Stay with me here, kids, it's worth it.

So, from last night at about 9:30 to this morning at about  9:30, I had goddammed "What's new, pussycat?" stuck in my head.

Nobody wants that.

But...there is a cure, my little monkeys.

This is a song called "Sugar in the Marmalade" by Leon Lai. He recorded three versions (Cantonese, Mandarin, English) but the lyrics in the third are not actually a translation of the first two. I'll put both translations of the lyrics behind a jump at the end of this entry.

I've heard it played at three weddings (my own included) and have friends whose butts start to shake when the opening singer starts her strange, high-pitched thing about "breed another kitty tonight." Okay, I don't think that's what she says, but that's what I like to hear.

It's strangely well-crafted pop that turns crazy violin, rapping, and occasional English. Oh, and the rapper totally hypes the violinist, Eugene Park, at one point. Hell, the actual lyrics don't start properly until 45 seconds in. God I fucking love this song.

The video is the same for all three, even though it only fits with the English version. Oh, and except the we-spent-seven-dollars-on-greenscreen car on the ocean, not available in the Cantonese version.

Moral of the Story: "SUGAR IN THE MARMALADE" IS YOUR GOD NOW.

For those of you who already know the song--and yes, there are a number of those people reading this--you likely know the Cantonese version. Please to enjoy the English version (skipping the Mandarin version) and the 2005 BALLAD VERSION FROM AN ALL LEON LAI COVER ALBUM! And yes, for the video I'm posting of that one, somebody has weirdly pasted the album audio over a live concert.

Did I mention that I'm also posting one of the most adorably bizarre recorded-on-the-webcam karaoke versions of it, complete with background singer guy making Engrish out of words that are already Engrish?

Well...

...prepare to have your MIND completely BLOWN.

Who loves you? 

Daddy loves you.

CANTONESE:



ENGLISH:



JANICE VIDAL COVER:





OMG FUCKING ADORABLE MADE-IN-A-BEDROOM KARAOKE VERSION THING:



DIRECTLY-TRANSLATED CANTONESE LYRIS

ENGLISH VERSION LYRICS

Now go do something productive, like sharing this song with others now that it's stuck in your head until you die.

Smooches,

b
I'm totally in A Mood (tm).

Please, appease your Internet Monkey King, and give me, in the comments, a song that totally brings you down and then another that brings you back up. I'd love to have a YouTube video if you have it, or at least a link to it somewhere, but no worries if you don't have either.

Let's start with this song:


That's the original Hungarian version, written by Béla Zerkovitz and sung by Pál Kalmár.

Sound familiar? Probably not, because this original version has a different tune. And it's in Hungarian.

But it SOUNDS depressing, doesn't it?

Nearly all later recordings have a hopeful verse added at the end. For today, though, fuck that; here's the first English language version, by Paul Robeson, no upswing at the end.


Fine, here's the most famous version, sung by Billie Holiday (new ending included):


And I just found The Great and Powerful Coztello performing it 27 years ago;


NOW THAT I'VE BROUGHT YOU DOWN...

One of my favorite songs of all time, with one of the most beautiful videos I've ever seen.

As I recently told [livejournal.com profile] fulguritis, when I first heard it this song it pulled my brain and squeezed my heart. I had thought that there were no new types of music to be made. I was wrong.

And yeah, I cried at the video, you bastards.


Oh, was that not truly "upbeat" enough for you?

Then good luck ever getting this masterwork out of your head.

Not that you'd want to.


As for The Mood (tm); I'll be fine, thank you.

Now gimme your music.

Smooches,

b
FIVE QUESTIONS TIME!

This time they're from
[profile] dr_aj 
...
1.) What is a song you love but you are too embarrassed to tell people?

See, there you go, assuming that I have a sense of embarrassment. :) Seriously, you're talking to somebody who has the following songs on his computer:

Sugar in the Marmalade - Leon Lai
Winkle Picker Shoes Blues - Bernard Cribbins
Got Rice - Azn Pride
Tarzan Boy - Baltimora
My Pal Foot Foot - The Shaggs
Closer to Wannabe - NIN vs Spice Girls

And those are just the first six that popped into my head out of my 15,000 songs...

I can't think of anything at all, off the top of my head, that I'm even vaguely ashamed of. :)

2.) How many times have you had your heart broken?

I'm supposed to be able to quantify this?
Umm...
Five...ish.
For various reasons, not all romantically inclined, either.
And that's just actual BREAKINGS, not just crackings...

3.) Are you all planning any kids?

Bit of a dodgy choice for Lovely Wife Sara and I. Allow me to work backwards through the facts/concerns:

a) Maximum of two, probably just one. For us, more than that seems irresponsible on a number of levels.

b) Would it be better to adopt a child or two? After all, they're already here,

c) I have a host of neurological disorders, and while I like to think that I could safely guide my child/ren through anything they may go through as a result of any they inherit, it's still a hell of a weight to consider,

d) Can you imagine small benjamins / benjaminettes? Pride / terror are equally balanced.

4.) What is the most disgusting thing you've ever eaten?

That clam jerky was not as high up the list as you might have thought.
I have to say that the worst things I can think of have all been spoiled things, like when I bit into a hard-boiled egg that had been bad before I cooked it. Or the time that I bought milk from a vending machine, opened the paper top, poured half of the container into my mouth before realizing it was chunky, and then spitting it all over the floor of the student union.

Also, one person goes on that list, but they will never ever be named ever.

5.) What is your earliest memory of me?

LARP. Ventrue. I thought, "Not only is this woman rather attractive--in a creepy business-lady-like way right now--but she's acting the hell out of several people around her, and Jesus shit, what the fuck was that look for? Oh, right, 'cause the tag on my shirt says "Shotgun Across Back" and I think I might have just called her a bitch."

This may or not be complete. That's the best my memory works, I'm afraid.

------------------

I'm still taking requests for more questions, kids.
Well, it's been about six months, time to participate in a meme, yoinked from [livejournal.com profile] nhyrvana who stole it from [livejournal.com profile] funranium

It's rather an interesting one, though, and I welcome feedback / participation.
No goddamned "tagging" of people by me, though.

------------

Name a CD you own that you think no-one else on your friendslist does:
I Love U OK? by Leon Lai

Name a book you own that you think no-one else on your friendslist does:
Hui-hsien mien mao pien, ken pen tsai lu hsien {Carrying out the correct party line, brings a new look to Hui-hsien County} - by the government of the People's Republic of China

Name a movie you own on DVD/VHS/whatever that you think no-one else on your friendslist does:
Shao Lin Kung-Fu Mystagogue

Name a place that you have visited that you think no-one else on your friendslist has:
The Iverson Snowshoe Factory

Name a piece of technology or tool you own that you think no-one else on your friendslist has:
Zenith CruisePAD

b

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