Sean Akizuki's Personal Blog

The song "Stand by Me" is considered a classic. I heard the late Anita Mui's version "Stand by Me" which featured a much different tune. Anita's version credited the late Ben E. King, the late Jerry Leiber, and Mike Stoller (who is still alive at 92). I always wondered why Anita's arrangement differed from the song that she credits for her song? Songwriter Keith Chan credits King, Leiber, and Stoller. But the arrangement came from the late Maurice White. The lyrics of Maurice's version is: When the night has come And the land is dark And the moon is the only light we see No I won't be afraid I won't be afraid Just as long as you stand, stand by me Oh, stand by me Oh, stand by me, stand by me If the sea that we look upon Should tumble and fall And the mountains should crumble in the sea You know that I won't, I won't cry Oh, I won't, won't shed a tear Just as long as you stand, stand by me And darling, darling Stand by me, stan...

One of my favorite Chinese oldies is "Mèng Xǐng Shí Fēn" by Sarah Chen Shu Hua . It literally means "Awakening from a Dream". There was the sad English cover called " Love Can Make Your Heart Go Crazy ". This song kinda reminds me of some of my failed romances.  After all, some Chinese songs are covers of English songs. Chinese songs also get English covers. Royalty fees does help make the world go round huh? 

  A licensed cover of a song isn't a direct translation. I'm pretty sure that Jacky Cheung's Cantonese cover of Ariel Rivera's hit song "Sana Kahit Minsan" (If Only Sometimes) will have a different meaning. Aaron Kwok has a cover of Jose Mari Chan's "Beautiful Girl" in Mandarin. There's the song " Meng Xing Shi Fen " - a song that was all lost in my memory until Google allowed people to find songs by HUMMING it. Now, there's the English cover called "Love Can Make Your Heart Go Crazy" by Tokyo Square. If I'm not wrong, Linda Trang Dai, a Vietnamese-American, is also part of that group.  This song carries a different meaning from "Meng Xing Shi Fen" which means "Awakening from a Dream". We would have these lyrics: You saу love has changed the fading world And the world is such a fool Just believing in such a thing makes уour heart go crazу You saу уou haven’t really been love before And уour hear...

I remembered another song that left an earworm with me was the song "When I Hear Applause". I had no idea what its title was back then. This song keeps getting sung in Chinese restaurants. I always wonder what the lyrics were and what they meant.  Fortunately, here are the lyrics from Pinyin Lyrics: Stand alone on this stage Hear the applause I have infinite emotion in my heart How much youth is not there How many feelings have changed I still have your love Like the first stage Heard the first cheers My tears can’t help but fall How many failed How much patience I’m still standing here My heart understands better when the applause sounds Your love will be with me My heart understands better when the applause sounds Singing meets you and my love No wonder it sounds so sad. It really reminiscences the time when the performance was first done by the singer. He or she recalls her one true love and how they met by singing. 

Here's a song that gave me an earworm wondering what the title was for years. Fortunately, there's some technology that helps us find an OLD SCHOOL song. Google voice search is amazing. This song is called "Awaken from a Dream" by Sarah Chen - also the same song that launched her career and kept her popular even after her retirement. I could remember how I heard this song in Chinese restaurants more often than not. Granted, I grew up in the Philippines so Chinese isn't my first-hand language. I didn't even get interested in learning Mandarin (because I was obsessed with the American-Japanese superiority mentality while disliking Power Rangers which was a collaboration of two sides) until Meteor Garden aired in the Philippines.  Here's the English translation of the lyrics from Lyrics Translate : You say that you loved someone whom you shouldn't have, Your heart is filled with scars You say that you made a mistake that you shouldn't have, Your heart...

I guess you can't lose the fact of being Chinese by blood, right? Or not? Regardless, Jose Mari Chan is Filipino by heart so the hit should still be classified as Filipino music. I remembered falling in love with the song as a child. Then what's not so surprising is this... Aaron Kwok did a Mandarin cover though his voice isn't as good as Chan's IMHO. Jacky Cheung did a cover of Ariel Rivera's hit "Sana Kahit Minsan" (Even If Only Sometimes) in the movie Future Cops . So far, I haven't found an English translation yet. It would be nice to see Chan and Kwok meet each other. The same goes for Rivera and Cheung.

One of my favorite cover songs "Take Me to Your Heart" (which was done by Michael Learns to Rock) was based on Jacky Cheung's "Kiss Goodbye". What's not too surprising is that the lyrics of a proposal love song was taken from a sad love song. Shocked? For me, not really. Cover songs tend to change moods a lot. Cheung covered Ariel Rivera's hit song "Sana Kahit Minsan" (Hopefully At Least Once) which leads me to wonder how many more Chinese songs have Filipino covers too? Now, for the translation of the lyrics of Cheung's song "Kiss Goodbye"  show it's a REALLY sad song: Our past stories have become clouds and smoke Dispersed right before our eyes Even as we've said "goodbye" to each other I don't see you feeling sad at all All that you've given to me You didn't mean from your heart But the more innocent your smile is The crazier I'll be in love with you I'd come to an understandi...

