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Give Me A Hand

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christopher lee

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Shin Fu Train

Open Up

Century Love Song

A Baw

Beautiful Sincere Women

Story

 

sammi

SAMMI CHENG (I DESERVED) (WARNER MUSIC) (MAY99)

MUSIC STYLE : MOSTLY BALLADS / MID-TEMPO

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE

Sammi's third (and should I say long-awaited?) Mandarin solo album. I admit feeling a bit apprehensive about listening to this album cos I thought it would be the same as her previous two Mandarin albums which were littered with tracks from her Cantonese albums (spell : unoriginal), and not forgetting that she has released no less than three Cantonese albums since her last second Mandarin album, thereby making it an easy task for the producers in selecting songs should they decide to use the Cantonese numbers. Boy, was I pleasantly surprised to find out then that all the ten tracks here are original Mandarin productions. As a note, there's also a bonus eleventh track which is in fact an adaptation of Sammi's Cantonese hit "Our Theme Song" (according to the record company, it's been translated to Mandarin in response to fans' requests, duh) but who cares.

The title track "Absence" written by Yuan Wei Ren (the guy who wrote Na Ying's "Conquer") is a highly listenable ballad. Track 6 "Unhappiness" is another well-written ballad which successfully evokes one's lonely feeling especially when listening to it late in the night. 

Sammi's vocal performance is competent and listenable.......hey, why do I keep mentioning the word "listenable"??? But that basically sums up this album : main-stream pop but highly listenable album. At least I'm sure I'll play this album in my hi-fi once in a while long after the album disappears from the album/song charts (yup, Sammi you deserve this), unlike her previous two Mandarin albums which are practically collecting dust on my shelf.

RATING : (4 out of 5)

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jacky

JACKY  WU (YOU'RE HAPPIER THAN BEFORE) (BMG MUSIC) (APR99)

MUSIC STYLE : MAINSTREAM-POP (MOSTLY BALLADS)

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE
Surprise, Surprise! Mr Jacky can actually come up with a tasteful album. Forgive me if I sound skeptical but I'm being objective based on Jacky's past personal track records : Hokkien albums, veteran compere whose jokes on air are sometimes....well, distasteful and not to mention the tasteless collaboration with Andy Lau & Co in "Stupid Kid". Of course one can bring up his merits by being part of the critically-acclaimed group SBDW but then that's a group effort, right?

Anyway, back to this latest solo release : while most of the songs here are ballads, they are of competent quality and radio-friendly. Nice ballad tracks include the title track "You Are Happier Than Before", Track 5 "Let Go" (written by Jacky himself) and Track 8 "Let Me". There's also two duets done with a promising newcomer by the name of Landy Win whose vocals sound like those of Frans (or Gao Hui Jun).

On his vocal performance, Jacky delivers and it's actually gratifying to hear Jacky sound serious but heartfelt for once. Let's hope we can have more of this side of Mr Jacky in the future.
RATING : (4 out of 5)

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andy

HUMAN LOVE (ANDY LAU) (BMG MUSIC) (APR99)

MUSIC STYLE : BALLADS & MID-TEMPO

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE
Sigh! Just when I had enough of Andy's simple & brainless songs like "Toilet Bowl" and "Bad Kid", comes this brand new album which will no doubt continue to lower my IQ further after listening to it. Sample these lyrics : "....... my heart is your condominium, please don't rent out to others, you are the sole owner" from the song "Condominium", "A&B, C&D, then it's E, FGH, IJK, LMNOPQ....." from the track "ABCDE", "You are my girlfriend, I'm your boyfriend ......" from the song "Boyfriend".  The lyrics are so trivial to the point of being silly especially when it's sung by someone who's been in the music scene for so long. To be fair, some of the melodies in the album have nice tunes but they are practically ruined by the trivial lyrics.

Many of the songs sound dated. Andy even tried to adopt a China-contemporary singing style in Track 9 "Be With Me For Two Lifetimes" with disastrous and hilarious results (if you don't believe me, buy his album and zoom in to this track).

Among so many forgettable and trivial tracks, one song stands out : Track 6 "The Talking Dumb" composed by Pan Xie Qing and written by Andy Lau. It is the typical Andy-type ballad, namely nice and soothing but more important, one doesn't feel so stupid when listening to this track.

