Review – David Tao Great Leap 2005 陶喆 太平盛世

Perhaps now that I have some time I’ll write a few reviews about some albums I’ve been listening to. Music has been a very important part of my life since I can remember (I began playing piano at 3 but don’t ask me how I did it because I don’t remember!)

So I’m going to start with a review of David Tao’s album 太平盛世 Great Leap 2005. I’ve been hesitant on reviewing it because I’m generally biased toward liking most of his work. However, I hope to point out some intricacies of WHY I like it and why you to go pick up a copy.

To give you some background info, on this album, David’s moved over to a larger recording label (EMI), and mentioned that it’s been a new start for him with songs that may very different from what he’s written in the past. For me, I wouldn’t expect anything less, as each of his albums are quite distinct from one another. He’s decided to simplify things to get the most of the instruments he’s using. Does he succeed? I’m going to highlight a few of my favorite songs on the album so let’s get into it and find out.

鬼 Ghost：
One noticeable difference between the Chinese release of the album is that it’s missing the first song “Ghost” 鬼。 I’m probably guessing this was done specifically for the Chinese market. I was able to get a listen to it and can definitely hear why it may not be receptive the Chinese market. If you look at the music video (WARNING: not for the faint of heart), I can see why it was excluded from distribution here.
I haven’t had a chance to look over the lyrics for this yet so won’t be able to comment on the content at this time.

Catherine:
Mr. Tao seems to have a knack for putting a song titled after a female name on every CD he’s released (look up Katrina, Angeline when you’ve got time). This one is another keeper. I love his knack for really capturing dynamics of the emotion of a song without making it “canned”. I hate canned music (perhaps I’ll write one day about how I abhor most Cantopop and most American pop). My favorite part in this song has got to be the “no no no no no no no” harmony at the end of the song. It’s got such a 1970s Motown-look’en-in-the-eye-and-shake-your-finger harmony that makes this song your typical guitar ballad to something special. One key characteristic of many of his songs is how everything sits very well together and doesn’t sound forced.

孙子兵法 Art of War:
This song takes its title from one of the most popular Chinese books called “Art of War“. Guest performers on this CD are the 12 girl band, which were one of the hottest groups in China in 2004. A hot trend nowadays in Taiwanese pop is to do the whole “get back to your roots” pop music, integrating classical chinese instruments and stylings into the music and this song is a good example of playing to the strengths of both the 12 girls band and to some hard rock.

爱我还是爱他 Who do you love?：
Great lyrics that very well crafted. Check out the music video too when you got time.

Susan 说 Susan Said：
Oh groove me to heaven! Like that last sentence made any sense! Mr. Tao has a magic touch with classic Chinese songs, bringing them back to popularity with a few lyrical additions and groovy beats. You’ll also notice that he’s also included some chinese instruments with the dizi and guzheng to add and extra sparkle. I appreciate hearing these classic songs for the first time.

祷告良辰歌 Sweet Hour of Prayer：
A rendition of a popular hymn, this is a great way of ending the album. Simple and relaxed.

Summary 总结:
I honestly don’t think you can go wrong with buying any of David’s albums and this one is no exception. Consistently solid lyrics and great melodies and arrangements are usually a surefire way of leaving a lasting impression.

Rating: 4/5 – definitely one for your collection