Friday 5 is a bit of an experiment at the moment – just something fun for the weekend! So let’s start off with something I grew up with – Cantopop!
Just like TVB series, the quality of Cantopop has been decreasing these past few years which is rather sad. But I’ve always loved a good duet, not picky, as long as you have two solid singers, throw in some sweet / emo lyrics and a nice harmony – I’m sucked in. Here’re five of my favourites (I think they maybe ‘lesser known’? Or are they?)
1. Sense & Sensibility (理智與感情) by Rainie Yang and Jason Chan
I really liked Jason Chan when he first debuted in 2007, he has a good voice and I enjoyed his first two albums. I still listen to his music occasionally but they just doesn’t seem as good as they used to be? Anyway, ‘Sense & Sensibility’ is a duet with Rainie Yang – whose Cantonese is impressive! I can’t find the original MV on YouTube (it is on Youku) and Rainie still remember *some* of it based on this clip from her concert in Hong Kong last year.
(The audio from this clip is kind of crappy…)
2. He doesn’t love me (他都不愛我) by Joey Yung and Deep Ng
Gosh is this song is almost 10 years old already?? Seriously? Ah yes, guys and girls from the same record company will always eventually end up doing a duet. Joey and Deep though, is a rather odd combination. But for some reason, I like this mismatch. Joey is well, Joey – and Deep has quite a distinctive voice, he’s very nasal! Too bad he never lived up his potential with all the negative news etc…
3. Rocky Path (石徑) by Keeva Mak and Hins Cheung
Hins Cheung’s 2010 album “No. Eleven” is one of my favourites. It reminded me of the reason why I fell in love with his voice in the first place. Even though ‘Cool Love’ (a mid tempo song) made Hins one of the most famous singers in Cantopop, his voice is just made for ballads. It must be hard to duet with him since his pitch is so high… but newcomer Keeva Mak did an excellent job. This song takes me back to the 80s/90s when Cantopop was at its peak. Just a simple, sweet story about innocent love.
4. Make a Clean Break (一刀兩斷) by Myolie Wu and Chilam Cheung
Actors who can sing are a rare breed these days, but Chilam was a singer way back then and Myolie actually has a good voice, even though she hasn’t been given that many opportunities to sing. This is a ‘breakup’ song, but Chilam and Myolie has great chemistry in the series “The Rippling Blossom”.
5. Love makes the heart hurt (戀愛令人心痛) by Linda Chung and Philip Wei
You know that feeling you get after you ate too much chocolate? That’s the feeling I get if I have to listen to more than two Linda Chung songs in a row. She has a uber sweet image but I can only tolerate it if it’s in small doses, like… half a song. Of course the melody by Jay Chou helps a lot~ (it’s the Cantonese ‘remake’ of Xin Dong Xin Tong / 心動心痛 by Evonne Hsu and Will Liu) And I still listen to it quite often…
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