together the content (I know, I know, I should stop whining about it). One subject that I thought might work is minority music, especially those artists who have went mainstream with it. Arguably, this thread started with Cui Jian, as he is ethnically Korean, but we'll kick it off with Gerile, a favorite of mine. Obvious future entries could be Han Hong, Dao Lang, and...well, not sure beyond that. So, on to Siqin Gerile, for those interested here is her webpage and here is the blog...

Gerile is born and raised in Inner Mongolia and (if it wasn't already obvious), she is ethnically Mongolian. Her first album called New Century (新世纪）was released in 2001 to much popular acclaim and led to an appearance on that year's Spring Festival special. I really enjoyed that album, though I haven't really followed her career much since (which has included 2 more album releases). She has a very interesting style, remaking some old school sohttp://www2.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gifngs, using some traditional elements, and throwing in heavy guitar riffs and rock or techno music. Without further adu, the music:

斯琴各日乐 － 山歌好比江春水
斯琴各日乐 - 故乡 ： Siqin Gerile - Hometown
斯琴各日乐 - 新世纪 : Siqin Gerile - New Century
斯琴各日乐 - 捍卫 : Siqin Gerile - Defender
斯琴各日乐 - 我自己 : Siqin Gerile - Myself

Hip Hop China 1 - Gong Fu

No, not that kind of Gongfu (the fighting or the restaurant)...This one:

Hip hop China sounds like an oxymoron and, to be honest, it really is. There are a lot of message boards and a ton of people who are talking about hip hop on the web, but very few are actually doing it. Those that are tend to focus on the dancing more than anything, the other 3 elements get tossed by the wayside. Most likely, as with rock music, the Chinese language and hip hop simply don't mix.

Gong Fu, from Tianjin, was one of the first to break out onto the mainstream scene in China with a record called 冲动 (Impulse) a few years back. Yeah, so despite my promises of new music, we're talking about stuff from 2005 or so and not from yesterday. While the state of hip hop in China and my love for hip hop would both make reasonable post topics, those will be saved for another day, let's get right into the music.
功夫 － 日落 ： Gongfu - Sunset

Divas of Chinese Music 1: Na Ying

I'm trying to come up with interesting subjects for the mp3 blogs. This is the first in a series on Chinese musical divas, I'm also thinking about one on minority music, and am willing to take suggestions on other topics. When I mentioned that I was going to write about Na Ying, I got criticized by multiple friends for using such "old" music that is no longer popular. Really? I would be shocked if people, even people in my age group, no longer listened to and appreciated Na Ying's music. For those who enjoy the mp3 posts that I've done, I'm very curious, what are you interested in hearing? I'm trying to figure out if this should be posting on the latest music (and I do intend on putting up newer music) or if you're more into finding out about the "classics" of Chinese music, so please leave comments or send emails.

Okay, on to Na Ying. She is originally from Shenyang (yeah!) and is ethnically Manchurian (double yeah!). This diva is now 40 years old, though she's aged very gracefully. She hasn't released a new album since 2002, but much of that is due to the pain she has been through in her personal life (though that pain is rumored to have inspired those albums in 2002). The star had what seemed like a storybook relationship with Gao Feng, a former Chinese soccer star, sort of the China version of Posh and Becks, if Posh was 10 times more popular and if people started referring to Becks as Mr. Posh Spice. Anyways, she kicked the cheating bastard to the curb and is getting things together (here's the news about her on sina (sorry, only in Chinese)). Alright, here's the music:

那英 － 梦一场 : Na Ying - Dreaming & 那英 － 梦醒了： Na Ying - Waking Up From A Dream
These two songs are kind of like part 1 and 2, both come from the album "Conquer" (征服）and are 2 of my favorite songs of all time.

那英 － 一笑而过 ： Na Ying - Passing Smile
Another one of her great ballad songs...

