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angelica lee

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kan kan

liu hung hua

cyndi yao

ANGELICA LEE

STELLA CHANG

PHIL CHANG

KAN KAN

 LIU HUNG HUA

CYNDI YAO

Dancing Skirt

 Just Stella

 Rain Keeps Falling

The Tears

What's The Matter

Too Late

gigi leung

denise ruan

shino

may day

jeff chang

na ying

GIGI LEUNG

DENISE RUAN

SHINO

MAY DAY

 JEFF CHANG

NA YING

Fresh

 Penetrate

She Knows

1st Composition Album

Please Come Back

Clear Cut

julia peng

na na

billie

romi

various

richie ren

JULIA PENG

NA NA

BILLIE

ROMI

VARIOUS

RICHIE REN

Process Collection

Poison

Nobody's Fool But My Own

Angel Fish

Rock For Children

Serious Collection

 

angelica

ANGELICA LEE (DANCING SKIRT) (ROCK RECORDS) (AUG99)

ALBUM NOT REVIEWED

After two solo LPs and one EP, Angelica Lee (or Lee Xin Jie) is back with a brand new album whose cover photo (refer above) shows a "pretty uninhibited" face of her.

The full album name is actually "Third Generation Angelica Lee - Dancing Skirt".  According to the record company, there are, eh, three generations of Lee in her music career so far.  The first generation shows a cute and lively Lee, the second generation depicts a carefree Lee (no doubt related to her previous EP name "Free") and the third & current generation reveals a Lee who surpasses all expectations. 

Like her previous outing "Bye Bye Childhood Days", the new album is fun filled with light-tempo and breezy tunes.  One fine example is the lively title track "Dancing Skirt" composed by fellow Malaysian Ah Niu who is inspired by Lee's active and restless character.

Other songs include another light-tempo number "Don't Make Me Cry" sung together with a Sweden trio group Dear Mom (this song has already been aired in Singapore radio waves months before the release of her current album), a ballad written by Li Zhen Fan "It's Raining Again" and a song titled "I Want To Stick With You" the lyrics of which is written by another Rock Records female singer Wu Pei Ci.

Producers of this album include Li Zhen Fan, another hot-shot producer Jia Min Shu who has collaborated with Lee before in her "Free" EP and Valen Hsu's boyfriend musician by the nick of Monster.

The first batch of limited-edition album package comes bundled with a photo booklet containing snippets of Lee's life, a pouch and discount coupons valid in Taiwan only.

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STELLA CHANG (JUST STELLA) (EMI MUSIC) (AUG99) 

MUSIC STYLE : MOSTLY BALLADS / MID-TEMPO POP

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE

After her last Hokkien pop outing, Stella (or Zhang Qing Fang) is back with a brand new Mandarin album.  However beware : if you like her previous Mandarin outing "Flower Rain Night" which was soaked with Taiwanese-style ballads, you are not likely to find any in this new release. Instead, what you will find is track-after-track of Western influence.

No wonder, because it is mainly produced by Singapore musician Ken Lim who is well-known for his Western-style compositions.  The choice of employing Ken Lim may be a result of the successful collaboration with Stella before in one of her tracks "Later" in "Flower Rain Night".  

In fact, except for the singer herself as well as the international lyrics offerings by, among others, Hong Kong Lin Xi, Taiwanese Yao Qian, Wa Wa, Li Man Ting, Adam Xu Chang De and Singaporean Chen Jia Ming, the album can be considered a wholly Singapore production.  All the tracks are composed (except for one Western-translated ballad Track 7 "Gentle Is A Strength"), arranged and produced by Singaporean musicians which include the above-mentioned Ken Lim, Ke Gui Ming, Shah Tahir, Joshua Wan and Goh Kheng Long.

The light-tempo first single Track 2 "Just A Child" with a groovy arrangement by Shah Tahir is composed by Ken Lim and written by uprising Taiwanese lyricist Chen Jing Nan.

Ah Fang also wrote the lyrics for the second single Track 3 "It Is Not Your Fault".  A highly listenable ballad, it is also the first time that her work is being chosen as a single.

Hong Kong lyricist Lin Xi seems to be churning out a lot of Mandarin lyrics these days, as evidenced by his works in the latest albums of Jeff Chang, Na Ying and Liu Hung Hua.  In Stella's new release, he wrote three tracks, including the third single ballad Track 1 "Choose To End".

Other recommended ballads include the fourth single Track 5 "Let Love Decide" and Track 9 "You Loved Me So Much".

