I love music. I’ve been listening to it since there were tapes and we had a record collection too! I love learning Chinese too. When I went to China I was very excited to hear new music and listen to totally new stuff. I got a few things my first year, a few tapes and some CDs. I brought home more Western bootleg CDs than I did real Chinese music. There was too much to choose from. Plus I had a friend who was totally into everything Western and it seemed like he didn’t like his own people’s music!

The other week I was happy to see a new podcast in the hopper over at Slow Chinese. If you haven’t listened to his podcast you should and you should read our interview with the creator of Slow Chinese Podcast from a while back. Anyway, from time to time the guy behind Slow Chinese introduces music. The artist this time was a guy who I was happy to at least be able read his Chinese name. (The first one is easy and the FENG 峰 was part of an old Chinese name I had.) I kid you not, I listened to that podcast about 3 times before I had to go home from work. I couldn’t get enough of his song. It was perfect. It had feeling. It had the slow parts. It had it’s rocking parts. It had it’s building parts and it’s climactic parts. To me a perfect song. Plus I could understand the chorus which is really important for singing along.

That song is not the song I am posting below though.  I started Googling or Bai Du-ing his name and came up with some other songs. I asked on my Sina Weibo Microblog if anybody knew other songs that they liked of his. I found this song. “In the Springtime.” A great song if you like balding Chinese men tearing up the drums. (3:37 in the YouTube video!)  But seriously, a great video performance and a great song with some melancholy lyrics. “If one day, I’m old and have no one to take care of me, please bury me in the Springtime.”  This has profound affect on the Chinese who find this concept absolutely terrifying, being alone when they are old. MX really likes this song and pointed that out to me.  She said that her mom and dad would not like this song because he is singing about this horrible idea.  My mom and dad wouldn’t understand a thing since they never liked or understood my music in the first place.  Now I listen to Chinese rock and roll.  Imagine my dad in the car, “What is that stuff you are listening to?  Nobody can understand the lyrics!  What good is it?!”  You can’t understand it dad, because it’s in Chinese!

I wanted to introduce Wang Feng 汪峰 to all of our loyal fans out there.

For those who can access YouTube:

For those who need YouKu:

Chinese Lyrics:

还记得许多年前的春天
那时的我还没剪去长发
没有信用卡没有她
没有24小时热水的家
可当初的我是那么快乐
虽然只有一把破木吉他
在街上,在桥下 在田野中
唱着那无人问津的歌谣

如果有一天 我老无所依
请把我留在 在那时光里
如果有一天 我悄然离去
请把我埋在 这春天里

还记得那些寂寞的春天
那时的我还没冒起胡须
没有情人节 没有礼物
没有我那可爱的小公主
可我觉得一切没那么糟
虽然我只有对爱的幻想
在清晨 在夜晚 在风中
唱着那无人问津的歌谣

也许有一天 我老无所依
请把我留在 在那时光里
如果有一天 我悄然离去
请把我埋在 在这春天里 春天里

Pinyin Lyrics:

Hái jìde xǔduō nián qián de chūntiān
Nà shí de wǒ hái méi jiǎn qù zhǎng fā
Méiyǒu xìnyòngkǎ méiyǒu tā
Méiyǒu 24 xiǎoshí rè shuǐ de jiā
Kě dāngchū de wǒ shì nàme kuàilè
Suīrán zhǐyǒu yī bǎ pò mù jítā
Zài jiē shàng, zài qiáo xià zài tiányězhōng
Chàng zhe nà wú rén wènjīn de gēyáo

Rúguǒ yǒu yītiān wǒ lǎo wú suǒ yī
Qǐng bǎ wǒ liú zài zài nà shíguāng lǐ
Rúguǒ yǒu yītiān wǒ qiǎorán lí qù
Qǐng bǎ wǒ mái zài zhè chūntiān lǐ

Hái jìde nàxiē jìmò de chūntiān
Nà shí de wǒ hái méi mào qǐ húxū
Méiyǒu qíngrén jié méiyǒu lǐwù
Méiyǒu wǒ nà kěài de xiǎo gōngzhǔ
Kě wǒ jué dé yīqiè méi nàme zāo
Suīrán wǒ zhǐyǒu duì ài de huànxiǎng
Zài qīngchén zài yèwǎn zài fēng zhōng
Chàng zhe nà wú rén wènjīn de gēyáo

Yěxǔ yǒu yītiān wǒ lǎo wú suǒ yī
Qǐng bǎ wǒ liú zài zài nà shíguāng lǐ
Rúguǒ yǒu yītiān wǒ qiǎorán lí qù
Qǐng bǎ wǒ mái zài zài zhè chūntiān lǐ chūntiān lǐ

English Lyrics (from Google Translate)

Remember many years ago in the spring
At the time I did not cut hair
No credit card without her
No 24 hours hot water home
Can be so happy, I had
Although only a broken acoustic guitar
In the streets, under bridges in the fields
Singing songs that nobody cares

If one day I Old Men
Please put me in there at that time
If one day I leave quietly
Please bury me in the spring

Remember the lonely spring
At the time I did not emerge beard
Valentine’s Day gift is not without
Not my sweet little princess
But I feel that everything is not so bad
Although I have only the illusion of love
In the morning the wind in the night
Singing songs that nobody cares

Maybe one day I Old Men
Please put me in there at that time
If one day I leave quietly
Please bury me in the spring in the spring

This entry was posted on Friday, April 22nd, 2011 at 12:00 am and is filed under 2011, Posts. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.