Homage to Lam Phuong
With “Mot Minh,” Huong Giang closed out Paris By Night 88: Duong Ve Que Huong, Thuy Nga’s third musical tribute to Lam Phuong. The song is a perfect ending piece for a man whose songs, such as “Tinh Bo Vo,” “Phut Cuoi,” and “Duong Ve Viet Nam” (my personal favorite), captured millions of Vietnamese souls, yet whose life is still lonesome after two major wrecked relationships. The first one caused him to hide out in Paris, but the romantic city inspired him to pen his painful experiences like “Say” and “Lam.” While in Paris, he met his second lover who motivated him to write tuneful ballads like “Bai Tango Cho Em” and “Mua Thu Yeu Duong.” He moved back to the States, however, after the relationship ended and then caught a stroke a few years later. Since the incident, which paralyzed him, he could no longer able to pick up the guitar. Even if he cannot compose any new songs, what he has giving us are way more than what we could ask for, particularly listening to his songs again on PBN 88. It’s been a while since I was able to sit through and enjoy the entire Thuy Nga’s double DVDs without falling asleep or having to hit the fast-forward button, especially the live performances.
“…able to SAT through…”? LOL, you sleepyhead you…:) Don Ho sang Lam Phuong’s “Duong Tran” the best,gotta listen to that song again. Thanks for this post, I almost forgot the DVD’s already out. I don’t watch PBN anymore,but I will, this time.
lam phuong is a composer that you can say “Cong Hien Tron Doi Cho Am Nhac VN”. Even after paralyzed, he was still able to finish a song within 6 days period.
Thanks for looking out reader.
the nhu quynh/the son musical had me in tears
can’t wait to see it, love his music.
Xem xong cuon bang moi cua trung tam Thu’y Nga, toi that bui` ngu`i & xuc’ dong voi tung ba`i ha’t cua nhac si Lam Phuong. Tuy la` 1 nguoi tre trong the he moi na`y, nhung nhu*~ng ban nhac cua LP that su la`m toi yeu thi’ch & khong the cam on nguoi nhac si gia`u ti`nh cam da viet len nhung do`ng nhac that tru ti`nh & dep de lai cho 1 kho ta`ng am nhac vn vo gia’. Chu’c ong luon tinh tan & khoe manh de co`n nghe duoc nhieu bai nhac hay & di va`o lo`ng nguoi nua.
PBN 88 is transition of Thuy Nga venturing into ‘live’ performances.
“Mot Minh” is a perfect ending to this tribute to Lam Phuong, but Huong Giang was not. I’m particularliy disappointed with the assignment of this song to Huong Giang, whose voice and style and maturity doesn’t do the song any justice. Just wonder what hype was about her during the final competitions, and what’s so “special” about her voice as per Huynh Thi. She might just end up like another Thien Kim (at least Thien Kim rocks!)
The rest of the program is just great, since Lam Phuong is a respectable figure and well-loved in the Vietmanes music community. Thuy Nga has done a great job in yet another Lam Phuong tribute.
Reader: I meant the “Vietnamese music community”. Sorry about the sp :)
I was surprised too that Thuy Nga would put that weigh on Huong Giang’s slender shoulders. While her performance was not so bad, she wasn’t quite there yet in term of expressing and articulating the song.
I LOVE LAM PHUONG AND HIS MUSIC.
I LOVE YOU LAM PHUONG. GOD BLESS YOU
Thuy Nga is desperate for anyone who can hold a note.
Look what they have Bao Han, Nhu Loan Luu bich ..etc…..
Only Khanh Ha can sing well.
It would have been a perfect ending had they chosen Khanh Ha to deliver “Mot Minh”.
Yeah vocally she got exceptional control.
She still my favorite of
all the Viet singers. Although
I don’t like her in person as much as on the CD.
it’s true that huong giang did not do “mot minh” the justice the song deserved. i could see khanh ha delivering it to the fullest potential. why did TN end up with all the finalists in the new show? i thought the idea of holding talent shows was to find a single talented person (one winner only!) to get the contract. i guess TN is desperate!