The most surprising and refreshing music changeover will have to be Track 8 "If Can".  It is a UK-style techno dance track which I've never ever heard Stella tackle in her entire music career until now.

After hearing the whole album, I can understand why the record company has a lot of faith in it.  Reportedly, seven music videos will be filmed with the location shooting being done in Nepal.  Although this new release marks a drastic change from her previous musical style, it is nevertheless a commendable and rewarding move.  

I know some people cannot stand the inherent high-pitch vocals of Stella but if you are one of the many who stand exception to that, all you need to do is to listen to "Just Stella" with a open heart and you will be amply rewarded by the more-than-usual twelve new tracks here.  Highly recommended.

(Side Note : It is mentioned above that except for Track 7 "Gentle Is A Strength", all the songs here are composed by Singaporeans.  While it is confirmed that two tracks are written by Ke Gui Ming and three are by Ken Lim (whose Chinese name is Lin Zhi Qiang), there is an assumption that the remaining six numbers are all written by Ken Lim too.  You see, these six tracks are supposedly composed by three different names : Nek and two Chinese names with the pronunciation of Lin Ken.  It is suspected that all these three names refer to just one person, namely Ken Lim.  Nek is the same as Ken spelt backwards while the Chinese pronunciation of Lin Ken should be Ken Lim for obvious reasons.   Maybe someone reading this can kindly help to confirm :) )

RATING : (4 out of 5)

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phil

PHIL CHANG (RAIN KEEPS FALLING) (EMI MUSIC) (AUG99)

MUSIC STYLE : MOSTLY LIGHT-TEMPO POP 

OVERRIDING STYLE : LOVE

Phil Chang (or Zhang Yu) has come out with a brand new album in less than a year.  Apparently the phenomenal success of his previous "Moon Sun" album released last December has prompted his record company to push for the early release of this new work.

One would then tend to be concerned about the quality of this new album since it means there is less time for Phil to complete his production.  But after listening to the whole LP, I must say I'm quite impressed that he can still come up with mostly competent and radio-friendly new tracks in such a short period.  The fact that he has enlisted the same musicians from his previous album must have helped too since the mutual trust and chemistry is already there.

As expected, the general music style here continues to flow from his "Moon Sun" album, namely, the songs sound a bit dated but nevertheless listenable.  The title Track 1"Rain Keeps Falling" is a case in point, it sounds like a distant relative of his previous hit single "Moon's Fault".  Other examples are Track 5 "Chauvinistic Woman" (the way he belts out the "Eh" in this song is rather cute and helps to spice up the track) and the only Hokkien track 7 "Innocent Guy" (it has become a norm in his albums to include at least one Hokkien pop song).

Most of the tracks here are light-tempo and they make easy listening.  Besides the tracks 5 and 7 mentioned above, two of the tracks recommended by the record company, Track 3 "Photo For Keepsake" and the retro-feel Track 6 "Never Mind" also fall into this genre.

The few ballads included here do not disappoint either, they are typical Phil-style sentimental songs that are soothing to the ears.  Track 2 "Change" (once again recommended by the record company), the country-folk Track 4 "For Both Of You" and Track 8 "At That Time" are highly listenable.

Eight (out of eleven) tracks are produced single-handedly by Phil himself  while the remaining three are produced by the Taiwan Golden Melody Best Producer Award winner Jim Lee (side-note : he won by producing Lee Hom's "Revolution" album).

If you like his "Moon Sun" album, this latest album should be easy to digest too.

RATING : (4 out of 5)

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kan kan

KAN KAN (THE TEARS) (BMG MUSIC) (JUL99)

MUSIC STYLE : BALLADS / RETRO / JAZZ / ROCK

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE 

When I first got this album, I do not know what to expect becos I've no inkling whatsoever about this newcomer.   After listening to just the first track of the album, his vocals remind me of two singers at once : the fusion of Jacky Wu (or Wu Zhong Xian) and The Dick & The Cowboys.   Regarding the resemblance to the first mentioned artiste, it is worth noting that Jacky is in fact the producer of Kan Kan's (or Kang Jin Rong) debut album.  He produces eight (out of the ten) tracks here while the remaining two are produced by Huang Zhong Yuan.

The first ballad Track 1 "Maybe You Are Right" is written by Jacky himself.  It sounds exactly like the kind of music that Jacky can record in his own album.  

