This classic lyric is familiar even if you haven't heard the song.
Text | Road Angels
Summer is coming, really especially suitable for listening to Wu Bai.
When I was a kid, "Sudden Self" was a song I didn't like.
This is a song that minnan children have heard well since childhood, sounds rough lines, and has the characteristic tone of uncle Minnan.
"After drinking this cup, there are three more cups" – it sounds greasy.
The man who sang this song has uninhibited long broken hair, always wearing a soprano big brother-style flower shirt; his expression is uncontrollable when singing, and he jumps on the stage regardless of the image when he sings happy.
His name is Wu Junlin, and he also has a well-known stage name: Wu Bai - even the name is so "mudslide".
Wu Bai, who just debuted, performed a very high-level Rap on a variety show.
Some people say that Wu Bai's songs are suitable for looping songs as small county patrol street advertising vehicles; suitable for appearing in lively and noisy small stir-fry stalls or earthy KTV with extremely poor acoustic effects; suitable for middle-aged and elderly people who are full of drunken words while holding up wine bottles while holding microphones and singing with tears in their hearts and lungs...
If it were not for the Taiwanese idol drama "Want to See You", I am afraid that few post-90s and post-00s would be interested in such a strange Shu.
A song "Last Dance" made all the boys and girls "eyes closed" and fell into the dream of love created by Big Brother Wu Bai.
Why does the Minnan sweet potato cavity that was scorned at the time sound so crisp now?
Even director Bi Gan admitted that when he was a child, he thought that Wu Bai sang badly and the melody was rustic. Growing up and listening more, you will find wu Bai's good, "the emotions are so abundant, the lyrics are so straightforward, simple and powerful."
Bi Gan, who experienced the "true fragrance", used Wu Bai's songs to string together an important plot in the film work "The Last Night of the Earth".
If Li Zongsheng always uses love songs to urge you to cry, then Wu Bai is a straightforward earthy big brother, accompanying you to cry until dawn, and then telling you, "Let it go with the wind."
Just listen to a few more of his songs, and you'll discover an overlooked fact — beneath Her cool exterior, there is a gentle and romantic heart.
Just like in "Norwegian Forest", there is not only a gentle confession "Let me take off your heart / Try to melt it slowly", but also a fresh imagination of "is there a place in your heart that I have not been to/ Where the lake is always clear / Where the air is full of tranquility";
Just like in "The Wind on Summer Nights", he suddenly becomes a sad little boy, singing in a low voice about the dream of that summer night - "The evening wind on the summer night / Blowing you in my arms / Your hair is fluffy / Winding me with the wind".
In the Taiwanese drama "Proposal Office", Hebe said to Wu Jianhao: "Summer night wind, this is my favorite song."
For 28 years, this big brother has not changed at all. He also turned on the electric fan on the stage as before, sweating and singing vigorously.
As we grew older, we finally couldn't help but let go of our "proud" musical tastes, secretly listened to his songs, and inexplicably got goosebumps.
A man with his own electric fan
In 1994, among the young people in Taiwan, an open secret was circulated.
"Hey, you know what? There was a very strong band in a certain underground bar, and they sang blues rock in Taiwanese, and after listening to the bitterness, they evaporated with sweat. ”
On weekends, spending NT$500 to listen to Wu Bai became a tacit habit of Taiwan's avant-garde young people at that time.
Zhang Peiren, the head of Magic Rock Records, was also pulled away by a friend. At first, he was so shocked that he couldn't even explain from the perspective of the traditional music industry, "What the hell is this man singing?"
In the narrow space of the underground bar, the lights are dim, the air is turbid, and the sound effect is not good, but Wu Bai on the stage is sweating profusely, and the dense people under the stage are like crazy demons, shouting loudly with him.
Singing alone is not enough, and the audience continues to tap the table with beer bottles in their hands, singing while beating with the beat of the drums.
There is a scene in the Taiwanese drama "Want to See You", and the reproduction is the scene of Wu Bai's performance in Live House.
Wu Bai on the stage sang hi, even picked up the can Solo guitar, and then spilled half a can of beer to the audience.
Later, Zhang Peiren said: "When I put all this aside, I found that I began to knock on the table with a wine bottle like everyone else, and began to shout and sing together." ”
Among the bustling audience, there were 5 young people, who were fascinated by Wu Bai and were also a little "jealous". Later, we all got to know these 5 young people, and they formed a band called "Mayday".
Why jealousy? Mayday bassist Martha once said: After seeing Wu Bai at Live House, I knew how far I was from debuting.