i love how the tn haters always find anything to nitpick even if they didn’t particularly hate this pbn. yes pbn must be sooo desperate … please. pbn is not van son or tinh or some other small time small fry
kinda funny how Y Lan were bling bling while singing Kiep Ngheo, but she looks good. talk about Khanh Ha, she can sing most of LP songs, even the nhac “que huong” or “se^’n” if she chooses too since her voice is that good,can sing nhac sang or nhac vang`. kinda like when Tuan Ngoc tried to sing Che Linh’s song and actually sound “thinh phong”, but Che Linh tried to sing Rieng Mot Goc Troi and sound very ngheo`.
and KH looks so comfortable on stage without acting out, dramatizing so much like Y Lan and still sound so good. very charismatic in style. she could of taken Y Lan songs too and have two solos hehe that would be awesome
“kinda funny how Y Lan were bling bling while singing Kiep Ngheo.” ROTLF, oh man that’s a good one. Thanks ph for a good laugh…
Ylan is something else. She travels with a masseuse. This woman wait on her hands and foot. The husband picks up her shoes, give her flowers in between songs. I guess she
has a big head and acts like the queen of Shiba. No I don’t care too much for her. Khanh Ha is cool and cute though.
maybe his age is catching up to his voice, but suddenly i find Che Linh very moderate in nhac vang or nhac sen when Mai Quoc Huy start to sing with the same style, with the upward hook note at the end. thats just too much hook. hehe
I wish Y Lan or Khanh Ha had gotten to sing “Mot Minh” and Bach Yen had sung solo. Overall, one of the more thoughtful DVDs to come out in a long time, from any of the major productions. I’m glad The Son and Nhu Quynh got the big number.
Hello, I came upon your blog while googling for Nhac Si Lam Phuong and I have to agree with you that Thuy Nga PBN 88 was one of the few that I can actually watch and enjoy until the end. However, the song Kiep Ngheo, one of my favorrite songs, was killed by Y Lan’s singing. She was so “dieu” and I couldn’t stand it…
i dont think khanh ha was that great this time around. her voice is quite thin on some of the glory notes and was on the verge of cracking. if anything, it was almost a good thing the mic clipped when she belted out the notes (she as a trained pro should know to ull the mic away when she is going into high volume) as it covered up the fact that she almost missed it.
khanh ha already did mot minh on asia, i doubt tn would want to have her sing it again on her stage.
ohhh get y lan’s “tinh khuc khong doan ket”- interesting interpretation of lam phuongs music. mot minh is very good. she sings stuff you wouldn’t think she would and it sounds great. has tinh anh linh chien and hut cuoi instead of the predictable em di roi, nhu giac chiem bao khanh ha would tackle.
Y Lan could’ve done better in this show, but to be fair, “Kiep Ngheo” is not an easy song to perform. Singing it well is a matter, expressing it convincingly is another. According to some previous posts, I guess any singers who take on this song have to dress poor (literally) and wear no make-up / jewelry in order to make the performance more believable (and not seen as “bling bling” :)
no need to dress poor for the song kiep ngheo, since its a TN concert not a high school talent show, just a simple “ao dai” and YLan can hide her bling bling by wearing black diamonds or something. lol. i know it makes her look glamorous, elegant, but just doesnt fit, like singing a funeral song/chia tay song at a wedding. well just find it a bit funny like the people telling the government they’re poor while driving mercedez and wearing rolex.
ITA with tannie, “tinh khuc khong doan ket” is great! A must for Lam Phuong music fans. Dong Son’s captivating arrangements and Y Lan’s skillful interpretations make it one of my favorite albums.
I honestly liked Y Lan’s delivery of Kiep Ngheo–besides being credibly live (a new direction for TN PBN)–it accurately captured “el alma de tango”. Modern tango evolved in the poor barios of Argentina, where poor gauchos and dance-hall girls dressed up their best for sensual, social outings. Lam Phuong instinctively invoked this musical tradition to accompany lyrics that are plaintive…making the point that even the poorest can be sensual, dream, and hope for romance. Dressed in “ao canh ba ba”, YL would merely mimic Nhu Quynh (hoat canh).
The musical arrangement’s bridge, shifting from tango to bolero beat, reinforced the storytelling nature of tango songs. Y Lan’s slurs and off-beat hesitation helped create the sensory tension that belongs to tango–movement, flow, hesitation, stop, flourish. In this, Nu Hoang Tango Khanh Ly’s version of the other Lam Phuong tango song, the straight-up version of “Tango Vietnamien”, provides interesting comparison.