The title Track 2 "The Tears" is another ballad which suits Kan Kan vocals perfectly.  It is composed by uprising musician Zhou Jie Lun (whose works included Billie's "Slave Of Love" and the more recent charity song "Snail" sung by Valen Hsu, Power Station, Panda and Chyi Chin) and written by Jacky.  

Because the album consists mostly of ballads, one would hope that the few light-tempo tracks included in the album will not disappoint.  However sad to say, they are mostly retro-style tunes which sound really dated and do not beg for repeated listening, they include the only Hokkien-pop Track 3 "She Lives In The City", the rock Track 5 "Can't Help To Leave You" and Track 6 "Light Bulb".

Ultimately it is still the ballads which make this album worth listening to, not to mention that Kan Kan's husky vocals contain just the right element to belt out such tunes.  Besides the above mentioned "Maybe You Are Right" and the title track "The Tears", other radio-friendly slow tracks include Track 4 "Unnecessary", the jazzy Track 9 "You Won't Give Me What I Want", both of which are  written and produced by Huang Zhong Yuan and  Track 8 "Is It Me" written by Chen Guo Hua.

There's no question that Kan Kan can sing, after all he used to be a pub singer in Taiwan and it is a known fact that singers who hail from such a background are already accomplished performers in their own right (think A Mei, Shino and Power Station).  He does not disappoint in his debut album but let's hope he will be given better material to perform in his next release.

RATING : (3 out of 5)

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liu hung hua

LIU HUNG HUA (WHAT'S THE MATTER) (EMI MUSIC) (JUL99)

MUSIC STYLE : VARIED (BALLAD / DANCE / ACOUSTIC / RETRO)

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE

A newcomer whose record company is using fresh tactics to introduce her to the Taiwanese listeners.  As Liu Hung Hua is quite photogenic so to speak, her record company is worried that she'll be mistaken for another uprising idol singer who's known more for her looks than vocals.  Therefore they came up with an idea : let Liu put on a mouth mask and hopefully this will allow listeners to concentrate on her singing than on her looks.

The title fast Track 3 "What's The Matter" is a collaboration between Taiwanese composer Wu Xu Wen and Hong Kong lyricist Lin Xi.  It was reported that the response received from Taiwanese listeners on this song is mixed, some liked it and some simply hated it.  I belong to the former group as I find it a particularly refreshing title track in the Mandarin pop music scene.  The number has a very strong Alanis Morissette feel from the music style right down to the powerful vocals of Liu.  The song is something that one would least expect to come from Wu Xu Wen who's best known for his ballad compositions.  Maybe Wu wants listeners to identify the new musical side of him and therefore he is simply known as Shermann (instead of his usual Chinese name) in the song-writing credits.  

While "What's The Matter" is the first single in Taiwan, Singapore is using another number to promote her.  The dance Track 7 "Go Ahead And Love" has been hitting the radio-waves in Singapore.  The song selection difference may be due to the mixed response mentioned above, therefore the Singapore record company may have decided to use "Go Ahead And Love" since it's definitely more radio-friendly and catchy.  It's a collaboration work between Bao Xiao Bo and Bao Xiao Song, both of whom are twin brothers of the former singing duo Xiao Song Xiao Bo.

There is a fair mix of slow and fast tracks here, most of which make easy-listening.  Other recommended tracks include the soaring mid-tempo Track 2 "Why Reject" which is given a nice Scottish music arrangement by Goh Kheng Long, the simple acoustic Track 1 "Morning Five O'Clock", another Alanis-feel ballad composition by Shermann Track 4 "Spirit" and the folkish light-tempo Track 9 "Enjoyable" composed and written by Yuan Wei Ren and Yao Ruo Long.

It is understandable why the record company wants to focus so much on Liu's vocals, the gal can sing all right (after all she was discovered when she won a weekly singing competition in a Taiwan variety show) and her voice is soothing to the ears.

For a newcomer, Liu Hung Hua has a debut album which she can boast about.  Besides Romi and Jiang Mei Qi, this is another singer to look out for this year.

RATING : (4 out of 5)

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cyndi

CYNDI YAO (TOO LATE) (ROCK RECORDS) (JUL99)

MUSIC STYLE :MOSTLY BALLADS / MID-TEMPO POP 

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE

Cyndi Yao (or Zhao Yong Hua) is back with a two-CD collection album and what's more, she has re-joined her old record company Rock Records which is releasing this collection.  Incidentally her very first collection album "Without Guilt" in 1994 (refer below cover pic)  was also released by Rock Records. 

