20081228

CNEX talk today!

Poster of Jiangsu NY concert in Nanjing I think but it kinda confusing all the concerts going on end of the year. David will be doing CNEX talk today, wish him good luck. Not sure what he will be talking abt but guess it will be film-related. I am looking forward to his rock-oriented concept album next year. For those asking, there is presently no date released on the dropping of his album nor any preorder activities.
There are however vry bizzare rumors that he has been 'banned' in China due to the lyrics of Different, a song in his sophomore album I'm OK released in 1999. Now this song has already been banned in China so how can he still be banned for a song never released? DTFC, bless them, has been on the case very quicky & apparently it started from an online dicussion forum which is usually the case with many of David's rumors. It is extremely insidious how quickly it became a news item on various chinese newsites. Dig a little deeper & one could perhaps find that the rumor orignated from Taiwan as with many of his ugly rumors. Guess it has nothing at all to do with a certain tabloid magnate who is probably still fuming that David dared to sue his company. Also a bit coincidental that it started on the eve of his first public appearance in Taipei for quite a while. Guess anything will do just to rain on his parade.
Anyway guess nothing much he or his fans can do abt it. This kinda of DT harassment is likely to continue for some time, some ppl like to get their kicks by smearing other ppl's reputation. However I always believe in just desserts. In the meantime I will be here to support DT & let the world know the injustices he faces cos he is brave enough to stand up for his rights.

20081219

9 days to CNEX talkshow

Just find it heartbreaking that what started as an update on his new album turned into a moving eulogy for his pet dog, Lucky. This man sure wears his heart on his sleeve. I also find it touching that he left the decision to his parents since they were the ones who took in Lucky first. Or it could be he just could not bear to let Lucky go as in his last line - unselfishly and graciously let it go when the time comes - he revealed how hard it was to make the final decision.
Sorry haven't been blogging lately as having updated my browser, my computer was promptly taken over by aliens ^__^ It was not easy to fix as half my registry was corrupted. Anyway decided to start a countdown to DT's film-related debut on 12/28. I think it should be fun as I can imagine him chatting away in that particularly adorable scholarly way he has. Tickets apparently have been selling well. He also has a New Year Eve concert in Nanjing. More details in the next post.
(Btw let's not speculate wildly just cos he mentioned the name Joanna. It's probably not that Joanna but his parents' good friend.)

20081218

New DT Msg: Let's Celebrate Life

12/1/08 Shanghai 3:46am
I hope this journal finds you all well. Amidst a devastating financial downturn, the beginning of a new US presidency and much continued political and social upheaval in the world, it’s a struggle to remain calm. The world seems to be exponentially spirally downwards with calamities and problems being borne faster than solutions can be thought up. However, I still have hope that we can make a difference if we continue with prayer and take action in the right direction.
The first of December brings a lot of anticipation for many people, including myself. With the arrival of Christmas and the New Year, my upcoming months will be preoccupied with the production of my album. During the latter half of 2009, I will turn my focus to my film, which I will share with you later on when the time comes.
If I haven’t already mentioned in previous statements, the majority of the songwriting for the new album has been completed and, so far, I only need to write 3 to 4 more tracks and the songwriting process will be complete. The next stage of my production entails working on lyrics as well as putting the arrangements together. This will be a heavier, more rock oriented album and, therefore, I’ll be playing more guitar myself than on previous albums. The concept of this album has evolved quite a bit since its inception a year ago though the core has not changed. I’m very excited with the concept of this album and I only hope that I can dutifully translate it from my mind and heart for you. Being that it’s a “concept album” means that there’s much more than what is on the surface while, hopefully, not being a burden to it. I’d never want to make a concept album simply for the sake of making one or, even less nobly, for the sake of being cool or academic. The concept of the album should serve to unite the songs and emotions so that they come together to form a more powerful sum of the parts. Some albums are comprised of songs that have little bearing to each other but, on this album, most of the songs evolved from a singular yet related “concept” and motif. I think once the album is completed and in your hands you’ll understand more clearly what I’m talking about.
I don’t recall making any public statements on the recent passing of my dog, Lucky, but I gather that some of you may have heard about it somehow. On 10/30/08, Lucky was put to sleep as he was in very poor health due to a previous heart condition. I was in Asia at that time and couldn’t return to LA but my parents flew back and alongside a friend, Joanna, accompanied Lucky in his final days.
We had known that Lucky had a heart murmur condition as far back as 4 years ago. However, this was something the doctors said could not be treated and was something we could only observe and hope wouldn’t worsen. As the years went by, Lucky didn’t seem to be affected very much with only a few symptoms such as hacking and some occasional languidness. He was still very much playful, active and would enjoy walks around the neighborhood. Seeing the occasional cat or squirrel he would still want to give chase even though I knew it was more to demonstrate his bravado. We were never really sure how old Lucky was but from his dental condition the doctor guessed that he would have been around 13 years old when he passed away. Lucky was a stray dog in Taipei who used to roam the alleys around my father’s old office until one day my dad decided to buy him a house and take him in. Lucky wasn’t a large or menacing dog but he held his own and was a “street fighter” in the neighborhood. Before we took him in, my father used to always recall seeing Lucky head to head with other dogs or proudly leading a pack of dogs down a street. Like any “street” dog, Lucky had a certain edge about him shaped by the years of living amongst the elements. However, around his master and the few people he trusted, his loyalty and sweetness was unmatched. After a few years living at my dad’s office and then eventually at our Taipei home, my dad and I decided that we would immigrate Lucky to Los Angeles to spend more time with me there. I still remember the days when Lucky would accompany me at my office and studio, staying up late with me during my late night writing sessions. Patient, understanding and quiet, Lucky would follow me wherever I went and I enjoyed our late night walks around the park near my studio probably just as much as he did. One thing that everybody always remarked when they saw Lucky was how young he appeared to be. Especially after a trim, Lucky looked like he was just a baby and people were always shocked when I revealed his true age. Because he was a stray, Lucky was a mix of quite a few breeds. We never really cared what the exact mix was but just that he was adorable, handsome and so considerate. Lucky was a very frugal and content dog, he never begged for food like most dogs do and didn’t like to play with toys at all. Getting him to chew a bone was nearly impossible and because of that his teeth suffered as with many strays. I guess the only thing that Lucky needed was love from the people around him. Sometimes if you were to just look in his eyes with affection that would seem to make him happy as he would tilt his head slightly as if smiling.
The two months before Lucky’s passing was when his heart began to trouble him and when we started to notice things changing for the worse. He was put on medication at that point which seemed to relieve certain symptoms but two weeks before Halloween it seemed that nothing we did helped much. He stopped eating, sometimes had difficulty controlling his urinating, and was too tired to even walk out of the house. We consulted the doctor several times but it seemed that we had reached the end of the road. It was a very tough moment for all of us but we didn’t want to see Lucky suffer and his quality of life diminish to nothing. Lucky didn’t make a fuss about anything and just quietly sat on his pillow often staring into space. We didn’t know if Lucky was in pain but we knew he wasn’t happy.
A few days after both my father and mother flew back to see Lucky, my dad made the final decision along with the consent of the veterinarian to put our loved dog to sleep via injection. My dad chose not to be in the operating room so my mom and Joanna stood by to see Lucky off.
Those of you who have or have had pets and have seen them pass away know the sadness and difficulty in seeing them in pain. The helplessness an animal experience is sometimes greater than a human as they can’t express themselves verbally. They can’t make the voluntary decisions and, thus, leave us to their care. The passing away of even a dog reminds me of how fragile life is and how inescapable we all are from mortality.
Let us celebrate life but also unselfishly and graciously let it go when the time comes.
DT