When we listen to good music and great singers, we should listen to the total performance with our hearts. If we let our biases (personal, visual or otherwise) get in the way, we miss the opportunity to enjoy creative artistry. Piaf, Sinatra, Bennett or Bocelli do not have to make costume changes between songs to effectively communicate their music.
Paris by night 88 is very valueable and priceless. it is the best ever thuy nga ever made. it is very meaningingful and lovely and i listen to alot of songs but i never thought all of those songs belongs to Bac’ Lam phuong. all the songs are so beautiful and each individual singer did a good jod in that thuy nga 88. i believe every single singer become famous is because of the song. the song’s writer is very important. without any good song writers. i don’t think all the singer will be known like today. that’s why when people listen to the song, most the time people mention about name the song first and then name of singer. that’s why it is very importan. Bac’ Lam phuong did a wonderful thing is his life. i believe his songs never die in each and every single vietnamese person’s heart. May god bless you always and protect you. hopefully you will be recover soon so you can write more and more lovely songs to all the vietnamese people.
i agree pbn 88 is a beautiful dvd. the song selections are great. however, some of the singers did not quite deliver in their performances to best express the feelings behind the songs. i’m bothered by the inclusion of non-pro newcomers. i wish ai-van and elvis phuong were still around. the newcomers don’t have much breath control to fully express the songs’ intentions.
I think Mr. Producer Huynh Thi has a crush on little girl Huong Giang. Granted, there is an pureness sincerity in her voice ( being very young kind helped)
but she isn’t good enough to carry that song though. HG
needs lots lots of voice coaching to be able to deliver
that song well. May be another 3 years.
I felt this dvd was one of the most personal dvds ever produced and honored the composer in the right way. I’ve heard these songs as a child and hearing it again brings warm feelings to my heart. Everyone was wonderful in this dvd and seeing Lam Phuong suffer, makes you respect him even more. It’s sad can’t write anymore songs.
HG is a new face, new voice…simple, unadorned, untrained, and appropriately suited for the video backdrop that conveys LP’s solitude. A more accomplished vocal would distract.
But LP is established. Why match his achieved status up with an untrained voice? I disagree with Little Saigonese that a new face and new voice would convey LP’s solitude well. On the contrary, someone who’s experienced loneliness would better express “mot minh”.
“experienced loneliness” is still kinda general, what type of loneliness. one type of loneliness that i know HG experiencing now is not having support from parents for sure, and those childhood friends of the same age group are no longer close, because they are the ones who party and go to clubs and with the younger taste in music. a minor loneliness compared to other types, but its still loneliness. the feeling of being a loner and for being the only one in a group of friends who love nhac TCS. she used to study late at night and listen to TCS music. dde^m khuya thao thuc’ voi nhac tinh` cua TCS chi? co nuoc’ chet’ trong co don ma thoi. very depressing. tom’ lai. HG cung la co gai so’ng no^i. ta^m lam’+ co cai’ ngay tho de thuong. mot nguoi khi cunning/kheo’ leo’ qua’ roi thi` ho*i kho’ song’ no^i. ta^m. if you say she lacks technical and life experience then i agree, but i don’t think she lacks emotions of loneliness, so its pretty appropriate that she sings it.
That song was too big for her!
Pretty good for a young woman though.
Parents usually are very protective of their children.
When I was younger, I went to California and got a job as a nurse. I met a woman in the
VN entertainment industry she wanted to help me get into the music industry. Every night my dad would call me until he reach me after hours (around 2 or 3am) He would cried and aksed me to come back home so I can find a decent husband and have a normal life. Well I did and here I am 3 children later a very happy person. I guess I didn’t love music that much and I love helpng people. Now I sing for weddings, and parties and other types of shows on the weekend and having a great time too. I feel satisfied enough just singing for fun without stress. Music is my stress reducer. I hope Huong Giang will be happy with her endeavors. She ‘s a smart girl. The entertainment bussiness is tough and alot of tough mean people in it. It is definitely not for me.
Assuming Dave1967 is open-minded…suggest you listen to the Young Khanh Ly singing TCS’ Ca Khuc Da Vang. KL’s plain vocalization was suited for the meditative melodies that were born in war and suffering, the lyrics were powerful in their imagery without need for vocal embellishment. LP’s video, at first personal and uncomfortably prying, was an invitation into his present solitude–not cynical loneliness, but sweet solitude. HG’s voice was similarly eloquent in its simplicity. Listen again, with an open mind.