In the 2019 Mayday New Year's Eve concert, the fan brother Mayday invited Wu Bai to perform on the same stage for the first time. Martha on the side showed a flowery smile.
At that time, Wu Bai became taiwan's recognized "king of the scene".
From the small bar all the way to the gymnasium, more and more people like Wu Bai.
By the 1998 "Air Raid Sirens" tour, each concert had more than 120,000 spectators.
Some people say that "listening to Wu Bai's scene is about the same as listening to 3D stereo and Dolby sound effects of the old CD" is no exaggeration to say that it is an immersive experience.
Slowly, his initially unacceptable electrocution-like body movements, unique vibrato, and earthy sweet potato Mandarin... Each one has become an irreplaceable feature of Wu Bai.
For a long time, imitating Wu Bai's singing became a hit.
Of course, when it comes to him, no one can ignore that he is a man who brings his own electric fan effect on the stage.
Probably because the performance on the stage is too much investment, often a few songs down sweaty. Plus a long hair, sweaty after always attached to the head.
Therefore, I don't know when to start, as long as it is Wu Bai's field, it is necessary to arrange electric fans, and sometimes there are as many as twenty electric fans on the stage.
In front of the platform, the fan blows loudly, and it also has the effect of the long hair fluttering when the hero takes the stage. According to his own "serious" words: "This is more ethereal!" ”
On the one hand, it is very hot, and on the other hand, it is the need to "float".
Over time, the effect of electric fans has also been "Wu Bai" and has become part of Wu Bai's unsurpassable typhoon -
Fans who are familiar with him know that Wu Bai's violent stage style itself has the super ability of "calling the wind and rain". From the overwhelming chorus at the concert to the collective dance of 10,000 people who even the square dance aunt was ashamed of herself, it was his performance of "calling the wind and rain".
Interestingly, when Wu Bai sings, the facial muscles are often out of control, and the face always shows a "vicious" expression.
Electrocuted body art.
Ni Chonghua, the agent, was very worried at the beginning: "If you sing love songs like this, you will scare the girls away." ”
It turns out that the girls, far from being scared away, are very much ate the steel man's set. Just look at the audience and you will know that the cute girls who are crazy for it are in groups.
Later, Wu Bai proudly explained: "A person's charm comes precisely from his flaws. It was so perfect that no one remembered. ”
This man with his own electric fan was indeed remembered by everyone.
"He's a prodigal son — a romantic embryo"
At that time, after the agent Ni Chonghua signed Wu Bai, colleagues wondered: "How did you sign a truck driver?" ”
After all, the stars signed by others are either cool or sunny.
At the same time, Minnan singer Zheng Zhihua and rock cool cover Zhang Zhenyue were very handsome.
Wu Bai's debut was like this - the shirt was unbuttoned, a long hair was unfettered, and a fierce, unmarked face was at the beginning of the opposite of the idol faction.
This point agent Ni Chonghua has explained, tossed for half a day can not find a suitable shape, simply borrowed a flower shirt from a friend, put it on, quite decent.
Nowadays, the popular flower shirt with sunglasses rock and roll Taiwanese style, Wu Bai and flower shirts, bumped out of a different kind of riotous Taiwanese temperament.
Looking back at The album cover of Mr. Wu Bai over the years, it seems that it is also conveying the deterrent effect of big brother -
For example, the members of the orchestra gathered together, with Wu Bai's head appearing in the middle, with a thoughtful expression; for example, under the cool space background, the white eyes cast high-tech laser light...
Either the artist is lazy or you are hallucinating.
Big Brother Wu Bai, are you a Greek stone carving?
In the 28 years since his debut, Wu Bai has not changed, black sunglasses, black clothes/flower shirts, and his mouth is pulled downwards, "as if he came to collect debts". When he went to "Kangxi Is Coming", Xiao S, who was not afraid of heaven, hid behind Cai Kangyong and whispered, "I am afraid that he will beat me later." ”
In fact, Wu Bai is not only not fierce, but also the "women's friend" of the Queen of Heaven.
At the concert, Chen Qizhen couldn't help but shyly interact with Big Brother Wu Bai with the eyes of a fan sister;
Xu Jiaying also invited Wu Bai big brother at the personal concert, and when she was on the same stage, she did not forget to show off happily: "Before, as long as there was a blower blowing on the stage, I fantasized that I was Wu Bai big brother, and today the big brother finally came." ”
In the second half of that issue of "Kangxi Is Coming", Xiao S also began to be bold, sitting on the lap of Big Brother Wu Bai - because Big Brother is actually very shy. Not only is he asking what to say, but he's also shy enough to bring gum and a mask to ease his anxiety.
