THE APOLLO "SPRING AGAIN" (太陽神樂隊 "大地回春")

Once again, here comes a very nice instrumental album published by New Wave Record Co. (新風) in Hong Kong during the late 60s. Just like for the previous posts about NWLP 5 and NWLP 6, I am not able to provide an exact release date for this LP catalogued as NWLP 8. Oh, and by the way, in case you were wondering about it, it seems that a NWLP 7 doesn't exist, at least according to my own tireless and long research... If you own a copy or if you have any information about it please let me know.

Anyway, other albums released on the same label with a later catalogue number are proven to have been published in 1969, so I guess that we could place "Spring Again" (大地回春) a little bit earlier, probably in 1968.

This LP is credited to The Apollo (太陽神樂隊), an Hong Kong prolific studio band that reached a cult status in the region during the late 60s / early 70s. Their name has probably been borrowed  from the Teisco / Kawai manufactured Apollo model guitar from that time period.

They recorded a lot of instrumental albums, a few of them for New Wave Record Co. (新風) and most of them for Life Records (麗風); they were also featured as a backing band on countless releases by popular singers like Teresa Teng (鄧麗君), Pancy Lau (劉鳳屏), Frances Yip (葉麗儀), Stella Chee (奚秀蘭), etc. It should be noted that in the early days of the label, they were the only available band at Life Records headquarters, so this comes as no surprise... Phew, what a hard schedule!

Their instrumental records, often arranged by band leader Oscar Young (楊道火), a key-figure in the Hong Kong / Singapore music scene of the late 60s / early 70, usually feature a prominent guitar sound that has spawned a lot of imitators...



...and "Spring Again" (大地回春) is in fact labeled as a guitar music album; most solos are obviously performed on the electric guitar but the organ plays an important part in the group's nice alchemy, providing accompaniment and counterpoints that, recorded on separate tracks, are panned on the far left and right side of the mix to reach for that early days massive stereo effect..

The back cover provides an English translation of the titles, so for once I am able to present a correct track list; since I can't read/write Chinese, sometimes it is very hard to properly present these Far-East records here...

"Spring Again" (大地回春) contains the following tracks:

01. 採檳榔 [Chai Pin-Laang] (3:05)
02. 大地回春 [Spring Again] (2:01)
03. 送郎一朵牽牛花 [A Flower For You] (2:58)
04. 媽媽說我沒人嫁 [Mother Says I'm Not Wanted] (2:22)
05. 加多一点点 [Add a Little] (2:13)
06. 兩相依 [We Two] (2:36)
07. 王老五 [Bachelor's Song] (2:04)
08. 姑娘的心意 [Young Emotion] (2:34)
09. 搭錯線 [Wrong Number] (2:18)
10. 意乱情迷 [Bewildered] (1:53)
11. 忘不了的你 [Colours of the Rainbow] (2:56)
12. 漁家女 [Fisher Girl] (3:06)

All tracks were remastered from the original vinyl in May/June 2012 and are available in FLAC lossless format or high-quality 320 Kbps MP3 files, both formats include completely restored PDF artwork. Please have a look at the comments for the download links.





Here's what I discovered searching information about the music included on this release:

採檳榔 [Chai Pin-Laang] is a popular Taiwan song whose title can be translated as "Picking Betel Nuts", it was performed by many female singers, including Zhou Xuan (周璇) - one of the Seven Great Singing Stars - and Teresa Teng (鄧麗君) who remembered about this being the very first song her mother taught her to sing as a child.

大地回春 [Spring Again] is a classic Mandarin song from the late 40s. It was first recorded in Shanghai by Wu Ying Yin (吴莺音) - another one of the Seven Great Singing Stars of China - and has become a synonymous of the Chinese New Year festivities. 送郎一朵牽牛花 [A Flower For You] is another song brought to success by Wu Ying Yin (吴莺音) in the late 50s.

姑娘的心意 [Young Emotion] was successfully performed by Chang Loo (張露) and later by Pancy Lau (劉鳳屏), while 忘不了的你 [Colours of the Rainbow] is a 1966 hit by Judi Jim (詹小屏) who used to sing both Mandarin and Western songs. 漁家女 [Fisher Girl] is best remembered in the version performed by singer/actress Zhou Xuan (周璇) during the gramophone era, and that's all I know...