Maybe Andy is trying to search a new direction in his music career but I feel it's heading towards the wrong path. I know it's not easy but it's not impossible : look at Leon Lai whose albums are getting better and better these days. But then, I don't think my thoughts matter because we are talking about ANDY LAU here, the guy whose Mandarin albums have always sold like hot cakes. Sigh!
RATING : (2 out of 5)

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andy

ANDY HUI (FAITH IN LOVE) (DECCA RECORDS) (APR99)

MUSIC STYLE : MAIN-STREAM POP (SOFT-ROCK/BALLADS)

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE
Andy Hui has got a jackpot song! It's none other than the title track "Why Do You Love Someone Else Behind My Back?". The success of a hit song has a lot to do with how it touches the listeners and Andy's new song will definitely cost a stir in many people's hearts as there are so many third-party relationship problems in the real world. Written by composer cum singer Zhang Hong Liang, it sounds every much a hit single in the making, its first music sentence in the chorus part even sounds like an extract of Daniel Chen's hit "I Know It Better Than Anyone Else". Expect it to make it big in Taiwan.

Like Chyi Chin, Andy Hui seems to enjoy rock music too. In one Hong Kong music concert in 1998, he has already attempted a rock version of A Mei's "So You Do Not Want Anything At All". There's even a rock version of "Why Do You Love Someone Else Behind My Back?" included as an eleventh bonus track. However like Chyi Chin, Andy Hui's vocals are not suited for heavy rock numbers. Thankfully Andy understands that and he has restricted his music to soft-rock style (unlike Chyi Chin). There are no fewer than five songs in this album which are given the soft-rock treatment.

Most of the songs here make easy listening but unfortunately a lot of them also lack that extra "oomph" factor to stand up on their own (except for the title track and Track 3 "Wrong Till The End"). Nothing exciting about this release. Strictly for Andy's fans only.
RATING : (3 out of 5)

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karen

YOU CAN (KAREN MOK) (ROCK RECORDS) (APR99)

MUSIC STYLE : SOFT ROCK/GRUNGE/BALLAD/FOLKISH

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE
Karen's third Mandarin solo album. Twelve songs including eight which are produced by Jeff Chia (Jia Ming Shu) and three by music guru Jonathan Lee (Li Zhong Shen). This album comes abound with a list of hot-shot composers in today's music scene like Jonathan Lee, Tom (Pan Xie Qing), Zhang Zheng Yue and Ah Niu. Overall a solid album containing varied musical styles that keeps the listener going right till the last track. One outstanding track stands out : Track 8 "I'm Tired" composed by Tom (Pan Xie Qing) - it has a really infectious rhythmic beat & nice melody that makes you want to groove along with it. 

Karen's vocals adopt her usual laid-back but heartfelt approach, which sounded to some critics as merely word dictation (which I don't personally feel so). Rather I think this is Karen's vocal trade-mark which falls under a niche of its own which nobody can quite duplicate. Just listen to Track 6 "Any Reason For Love?" (originally sung by Sylvia Chang (Zhang Ai Jia)), it's a completely revamped track that sounds 100% original due to Karen's performance & the soft-rock music arrangement.

Looking for an interesting but enjoyable listening experience? Go get this album!
RATING : (4 out of 5)

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ronald

RONALD CHENG (I REALLY CAN) (UNIVERSAL MUSIC) (APR99)

MUSIC STYLE : SOFT-ROCK/BAND/ACOUSTIC-POP

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE
A refreshing change - let's what this latest album of Ronald Cheng offers. After a string of sugary-pop releases in the past, Ronald is back with a change-over in his music. The music is still essentially main-stream pop but they sound different mainly due to the live-band arrangement, thereby giving more edge and bass to the songs. Even a simple acoustic-guitar arrangement, as in Track 9 "Because You Are Not Me", sounds so "live" and real.

Ronald's vocals are good and he sounds so much at ease with all the songs here. Most of the songs are highly listenable, including the title track "I Really Can" (written by Pan Xie Qing), Track 7 "I Won't Cry" (written by Chen Wei) and Track 9 "Because You Are Not Me".