Without Guilt Collection

There are five brand new recordings.  The title CD One Track 1 "Too Late" is a haunting ballad written and produced by Johnny Chen (or Xiao Chong).  It is one of the better ballads to come out in recent time and Cyndi's heart-wrenching vocals do justice to this unrequited love song.

Emil Chao (or Zhou Hua Jian) also produces and sings with Cyndi on an easy-listening and  light-tempo CD One Track 2 "Love To The Deepest" which is written by Pan Xie Qing.  There is a second duet in the album, the ballad CD Two Track 1 "I Will Smile" which she cooed  with a newcomer by the name of Dai Ai Ling who's not a bad singer.  This pairing with a newcomer holds significance for Cyndi because when she herself was a newcomer, Cyndi also sang a duet with another Rock Records veteran female singer Xu Jing Chun.

A worthy mention is that Cyndi does a cover version of Tracy Huang's excellent and ageless track CD Two Track 2 "Night & Day" as well as one of her earlier own number CD Two Track 3 "Listen To Me Singing This Song".  Coming back to "Night & Day", although the song is given a refreshing and modern-age musical touch-up,  personally I'm still biased towards Tracy's version.  However those who have not heard the original number will no doubt like Cyndi's version.

Coming to the collection, fifteen old songs are included.  Almost all of Cyndi's past hits can be found here, like "Propose Marriage", "The Most Romantic Event", "Without Guilt" and Li Zhen Fan's debut composition "Only Want You To Be Nicer To Me".  The tracks in CD One are generally stronger than those in CD Two.  In fact, the just-mentioned hits all come from the first CD.  It proves that the past collaboration between Cyndi and Li Zhen Fan  is pure chemistry because all the old tracks (except one) in CD One are produced by Li.  Unfortunately we will not get to hear new offerings from Li in Cyndi's future albums since they have stopped working together (gossip note : if you still don't know, both are lovers before but have since separated).  

When compared to the "Without Guilt" compilation, there are three tracks which are not found in this new collection.  However "Too Late" goes further by boasting eight more songs including the afore-mentioned five new recordings.  Therefore it is still a collection worth buying even if you already have the "Without Guilt" compilation.

A final note : as pointed out in the first paragraph, this new collection is released by Cyndi's first record company and therefore the old tracks are all dated 1994 and earlier.  Therefore don't expect to find her more recent hits (between 1995 to 1998) here, such as "On The Seventh Day In The Desert", "Please Don't Worry", "Relax", "Our Story" and "Love Or Not To Love", all of which were recorded when she was still under her ex-company Universal Music.  If you prefer these tracks, then you'd be better off buying another of her compilation album "Yong Hua" released by Universal last year (refer cover pic below)

Yong Hua Collection

RATING : (4 out of 5)

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gigi

GIGI LEUNG (FRESH) (EEI) (JUL99)

MUSIC STYLE : FOLKISH / BALLADS / LIGHT-TEMPO POP

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE

Gigi's fourth solo Mandarin album.

After her successful collaboration with composer cum producer Li Si Song in her previous album's first single "Coward", the duo is back with a new title Track 1 "Fresh" which is an advertisement theme song for US cherries.  However compared to "Coward", the country-folk ballad "Fresh" seems to lack that extra 'oomph' factor to be considered the first single.

A better choice would be the catchy Track 2 "Like Him" which is incidentally the second single and the Mandarin version of Gigi's recent Cantonese single "I Like" taken from her EP "Today".  Written by Hong Kong composer Eric Kwok, "Like Him" is also Taiwan's Mandarin theme song for the US movie "The Runaway Bride" starring Julia Roberts and Richard Gere.  An interesting side-note is the arranger of "Like Him" is stated in the lyrics sheet as Snowman but in fact Eric Kwok is Snowman himself , here's a pic of him below :

snowman

There's a balance mix of slow and light tempo tracks in this album which includes composers and lyricists like Li Si Song, Chen Guo Hwa, Zhen Hua Juan, Pan Xie Qing and Yao Ruo Long.  The songs are mainly produced by Li Si Song who takes up half the tracks here and Chen Zi Hong.  

But alas most of the songs here are of so-so quality, they are easy-listening but not exciting, there's nothing here musically that listeners would not have heard before in Gigi's previous three releases.  To be fair, Gigi's vocals and Mandarin diction are commendable but they are greatly underutilised here.

On the whole, an album which is neither fresh nor challenging.  