A few more information about The Apollo (太陽神樂隊) and the New Wave Record Co. (新風) catalogue is available here:

http://blog.roodo.com/muzikland/archives/2512021.html

http://www.discogs.com/artist/1638765-Apollo-The-2

http://rateyourmusic.com/artist/%E5%A4%AA%E9%99%BD%E7%A5%9E%E6%A8%82%E9%9A%8A

http://www.freewebs.com/ritachao/apollothe.htm

http://progressive.homestead.com/HONGKONG.html

http://bbs.qianlong.com/thread-1350672-1-1.html

http://www.radiodiffusion.net/extra/Apollo_Guitar_Ad.jpg

http://rateyourmusic.com/label/new_wave_record_co_

http://radiodiffusion.wordpress.com/category/hong-kong/

http://www.vinylparadise.com/LPCollec/company/fh_life/fh_lp005.htm

http://www.vinylparadise.com/8music/1/music1b2.htm

In the next months I will post more Hong Kong/Taiwan/Singapore/etc. Pop/Instrumental records released in the late-60s / mid-70s. As usual, I would like to provide information about these releases and their authors.

Unfortunately the Internet doesn't offer much information - written in English - about these artists and this is the reason why I need help: if you can translate from Chinese to English please get in touch with me at stereocandies [at] hotmail [dot] com or leave a comment in the box below, thank you so much!

It's been difficult to obtain these vinyls, some are not in the best conditions and I'm currently working hard to properly master them. It seems that these artists and their music are poorly known in the West, of course it's a real pity because they made stunning releases: I'd like to share them with you with a proper presentation, hope that someone will be able to help.

OSCAR YOUNG / THE ELECTRIC ORGAN ORCHESTRA "HONG KONG TOKYO" (楊道火 / 電子風琴樂隊 "香港東京")

Following a previous post about NWLP 5, here's another cool record released by New Wave Record Co. in Hong Kong during the second half of the 60s. This seems to be a lounge / pop rendition of traditional Chinese and Japanese popular songs and melodies, and feature the electric organ as main instrument.

No author is clearly mentioned on the front cover, but some logograms that appear on the back cover provide a few information: the album is filed under easy listening (輕音樂) and is credited to The Electric Organ Orchestra (電子風琴樂隊), which just like The New Wave Orchestra on the aforementioned blog entry, was probably more an ensemble of studio musicians than a real band.

Althought a release date doesn't appear anywhere on the cover, other releases by the same label bearing a later catalogue number are proven to have been published in 1969. This information places "Hong Kong Tokyo" sometimes earlier in the late 60s, probably in 1967-68.



The arrangements are credited to Oscar Young (楊道火) who probably also played all the organ parts and solos. Young was a key-figure in the Hong Kong music scene of the late 60s / early 70; with his arrangements he also had the merit to introduce and popularise classical music to the younger generations.

He arranged for many famous bands and singers, including Teresa Teng (鄧麗君) and Frances Yip (葉麗儀), and released countless albums with his Oscar Orchestra (奧斯卡管弦樂團). I'm not 100% sure about it, but it could be that he was also a member of the prolific and versatile The Apollo (太陽神樂隊), or at least he arranged many of their albums, as a matter of fact. It could also be that "Hong Kong Tokyo" was recorded by The Apollo themselves in one of their earlier studio incarnation, who knows...

[edit 02.06.2012: I just discovered that Oscar Young (楊道火) was in fact the leader of The Apollo (太陽神樂隊)...]

Thanks to OCR technology I was able to import the original texts and tried to obtain an English translation using some on-line tools. I guess that the results are not perfect - to say the least - but they give more than a rough idea about the song titles.

By the way, I would be really grateful if someone could help me with this release: I need a correct translation of the songs titles; a better translation of the logograms on the back cover would also be much appreciated. If you can help and share your knowledge please get in touch with me at stereocandies [at] hotmail [dot] com or leave a comment in the box below, thank you so much!

"Hong Kong Tokyo" contains the following tracks:

01. 山地情歌 [Mountain Love Song] (2:49)
02. 負心的人 [Heartless Person] (3:13)
03. 香港旅程 [Hong Kong Journey] (3:38)
04. 蘇州河邊 [By the Suzhou River] (2:53)
05. 夕陽之戀 [Sunset Love] (2:53)
06. 交換 [Exchange] (2:58)
07. 蘋莫花 [Apple Flowers] (2:47)
08. 何必要燒香 [Why You Want To Burn Incense] (2:38)
09. 東京的黃昏 [Tokyo Dusk] (3:49)
10. 星心相思 [Heart of Acacia] (2:39)
11. 梅花 [The Plum Blossom] (3:11)
12. 夢裏相思 [Acacia Dream] (2:36)

All tracks were remastered from the original vinyl in April 2012 and are available in FLAC lossless format or high-quality 320 Kbps MP3 files, both formats include completely restored PDF artwork. Please have a look at the comments for the download links.