Wu Bai, who was carried on "Kangxi Lai", was really shy.
Perhaps the girls have already seen through that this fierce-looking big brother is, in private, a boy who is shy when talking to strangers and is extremely honest when talking to the right thing.
Hebe also likes Wu Bai, she once said at the concert that as soon as she saw Teacher Wu Bai, her heart was "beating wildly", because "Wu Bai is really a prodigal son, not the kind of prodigal son you think, but a romantic embryo." ”
When he encountered love, he sang softly: "The moon hangs in the starry sky / Tugs at you to appeal to your feelings / The wind that smells of you / It is the love I am still waiting for." ”
Betrayed, his singing voice seemed to be "raining": "The heart is about to stop its rotation / Turning in my chest without air / The body trembles like a wet dog." ”
When parting, he used the chicness of the guitar to cover up his heartache: "Blow slowly, send gently, the road of life, you go." But in the end, he still did not forget to comfort his lover: "I don't want to see your misty tears, and I will become the wind that night." ”
Wu Bai, who sang to the duck, was suddenly cute.
Loving and being loved, hurting and being relieved, meeting and parting, all turned into simple poetry in his songs.
This is Wu Bai, with the gentleness of smashing boulders.
Carry your hometown on your back
Whether it is the Mandarin of sweet potatoes or the shape of the mudslide, it seems to reveal the identity of Wu Bai's "countryman".
Indeed, Mr. Wu was born in The Village of Garlic in Liujiao Township, Chiayi County, southern Taiwan, a rural village that doesn't sound too wealthy.
Teenager Wu Bai.
After graduating from Garlic Tou Middle School, 20-year-old Wu Junlin decided to turn his back on his mother's hope of making him a postman, packed his bags, and went to Taipei to find his future.
Coming to the strange and fashionable Taipei City, all the new things continue to impact him, but the freshness did not make him eager to get rid of the local atmosphere that came from afar, but made the first album with the characteristics of Taiwanese guests, "Lou Zaicuo".
"I came here on a railway with the soles of dirt / I have never seen so many louzai houses", he honestly described his excitement of entering the city, but behind him, he pointed to the hometown land with roots - "that will be a pit and a lack".
In the interview, Wu Bai admitted that he was "the one who carried his hometown on his back." Wu Bai, who comes from the countryside of Taiwan, does have a self-consciousness of "singing the local".
"Taiwanese" was originally a description of the earthy atmosphere, and the young people of Taiwan County who had never seen the world. But Wu Bai wanted to correct this title. /"The Ship"
In the first two years of his debut, Wu Bai created two albums: 1992's "Young Man, Ann La! and 1993's Just Live for You for One Day.
In it, Wu Bai wrote down the very classic "Light a Cigarette", "Teenager, Anla! "Silent Place" and other Hokkien songs.
Full of resentment I don't know where to take it / The scars of the day give me a strong desire to cry / Dare to be my life like a grass / Ann how to fight hard to make people more proud ("Young Man, Ann La!). 》）
The image of the prodigal son of Southern Fujian who works outside. /"Boy, Ann! 》
I don't know the shadow / Youth will become old at that time / Dry single know the shadow manhood should not look at the / I dare to use my life / to exchange a confidant (Light a cigarette)
These songs, with the "oil stains and smoke smell" of grassroots society, sing the attitude of the grassroots in Taipei that they do not accept defeat and preach morality.
Striving upwards and facing fate seems to be the unchanging theme of Hokkien songs.
However, Wu Bai's singing of his hometown did not stop at the prodigal son of Minnan to break into the world, and when he created, he tried to further explore the tension of Minnan.
In 1998, Wu Bai & China Blue released the Hokkien album "Branches and Lonely Birds".
On this album, he consciously wants to explore the spiritual roots of his hometown: "If the tradition of Taiwanese songs and ballads in the 1950s had not been broken, what would it be now?" ”
He's going to make an album that explores his hometown by traveling the history of Taiwanese music from the past to the future.
Thus, "Lone Bird of the Branches" appears, with magnificent pathos and the final explosion of identity exploration - the hometown of the past, like a lonely bird looking for branches (times) that can be inhabited.
The album cover is still more "vicious", but the song is very good!
The theme song of the same name, "Lone bird on the branches", begins with a psychedelic electronic sound effect, which pulls people's emotions into the music.