(Side-note : There are two types of limited-edition packages for Gigi's new album.  The Taiwan version contains an extra-thick lyrics booklet which has Gigi jetting to Seattle cherry orchards for the photo shoots.  On the other hand, the Hong Kong edition comes with a mouse pad and a CD-Rom which includes a Cantonese MRT advertisement theme song "Take A Deep Breath And Fly" and the Leo Ku-Gigi hit duet "Wish".) 

RATING : (3 out of 5)

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denise

DENISE RUAN (PENETRATE) (WHAT'S MUSIC) (JUL99) 

MUSIC STYLE : BALLAD / JAZZ /  LATIN MUSIC

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE

Third solo album from Denise (or Ruan Dan Qing) who adopts a new-age hippy image in her latest offering.

Like her previous album, the title ballad Track 2 "Penetrate" is composed by long-time collaborator Xue Zhong Ming and written by Adam Xu Chang De.  Kudos to Tu Hui Yuan for providing a fitting dramatic music arrangement to a song about a woman's anguish after discovering an affair going on between her lover and her best friend. 

The second single Track 1 "I Don't Care" is a fusion of rock + blues + jazz and is Denise's first musical attempt.  Composed and partly written by the gal herself (she co-wrote with lyricist Yi Jia Yang), it was originally written for Chyi Chin in mind but producer Huang Yi later encouraged Denise to sing it herself.  A refreshing and commendable attempt.

Other musical varieties in the album include the light jazz + folkish Track 3 "Fake Love" written by female composer Chen Guan Qian and the Latin style ballad Track 8 "Time Has Changed Me".

The album consists of mostly ballads and mid-tempo tracks which make easy-listening.  Ballads like Track 6 "So There Is Really Such A Person" written by uprising composer Xie Ming You (the same guy who wrote Valen Hsu's "Don't Say Goodbye" and Dick & The Cowboys' "Sailor"), Track 7 "Fought For Love" again composed by Xue Zhong Ming & written by Xu Chang De and Track 10 "Want To Confirm" written by Wu Xu Wen are all radio-friendly sentimental songs.

Denise's unique and soothing vocals also makes this album a pleasant listening experience.  

It is not an easy task for any singer to churn out successive albums which are consistent in production and quality, but right from her debut album to her current third new album, Denise has done just that.

RATING : (4 out of 5)

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shino

SHINO (SHE KNOWS) (FRIENDLY DOG) (JUL99)

MUSIC STYLE : VARIED (ROCK/TECHNO/RETRO/BALLAD)

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE

Second album from Shino (or Lin Xiao Pei), incidentally the album's name rhymes with her own.  

Most of the songs here are written by the same composers from her debut album.  However a glaring absence is Chen Shanni who wrote Shino's first hit "Troubled".  

The title Track 1 "She Knows" is a catchy rock number composed by producer Li Shi Xian who's behind the hits "Blind Cinderella" and "So What" in the first album.  It starts off with a nice techno beat and right into the middle part, there's a particular long sentence that Shino pulls off effortlessly with one breath.

Shino's two works are included here : the lyrics for Track 4 "Forever" and the melody/lyrics of Track 6 "Hand Is Too Small".  For a first-timer, Shino's composition of the lively "Hand Is Too Small" is surprisingly good.  It also helps that Li Shi Xian has given the song an infectious country-folk style arrangement.

There seems to be a certain musical pattern in Shino's ballads right from the first album to this present one.  They sound a bit dated but nevertheless heartfelt, just like the kind that E-Jun (or Li Yi Jun) would have sung.  Track 3 "It's Not As If I Must Have Your Love" written by Huang Yun Ling and Track 9 "Goodbye My Love" are such examples.

Although most of the tracks range from slow to mid-tempo, one can still find some musical variety.  Besides rock and ballad, there's also techno (like Track 7 "War") and retro (in Track 2 "Don't Casually Say To Send Me Home" which takes a poke at guys who don't take love seriously or playboys so to speak).

As for Shino's vocal performance, it seems that her first album's commercial success as well as winning the Best Newcomer award in this year's prestigious Taiwan Golden Melody Awards have boosted her confidence.  She sounds so much at ease and comfortable in all the tracks here, the rawness which was evident in her debut album has dissipated into thin air.

A good follow-up album that doesn't disappoint.  Even Shino's record company knows that, it is organising a grand lucky draw in Taiwan whereby the first prize is an Audi A3 1.8T car, this must be the most attractive prize ever sponsored in the promotion of a Mandarin album, lucky Taiwanese listeners.

A side-note : the first batch of the special-edition CD album comes bundled with a small Shino poster and a Shino-trademark tattoo sticker (refer below).

