[Music] (New) Chiming Bells in a Zen Temple -- CHENG Kam Cheong

CHENG Kam Cheong

1. I am writing this blog post to exorcise a psychological ghost from my past.

When I was in my teens and experienced my first puppy love, there were two songs that were soothing to my soul:

(a) The Western song How Can I Tell Her by Lobo, and

(b) The Cantonese song (New) Chiming Bells in a Zen Temple ("新禪院鐘聲") by CHENG Kam Cheong.


2. When someday someone writes a history of Cantonese music, I think the (New) Chiming Bells in a Zen Temple will be mentioned.

This song was very popular in Hong Kong in the early 1970s.

The decade and a half after the Second World War, most people in Hong Kong were listening either to Cantonese operas or music imported from the mainland; western music was an oddities.

In the mid-1960s to 1970s, however, three musical waves hit Hong Kong nearly simultaneously:

(a) Western music,

(b) Japanese music, and

(c) Taiwanese music.

But before the three waves hit, Hong Kong musicians were already trying to modernize traditional Cantonese operas into more modern Cantonese music.

(New) Chiming Bells in a Zen Temple by CHENG Kam Cheong was one of those attempts and a successful one at that.


3. CHENG Kam Cheong was borne in Malaysia.

He caught his break in the mid-1960s and his first album came out in 1966.

CHENG Kam Cheong was so popular that he was known as "The Prince of Cantonese Songs".

Since Hong Kong's economy started to take off at about the same time, CHENG Kam Cheong moved his base to Hong Kong in the late 1960s.

Chiming Bells in a Zen Temple ("禪院鐘聲"), originally sang by CHENG Kam Cheong, came in two versions:

(a) Chiming Bells in a Zen Temple ("禪院鐘聲"), and

(b) (New) Chiming Bells in a Zen Temple ("新禪院鐘聲").

Nearly all uploaders to YouTube did not discriminate between these two versions.

So whether the label in YouTube is:

(a) Chiming Bells in a Zen Temple, or

(b) (New) Chiming Bells in a Zen Temple

they are almost always (New) Chiming Bells in a Zen Temple.

Although the sound of the two versions is very similar, the lyrics and music of the two are actually different.

I also noticed from YouTube that many singers sang the lyrics slightly differently from the original and each other - it seems as if the lyrics have not been standardized.

(New) Chiming Bells in a Zen Temple came out in 1971 and became a hit immediately.


4. The "original" Chiming Bells in a Zen Temple by CHENG Kam Cheong recorded in 2002:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKKAX3IL8Vo

The person dressed as a Monk in the video is CHENG Kam Cheong.


5. The (New) Chiming Bells in a Zen Temple by CHENG Kam Cheong recorded in 1997:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L7WoOUBCk7E

CHENG Kam Cheong has to shave his head for the video.


6. A cover by Hong Kong singer Dicky Cheung:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0Md5yemVj0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1c0_JUWgK2c

The music arrangement has been modernized for this version; so is the music video.

Very good.


7. A cover by Hong Kong singers Danny Chan and Jacky Cheung in a function:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bbTJfyF5Fhw

This was a rare occasion when they performed together.


8. A cover by Hong Kong singer, TV and stage actress Amy Hu (the first of the two songs):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tTJAeVaeIS4

I have always enjoyed Amy Hu's acting.


9. The Pearl Sisters of Singapore:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D_KXkXuszb0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tp1804wTOoI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c5ZbdlyQDVo

and another performance:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UuLgALapqVk

They were having fun with this song.

After 40 years, the Pearl Sisters retired from performance in 2010.


10. Three different performances by Lily Chu, the younger of the Pearl Sisters:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EcR1WrYI7CE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0gX-t5OJ_-g

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ylG2YEYh0zY

The Pearl Sisters have this song down pat.

I think Lily Chu was speaking in Fukienese during her performance.