Kudos to Ronald for giving us something refreshing but nice. Yup, Ronald, you really can come up with something different this time.
RATING : (4 out of 5)

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ipis

IPIS (GIVE ME A HAND) (DECCA RECORDS) (APR99)

MUSIC STYLE : R&B

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE
Third album from IPIS. Following the success of their second album, IPIS has once again come up with a new release focusing on R&B music. This is not a bad choice since there aren't any groups in Taiwan which can successfully venture along this path (think Victor & Michael, Power Station and Beyond). 

Unfortunately most of the songs in this album are only so-so, sure they made easy-listening but they are not the kind of songs which will make you sit up and go "Wow". Ultimately they'll just fade away in your mind without registering. Some of the tracks which stand exception are the catchy title track "Give Me A Hand" and Track 3 "You Guess".

Hopefully IPIS will come up with stronger material next time.
RATING : (2 out of 5)

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cass

CASS PHANG (START FROM ZERO) (EMI) (APR99)

MUSIC STYLE : MOSTLY BALLADS

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE
Now that Cass has switched to a new record company, it is timely for her old company to release her first Mandarin collection. Taken from her past four Mandarin releases, this compilation contains all her hits (like "Caged Bird", "Eyes Are Wet" and "Small Plaything") and more (two previously unreleased songs are also included). 

One good point about this collection is that it also contains some neglected but good gems like "Healing" from her first Mandarin album and "One Day Three Hundred & Sixty-Five Years" from her last album.

Overall a compilation worth getting for, whether you are a Cass fan or someone who hasn't bought her albums before but have always liked her songs.
RATING : (4 out of 5)

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xin mei

LAN XIN MEI (LOOK AT XIN MEI) (SONY MUSIC) (APR99)

MUSIC STYLE : TECHNO/RHYTHM BLUES/POP-ROCK

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE
I've always been amazed by Lan Xin Mei's continuously changing and refreshing chameleon image; even Anita Mui and Sammi Cheng pale in this aspect when they are put alongside with Xin Mei. From her Barbie Doll image in her previous album "Meat Rice Ball", she has transformed into an African girl with that Bohemian touch in her new album. Sammi Cheng has also "copied" this image in her latest Mandarin MTV video "Absence".

However you're wrong if you think that she is trying to stir everyone's attention from her music to her image. Xin Mei has come up with her best album musically so far. Add to that some whacky but realistic lyrics dealing with the subject matter "love" and you have one of the most fun albums of 1999 so far. Sample these : "......I'm sitting on the toilet bowl....not only suspecting why one roll of toilet paper is missing, I also keep thinking why you haven't given me a call" from Track 2 "Your Telephone Call" (please note that the lyrics' standard here is different from that of Andy Lau's songs like "Toilet Bowl" and "ABCDE" which are childish and stupid) and ".....Do you love me for my tender hugs or for the magic that the wonder bra wields on my body...." (lyrics penned by Xin Mei herself) from Track 7 "In A Mess". 

Most of the songs here are fast and light tempo. Buy this album if you want to have a fun and rewarding listening experience. I really had an enjoyable time listening to the music and sampling the lyrics at the same time. Way to go gal.
RATING : (4 out of 5)

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you hong ming

YOU HONG MING (MAY'S SNOW) (SONY MUSIC) (APR99)

MUSIC STYLE : BALLADS / MID-TEMPO

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE
In his latest album, You Hong Ming composed nine (out of ten) of the melodies. While the majority are ballads, they are of good quality as You Hong Ming himself is an accomplished composer whose previous popular works for others include Mindy Ke's "Love Me" and Qiu Hai Zheng's "The One Who Loves Me & The One I Love". 

Most of the tracks here deal with unrequited love. Fortunately besides his composing talents, You Hong Ming is also a competent singer and his vocals possess that right tinge of bitterness to perform these songs. Zoom in to Track 2 "Meng Po Water" and Track 3 "July 1st" to find out what I mean. Track 5 "Story Book", with its simple acoustic guitar arrangement, is a haunting folkish ballad which is produced by You Hong Ming himself. However the title ballad track "May's Snow" is a bit too commercial-sounding for my own liking, it's better to listen to this song by watching its MTV video because of its beautifully snow shots of Japan.