Hope Thuy Nga will produce Trinh Cong Son’s DVD…..It’s a time now. That like save the best for the rest.
Thuy Nga doesn’t have enough singers now to produce a good TCS DVD, they screwed up this Lam Phuong DVD like most of posters here found, the singers don’t suit for their songs and the music mixing is weird for most of the songs. Y Lan sings Kiep Ngheo just like Ngoc Huyen sings Tan Nhac. THe girl sings Mot Minh is cute.
bai hat “mot minh” hay qua! rat xuc dong! cathy chuc nhung mong uoc cua nhac si se thanh hien thuc vao mot ngay khong xa.
its not yet time for ThuyNga to make a TCS dvd, even if they got the suitable singers. the community in little saigon is not ready for such topic yet. i think if ThuyNga do make one soon, there will be protest in front of ThuyNga recording studio. i think for nguoi viet hai ngoai, especially in California, a TCS topic dvd can be done after the elder generation (60s and above) pass away. i think its that controversial.
That is really sad..for vietnamese community (hope that Khanh Ly till alive then)we have to wait the best for the last. I guess !!If we combine singers from both Places in VN and outside VN)
Lam Phuong – The greatest Vietnamese composer. He is the best of the best.
I gotta say something. you guys are being too harsh on huong giang. I think they chose her for a very good reason.
yes, her voice is untrained, immature. but it’s so..pure – everything including her appearance to her voice, the youth, naivete and innocence, it’s a PERFECT contrast to the experienced tragedy of lam phuong. more importantly, even with her untrained vocals she sang her heart out and it was truly one of the highlights to the show and an amazing conclusion to this tribute !!!!
I think there is something to say about achieving a certain level of experience in life in order to articulate certain songs well. I do like HG’s voice for its honest, sincere quality.
i do agree that HG’s voice has sincerity. interesting to point out that the contrast between the youthful quality in her voice and the mature nature of the song. if that were TN’s intention, the goal has been achieved.
by the way, what do you guys think of tran thu ha being on pbn videos? i see nothing special about her voice. she’s definitely no beauty queen, so what’s the hang up w/ her? it’s kinda mean to say, but i have the urge to fast-forward when i see her on screen. sorry!
omg are you serious? tran thu ha is one of the greatest voices of her generation. artists coming out of hanoi for some reason have VERY well trained voices.
tran thu ha is one of the few true “artists” these days in the vietnamese entertainment industry. other people who enjoy vocoded/mechanically altered normal voices like nhu loan and trish may not be able to appreciate the amazing quality, range and power of tran thu ha’s voice.
don’t get me wrong. i don’t like voices from nhu-loan or trish either. i’m comparing tran thu ha to artists like ngoc lan. there’s something special about ngoc lan’s voice that has not been replaced. there’s nothing special about t t ha. i think it’s an overstatement to say t t ha is one of the greatest.
wait a minute! what is this? tran thu ha commenting about t t ha being one of the greatest voices? is t t ha humble as an artist?
lol. yes it’s tran thu ha here *waves* *blows kiss* *takes a bow*
jk..or am I? but still…I think if you ask a lot of people they’ll agree she has that something special. she’s most definitely a vietnamese “diva” like my tam but less pop.
Although HG is still young, raw, and lack the vocal and stage experience like the established singers like KH, YL etc… She has the sincerity and honesty in her voice and this isn’t something that every singer has. And for this song, it is a crucial element. Comparing her version to KH’s version of Mot Minh, HG has a long way to go to achieving the technical ability of Khanh Ha displayed in this song. However, HG’s version touches me more as I can feel the meaning of the words that she sang which is something that I couldn’t feel with KH’s version. Just wait until HG gets a bit older, and wiser and sing this song again, she would certainly out do any singers without a doubt.
HG’s sincere honest quality and PBN choosing the mature nature of the song “Mot Minh” is purely a coincidence.
Here is another version by me where done by a keyboard friend of mine. I sucked though.
Oops here it is the link
http://www.themagicnight.com/
I hope you guys don’t trash me too much.
Click on Audio 2 and you will hear if for those who wants to hear it.
@33
Yes, agree with Thu Hoai that Huynh Thi did show his clear personal choice for the pretty & cute Huong Giang in the talent show. He had stated something like he would only give 10 to the best of best. Well, HG was good and has potential to be a … PBN regular – but definitely not the best of best just yet. Huynh Thi was indeed the odd one out, and the only judge who gave HG a surprise 10 – while he “rubbished out” Quynh Vi, who was the one who got my vote amongst the candidates.