RATING : (4 out of 5)

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may day

MAY DAY (1st COMPOSITION ALBUM) (ROCK RECORDS) (JUL99)

ALBUM NOT REVIEWED

Rock Records's first Mandarin band group, May Day (or Wu Yue Tian), was discovered by Jonathan Lee.  Comprising five members who formed the band when they were students, they have come out with an aptly titled "1st Composition Album" debut work.  The title is spot-on because the album is close to 100% made by May Day themselves, ranging from music, lyrics, singing, arranging to instrument-playing, vocal backups and producing.  

The band group are also veteran live-performers, having played to a whopping twenty-thousand audience group even before they release their debut album.

The first single "Wild World", written by one of its members Ah Xin, is a lively and catchy track with a strong raw band sound.

The album CD package comes with a VCD which includes snippets of May Day's live performance and the MTV for "Wild World".

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jeff

JEFF CHANG (PLEASE COME BACK) (SONY MUSIC) (JUL99)

MUSIC STYLE : VARIED (BALLADS / R&B / FOLK / LIGHT JAZZ)

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE

Although Jeff Chang's previous album "Direct Feelings" did not fare well commercially, however I think it ranks as one of his most listenable and most consistent album ever yet.  Therefore when listening to this brand new release "Please Come Back", I'll inevitably compare it to its predecessor.  On a personal note, I still prefer "Direct Feelings" but having said that, this follow- up album does not disappoint.  After all, it boasts a strong cast - composers & lyricists include Chen Xiao Xia, Lin Xi, Chen Jia Li, Sky Wu, Li Si Song, Jimmy Ye Liang Jun while producers include Huang Yun Ling, Huang Yi and Xue Zhong Ming. 

The title Track 1 "Please Come Back" is a  ballad composed by Chen Xiao Xia and written by Yao Ruo Long.  It differs from Jeff's previous trade-mark ballads in that it is nicely arranged with a slow techno-beat.  Kudos to the  producer Huang Yun Ling who has collaborated before with Jeff in his earlier works.  A bona-fide hit.

The second single Track 2 "Won't Be Your Lover" is a typical Jeff-style ballad which should go down well with his fans.  After all it has a potent international team behind it : written by Hong Kong lyricist Lin Xi, composed by Singaporean Chen Zhi Wei (side-note : the lyrics booklet misprinted the composer as another Singaporean writer Liang Wen Foo), arranged by Taiwanese Wang Yu Ming and produced by Taiwanese Xue Zhong Ming.

Although this new release consists solely of slow to mid-tempo songs, it is commendable that Jeff has tried to give a different face to most of them.  Besides the title track, there's a R&B track 5 "Ask For Love", a ballad with a light touch of jazz track 6 "Depression Mode", a folkish track 9 "Bad Weather", a light-tempo guitar track 3 "Find A Key", a mainly-piano ballad track 6 "Forest Of Two People" and a nicely-arranged track 4 "Punishment" intermixed with soft drum techno beats and train sound effects. 

Jeff Chang's vocals shine throughout the album.  His crispy voice still sounds as fresh as ever after so many years.

Overall, a radio-friendly pop album that is worth listening to after such a long wait. 

RATING : (4 out of 5)

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na ying

NA YING (CLEAR CUT) (EMI MUSIC) (JUL99)

MUSIC STYLE : VARIED (BALLADS / FOLK / R&B / JAZZ / LIGHT-ROCK)

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE  

Na Ying's brand new Mandarin release.

The album is produced and recorded in Singapore except for one Japanese produced track, namely the already-aired and well-publicised 1998 collaboration with Aska (from the Japanese duo Chage & Aska) titled "To Meet Is Not As Good As To Reminiscence". It was originally released last year in a movie soundtrack album titled "B Project". Since not many people would have bought that soundtrack, it's wonderful that the song is included in this new release under Track 3 cos it is such a great number.

The title Track 1 "Clear Cut" is a nice ballad written by Taiwanese female composer Chen Xiao Juan and arranged by Singaporean musician Goh Kheng Long (or Wu Qing Long). It was reported that Chen Xiao Juan wrote at least ten different lyric blueprints before she could settle on the final version. Another recommended ballad Track 6 "One Person's Story" is composed by Li Si Song and written by HK lyricist Lin Xi. In fact Li Si Song produced a total of eight tracks in this album including the above two mentioned songs.

Na Ying has also ventured into other new music styles like jazz (in Track 10 "Poison") and R&B (in Track 5 "Wait"), all of which the diva performed with ease.