Touted as an album whose production spans a period of 14 months, it truly delivers and I will recommend it as a must-have late-night listening companion.
RATING : (4 out of 5)

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panda

PANDA (THE BEST OF PANDA) (WHAT'S MUSIC) (APR99)

MUSIC STYLE : MOSTLY BALLADS

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE
Finally, a collection album by Panda after five solo Mandarin releases (including two demo-concept albums). Two new songs are also included : Track 1 "Ambition" which is a fast, catchy duet with newcomer Huang Hui Wen and Track 2 "Wandering By Oneself" which is a slow-rock love song, the latter being a refreshing change to Panda's previous music style (namely ballads and folkish pop).

Most of Panda's past hits can be found here including "Snow Waiting Bird", "Mr Moon", "Troubled Love River" and "Fool's Harbour". Two of Panda's hit duets with Valen Hsu, "Love Movie" and "Your Eyes", are also included. However a glaring miss in this CD collection is Panda's title track from his fourth Mandarin release "Finally It Will Still Be". 

The special packaging also comes with a VCD containing six of Panda's MTVs. A worthy collection for every Panda's fan.
RATING : (4 out of 5)

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leo

LEO KU (LEO KU) (FORWARD MUSIC) (APR99)

MUSIC STYLE : EASY LISTENING (FOLKISH / BALLAD)

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE
Leo's third Mandarin solo album (but his first since he switched record company). For this album, he has even engaged the services of former actress/singer Charlie Yueng (Yang Cai Ni) to style his image. The result : A clean-cut boy next door, which suits Leo just fine becos of his already boyish face.

Just by listening to the first two tracks "Woody" (a nice ballad) and "Like" (a feel-good light tempo song), one can already see that Leo has embarked on the right music path which suits his vocals perfectly. The rest of the songs are also main-stream pop but highly listenable. In particular, the duet between Leo and Gigi Leung (Liang Yong Qi) "Wish" is an outstanding ballad, which will no doubt become a popular request dedication song on the radio waves.

Unlike his previous two albums, most of the songs here do not showcase his impressive falsettos which is a good thing by itself. It's time for Leo to realise that he need not always rely (or should I say over-rely) on this aspect of his vocals to prove that he can sing. Leo's Mandarin diction has also improved significantly since his debut album. 

Although it is coincidental (or deliberate?) that Leo's old record company, BMG Music has chosen to release a compilation album at the same time as this brand new release, his new record company need not worry at all. Because ultimately it is the latter who has a true gem in their hands.
RATING : (4 out of 5)

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leo

LEO KU (SHIN-FU TRAIN) (BMG MUSIC) (APR99)

MUSIC STYLE : MOSTLY FOLKISH / BALLADS 

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE

Just when Leo is about to release his brand new album since he joined a new record company comes this compilation release from his old record company. It's too coincidental to ignore the perfect timing : namely to "distract" Leo's fans from his brand new release. This tactic is nothing new in the music business as it has happened before to Leon Lai and Jeff Chang when they jumped ship.

Having said that, this is still a collection worth getting if you haven't bought any of Leo's Mandarin albums. It includes practically all the songs that Leo has recorded so far in Mandarin, considering that he has only released two Mandarin albums so far and there are eighteen songs included in this compilation. Hits like "The Clock That Forgets Time", "Small Finger", "Road-Side Stall" and "Arrow Strike" can be found here.

Besides the CD, the collection comes with a VCD which contains 10 MTVs. Do I need to say more? Go grab the collection.

RATING : (4 out of 5)

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shunza

SHUNZA (OPEN UP) (MAGIC STONE MUSIC) (APR99)

MUSIC STYLE : VARIED (BALLAD/FOLK/DISCO/BLUES)

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE

It shouldn't come as a surprise that Shunza is finally releasing her debut English album. After all, her past two solo Mandarin albums were so heavily Western-influenced. 

It's also no surprise that Shunza sounds so much at ease with English songs. This is a two-CD album. The first CD "Open Your Mind" contains all cover versions of songs like Chicago's "If You Leave Me Now", Melissa Manchester's "Don't Cry Out Loud", Sinead O'Connor's "Nothing Compares To You" and Steven Bishop's "It Might Be You". And Shunza belts them out comfortably and nicely.

