Artist: Poon Sow KengLP: Popular Songs In Mandarin Chinese by the Orient's Favorite Vocalist
Here's a pretty song from a 1960s Poon Sow Keng (or "Pan Xiu Qiong") record I found at a shop just a few blocks from my house. You can read a little about Poon Sow Keng in this blog tribute—where the author calls her ugly and says her songs are popular in Chinese restaurants. Now retired from the limelight, Poon Sow Keng invites senior citizens to volunteerism, as you can see here, and performs at poorly-videotaped Christian festivals like this one. To see Poon Sow Keng lit from head to toe by the aforementioned limelight, go here, where you'll see her perform her beautiful hit, "A Lover's Tears," in the 1964 movie THE LARK. Notes from the back of the LP:
A MALAYAN by birth, the beautiful and immensely popular Poon
Sow Keng has been singing since she was 12 years old.
At 17, she recorded for the first time. Within weeks, her name
was known throughout Southeast Asia.
But for all her popularity, and today she is unquestionably
one of the most popular singers in the entire area, Poon Sow
Keng has never had a lesson in singing. What talent
she has is God-given.
She sings in Mandarin Chinese. She is particularly successful
in Singapore and in Kuala Lumpur, Malaya.
Here are brief notes on each song, all of which were
recorded by EMI in Asia:
I COULD HARDLY GIVE HIM UP—She longed to see him,
yet when she did she was unable to say anything—and
when she eventually spoke, he failed to respond.
A song of frustration.
Sow Keng has been singing since she was 12 years old.
At 17, she recorded for the first time. Within weeks, her name
was known throughout Southeast Asia.
But for all her popularity, and today she is unquestionably
one of the most popular singers in the entire area, Poon Sow
Keng has never had a lesson in singing. What talent
she has is God-given.
She sings in Mandarin Chinese. She is particularly successful
in Singapore and in Kuala Lumpur, Malaya.
Here are brief notes on each song, all of which were
recorded by EMI in Asia:
I COULD HARDLY GIVE HIM UP—She longed to see him,
yet when she did she was unable to say anything—and
when she eventually spoke, he failed to respond.
A song of frustration.
It looks like Ms. Poon may have gotten her makeup inspiration from this woman.
ReplyDeleteI was astounded when I stumbled across this album cover. My parents used to play this LP when I was a child. For the past year, I've been on a mission to find some of those songs. Are the names in Chinese as well as English? Thanks for the memories!
ReplyDelete