Yuan Wei Ren (the guy behind Na Ying's hits "Conquer" and "Awakened Dream") wrote and produced the second single of the album, a folkish Track 4 "A Dream". Evidently, it's a follow-up to "Awakened Dream" but thankfully both have their distinct identities. Personally I prefer this new track "A Dream" which boasts a stronger melody.

Na Ying handed in three lyrics here including "To Meet Is Not As Good As To Reminiscence" and an interestingly titled Track 7 "Willing To Gamble And Accept Defeat", interesting in the sense that this is the same advice that Na Ying gave her good friend Faye Wong when the latter was experiencing marriage troubles with Dou Wei. However the song sounds a bit dated.

It's a great pleasure to hear Na Ying belt out all the tracks here, she's such an accomplished singer. At times, I thought I'm listening to A Mei, check out in particular Track 5 "Wait".

A good pop album on the whole. If you like her previous "Conquer" album, then this one doesn't disappoint too.

RATING : (4 out of 5)

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julia

JULIA PENG (JULIA'S PROCESS - BEST COLLECTION) (BMG MUSIC) (JUN99)

MUSIC STYLE : BALLADS / DANCE POP / ROCK

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE  

Julia's very first compilation containing two brand new tracks and eighteen old songs.

Let's talk about the two previously unheard numbers first. Track 1 "Happy People Please Raise Your Hands" is a pulsating rock piece that showcases Julia's powerful vocals. Track 2 "The Day That I Walk On The Red Carpet" is a nice ballad which writes about a gal's wish to marry.......hmm, wonder whether the protagonist is Julia herself cos she's really absorbed into the song. Incidentally, both numbers are composed and produced by her beau, Chen Guo Hua.

Coming to the collection, all of Julia's greatest hits are included here, among which are "Old Dreams", "Hear Your Goodbye", "Knocking On My Head", "Love Till No Point Of Return" and "Heartache Love Song". 

This double CD album comes enclosed with a photo booklet which contains some interesting snippets of Julia's life. If you look carefully, you can even catch a glimpse of how Chen Guo Hua and another famous musician Li Zhen Fan look like.

A good vocalist, a good selection of songs........need I say more? Go and grab it.

RATING : (4 out of 5)

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na na

NA NA (POISON) (BMG MUSIC) (JUN99)

MUSIC STYLE : MOSTLY BALLADS

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE 

BMG Music has done it again - the ex-record company of Na Na has once more shrewdly timed her second compilation album to come out around the same period as the release of Na Na's new album "Remedy". What's more, it is titled "Poison" - talk about originality!

The selection here is very uneven - a whopping six tracks are taken from Na Na's last album with BMG "How Could You Not Love Me", five tracks from her brilliant album "Retreat", two from "Wish", one from "Hold A Bit Closer" and get this, NONE from another good album "Freedom". 

This "Poison" compilation also pales considerably when compared to the first collection "Change Love" which was released in 1998. While "Change Love" contains all of Na Na's previous leading singles and hits, the current series is stuffed with lesser-known songs. 

Maybe the selection team also realised that they are threading on thin ice. Therefore they have attempted to spice up the compilation by repeating some songs that were already included in the first one such as "Forget To Forget" and "Healing". There's even a karaoke track for "Retreat".

However I think listeners are smart nowadays, I mean who would want to consume poison in the first place right?

RATING : (2 out of 5)

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billie

BILLIE (NOBODY'S FOOL BUT MY OWN) (WHAT'S MUSIC) (JUN99)

MUSIC STYLE : MOSTLY SOFT ROCK / FOLK-ROCK / BALLADS

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE 
Billie (or Wang Xue Er) is like the female version of Dick & The Cowboys (or vice versa). Both are in their forties, both are parents, both are pub singers, both have that tinge of life-weariness in their voice and both are adept in belting out rock numbers (and yes, both are from the same record company).

The title ballad Track 1 "Nobody's Fool But My Own" is composed by Panda (or Xiong Tian Ping). Very different from Panda's previous works in that it is of a slow pop-rock style with a touch of jazz and it fits Billie's vocals perfectly. 

Billie's own daughter, Joyce, has handed in two song lyrics for her mother, namely, Track 7 "Only One" and Track 9 "Immerse" - they are not bad, considering that it's written by a newcomer. These songs are meant to mirror Billie's own love life so I guess nobody's more qualified to write about it than her own daughter.