11. CHEN Rujia of Guangzhou in a concert in Guangzhou in 1989:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5J0rs8rLUIA


12. A very unusual but brilliant alternating of two songs:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vaQ3XXjZsNs

Wang Zhaojun is a Beijing Opera style song sang in Mandarin by Rosanne Lui.

(New) Chiming Bells in a Zen Temple is a Cantonese Opera style song sang in Cantonese by Big Al.


13. A cover by CHEN Lijuan:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Samrw_CCalM

Competently sung.

But her dress was far too sexy for this song.

The way she was dressed was incongruent with the music and lyrics.

But they were having fun with this song too.


14. The music in the Chinese instrument "Guzheng":

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zUk7QY6Vv3Y

I agree with the uploader: "This guzheng has a bitter-sweet voice with rich tone."


15. Guzheng by Wu Yang (female) and flute by Wang Hua (male):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hw_J60pV4wE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgjVHrcVZGM


16. A Guzheng performance in London, UK:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQxujqXn4_M


17. The Lyrics in Traditional Chinese:

新禪院鐘聲 -- 鄭錦昌

雲寒雨冷，寂寥夜半景色淒清，
荒山悄靜，依稀隱約傳來了夜半鐘，
鐘聲驚破夢更難成。
是誰令我愁難馨非莫馨，
情緣泡影，鴛鴦夢，三生約，
何堪追認，舊愛一朝斷，
傷心哀我負愛抱恨決心逃情。

禪院宵宵歎孤影，
仿似杜宇哀聲泣血夜半鳴，
隱居澗絕嶺，
菩提伴我苦敲經，
凡塵世俗那堪複聽，
情似煙輕，我禪心修佛性，
夢幻已今朝醒，
情根愛根，恨根怨根，
春花怕賦詠。
唉，情絲愛絲，
愁絲怨絲，
秋月怕留情，
情心早化灰，
禪心都經潔靜。

* 為愛為情恨似病，
對花對月懷前程，
徒追憶，花月證，
情人負我，
變心負約太不應，
相思當初枉心傾，
怨句妹妹太薄幸，
禪院鐘聲，深宵冷靜，
夜半有恨人已淚盈盈。

Repeat *, *


18. The Lyrics in Simplified Chinese:

新禅院钟声 -- 郑锦昌

云寒雨冷，寂寥夜半景色凄清，
荒山悄静，依稀隐约传来了夜半钟，
钟声惊破梦更难成。
是谁令我愁难馨非莫馨，
情缘泡影，鸳鸯梦，三生约，
何堪追认，旧爱一朝断，
伤心哀我负爱抱恨决心逃情。

禅院宵宵叹孤影，
仿似杜宇哀声泣血夜半鸣，
隐居涧绝岭，
菩提伴我苦敲经，
凡尘世俗那堪复听，
情似烟轻，我禅心修佛性，
梦幻已今朝醒，
情根爱根，恨根怨根，
春花怕赋咏。
唉，情丝爱丝，
愁丝怨丝，
秋月怕留情，
情心早化灰，
禅心都经洁静。

* 为爱为情恨似病，
对花对月怀前程，
徒追忆，花月证，
情人负我，
变心负约太不应，
相思当初枉心倾，
怨句妹妹太薄幸，
禅院钟声，深宵冷静，
夜半有恨人已泪盈盈。

Repeat *, *


19. Names, Words and Phrases:

Cheng Kam Cheong (Traditional Chinese: 鄭錦昌; Simplified Chinese: 郑锦昌).

Amy Hu (Traditional: 胡美儀; Simplified: 胡美仪).

Chen Lijuan (Traditional: 陳俐娟; Simplified: 陈俐娟).

Chen Rujia (Traditional: 陳汝佳; Simplified: 陈汝佳).

Danny Chan (Traditional: 陳百強; Simplified: 陈百强).

Dicky Cheung (Traditional: 張衛健; Simplified: 张卫健).

Flute (Traditional: 簫; Simplified: 箫).

Guangzhou (Traditional: 廣州; Simplified: 广州).

Guzheng (Traditional: 古箏; Simplified: 古筝).