Glad to see that PBN has deployed the best talents from the last talent show (minus Mr. Meng who somehow won a contract with PBN by the rule of the talent quest!!!). At least they can all sing live – much better than many PBN regulars who are only able to do lypsync … and do it badly! This is like a breath of fresh air and I believe it’s a step in the right direction. Go for it PBN!
To me, Trinh Lam appeared to be potentially good at the semi-final. But since then, if he is not careful about the direction the PBN production wants to steer him, he might become another The Son or Nguyen Hung ;-)
I respect peple who can perform live well. It is very difficult d/t sound issues, the band quality as
most bands (amateurs) which
most regular shows have are very bad in quality in general. I am not talking about the Liberty Band or any other famous bands of course.
for me, TTH voice fits better with new songs of her own style. for example the song “Binh Yen” i just like old songs simple the way it is, unique voice with simple technique, and if i want to hear old songs with one of the best trained voices i can listen to KH. TTH voice gives me a feeling kind of like abstract art. so i think she’s better with new creations in her own style.
when i listen to “binh yen” i can imagine it being a soundtract of a space odyssey or a biology documentary film that you see in school
I do agree that tran thu ha has a very distinct abstract style..but I also think you can hear that her voice is very well trained and can fit to jazz as well. in fact for the longest time I found in tran thu ha a kind of vietnamese liking to BJORK!! a bit of classic american musicals, a bit of jazz, a bit of random crazy abstractness/innovation/weirdness=tran thu ha.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7074005751101809583&q=nhu+quynh&total=272&start=10&num=10&so=0&type=search&plindex=9
Tango by Nhu Quynh, compare with Tango by KL Nu Hoang Tango, and with YL’s Kiep Ngheo.
Lam Phuong was in the hospital this past weekend due to swelling of the feet (he is diabetic). He is home now, feeling better.
Interesting opinions. Add this: from Lam Phuong himself, to a friend of a friend of mine: “If YLan had sung my songs earlier, my music wouldn’t be considered ‘se^’n’ (country)today”.
In all fairness, I think Huong Giang was doing a well-done job with that song “Mot Minh”. I love all viet music and I also strongly support the DVDs produced by TN, Asia and Vanson. I got every DVD that these three producers produce. I think we should cheer her up and give her support instead of criticizing her. First, we have to agree that Huong Giang has a quiet unique and beautiful voice, technically, yet, she still has some vocal loopholes that she needs to work on. second, she is the product of second vietnamese generation oversea of whom we should be proud. I think she deserve a better chance to advance her singing career. and I looking forward to listen to her music years to come.
huynh thi loves huong giang!!!!! marie to hates huong giang…
HT and MT are married to one another and their work.
I think H thi got a crush on Huong Giang LOL . Did you see how he buttered HG up and push his tounge against his left cheek. If I was Marie To I would have kick his butt for that. HT was so obvious about him liking HG. Poor MT she looks so big and old HT eyes always wanders . MT used to it I guess.
@56, kewl…Wedding Singer with healing magic! Forever yours forever autumn.
cam on nhac si Lam Phuong, ban hat mot minh that la hay va suc dong, chuc nhac si Lam Phuong nhung dieu chuc tot dep nhat tren doi. Huong Giang hat that la hay , dep, va se con hay hon nhieu mai day, PBN da lua that dung nguoi cho 1 ban nhac that la hay, cam on.
How can I help nhac si Lam Phuong? What can I do? Does anyone know how to contact nhac si Lam Phuong? Thank you.
Thank you nhac si Lam Phuong. Huong Giang oi! Em perform hay qua, rat la heartfelt, cam on.
#72 if you want to help nhac si LP with anything (buy a house for him like that one lady who did, or pay his medical bills) you can contact thuynga to ask.
to say the truth! if marie to kick huynh thi in this ass because of huong giang, huynh thi would left marie alone with their daughter, and she doenst want it
anyone know where I can get ta music notes for Lam Phuong’s song : Em Di ROi? Luv tat song XD
Try http://www.bennhac.com
type in the song name
after you pick song selection.
I think it will be there.
Can you tell me how I go about getting composer Lam Phuong’s autograph?