20081210

DT & awards

As usual, the Golden Horse Awards reminded me of DT. Will we ever get to see him attend this award show I wonder? Unsurprising, at least to me, it was victory for Peter Chan & The Warlords over Cape No 7. The thing is unlike Chinese music, Chinese movies received a lot of international attention & dun think the GHA judges wanna risked international ridicule by awarding top honors to a parochial movie that owned its popularity more to its Taiwanese content than acting, direction or storytelling. Unsurprising too, at least to me, The International Federation of Film Critics gave its gong to another Taiwanese movie, Parking directed by Chung Mong-hong & staring Chang Cheh. Parking, described as film noir in the mood of WKW, has been invited to Cannes & the rights bought by a Canadian distributor I think. So a good start for a debuting director Chung Mong-hong. Talking abt awards, a rush of albums out this mth so as to be in time for GMA I guess. Could also be the reason for delay of DT's album to next yr if as suspected, he is not gonna stay with Typhoon which meant the company will not bother to put the album or his name up for any GMA awards. Not that I care anymore. I think he will probably be like Graham Greene, the renowned author most unlikely to win the Nobel prize for literature cos judges thought he was too popular. Ppl still frothed at the mouth at the thought of Marry me today winning best song ^__^

20081204

DT @ CNEX

David will be doing a talk discussion in the CNEX Documentary Film Festival 2008 - Dreams and Hopes - on 12/28. His theme is called 藍色烏龜之夢 loosely translated as 'blue dream of the black tortoise'. I have no idea what's abt but it sounds interesting. CNEX is a non-profit organization founded by a group of professionals from Mainland China, Taiwan and Hong Kong, who are passionate about Chinese culture. It is devoted to the production and promotion of documentaries related to the Chinese people.
So if you have the time & money, its a great way to spend a Sunday evening with our one & only DT ^__^ There are more details in english on the website on how & where to attend. He is full of surprises, isn't he? Still I like that he is spending time & co-operating with people who are passionate abt what they are doing. I think he is getting on the right train on his journey into films. I really wish him all the best & that he will find what he hopes to achieve this time.

20081203

Vry special DT

Thanks to Noshka for recommending & youtube mbr HoonAmy for uploading following vids of DT in Ningbo:



Vry enjoyable esp singing Susan Says with girl fan. Noticed he handed her the mike to sing part of the opera aria so he can rest his voice a little ^__^ Clever DT! He figured most of his Chinese fans will probably know how to sing that popular opera aria. Actually Noshka he had 2 fan meetings in the Zhejiang province: Ningbo on 11/29 & Zhoushan on 11/30 inviting girl fan onstage for both meetings while singing Susan Says. I think its great of him to make the effort to travel to meet his fans all over China. Usually singers hold fan meetings only when they have a new album to promote or endorsing a product. I also like that he was all dressed up for both meetings even though there were probably only a few hundred fans attending. But to him the meetings were more important than promo visits for his sponsors where he is normally more casually dressed. Its a way to let his fans know he respects them & how important they are to him. That's the kind of guy he is. Here's a DT pix I really like thanks to DTFC fan in Ningbo ^__^

20081202

DT & his fans

David looking stylish during 江舟山 fan meeting on 11/30. He sang mostly love ballads & this time successfully invited girl fan onstage.
Hugz ... hello ... *muak* ^__^ vry DT. He looked happy & healthy which is good. His hair is longer, unstraightened which is how I like it cos it looks so thick & slightly wavy which is his natural look. Fans are bouyant with this hairstyle cos a longer look apparently meant he is abt to release his new album. Anyway he promised Jan09 but dun wanna to whinge abt poor Typhoon every post hehehe