A few, vry few, slightly postive reviews here, here & another english review. Actually dun mind the bad reviews too much cos if this album receives glowing reviews all round, then I start to worry ^__~ That's why dun understand when ppl say the songs are pop tunes written to plse the market. Are they listening to the same album? What do they considered an album not written to plse the market? On the other hand, the album is also criticised as uninspiring with no outstanding songs. This seems to be a definition of an album not written to plse the market as who would want to listen to uninspiring, uncreative songs rite? Anyway to each its own, if you feel that Beautiful was written solely to race up the K chart, so be it cos nobody & nothing can change your mind.
The other thing I find distasteful is the disdain of some of these critics cos according to them, David did not live up to his title of 'godfather of music' in this album. In the 1st place, David has NEVER called himself this title, & secondly he HATES the title. So if you wanna stripped him of the title, plse go ahead cos David will be ever so grateful. He really dislikes any kinda title. David called this album Tai Mei Li but being the perfectionist that he is, can anything be too beautiful? It's like trying to cultivate the perfect rose, does it really exist? What does a perfect rose mean anyway? Aren't all roses perfect by nature? Most of the media referred to the fact that he only took a year and 7 mths to complete this album as if implying that had he taken longer, this album could have been better or there is something lacking in this album compared to his previous 4 which took a longer time.
Its true that his previous albums all have substance & important things to impart abt the world, all have extroverted views. In this album, its like he turned it around, shut the world out & let us see an imperfect David. All the tracks in Beautiful are fairly accessible with few surprises unless you listen carefully. The tracks that could have been outstanding have definitely something off-putting. Wang Bu Liao can either wow or annoy the hell out of you. Too Beautiful will either put you to sleep or leave you in tears. Many felt that Marry Me Today could have been better without the 'in the house' rapping.
Let me put it this way: In his previous albums, David is like a horticulturist showing off an amazing garden full of roses he cultivated with love, care & attention, many varieties & colors, all gorgeous. In Beautiful, no more cultivated roses but only wild ones, some dying from over-exposure or ravaged by pests. They are small and not so brilliant in colors but have a lingering fresh fragrance that reminds you of a sweet, innocent time. A crazy, fanciful analogy perhaps ^__^ I also adore the various movie references in the album apart from Blade Runner in Olio. Wang Bu Liao of cos sampled the famous song of a legendary movie. Intro has the music that introduced a lot of movies I think its Shaw Brothers? Too Beautiful featured beginning of I Believe, the chinese theme song he wrote for Disney movie, Atlantis. Chase is name of the hit song sang by Leslie Cheung in She's a man, he's a woman. For sure there are others I missed.
All in all, I am among the few who felt he has done something rare & precious in Beautiful. The album may not have the bang, crash, sizzle of fireworks. But that's precisely why I love it cos watching fireworks can leave me vry high but extraordinary empty. Sometimes the songs leave vry little impression but a lingering, bittersweet feeling. Then when I listen again, I wonder why this music is so warm, pulsating & familiar - like an old friend welcoming me back again. I like this kind of feeling :)
5 comments:
Very nice post - well written and inspiring as always!
I like the fact that both David and his music are filled with many layers. There are so many sides of this man to be discovered. He's a real life, living and breathing contradiction, a flawed masterpiece - so beautiful because of its imperfections.
The rose analogy is brilliant. Come to think of it, a rose has many layers as well. Perhaps David wants us to savor this album slowly, like a rose as it grows blooms and slowly wilts, its petals falling off one by one, showing its vulnerable center, its heart. It comes with its fair share of thorns that nick and sometimes hurt us, challenging us so that we can grow.
David fans are on a never ending quest of trying to understand the man, just as he is on a continuous search for love, truth, answers, knowledge and to know God. And David, knowing that, has always been open with his views, communicating them through his music, though he may not be so direct.
Someone told me that a friendship is a journey. David’s music has been a wonderful friend and companion, always honest but never hurtful, in many ways supporting and thought provoking. Its authenticity is appreciated by those who know and are willing to seek, to doubt and to accept it, just like they have learnt to accept the man. His music is sometimes straight forward. Yet at many times masquerade as simple love songs, actually concealing a hidden and much deeper meaning waiting to be uncovered.
As I listen to this album and read this blog, I realized that there is so much to learn (both in life and through music). Not just in this albums but the previous ones as well. Imagine, so many facts unveiled, so many references. After so many years of listening to his music, I conclude that I’ve barely scratched the surface.
hey zhao, its a beautiful analogy you've made btw this album and his previous album esp for us who have been following him for a long time, i can definitely relate wif that. Indeed who can be perfect? David may call himself a perfectionist but he knows he's never perfect. And he's not afraid to acknowledge it and he makes us really sees it, the imperfection in a perfectionist. But what i'm saying abt the imperfection is not in relevance to the album becos i really love this album, its more of like a new understanding of the composer behind his songs if you know what i mean...i hope i'm making some sense here.
anyway, i'm glad for the friend above me to have realized something and feel the same way as many of us have experienced before. Some may ask what kind of composer can make his listener so explictly expressed the thoughts like the one above, one who make "good" music with nice catchy tune to hum to or one who make good genuine music that influence you and set you in thoughts. It has to be the latter, otherwise we couldn't have so much to say. And may i dare say our friend here Zhaodi is a true-life example of how DT has make a difference in our life. So now you know why we always pride ourselves as a DT fan.
~ tangerina
I watched on Oprah, an interview of Bon Jovi. She asked him whether he makes music to please others. He said no because if he did, he'll lose everything that was real in his music.
Trends change, people change. You can't please others all the time. That's why so many artists come and go. David said in an interview that one day his time will come and it will be very hard to ever come back and be as successful as he once was. So it's more important to be true to himself and his fans.
People no longer buy products or services just for using. They want experiences. In a world full of paradoxes, the desirable isn't always desired. We'd like to believe that good music will appeal to the masses but this isn't always true. Turn on the radio or watch MTV, compare charts to reviews. You'll notice that lots of great artists don't get much credit, airplay or sales. Instead, they stay adrift with the support of their fans.
Still, one shouldn't try to compare this album to the previous ones. It is completely different and serves a different purpose. David has to move on and take risks, not be stagnant.
But at the end of the day, art is subjective. Everyone is entitled to their own opinion.
I am sry Francis, I wasn't aiming my remarks at you. I do not know who you are & sorry I don't really care abt your remarks. Maybe you can log onto David's personal forum & aim your anger at him. This is not really a sounding board for ppl who dislike David's music.
I'm sorry you took my post as anger. It was merely an attempt to bring up a different perspective as I think all art should be debated. That, to me, is the beauty of it. I never said I disliked him. You took my entire intention out of context. But, like you said, this is your blog so you can control the tone of it as you wish. No bad feelings.
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