History Project

Pop Songs

(1950s-1990s)3E

Crystal Cheung(8)Nicole Diu(12)Cheryl Fong(13)Eva Lai(16)Yoyo Law(20)Niki Mak(28)Ronny To(32)Kitty Wong(36)Kathleen Yip(41)

Timeline of the changes of pop songs

1950s —— Age of Mandarin songs

1960s —— Age of English songs & Cantonese operas

1970s —— Age of Cantonese songs

1980s —— Many music styles (e.g. folk songs)

1950s : Age of Mandarin songs

Since many mainlanders came to HongKong with a love of Mandarin songs, Mandarin songs were gradually became popular. This led to the trend of Mandarin songs. This decade was known as the ”Age of Mandarin songs”.

Representatives in 1950s-Yao Lee-

• Her high, soft singing style was typical of Chinese popular music of the time .

• Representative song:“Rose,Rose,I Love You” (玫瑰玫瑰我愛你 )

Representatives in 1950s -Zhou Xuan-

• She was a popular Chinese singer and film actress.

• “Golden Voice” was her nickname to commend her singing talents after a singing competition in Shanghai.

• Representative song:“Nightlife In Shanghai”(夜上海 )

1960s:Cultural acceptance

By the early 1960s, Cantonese music in Hong Kong was still limited largely to traditional Cantonese opera. However, as people were gradually became more open to the Western culture, they started to listen English songs.

Representatives in 1960s -Elvis Aaron Presley-

• He was an American singer, musician and actor. As the “The King of Rock ‘n’ Roll”, he brought the trend of rock style songs.

• Representative song:“Jailhouse Rock”“Hound Dog”

Representatives in 1960s-The Beatles-

• A pop and rock band from Liverpool.

• Leading the mid -1960s musical “British Invasion" into the United States.

• Representative songs:YesterdaySomethingI love her

1970s:Rise of television and movies

• With the growth of movies and TV dramas, people loved to listen Cantonese theme songs, and these songs were based more on traditional music and lyrical styles , such as "Tai Siu Yan Yuan (啼笑姻緣 )" . This decade was known as the “Age of Cantonese songs”.

Representatives in 1970s:-Teresa Teng-

• Came from Taiwan

• Was famous in Tokyo, Hong Kong and Taiwan such Asian cities

• Had been a singing superstar in Asia

• Representative songThe Moon Represents My Heart (月亮代表我的心 )

Representatives in 1970s: -Sam Hui-

• Rewrote English song that were relevant to current social issues

• “The legend of Cantonese pop songs”

• Reflected the thinking of HK people at that time, made fun of the society.

• Representative song:“Half a catty is 8 tael" (半斤八兩 )

1980s: Beginning of the Golden age

1980s was consider as the Golden age of Hong Kong. Many music styles sprang up, such as folk songs .At the same time, since the industry effectively used Cantonpop songs in TV dramas and movies, people were also fond of Cantonpop songs. The songs which adapted from Japanese songs were also suited to the taste of ordinary people at that time.

Representatives in 1980s: -Anita Mui-

•A popular Hong Kong singer and actress •Generally regarded as a Cantonpop diva

•She was famous for having outrageous costumes and also high powered performances.

•Representative song:"The Windy Season" (風的季節 )

Representatives in 1980s -Leslie Cheung-

• An popular actor and singer.

• Was considered as "One of the founding fathers of Cantopop.

• People were attracted by his soft voice and also dancing.

• Representation songs: “The Wind Blows On” (風繼續吹 )and “Monica” .

References

Book:尋回耳朵─香港粵語流行曲 VERY簡史 (1950-2002)

Websites:http://hk.music.yahoo.com/http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_PageMagazines:Movie / Boxoffice Old Issue MagazinesMagazine Agent