Jacky Cheung (Traditional: 張學友; Simplified: 张学友).

Lily Chu (Traditional: 朱莉莉; Simplified: 朱莉莉).

Prince of Cantonese Songs (Traditional: 粵曲王子; Simplified: 粤曲王子).

Rosanne Lui (Traditional: 呂珊; Simplified: 吕珊).

The Pearl Sisters (Traditional: 明珠姐妹; Simplified: 明珠姐妹).

Wang Hua (Traditional: 王華; Simplified: 王华).

Wang Zhaojun (Traditional: 王昭君; Simplified: 王昭君).

Wu Yang (Traditional: 伍洋; Simplified: 伍洋).


References:

"粵語流行音樂", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-hant/%E7%B2%B5%E8%AA%9E%E6%B5%81%E8%A1%8C%E9%9F%B3%E6%A8%82
(accessed 2012-08-26).

"粵語流行曲史", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://zh-yue.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E7%B2%B5%E8%AA%9E%E6%B5%81%E8%A1%8C%E6%9B%B2%E5%8F%B2
(accessed 2012-08-26).

End.

[Book] A Simple Listing of Chinese Chronology (in Chinese)

A Simple Listing of Chinese Chronology (2002)

Contents (1)

 Contents (2)

1. This is a book recommendation.

Traditional Chinese historians recorded dates by a combination of:

(1) dynastic name, an emperor’s assumed name (or aliases), the emperor's era name and year of the era, and

(2) years into a Sexagenary Cycle (or Stems-and-Branches).

To those of us who read a little bit of Chinese history but have not memorize the hundreds of Chinese emperors' names and their era names, A Simple Listing of Chinese Chronology ("中國歷史年代簡表") is a godsend.

This handy reference is just a listing of Chinese chronology by:

(1) Year in CE (Common Era) or BCE (Before Common Era) (Preface by a '-' sign in the book).

(2) Year in the Sexagenary Cycle.

(3) Emperor's name and assumed name.

(4) Emperor's era name and year of the era.

And it is an invaluable companion to reading traditional Chinese history.


2. One very common complaint by students in reading Chinese history is the very complicated Chinese chronology system.

But not so with Western calendar.

Western cultures, influenced by the Bible and Christianity, have a linear view of history.

So they record their history in a linear chronological fashion.

The common designations used to record history in western cultures are Anno Domini (AD or A.D.), which is Latin for "In the year of the Lord", and Before Christ (BC or B.C.). ("Anno Domini", Wikipedia.)

The secular counterparts of the two designations are Common Era (CE) and Before Common Era (BCE).

So western chronology can be enumerated simply by the positive integers:
...
year 3 BC (or BCE)
year 2 BC (or BCE)
year 1 BC (or BCE)
year 1 AD (or CE)
year 2 AD (or CE)
year 3 AD (or CE)
...

The advantages of this chronological system are that it is simple, linear ordered, unique and easy to count the years.

Reading history using this system, one always has a sense of one's absolute and relative position in time and history.


3. Not so with the traditional Chinese historical recording system.

Traditional Chinese historians recorded dates by a combination of:

(1) Dynastic name, an emperor’s assumed name (or aliases), the emperor's era name and year of the era, and

(2) Years into a Sexagenary Cycle (or Stems-and-Branches).

The four elements system is a linear system while the Sexagenary Cycle is a cyclical system that repeats the counting in 60 years cycle.

For the purpose of chronology, the Sexagenary Cycle is auxiliary and is mainly recorded because of its cultural significance; so I will say no more about it.

The main mean of determining chronology in Chinese history is by giving the four elements of:

(a) a dynastic name,

(b) an emperor’s assumed name (or aliases),

(c) the emperor's era name, and

(d) the year of the era.

By recording these four elements, a unique year is determined.

The weaknesses of this system are that there are many names to memorize and there are many complications.