I wasn't able to gather much information about the songs on this album, but anyway, here's what I discovered:

山地情歌 [Mountain Love Song] is a traditional Chinese song, while 負心的人 [Heartless Person] consists of a Japanese melody to which lyricist Shenzhi (慎芝) added Mandarin lyrics. It was a big hit for Yao Su Rong (姚蘇蓉) in the early 60s; among others, Pancy Lau (劉鳳屏) and Tsui Ping (崔萍) also recorded their own version of the song.

蘇州河邊 [By the Suzhou River] is regarded by many as the most romantic Chinese pop song. It was written by legendary Chinese composer Yao Min (姚敏). Published in 1946, it was first recorded as a duet between him and his sister Yao Li (姚莉).

夢裏相思 [Acacia Dream] was originally recorded in the early 60s by Tsui Ping (崔萍) and was subsequently performed by many other female singers, that's all I know...

The following is the only Oscar Young picture I was able to find on the web; the original was available at a very low resolution, I did my best to enhance it.

A few more information about Oscar Young and the New Wave Record Co. catalogue is available here:

http://bbs.qianlong.com/thread-1380802-1-1.html

http://www.conceptoradio.net/2013/10/31/oscar-young-band-sintetizadores-en-la-china-de-1976/

http://www.discogs.com/artist/2396453-Oscar-Young-2

http://liferecords.com.my/index.php/catalogsearch/result/?q=Oscar

http://blog.roodo.com/muzikland/archives/2512021.html

http://www.discogs.com/artist/1638765-Apollo-The-2

http://rateyourmusic.com/artist/%E5%A4%AA%E9%99%BD%E7%A5%9E%E6%A8%82%E9%9A%8A

http://www.freewebs.com/ritachao/apollothe.htm

http://progressive.homestead.com/HONGKONG.html

http://bbs.qianlong.com/thread-1350672-1-1.html

http://www.radiodiffusion.net/extra/Apollo_Guitar_Ad.jpg

http://rateyourmusic.com/label/new_wave_record_co_

http://radiodiffusion.wordpress.com/category/hong-kong/

http://www.vinylparadise.com/LPCollec/company/fh_life/fh_lp005.htm

http://www.vinylparadise.com/8music/1/music1b2.htm

In the next months I will post more Hong Kong/Taiwan/Singapore/etc. Pop/Instrumental records released in the late-60s / mid-70s. As usual, I would like to provide information about these releases and their authors.

Unfortunately the Internet doesn't offer much information - written in English - about these artists and this is the reason why I need help: if you can translate from Chinese to English please get in touch with me at stereocandies [at] hotmail [dot] com or leave a comment in the box below, thank you so much!

It's been difficult to obtain these vinyls, some are not in the best conditions and I'm currently working hard to properly master them. It seems that these artists and their music are poorly known in the West, of course it's a real pity because they made stunning releases: I'd like to share them with you with a proper presentation, hope that someone will be able to help.

THE NEW WAVE ORCHESTRA "CHINA NIGHT" (新風樂隊 "中國之夜")

I had the chance to buy this LP more than twenty years ago in the bargains section of a small second-hand records shop. This is one of the many records in my life that I compulsively purchased just because I was attracted by the cover. I'm so glad that I did it, judging a record by its cover sometimes is quite a rewarding experience!

Being written in Chinese charachters, a language that unfortunately I'm not familiar with, the only information I could get reading the cover was that the LP is entitled "China Night", it was "Made in Hong Kong" - released by New Wave Record Co. with catalogue number NWLP 5 - and it promised some kind of "guitar-based" stereo music to be played at 33 RPM.

The cover is made of thin cardboard and is laminated both on the front and the back, the vinyl is protected by a transparent plastic rounded sleeve. Without further clues, in that pre-Internet era, I guessed that the album was released in the late 60s / early 70s; after my first listen I was more inclined to place it more firmly sometimes in the 60s.

But enough with my memories, what about the music? The album offers 14 tracks of top-notch Exotica / Lounge instrumental magic that I could listen to forever and ever without getting tired of it.

I guess that if someone had traced the original masters and re-released this album on CD at the peak of the great Incredibly Strange Music / Space Age Pop / Cocktail Music - or whatever you want to call it - revival in the mid 90s, this would have turned into a memorable release, at least in my opinion.



So, the pre-Internet era is over, and what have I discovered in my search for information about this beautiful vinyl release, more than twenty years since the day I purchased it, while preparing this post? Well, not much as I would have liked to, I must admit... Chinese logograms are still a barrier and the only information - written in English - that I was able to find is this post on the precious Radiodiffusion Internasionaal music blog.

The album is credited to The New Wave Orchestra, according to the source mentioned above they "were apparently a creation of their record label" and "were most likely comprised of studio musicians".