The second CD "Open Your Heart" contains mostly English versions of her Mandarin hits like "I'm Not A Star", "April 5, 1969" and "Come Home". Check out in particular "I'm Not A Star" : it's a duet done with Jessica Folcker and I must say it's a powerful diva performance.

One song that I dislike is the title track "Open Up" which is the advertisement theme song for a famous coffee brand. The repetitious chorus slogan "Open Up, Open Up" can be irritating at times.

Overall a competent English album from one of the few competent Mandarin singers in the music scene today.

RATING : (3 out of 5)

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chyi chin

CHYI CHIN (CENTURY LOVE SONG) (WHAT'S MUSIC) (MAR99)

MUSIC STYLE : BALLADS / MID-TEMPO / ROCK

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE
There was a period in the past where Chyi Chin released successive albums with strong rock influence. Apparently he enjoyed rock music. However his last two Mandarin albums with What's Music contained mostly ballads because this is what listeners like to hear from him, judging by the good sales figures garnered from these two albums. 

In his latest Mandarin album, Chyi Chin has finally attempted to do cover versions of old Mandarin songs made popular by other artistes. And in order to inject new life into the songs, Chyi Chin has once again turned to rock. There are no less than six songs here (out of a total of fourteen songs) which are given a rock-style revamp. Some of these succeed while the rest bombed. Chyi Chin's vocals belong to a group more suited for intepretation of ballads rather than heavy-rock songs (singers such as Jeff Chang and William So fall under this same genre while The Power Station and Dick & The Cowboys fall under the rock-music category). Therefore while it is commendable that he has tried to give an original feeling to the old songs, however his vocals are just not cut out for rock performance. Take the leading track "Have Nothing" (made popular in 1989 by China singer Cui Jian) : Chyi Chin's soft vocals sound weak against the backdrop of loud rock-music arrangement. Other songs like "Old Dreams" (a 1949 Bai Guang song) and "I Found Myself" (a 1973 Liu Jia Chang song) failed miserably too when given a heavy rock arrangement. On the other hand, Chyi Chin fared nicely in the song "Lover's Tears" which is given a refreshing but suitable soft-rock feeling.

As expected, Chyi Chin sounds best in ballads which are given a different but sentimental music arrangement like "The Moon Represents My Heart" and Valen Hsu's "If The Cloud Knows".

A highlight of the album lies in its packaging by bravely adopting the image concept of China's Chairman Mao's Cultural Revolution. Besides the CD, the album also comes with a Red Booklet (don't worry, it actually contains the songs' lyrics and not Chairman Mao's ideology), a VCD containing the MTVs of "Have Nothing" plus Chyi Chin's previous old songs and a poster. However these goodies come only in the special edition package.

On the whole, the album scores more misses than pluses in attempting to breathe new life into the songs. Some classics are just meant to be untouched.
RATING : (2 out of 5)

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a baw

A BAW (A BAW) (FORWARD MUSIC) (APR99)

MUSIC STYLE : MOSTLY LIGHT-TEMPO

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE
A Baw's debut Mandarin album. Although a newcomer in the music scene, A Baw is actually a compere "veteran" in the Taiwanese TV variety scene. She's also the daughter of Eric Tsang (or Zeng Zhi Wei), a famous plump but cute Hong Kong actor.

Granted, A Baw has a clean and squeaky voice, which complements perfectly with the clean-cut & cute image that the record company is marketing her as. However, maybe because of her young age, she seems to be devoid of feelings when it comes to interpreting sad songs. Fortunately most of the tracks here are happy teeny-boppy and puppy-love kinda songs. The album actually starts off promisingly, at least I like the first three tracks, especially Track 1 "You Always Exist" written by surprise, surprise, Valen Hsu (Xu Ru Yun). However from Track 4 onwards, I sort of lost concentration and got bored. Maybe I'm getting too old for these kind of albums. The album CD comes along with a CD single which consists of a fast & catchy song "Who's Better Than Who" sung by A Baw and two other Taiwanese compere veterans Huang Zi Jiao and Ah Liang.