As to memory work, to know every year in Chinese history corresponding to the Western calendar, a student has to memorize:

(a) 83 dynastic names ("中国皇帝", Wikipedia),

(b) 557 emperor's names just between Qin Dynasty and Qing Dynasty ("Emperor of China", Wikipedia),

(c) and for most emperors, between 1 to 5 era's name (some as much as 18 and 21),

(d) and the irregular length of each era of each emperor.

And there are many complications to this system of recording.

The complications resulted in one Western calendar year may have more than one reckoning in the Chinese four elements system.


4. A single year in the Western calendar can have two reckonings by the Chinese recording system because one emperor died and another emperor enthroned in the same year.

The year 827 CE has two reckonings in the Chinese recording system because of the death of an emperor.

 

page 124

(a) 827 CE = 唐敬宗李湛寶曆三年.

Sexagenary cycle: 丁未

Dynastic name:  唐

Emperor's assumed name: 敬宗

Emperor's family name: 李

Emperor's given name: 湛

Emperor's era name: 寶曆

Year of the era: 三年 (third year)

(b) 827 CE = 唐文宗李昂大和元年.

Sexagenary cycle: 丁未

Dynastic name:  唐

Emperor's assumed name: 文宗

Emperor's family name: 李

Emperor's given name: 昂

Emperor's era name: 大和

Year of the era: 元年 (first year)

Traditional Chinese histories did not refer to an emperor's family and given name.

A Simple Listing of Chinese Chronology gave that information only for our reference.

In traditional Chinese culture, it was considered rude and impolite to call a person by his family and given name; in the case of an emperor, it was an offence.


5. A single year in the Western calendar can have more than one reckoning in the Chinese recording system because an emperor might decree a new era in that year.

The year 692 CE has three reckonings in the Chinese recording system because Empress Wu Zetian changed her era name twice in that year.

 

page 116

(a) 692 CE = 周武則天天授三年.

Sexagenary cycle: 壬辰

Dynastic name:  周

Empress’s assumed name: 則天

Empress’s family name: 武

Empress’s era name: 天授

Year of the era: 三年 (third year)

(b) 692 CE = 周武則天如意元年.

Sexagenary cycle: 壬辰

Dynastic name:  周

Empress’s assumed name: 則天

Empress’s family name: 武

Empress’s era name: 如意

Year of the era: 元年 (first year)

(c) 692 CE = 周武則天長壽元年.

Sexagenary cycle: 壬辰

Dynastic name:  周

Empress’s assumed name: 則天

Empress’s family name: 武

Empress’s era name: 長壽

Year of the era: 元年 (first year)

Although there were many powerful women in Chinese history, Empress Wu Zetian had the distinct honor of being the only Empress in Chinese history.

Not only was Empress Wu Zetian an empress of her husband's dynasty ("Tang"), she was also the only empress of a dynasty she founded ("Zhou").

The impossible situation she faced was that if she passed her dynasty to her sons, then the dynasty will revert back as Tang.

But if she passed her dynasty to her nephews the Wu's, then they were not her direct descendants.

What happened was that there was a palace coup in Empress Wu Zetian's old age and the dynasty reverted back to Tang.


6. A single year in the Western calendar can have more than one reckoning in the Chinese recording system because China was divided and there were more than one claimant as emperor.

The year 222 CE has three reckonings in the Chinese recording system because it was the Three Kingdoms period in China and there were three claimants as Emperor.

 

page 77

(a) 222 CE = 魏文帝曹丕黃初三年.

Sexagenary cycle: 壬寅

Dynastic name:  魏

Emperor's assumed name: 文帝

Emperor's family name: 曹

Emperor's given name: 丕

Emperor's era name: 黃初

Year of the era: 三年 (third year)

(b) 222 CE = 蜀漢昭烈帝劉備章武二年.

Sexagenary cycle: 壬寅

Dynastic name:  蜀漢

Emperor's assumed name: 昭烈帝

Emperor's family name: 劉

Emperor's given name: 備

Emperor's era name: 章武

Year of the era: 二年 (second year)

(c) 222 CE = 吳大帝孫權黃武元年.