Most of the tracks here range from slow to mid-tempo but they are highly listenable because of Billie's heart-wrenching vocal performance (for example, in Track 10 "Hello", she sounds so convincingly in portraying loneliness and weariness in her dialogue and singing that one actually feels for her). After all, she has this to say about her music in the album sleeves : "The biggest difference between my music and other people's music is that I sing about my own life and I will not sing something that doesn't touch on my feelings".

If you are one of those who lament that most singers nowadays concentrate more on vocal techniques than on feelings, then this album by Billie will bring you great satisfaction.

RATING : (4 out of 5)

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romi

ROMI (ANGEL FISH) (UNIVERSAL MUSIC) (JUN99)

MUSIC STYLE : MOSTLY ACOUSTIC AND FOLKISH POP

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE 
Another newcomer - Romi (or Li Qi). Some quick facts about her : she used to be a folk-lounge singer, she's a good guitar player, she has lent her voice to a lot of Taiwan ad jingles and she has written songs before for singers like Tao Zi (or Tao Jing Ying), Yi Neng Jing and Wa Wa (or Jing Zhi Juan).

Given her background, there's no doubt that Romi can sing. Her voice is clean and delicate; at certain high notes, she even sounds a bit like Yang Lin.

The first ballad single Track 1 "Love Afar" is composed and produced by Singaporean Li Si Song (the guy seems to be going places these days, just this year alone, he has been responsible for producing the title tracks for Sammi Cheng and Na Ying already). "Love Afar" is no mean feat too - it was chosen as the leading single after a consensus from fifty student couples and one hundred broken-hearted female students in Taiwan.

Romi herself composed four highly-listenable numbers here, including the ballad title track 5 "Angel Fish" and the light-tempo folkish track 6 "The Edge", the latter sung originally by Tao Zi. In one of the more "un-folkish" songs in the album Track 8 "A Girl Or A Woman", Romi really sounds like Yang Lin, go check it out yourself.

The album CD comes with a bonus CD containing two impressive live unplugged performances of Track 4 "Can't Help Yourself" and Track 6 "The Edge" plus one guitar-demo version (played by Romi herself) of the Track 1 "Love Afar". 

With the recent crop of over-polished Western/Korean-influenced pop releases, Romi's "Angel Fish" comes like a cool breeze - listening to it is a refreshing experience. The best, most sincere and most consistent debut album ever released by a newcomer so far for 1999. Watch out for this gal.

RATING : (4 out of 5)

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various

VARIOUS ARTISTES (ROCK FOR CHILDREN) (WHAT'S MUSIC) (JUN99)

ALBUM NOT REVIEWED   
A live album recorded at a children's charity concert in Taiwan spanning over a period of two days and two nights. Performers for this occasion are all What's Music artistes including Chyi Chin, The Power Station, Dick And The Cowboys, Panda (or Xiong Tian Ping) and Fei Fei (or Ouyang Fei Fei).

Some of the highlights include the pairing of The Power Station and Fei Fei for a cover version of Faye Wong's "You Are Happy, So I'm Happy", another duet from The Power Station together with Panda on the latter's "Matchstick Heaven", the rendition of A Mei's "So You Don't Want Anything At All" by Dick And The Cowboys, Chyi Chin's cover of Dave Wang's "A Game, A Dream" and a finale song Su Rei's "The Same Moonlight" by all performers. 

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richie

RICHIE REN (SERIOUS COLLECTION) (ROCK RECORDS) (JUN99)

MUSIC STYLE : VARIED (FOLKISH / BALLAD / ROCK)

OVERRIDING THEME : LOVE 
A new song cum collection album from Richie. 

There are altogether seven new tracks here, including a duet cover with Jonathan Lee on Zhao Chuan's "I'm A Small Little Bird", two nice works by Pan Xie Qing "Give You Happiness" and "Candlelight", a radio-friendly and light-tempo Hokkien pop number "Late At Night" sung with three other guys Ah Niu, Huang Ping Yuan and composer Li Zhen Fan and finally a re-recording on Richie's three earlier but supposedly "extinct" works from his previous record company.

On the compilation side, all of Richie's hits are included here like "Too Soft Heart", "I'm A Fish", "Sad Pacific Ocean", "Very Hurt" and "Depend".

Altogether it is a two-CD album containing a total of twenty songs plus a bonus VCD which has eight of Richie's old (sorry, no new ones) MTV hits. Sounds like Rock Records is pulling all punches to make this collection release a success. A good buy indeed.

RATING : (4 out of 5)

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