Yep, that’s right, we’re doin’ this again.
Give me a break will yah’, work was particularly brutal today…
Anyway, today we’re gonna’ be taking a look at the Top 5 Chinese Songs That Keep The Azn Badger From Stabbing People.
Unlike the previous 2 iterations of this list, this time around there’s an extra rule involved in my selection process.
Said rule would be:
No Jackie Chan.
Being as I have a fairly extensive collection of Jackie Chan songs, I think it would be best to save them for a list of their own at a future date.
Remind me to get back to this at a future date, as I genuinely like a lot of Jackie’s songs, and would love an opportunity to talk them up at some point.
Anyway, that being said; let’s get to the list:
5. Babylon In The Orient – Shanghai Restoration Project
You know this is gonna’ be a fucked up list when I start things off with a joke entry.
Babylon In The Orient, while sung in English (barely…) by a Chinese person; is the quintessential Azn song.
Mind you, that’s “Azn” not “Asian.”
The difference being defined by the amount of hair gel and “street” sensibilities present in the Asian person in question.
Consisting of little more than the words “holler” and a few extra tidbits here and there, the song captures the sound and feel of the Azn archetype so perfectly, that it’s tune springs to mind every time I see (or hear) a rice rocket or Asian guy dressed like a 300 lbs. Black guy.
Needless to say, Babylon In The Orient is a song that makes me laugh on account of how insanely Azn it is.
While it’s indeed a shitty song, the point of this list is that it consists of songs that keep me from stabbing people I.E. make me happy.
Babylon In The Orient makes me happy, though in a “so bad it’s good” sort of way.
In my book that counts for a lot.
4. Into The Future – Andy Lau
Ah, the “Great Un-Aging One,” Andy Lau.
Andy Lau is like the Tom Cruise of China.
He’s been consistently playing handsome, energetic and suave young men throughout his entire career despite being about 10 years too old to do so for, well, over 10 years now.
Truth be told, I haven’t really seen many Andy Lau movies, but the man has one helluva’ a reputation; as is evident by my knowledge of him despite having little to no interest in his career.
That being said, I think it’s funny that #4 on this list comes from the soundtrack of a movie I haven’t seen, and is sung by an aging pop-star I barely know of.
That’s right folks, the kung fu movie obsessed blogger that is the Azn Badger has not seen Stephen Chow’s Shaolin Soccer.
Know what else is fucked up?
I haven’t seen Kung Fu Hustle either!
Despite this, I stumbled across the theme song for Shaolin Soccer at some point, and while it doesn’t make me want to see the movie any more than before, it’s an energetic and fun song that always puts a smile on my face.
Someday I’ll see Stephen Chow’s movies, but until then; I’ll settle for listening to the soundtracks.
3. Shan Shan Re Ren Ai – Elva Hsiao
Elva Hsiao is yet another artist I ran across while perusing the now defunct Azn music forum I used to frequent.
Near as I can tell, she’s basically the Taiwanese equivalent to Madonna, only prettier and without the nasty gap in her teeth.
Oh yeah, and I’m guessing she doesn’t live out her days pretending she’s English like Madonna either.
Anyway, I only really ever heard 1 single of Elva Hsiao’s, called Diamond Candy.
Being as it was a single, there really wasn’t a whole lot to listen to, but the songs “More More More” and Shan Shan Re Ren Ai (whatever the fuck that means in Mandarin…) struck me as surprisingly catchy dance songs.
While “More More More” got brownie points from me on account of featuring Wu Jing in the music video, ultimately I felt Shan Shan Re Ren Ai was the better song.
I wouldn’t be surprised if I ended up listening to more of Ms. Hsiao’s work in the future.
2. Huo Yuan Jia – Jay Chou
In case you haven’t noticed already, many of the songs on this Top 5 come from the soundtracks of Chinese movies.
Huo Yuan Jia just happens to be the theme song for the movie of the same name, otherwise known in the U.S. as Jet Li’s “Fearless.”
It also happens to be a song by the juggernaut of Taiwanese pop music, Jay Chou.
Unlike most Asian pop-idols, I happen to like Jay Chou.
He started out his career as a writer, and as a legitimately accomplished musician behind the scenes, he’s definitely earned his stripes.
Despite all that, the point is:
I like his sound, and he’s made more than a few songs I happen to like, so he’s cool in my book.
I can’t say I’m terribly excited about his recent forays into action cinema, most notably in the upcoming Green Hornet movie; however despite that, he’s still cool in my book…
… Provided he doesn’t make a fool of himself in that movie.
Anyway, Fearless was a pretty spankin’ movie, but the one memory I’m able to carry with me wherever I go, is the tune of this song.
Man, I wish American movies would have badass theme songs like this one…
1. A Man Ought To Be Strong – CHINESE PEOPLE
Really, how could a kung fu movie obsessed person like myself make a Chinese music list without throwing A Man Ought To Be Strong into the top spot?
As a Chinese folk song, as well as the theme of the seemingly endless Once Upon A Time In China film series, A Man Ought To Be Strong is, from my perspective, the spirit of China in song form.
While there are scores of versions of this song, (including 1 by Jackie Chan) this version, sung by a choir as opposed to a single vocalist, is easily my favorite.
As I said, this song basically symbolizes China in my eyes, making it all too appropriate that the best version of it be sung by a bunch of anonymous Chinese as opposed to some pop-star.
Anyway, this song is awesome.
Everyone should hear it at some point in their life, so if this was your first time, I’ll just say, “You’re welcome.”
Filed under: Kung Fu, Movies, Uncategorized, Action, Andy Lau, anthem, Asian, Azn, Azn Badger, Babylon in the Orient, blog, Bruce Lee, Cantonese, China, Chinese, choir, Diamond Candy, Elva Hsiao, Fearless, folk, Green Hornet, Huo Yuan Jia, Into The Future, Jackie Chan, James Wong Jin, Jay Chou, Kato, kung fu, Kung Fu Hustle, list, Madonna, Mandarin, More More More, movie, music, Once Upon A Time In China, pop, series, Seth Rogen, Shan Shan Re Ren Ai, Shanghai Restoration Project, Shaolin Soccer, singing, song, Stephen Chow, Taiwan, theme, Tom Cruise, Top 5, Wu Jing
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