Sexagenary cycle: 壬寅

Dynastic name:  吳

Emperor's assumed name: 大帝

Emperor's family name: 孫

Emperor's given name: 權

Emperor's era name: 黃武

Year of the era: 元年 (first year)


7. There are many more complications to the Chinese recording system, but the three samples above should give you a taste of the difficulties a student of Chinese history faces.

I have no doubt that some professional Chinese historians have memorized all 83 dynastic names, 557 emperors' names, the hundreds of era names and the length of each era.

But for us occasional dabbler in Chinese history, A Simple Listing of Chinese Chronology is a godsend.


8. Book details in Traditional Chinese:

書名:        中國歷史年代簡表

版別:        第二次修訂版

作者名稱:  文物出版社編輯部

出版社:     三聯書店(香港)有限公司

出版日期:  2002 (香港第一版)

ISBN:      962-04-2180-9

語言:        繁體中文版

頁數:        244頁

售價:        HK$33.00


9. Names, Words and Phrases

Dynastic name (Traditional Chinese: 朝代名; Simplified Chinese: 朝代名).

Emperor's assumed name (Traditional: 帝王稱號; Simplified: 帝王称号).

Emperor's era name (Traditional: 帝王年號; Simplified: 帝王年号).

Qin Dynasty (Traditional: 秦朝; Simplified: 秦朝).

Qing Dynasty (Traditional: 清朝; Simplified: 清朝).

Sexagenary Cycle (Traditional: 六十花甲; Simplified: 六十花甲).

Stems-and-Branches (Traditional: 干支; Simplified: 干支).

Tang Dynasty (Traditional: 唐朝; Simplified: 唐朝).

Wu Zetian (Traditional: 武則天; Simplified: 武则天).

Zhou (Traditional: 周; Simplified: 周).


References:

"Anno Domini", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anno_Domini
(accessed 2012-08-24).

"Chinese era name", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_era_name
(accessed 2012-08-24).

"Emperor of China", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emperor_of_China
(accessed 2012-08-24).

"Sexagenary cycle", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sexagenary_cycle
(accessed 2012-08-24).

"Wu Zetian", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wu_Zetian
(accessed 2012-08-24).

"中国皇帝", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E4%B8%AD%E5%9B%BD%E7%9A%87%E5%B8%9D
(accessed 2012-08-24).

"干支", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%B9%B2%E6%94%AF
(accessed 2012-08-24).

"年號", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-tw/%E5%B9%B4%E8%99%9F
(accessed 2012-08-24).

"武则天", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%AD%A6%E5%88%99%E5%A4%A9
(accessed 2012-08-24).

End.

[Opinion] The Limitations of the Dialectic Method

Bertrand Russell

1. The ancient Greeks enjoined us to "know thyself".

And in the last line of Magnum Force (1973), Inspector Harry Callahan (Clint Eastwood) memorably said: "A man's GOT to know his limitations."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CG2cux_6Rcw

To know one's limitation is part of knowing oneself; but it was not from the Greek, but from the Reformed apologist Cornelius Van Til (1895-1987), that I learned the importance of this concept.

Van Til called the concept "epistemological self-consciousness".

Epistemology is just a fancy word for theory of knowledge.

Thus, one is epistemologically self-conscious if:

(a) one knows what one is thinking,

(b) one knows why one is thinking what one is thinking, and

(c) one knows how one is thinking what one is thinking.


2. To know "what" one is thinking and "why" one is thinking what one is thinking require first-order and second-order reflections.

But the "how" of thinking is a different animal of the epistemological zoo.

There is a branch of study called "methodology" that is devoted to the "how" of knowledge.

And learning theory is that part of methodology that study how we acquire new knowledge.

Among the methods that we use to acquire new knowledge, two are particularly important:

(a) The dialectic method; and

(b) The scientific method.


3. In the quotation below, Bertrand Russell (1872-1970) succinctly defined and explained the dialectic method, indicated its limitation and contrasted it with the scientific method.

