The first song I heard from Ah Niu was "Girls over there, look over here" .My room-mate in university brought back a VCD of Ah Niu's MTVs and from that day onwards, I am attracted to this guy's "crazy" music and "funny" lyrics. 

Click here for the reviews of "Kok Wai Nam Yan San Fu Sai" album

My 13 favourite Ah Niu's songs:
1) Speak My Language

Ah Niu's first and only English song. A reminiscence of the Beatles. Here, Ah Niu shows his potential to go into other forms of music such as rock music. However, the song was banned on the air waves of Malaysian radio stations due to the sensitivity of the lyrics. It touches on the controversial use of English as a mode of communication among  English -educated and Mandarin -educated Chinese in Malaysia.

Ah Niu: It was based on my feelings about the English-speaking Malaysian Chinese while I was in college. I'm Chinese-educated, so I found communicating very difficult. Very traumatic time. I didn't understand why I couldn't speak in Chinese with my own people.

Brian Cheong of Star Newspaper: So you're anti-English-speaking Chinese?

Ah Niu: Not anymore. I realise you'd have to understand their background as well.

 

2) Black Sun Glasses Heroin

A good Cantonese rock track. Imagination must have run wild for him with the idea of a fat lady weighing 300 pounds. There's a riff here sounds which sounds very much like James Bond 007.

 

3) Are U Still Ok?

A lovely piano melody throughout the song. There's no guarantee in life sometimes and we will be down. But I still have u.

 

4) Sing a Song for U

With a guitar, he just wants to sing a song for u to hear. Wherever there is happiness, there are sadness. Who dared say he's not afraid of getting injured.

 

5) Blue Blur

A tranquil sea waves intro. Depiction of Ah Niu sitting by the sea- side waiting for the sun to rise and feel the warmth temperature of life.

 

6)  Kuala Trengganu

Ah Niu's only Bahasa Malaysia song. Arming with a harmonica intro, he tries to paint a picture of the beauty of Kuala Trengganu and his wish to be a bird flying in the blue sky.

 

7) City Blue Sky

(touches on the subject of haze pollution)

"Kuala Lumpur is so full of people, cars and troubles!" Ah Niu said his experience in Kuala Lumpur prompted him to compose City Blue Sky which is about being able to remind oneself of the bright, beautiful sky above, despite the ugliness around us.

 

8) Girls Over There, Look Over Here

(the most popular song in Asia at one time)

Asked what gave him the idea to compose the fun and easy song, Ah Niu laughed and said: "I stayed in a boys' hostel and there was a girls' hostel opposite. So, to attract the girls' attention, I created the song and sang to them."

 

9) Big Belly

(funny lyrics)

"I ponder on what will happen if one day a man has a pot belly and the woman he married has become old and wrinkled. Will they still love each other as much as the time when they met? Is love forever?", Ah Niu said.

 

10) Most Romantic Song

Ah Niu's first Cantonese song. This must be a song dedicated to his wife, I guess!

 

11) Trishaw Vegetable Seller

"In Geoge Town, I once saw an old man pedaling a trishaw and a car driver honked at him, trying to push him aside. Seeing that, it dawned upon me how irrelevant the skyscrapers and modern-day vehicles are to him. If anything, he does not seem to have a place amid the development.", said Ah Niu.

 

12) Mamak Stall

Another hot spot for Malaysian youth when they are not in coffee bean. Mamak stalls are Indian Muslims stalls which operates till the wee hours of 3pm, selling Roti Canai.

 

13) Abunene

A song which gives an Indian flavour influence in his music.

 

 

* Some Excerpts above are taken from interviews done by Brian Cheong in the Star Newspapers.

Go To Main Site

2001- 2002 @ Lymwk's Corner

Supported by the House of 1771 Production

 

Hosted by www.Geocities.ws

1