It's really something when a tune gets popular and it gets a cover, right? "Rouge" by Miyuki Nakajima is the original song that got a cover by Faye Wong. Hong Kong's Cantopop industry did covers of Japanese, Filipino, and American songs. The song "Rouge" was covered by Wong under the name "Broken Hearted Woman" in Mandarin and Cantonese. I kind of prefer Wong's Mandarin cover. Wong also sang the English cover "Please Don't Go Away" while Jessica Jay had an English cover "Broken Hearted Woman". Cally Kwong also sang the Mandarin version. Here's a translation   of the Japanese song "Rouge": Now I am very socialized Even when I face a drunken man Now I am very socialized Every time applying lipstick I know I'll become more and more communicative In those days because of pursuing him I followed him till this place I only had a light cherry blossom colored lipstick with me Because of pursuing th...

Perhaps one of the greatest enigmas in one's childhood is what song was played in those bomb jokes? Today, the digital age provides a lot of answers to childhood enigmas. It turns out that the music used in the bomb joke. The first line is being used and the note often misses. The perpetrator usually becomes the victim of it. It turns out to be a song called "Believe Me, If All Those Endearing Young Charms". Here's the lyrics of the song: BELIEVE me, if all those endearing young charms, Which I gaze on so fondly to-day, Were to change by to-morrow, and flee from my arms Like fairy-gifts, fading away! Thou wouldst still be ador'd as this moment thou art, Let thy loveliness fade as it will; And, around the dear ruin, each wish of my heart Would entwine itself verdantly still! II. It is not while beauty and youth are thine own, And thy cheeks unprofan'd by a tear, That the fervour and faith of a love can be known, To which time will but make t...

Here's one Japanese song that I fell in love with, didn't understand a single word except for "Saigo No Iiwake" which means last excuse. Here's the English translation that I found at Kiwi Musume and man -- it's really a very sad song, isn't it?  It’s so painful pretending to be asleep now The drops that fall are tears And you’ll wait for the dawn and then go Because it’s you who’s afraid of the dark The thing that’s most precious to me has become the furthest away I knew you so well, and now it’s all a memory I think everyone likes you I’ll miss you, you don’t need to worry about that What makes it so painful Is the fact that you think you’re doing me a favour by saying goodbye You’re the closest to me, and yet the hardest to understand I loved you so much, and now it’s all an excuse The thing that’s most precious to me has become the furthest away I knew you so well, and now it’s all a memory It’s all a memory You’re the close...

I remembered one of the oldies that I used to listen to a child was called "Don't Cry Joni." I admit, this was a sad love song and the end, Joni married his best friend John! WTF! Really, I can't imagine how it end it that way!  So here's the best response to the song with a modern song... Yup, many years later, the sequel is for John. After John stole Joni from Jimmy -- this would be the best song to reply to him. Seriously John? Why did you steal Joni away from Jimmy? That's the song from Simple Plan that would best describe John. 

Here's a Mandarin song where the title translates to "Please leave a little love for me tonight." One of its singers is Taiwanese actress Zhen Xiu Zhen who acted as Dao Ming Si's mother in Meteor Garden.  Leave me a little love tonight Now I want more than just a friend Do not tell me with a smile Let all say tomorrow Tonight, leave a little love for me Do you really do not understand such feelings? Lonely, everyone has it Just say that I do not speak So leave a little love for me tonight Do not want to change my life Do not want to go alone So leave a little love for me tonight At the end of the day Have a bit of real feeling Leave me a little love tonight Now what I want is no longer a kind of attachment Say nothing It just gets even harder So leave a little love for me tonight Do not want to change life Do not want to go alone So leave a little love for me tonight At the end of the day Have a little bit of real feeling So leave a little love for me tonight Do...

This is an old classic Chinese oldies which I heard over in a Chinese restaurant. I confess, I don't really know Mandarin much but I try every now and then to learn the language so I can appreciate my favorite shows in that language. The same goes for Nihonggo and Hangul.  Here's a rough translation of the song which I took from Asia Friend Finder : Cannot forget, Cannot forget, Cannot forget your mistakes, Cannot forget your goodness, Cannot forget our carefree walk in the rain, And cannot forget embracing in the wind. Cannot forget, Cannot forget, Cannot forget your tears, Cannot forget your laughter, Cannot forget the falling leaves of despair, And cannot forget those blooming worries. (Bridge) Loneliness of a long road Now the slanting moon clearly illuminates. The neglected swing stands alone in the cold, Swings gently to and fro in the cold wind. It duplicates your sting, A voice, forgotten, forgotten. It tells of my broken inner feelings, A voice, difficult, d...