Strictly for teenagers and adults who are still teenage at heart. Hopefully, there will be more depth and challenge in A Baw's second album. 
RATING : (2 out of 5)

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frans

FRANS (BEAUTIFUL SINCERE WOMEN) (POLYGRAM) (MAR99)

MUSIC STYLE : EASY-LISTENING MAINSTREAM POP

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE
Frans (or Gao Hui Jun) is the newcomer who shot to fame by singing the karaoke-fave duet "You Are Most Precious" with Jacky Cheung in 1998. This is her debut solo album and yes, it includes the famous duet as its eleventh track which is a good thing by itself since it means we get ten brand new songs instead of nine.

If you observe closely, Frans looks a bit like Kit Chan from some angles (in actual fact, Fran hails from a Taiwan tribe and she's the niece of 70's diva Tang Lang Hua). I've been eagerly anticipating her solo album becos I like her voice and more importantly I believe she's a girl with substance (if you have watched Jacky Cheung's 1998 Taiwan album promo concert in which she sang "live" with Jacky, you will agree with me too). True enough, her performance in this album lives up to my expectations. Listen to her vocal prowess in "Don't Bother Whether I'm Happy Or Not" in which she convincingly sings about a girl ordering her boyfriend (or rather ex-boyfriend to be) to get out of her life. Then tune in to her tender and heart-wrenching performance in "You Don't Love Me, Isn't It?" whereby she portrays a pitiful gal asking the same title question to her lover.

Alas, the majority of the songs here do not live quite up to expectations. While it's true that they are easy-listening pop, however they are the type of so-called "safe" mainstream pop songs which lack the "oomph" to leave a deep impression. Take for instance the title track "The Beautiful Sincere Women", it sounds like the "We Are The World" kind of safe ballad built from the same/universal formula recycled over and over again.. I bet Frans must have found it a boring piece of material to perform. In fact the major saving grace for this album is the presence of Frans as a singer.

With such a potential performer as Frans in their possession, the record company should let her tackle more challenging works. Hopefully this can materialise in her future albums because I do believe this girl is here to stay for good.
RATING : (3 out of 5)

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christopher

CHRISTOPHER LEE (STORY) (FORM RECORDS) (MAR99)

MUSIC STYLE : FOLKISH / MID-TEMPO POP

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE / CHRISTOPHER'S LIFE STORY
For those of you who don't watch Singapore-produced Chinese serials, Christopher Lee is one of the top ten most popular and leading actors in Television Corporation of Singapore (Singapore's main TV station). One of his more popular roles comes from the Singapore-produced serial "The Condor Heroes" where he played the leading role of Yang Guo. Enough said.

Hey, Christopher can actually sing! Yup, although he's not a professional singer, but he definitely has the potential to make it big in the music scene. He has a nice voice plus he has a competent sense of rhythm. Witness the ease in which he sang the catchy and folkish tune of "Near Distance". He also sounds comfortable with slow ballads like "Love Till The End". 

Alas, Christopher only sang four songs in this album. The rest of the tracks are actually Christopher's own narration of his childhood, family and career life. There's even a specially-arranged interview track whereby a radio DJ is supposedly interviewing Christopher. Maybe the production team is trying to be original but I think they backfired. Halfway listening through the CD, I was already losing concentration as to what Christopher was saying, all I was waiting forward to is to hear the music tracks, which are unfortunately spaced out as Tracks 4, 8, 12 and 14. I mean, come on, people buy music CDs to listen to music and not to story-telling. They could have printed Christopher's story in words instead of letting poor Christopher rattling away throughout the CD. But then, I guess this is called shrewd business decision-making since the production cost should be lower due to the recording of only four songs instead of the standard ten songs but higher profits can be earned as the CD is sold for the price of an album instead of the cheaper price of an EP. Of course one can argue that the packaging cost is higher which is quite true : the album comes in a close-to-A4 size box which includes a VCD (containing two MTVs), a photo pamphlet, a lyrics cum photo booklet and a comic book which is nothing to rave about due to the poor storyline & simple drawing. 

On the whole, the only consolation from buying this album comes from the following :-
- it's a pleasant surprise to hear Christopher's competent vocal performance
- all the four tracks are nice and highly-listenable

Last heard is that works are in plan to release Christopher's second album in the later half of 1999. Let's hope the production team will not take the fans and I for another same ride again.
RATING : (3 out of 5 for music production)
                     (1 out of 5 for album concept)

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