What I find particular valuable is Russell's discussion of the limitations of the dialectic method.

Many discuss the dialectic method without indicating its limitations.

So paraphrasing Inspector Callahan, as a man got to know his limitations so a man got to know the limitations of his tools, be those tools intellectual tools.


4. (Russell [1979] 1982, 109-111):

Dialectic, that is to say, the method of seeking knowledge by question and answer, was not invented by Socrates. It seems to have been first practised systematically by Zeno, the disciple of Parmenides; in Plato's dialogue Parmenides, Zeno subjects Socrates to the same kind of treatment to which, elsewhere in Plato, Socrates subjects others. But there is every reason to suppose that Socrates practised and developed the method. As we saw, when Socrates is condemned to death he reflects happily that in the next world he can go on asking questions for ever, and cannot be put to death, as he will be immortal. Certainly, if he practised dialectic in the way described in the Apology, the hostility to him is easily explained: all the hambugs in Athens would combine against him.

The dialectic method is suitable for some questions, and unsuitable for others. Perhaps this helped to determine the character of Plato's inquires, which were, for the most part, such as could be dealt with in this way. And through Plato's influence, most subsequent philosophy has been bounded by the limitations resulting from his method.

Some matters are obviously unsuitable for treatment in this way -- empirical science, for example. It is true that Galileo used dialogues to advocate his theories, but that was only to overcome prejudice -- the positive grounds for his discoveries could not be inserted in a dialogue without great artificiality. Socrates, in Plato's works, always pretends that he is only eliciting knowledge already possessed by the man he is questioning; on this ground, he compares himself to a midwife. When, in the Phaedo and the Meno, he applies his method to geometrical problems, he has to ask leading questions which any judge would disallow. The method is in harmony with the doctrine of reminiscence, according to which we learn by remembering that we knew in a former existence. As against this view, consider any discovery that has been made by means of the microscope, say the spread of diseases by bacteria; it can hardly be maintained that such knowledge can be elicited from a previously ignorant person by the method of question and answer.

The matters that are suitable for treatment by the Socratic method are those as to which we have already enough knowledge to come to the right conclusion, but have failed, through confusion of thought or lack of analysis, to make the best logical use of what we know. A question such as 'what is justice?' is eminently suited for discussion in a Platonic dialogue. We all freely use the words 'just' and 'unjust', and, by examining the ways in which we use them, we can arrive inductively at the definition that will best suit with usage. All that is needed is knowledge of how the words in question are used. But when our inquiry is concluded, we have made only a linguistic discovery, not a discovery in ethics.

We can, however, apply the method profitably to a somewhat larger class of cases. Wherever what is debated is logical rather than factual, discussion is a good method of eliciting truth. Suppose someone maintains, for example, that democracy is good, but persons holding certain opinions should not be allowed to vote, we may convict him of inconsistency, and prove to him that at least one of his two assertions must be more or less erroneous. Logical errors are, I think, of greater practical importance than many people believe; they enable their perpetrators to hold the comfortable opinion on every subject in turn. Any logically coherent body of doctrine is sure to be in part painful and contrary to current prejudices. The dialectic method -- or, more generally, the habit of unfettered discussion -- tends to promote logical consistency, and is in this way useful. But it is quite unavailing when the object is to discover new facts. Perhaps 'philosophy' might be defined as the sum-total of those inquiries that can be pursued by Plato's methods. But if this definition is appropriate, that is because of Plato's influence upon subsequent philosophers.


Reference:

Russell, Bertrand. [1979] 1982. History of Western Philosophy and its Connection with Political and Social Circumstances from the Earliest Times to the Present Day. 2nd ed. London: Unwin Paperbacks. (Orig. pub. 1946.)

End.

[Music] Like a Cold -- Karen Tong

Karen Tong

1. The Chinese words "感冒" literally means a common cold.

Believe it or not, this love song was originally written for a Hong Kong commercial promoting a cold medicine.

The lyrics were shrewdly written so that they can serve as both a love song and a cold medicine commercial.