Althought I wasn't able to discover the exact year when "China Night" has been published, other releases by the same label bearing a later catalogue number - which are proven to have been published in 1969 - clearly place this album sometimes earlier in the late 60s, probably around 1967-68.

Thanks to OCR technology I was able to import the original texts and tried to obtain an English translation using some on-line tools. I guess that the results are not perfect - to say the least - but they give more than a rough idea about the song titles.

By the way, I would be really grateful if someone could help me with this release: I need a correct translation of the songs titles; translation of the brief backsleeve notes and the logograms on the front cover would also be much appreciated. If you can help and share your knowledge please get in touch with me at stereocandies [at] hotmail [dot] com or leave a comment in the box below, thank you so much!

"China Night" contains the following tracks:

01. 中國之夜 [China Night] (2:34)
02. 黃葉舞秋風 [Dance of the Autumn Yellow Leaves] (2:15)
03. 賣糖歌 [Candy Seller Song] (3:44)
04. 苦酒滿杯 [Bitter Tasting Wine] (2:33)
05. 何日君再來 [What Day Does Mr. Li Returns?] (2:37)
06. 花月盟 [Flower Month Pledge] (2:38)
07. 月光小夜曲 [Moonlight Serenade] (2:34)
08. 大傻瓜與小丫頭 [The Little Girl and the Big Fool] (2:48)
09. 意難忘 [Unforgettable Italy] (2:46)
10. 蔓莉 [Man Li] (2:54)
11. 午夜香吻 [Midnight Kiss] (3:12)
12. 蘇州夜曲 [Suzhou Nocturne] (3:16)
13. 阿蘭娜 [A Lanna] (2:53)
14. 綠島小夜曲 [Green Island Serenade] (2:45)

All tracks were remastered from the original vinyl in October/November 2011 and are available in FLAC lossless format or high-quality 320 Kbps MP3 files, both formats include completely restored PDF artwork. Please have a look at the comments for the download links.





The album opens with the title track. "China Night" seems to be a well-known song dating back to the late 30s, you can find more information about it and listen to what probably is the first recorded version here; many other different versions of the song are available on YouTube.

Being a "guitar music" album, that is obviously the main instrument on offer here. Most solos are performed on electric guitar; I'm not sure about it but probably the guitarist name is written somewhere on the cover. The organist work is worth a mention too since it offers very nice backgrounds and counterpoints.

The rhythm section goes straight to the point and works for the cause of keeping everything in motion but in a relaxed way. Drums are clean and crispy, basslines are simple and precise, a few percussions are also a welcome addition on certain tracks since they enhance the lounge side of things.

I am certainly no expert on the subject, but all the music on "China Night" seems to be based on Oriental Scales; well, not quite surprisingly I hear you say... ehm, right!

Traditional instruments are also part of the arrangements: chinese violins sometimes are layered under the guitar to emphasize certain passages, mallets instruments are scattered here and there for good, while woodwinds colour the more sad or languishing moments with their tones. Other strings instruments have also probably been used on these recordings.

Technically speaking the album works quite fine. A few effects are used, mostly reverb on some organ parts, but everything is kept down to Earth, so to speak. All instruments are well-panned so that they never clash against each other and the result is always very clean.

I enjoy this album as a whole and, as I wrote earlier, I could never get tired of it. Having said that, my favourite track is #06 (花月盟): it takes me on a journey far away each time I play it.

The following videoclip is made from images of many front and back covers of LPs that are part of the New Wave Record Co. catalogue. Most of them seem to be quite interesting, and needless to say that the music in the soundtrack is a real killer, to say the least!

A few more information about "China Night" and the New Wave Record Co. catalogue is available here:

http://rateyourmusic.com/label/new_wave_record_co_

http://radiodiffusion.wordpress.com/category/hong-kong/

http://www.vinylparadise.com/LPCollec/company/fh_life/fh_lp005.htm

http://www.vinylparadise.com/8music/1/music1b2.htm

http://forum.lorein.cn/viewthread.php?tid=21126&extra=page%3D1&ordertype=2&page=1

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=china+night&aq=f

In the next months I will post more Hong Kong/Taiwan/Singapore/etc. Pop/Instrumental records released in the late-60s / mid-70s. As usual, I would like to provide information about these releases and their authors.

Unfortunately the Internet doesn't offer much information - written in English - about these artists and this is the reason why I need help: if you can translate from Chinese to English please get in touch with me at stereocandies [at] hotmail [dot] com or leave a comment in the box below, thank you so much!

It's been difficult to obtain these vinyls, some are not in the best conditions and I'm currently working hard to properly master them. It seems that these artists and their music are poorly known in the West, of course it's a real pity because they made stunning releases: I'd like to share them with you with a proper presentation, hope that someone will be able to help.