那英 － 一切都变了 ： Na Ying - Everything's Changed
This is a song that comes out of her last album in 2002, representing much of what she was going through at the time.

那英 － 象我这样的情人 ： Na Ying - A Lover Like
那英 － 相见不如怀念 ： Na Ying - Missing You is Better Than Meeting You
Here are two songs that show she isn't just about pure ballads. I'm pretty sure the second is from a movie soundtrack, though can't remember which one...


Alright, so that's Na Ying for you. If it peaks your interest, I would either purchase a "Greatest Hits" album or go with "Conquer," a great album from start to finish that truly defines her style. And as usual, a bonus video:

The Godfather (or "Take the Gun, Leave the Jiaozi")

Cui Jian is considered the father of Chinese rock music, but he's probably the father of all modern mainland Chinese music. Until he came along, Chinese music was all about patriotic songs and weak attempts to copy the love ballads that were coming out of Hong Kong. I don't think its a great overstatement to say that Lao Cui's impact on a generation of Chinese can only be compared to the impact of the US' 1960s counterculture's preferred groups combined (update: or is he China's Bob Marley?). Lao Cui, who is Chinese Korean, and his band ( a mixture of Chinese and foreigners) spoke to a generation with little to do on campus in a country that was starting to change and open up more. I was too young to really appreciate his music, its the generation before me, those who are in their mid-late 30s, who came of age during the time period when Lao Cui's music was at its apex of popularity. I heard his music, but never really paid much attention to it.

I left China before that fateful summer of 1989, but when intellectual curiosity caused me to start picking up whatever possible books I could find on China in high school (books almost always on the events of that summer), I kept coming across the name "Cui Jian." When I returned for the first time in 1998, I wanted to make sure I could buy whatever I could of Cui's music, but after a few listens, I gave up on that pretty quickly. Being used to US music circa 1998, Lao Cui's late 80s-early 90s "rock" hardly qualified as such. His songs almost always had long, instrumental solos, often a sax or a trumpet (Cui was classicly trained on the trumpet from a young age).

After releasing "The Power of the Powerless" in 1998 (buy it on amazon), it seemed Cui was comfortable just sitting back, playing the role of elder statement in the rock scene, encouraging young groups both with access (through his club venue), money, or simply encouragement. He also went into acting, playing the role of the father in one of my all time favorite movies, 我的兄弟姐妹 ("Roots and Branches") and I defy you to watch that movie without crying! Then suddenly in 2005, influenced heavily by hip hop music, Cui released a new album where these new influences are quite obvious, but it still retains its Cui-ness. I decided to attend his 2005 concert in Beijing just because it seemed like a happening, I was going for the classic Chinese reason, to "kan renao", but his performance and the rapt attention paid him by his fans really won me over (or maybe I'm softening in my older age). Anyways, enough talk, let's get to the music!!

崔健 - 一无所有 : Cui Jian - Nothing to My Name
this is the song that started it all, the song that was so popular and iconic to the Tiananmen generation.

崔健 - 出走 : Cui Jian - Escape
this is a song that I "discovered" at the concert, it has the same feeling as "Nothing to My Name," but it portrays those emotions in a different way.

崔健 - 超越那一天 : Cui Jian - Get Over That Day
This is a song off his newest album and shows off that mixture of classic Cui, with newer styles of music, including hip hop and techno. I can't say I love all the new songs (well, I never was a huge fan of his), but its impossible not to respect him for his attempt to change up and modernize his style when he could have just lived off all his old hits. I think his change of styles is a sign of how truly talented he is as a musician.

ps: Sorry for yesterday's rant (stupid Gestapo cops aside). I'll leave you with a bonus video (I love this video, it shows a lot what Cui is about, with emotions that are meant for a girl, but equally applicable toward China). For those interested in more of Lao Cui's music, I'm adding his greatest hits to the suggested reading list on the right (in this case, listening). Also, keep in mind that mp3s will only stay up for a week or so.