Just because a song is a cover of a previously done song doesn't mean it's bad. There are several outcomes of the song so I could actually talk about some which came out good, just as good, better or worse. Some of them even come out with very different lyrics and meaning than the original song. My favorite example is the fact that I like "Take Me To Your Heart' better than Jacky Cheung's "Kiss Goodbye" though we cannot deny Jacky Cheung's song "Kiss Goodbye" is a tragic love song. I really love the tune associated with it. The song's title should tell us how sad the song is already. I'll admit he's done covers of Filipino songs like Ariel Rivera's "Sana Kahit Minsan" or roughly translated as, "Only If Sometimes". This guy has sung an English cover of the song "Corazon de Melao".  Michael Learns to Rock's cover version of the song is pretty much a different song. Unlike Cheung'...

It's a misconception that you must only enjoy anything of your generation which is just stupid.  Why do I think that is so?  I always thought of how certain people say that I'm "baduy" which can be translated as "out of fashion" because I always enjoy classical music.  I am the type of person who can chill out with listening to the classical pieces of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Ludwig Van Beethoven, Johann Strauss, Frederick Chopin, George Frederick Handel, Johann Sebastian Bach and Richard Wagner are among a few.  Classical music was never meant to be enjoyed at just one era but for all ages. If you want to know how I even got into golden oldies, it was thanks to modern films.  I always felt like Meteor Garden and other Chinese films provide a gateway of the past.  It's funny how watching the 2001 version of Romance in the Rain actually got me interested with the classic Qiong Yao series.  Yes, I personally am not all that used to seeing Liu Xuehua...

Here's one of my favorite older songs back int he late 80s-early 90s from Shakin' Stevens called "You Drive Me Crazy" which also had a rendition from Ronnie Harwood.  The lyrics goes as... You know, Baby, when you're in my arms, I can feel your loving magic charms You drive me crazy, you drive me crazy. And when Im looking in those big blue eyes, I start afloating round in paradise, You drive me crazy, you drive me crazy. Heaven must have sent you down, Down for you to give me a thrill, Every time you touch me Every time you hold me, My heart starts speeding like a train on a track. I love you, Baby, and it's plain to see, I love you, honey, it was meant to be You drive me crazy, you drive me crazy, oh.

Here are some of my favorite renditions of the Chinese song "Moon Represents My Heart" in no particular order... 1974's recording by Poon Sow Keng. Teresa Teng popularized the song with her sweet voice. Leslie Cheung's rendition in this video has really that nice instrumentals if you ask me though I'm not very fond of his voice.

Lover's tear which is called "Qing Ren De Yan Lei" in Mandarin is one sad love song. This is the meaning in English: Why want to cry for you Don’t tell me you don’t understand clearly it’s because of love Only those with lover, (knows) tears are most precious A single tear is still love, is still love If it weren’t for a girl’s lover want to part with me My tears will not drop Good spring come agai n Spring flowers just blossom How you willing to part with I’m at deep end looking at waters of spring Don’t you forget my feeling, deep deep as the sea There are various singers to this Mandarin song, my favorite rendition is by Malaysian-Chinese Poon Sow Keng (Pan Xiu Qiong in Mandarin) and to that of Tsai Chin, but preferably that of Poon Sow Keng. I just love her rendition as well.

Here is Kempee de Leon's interpretation of Saigo no Iiwake which is entitled "My One and Only".  I just find this song to be the best English interpretation aside from "Comeback Home" by Maso.  I really feel emotional whenever I listen to this song... My One And Only (saigo No Iwake) Lyrics Keempee De Leon When you said goodbye, and we were apart, Why did I go on searching for you? Your face is all I see. Your love is everything I need in my heart. Why can't I let go of the way that I feel And forget those times we've had? Are these the rules of love? There's no escape in what I felt from the start. Chorus: Saigo no iwake, my one and only, All I want is to hold you, but you're not there. If I wake and find it's only a dream, I'd gladly take you back into my heart. (Repeat first and second stanzas) (Repeat chorus) Adlib (Repeat chorus twice)

If there's any Chinese love song that I would consider one of my biggest favorite it would be the song "Moon Represents My Heart" which in Chinese is "Yue Liang Dai Biao Wo De Xin" to which was later made famous by Teresa Teng though it was also sung by Chen Fan Lan and one of my favorite oldies. Here are the lyrics in English: You ask me how deep my love for you is. I love you a bit. My affection is real. My love is real. Moon represents my heart. You ask me how deep my love for you is. I love you a bit. My affection does not change. My love is not different. Moon represents my heart. One soft kiss already move my heart. A period of time when our affection was deep, make me miss you until now. You ask me how deep my love for you is. I love you a bit. You think and think. You see and see. Moon represents my heart. I just gave my thoughts that despite the uncertainties, the moon is always there.  And in the night, the moon serves as ...