This was followed by the rhythm of intense rock, accompanied by the sound of Wu Bai's shouting, creating a psychedelic and shocking effect of the whole song. Those direct and vivid intentions continue to flow, so that the audience can hardly breathe after falling into emotions.
It was almost as if a Hokkien song had never been. Wu Bai did it, he re-stitched the past with the modern Hokkien language, and did a good job — the album won the Taiwan Golden Melody Award in 1999.
It is worth mentioning that the fourth song of this album, "Back to Home"——
"My feet stand here / My blood / My eyes are hidden in this dirt foot / My feet stand here / This has my soul"
This song is perhaps the best expression of Wu Bai's creative stance - even if Wu Bai has a concert all over the world after becoming famous, the hometown where Hokkien is spoken is always the place where he "stands on both feet".
"My love song is not a love song, it is life"
Although Wu Bai is a rock singer, his most widely circulated songs are often love songs.
In the interview, Wu Bai said: "My love song is not a love song, my love song is life, I just use love songs to package my creation. ”
In the era of Wu Bai's debut, the love song model was the most loved by the audience.
In 1992, Wu Bai's first album "Falling in Love with Someone Else is a Happy Thing" sold poorly, in large part because the songs in it were too rocky and too hardcore, and did not meet the preferences of the audience at the time.
Isn't it the pot of album covers?
After experiencing such setbacks, Wu Bai was not discouraged, "not the kind of person who will lose his temper and shake his head and not do it." Instead, he thought:
"Since you like to listen to love songs, then I will use your way to sing what you want to hear according to your interest in listening to songs." But I want to join my life, and I want to express my life with love songs. ”
Two years later, Wu Bai created his second album "Ronin Love Song", the whole album is a love song, but each song is like a poem.
The album was a huge success, and the title song "Ronin Love Song" is still widely sung today.
This song is also very popular. /"Ronin Love Song"
Maybe as Wu Bai himself said, over the years, so many people have sung with me at the concert, do you think they are all singing love and love? No, we are singing an "emotional life."
Yes, when it comes to falling in love, it will face parting, sweetness, betrayal, heartbreak, detachment, and rebirth, isn't that what life is all about?
The reason why I use love songs to express myself may also be because it is a way for Wu Bai to face the world - to live emotionally and meet fate gorgeously.
Although Wu Bai pursued art all his life, his idol was The Japanese professional wrestler Keiji Muto.
Wu Bai, who holds the signed manga of idol Keiji Muto, can't hide his happiness. / Keiji Muto Twitter
"I tell you, his way of acting is a kind of gorgeous destruction, and the destruction of others is just a beating, but he must destroy it in a gorgeous way. Even if it falls, it must be gorgeous. (He even named his company after Keiji Muto's stunt, moonlight suppression technique.) ）
Using the most romantic and gentle love songs to express the impermanence of life, Wu Bai is "using the spirit of wrestling to face every problem encountered".
Therefore, there is nothing wrong with singing a romantic love song of a lifetime.
In 2019, Wu Bai released a new album, one of which was an impressive MV of "Let the Water Flow Backwards".
Inside, a man repeatedly scooped sand into the bamboo basket, but the sand kept leaking out of the bamboo basket, as if it were empty.
Is life an emptiness? /"Let the Water Flow Backwards"
For this MV, Wu Bai explained: "In fact, what you represent is that people will do a lot of struggle in their lives. But that doesn't work, it's all doomed. But we still have to do it, we still have to dig up the sand, and then put the sand in the basket, we just want it to fall. ”
Like Wu Bai's fully burning and frank life, after "seeing through nature", he still has to hug the real, "sudden self".
Such a Wu Bai also finally impressed us who grew up.
Get ready, cover your eyes, and enter a dream given by Big Brother Wu Bai.
Resources
[1] The first screen brush of 2020 actually came from him, and the 52-year-old is still the king of Chinese live | rocker
[2] Wu Bai: "Last Dance" turns back time and meets you | Qthemusic
[3] Sonorous mantra: from Wu Junlin to Wu Bai | KKBOX
[4] Return to his hometown: Wu Bai and the zeitgeist of the 1990s | the Leper Gang
[5] In the era of two hundred and five places, nostalgia for the only Wu Bai | the most important person
[6] Wu Bai, who is out of the circle again, is behind the golden age of Hokkien songs| musical precursors
[7] Wu Bai, such a tender iron man, is not much now| to study on Phoenix Network
[8] Lucid K, the eternal drifting taiwanese soul| Douban music