The commercial aired in Hong Kong in the mid to late 1990s.

I was working in Hong Kong and China at the time and vaguely remember seeing the commercial on TV.

Since the lyrics compare different aspects of love to a cold, I have translated the song title as Like a Cold ("感冒").


2. Karen Tong was born in 1971 and she entered Hong Kong's music scene in 1992.

I find Karen Tong to be a talented singer and quite pretty too.

Yet Chinese Wikipedia listed her active years as a singer as between 1992 and 1996.

With all her talents, Karen was not able to reach the top of Hong Kong's music scene and she sort of faded out after a few years.

Another contributing factor to her fading out might be because of her arduous love life - her different courtships over the years have not been easy ones.

But after fading out of the music scene, Karen developed a second career in acting.

Karen Tong has participated in a few TV, movie, and stage acting’s after her singing career.

To commemorate the 20th anniversary of her singing, Karen Tong will be in concert in Hong Kong in December this year (2012).


3. This might be the music video of Like a Cold from the original TV broadcast:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=32wgOzf324o

and another one:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_K8ar_LYgF4


4.  A Karaoke version of Like a Cold:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zqja9RmtUsc

and it’s plain counterpart:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gOVsWywYsac

I agree with the comment by @lawrence0834 - the range of this song is quite broad and is not easy to sing.


5. A Dramatic Version of the song by Karen Tong:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5pwXl7UOeoU


6. These videos are just photo filler:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ulT9j0QgIVI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RqP_jx33USo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3NV0KJOkJ9M

But the audios are quite good.


7. A photo tribute to Karen Tong put together by some fans:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pDw-8Kn7HfM


8. RTHK (Radio Television Hong Kong) 1996 Top 10 songs Award:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A7DeZGI_Dbg


9. Karen Tong as guest in a concert in 2010:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QdRr6ucMY4s


10. At Karen Tong's birthday gathering in 2010:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4mj7CxeOrJM


11. This is just the music:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hNir6xdZ7ow


12. The Lyrics in Traditional Chinese:


感冒 -- 湯寶如

等   漸漸會成為好習慣
流連一番   無聊一番
等新出的襯衫

等   若是再能捱過多一晚
便會醫得好心內舊患
全憑愉快的晚餐

* 時間令痛苦都醫好
戀愛命運就像感冒
誰人又會受傷到老   亦難幸福到老
為何去又來也不知道

# 誰也沒法可免疫吧
失戀都似是斷斷續續感冒吧
完全在意料中變化   或長或短進化
治療那來又去的感情   不可怕

可   利用最便宜的代價
從誰的家   和誰的家
修好心中創疤

可   日夜也埋頭醉心工作
最好出一身一臉熱汗
痊癒便靠這配方

Repeat *, #, *, #


13. The Lyrics in Simplified Chinese:


感冒 -- 汤宝如

等   渐渐会成为好习惯
流连一番   无聊一番
等新出的衬衫

等   若是再能捱过多一晚
便会医得好心内旧患
全凭愉快的晚餐

* 时间令痛苦都医好
恋爱命运就像感冒
谁人又会受伤到老   亦难幸福到老
为何去又来也不知道

# 谁也没法可免疫吧
失恋都似是断断续续感冒吧
完全在意料中变化   或长或短进化
治疗那来又去的感情   不可怕

可   利用最便宜的代价
从谁的家   和谁的家
修好心中创疤

可   日夜也埋头醉心工作
最好出一身一脸热汗
痊愈便靠这配方

Repeat *, #, *, #


14. Names, Words and Phrases:

Karen Tong (Traditional Chinese: 湯寶如; Simplified Chinese: 汤宝如).

Dramatic Version (Traditional: 劇場版;Simplified: 剧场版).

RTHK (Traditional: 香港電台; Simplified: 香港电台).


Reference:

"湯寶如", Wikipedia - The Free Encyclopedia,
http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%B9%AF%E5%AF%B6%E5%A6%82
(accessed 2012-08-12).

End.