Rose Rose I Love You the original version with restored audio

[jdsnz1886]

you are to become geisha!............

[postwar46]

So bright: so beautiful: so simple, and so inspiring. The face of the lady shows all those qualities . She is happy, and for me, greatly appreciated. Ochestration also excellent. Thank you so much for posting a lovely traditional song.

[TheJECAT]

I, like seamonkey41 and The Eba147 had this record as a very small child. It belonged to my father. It was my favourite record and played it to death like Stephen. I was so upset when my mother threw it away after my Father died in 1959....I never heard it again until I stumbled on it on Last f.m. .All the memories came back and I could see my Father as clear as day. I was overcome with emotion and have been playing it ever since. I now listen to it through the day in the car too. jecat

[TheEba147]

wonderful to hear this song again last heard as a small child at the end of the second world war in the pacific arena thank you. tthis is a message from my dad and thank you from me this brought a tear to my eye and my dad's thank you

[LinMingXin]

Wo hen xihuan!! Xie xie! :-)

[Coopster46]

Thank you so much for sharing this. Wonderful memories and beautifully cleaned up!

[favenchi]

thanks for all your comments and for your views....sadly oh sooo sadly YouTube has frozen the hits count ...this for several weeks now....seems they think I articially inflate the views / hits....I do not do this! I love this song...now for all to enjoy!!!

[favenchi]

@favenchi seems the hits count has been sorted....youtube is a bit slow, but thanks to everyone for your love of this song.....

[BecomingAdrian]

This is in The Pillow Book.

[mpoth49]

Continuing from last post, yes it has been 60 years since last heard,. I used to hear it on the old radio. Why was this so special to me and lots of other people that have written, no wonder tears rolled . Glad nobody in doors whilst listening. Thankyou again.

[mpoth49]

I cannot believe I have found this at long last. Heard this when I was 6. Have been searching a long long time since the net came into being a few years back and now have got it. Thankyou. I loved it as a child, and tears have welled up listening for the first time since then.

[chrisb8057]

I Last heard this when I was a little boy of about 5. My Dad was sent to Singapore after the war to survey the Japanese gun positions. This song was one of my first memories.

[ShellacHeaven]

I put up the original 78 of this (it was one of 150 78s my Mum and Dad gave me half a century ago - which, now added to nearly 5,000 more, I brought with me to Thailand, when I retired here) - then I saw THIS.

Fearing the "restoration" would SQUELCH the life out of it (they usually do) I was delighted to find your version is bright, sweet and as vital as could be.

Well DONE!

[tkgin57]

绕梁三日！

[darksouth31]

This song reminds me of Jackie Chan's movie "Miracles"

[Scottde420]

this is so special to me

[TOTOOHO]

She still alive!

[ShellacHeaven]

@TOTOOHO Yep - and nearly NINETY!

[favenchi]

Thank you for your splendid comment....I am so glad and so delighted that so many people love this song as I have since my early childhood.

[anton83320]

Thanks Favenchi in Bandung. Lots of Chinese Indonesians suffered after 1965 during the Suharto Years for their commitment to the PKI. Thousands died particularly in Java and Bali.

Yao Li's music is about the rehabilitation of a more moderate China. I think she is still alive and is a 1922 girl of great artistic talent.. She would be pleased about our interest in her life.

Indeed the Mei Gui was perhaps a symbol of China during the years of Japanese occupation-a political fable!

[revolversmoke]

the sound of nostalgia ^_^ I love songs like these songs from back in the day! Thanks you to my mum I could find this song as a teenage of today...

[favenchi]

so glad you like this song......@revolversmoke

[MeepullStewray]

<3

[anton83320]

Thanks for bringing this lyric back! Time for a Chinese movie to rehabilitate this song and Yao Li's artistic contribution!

[favenchi]

@anton83320  great suggestion.........many thanks

[seamonkey41]

This reminds me of when I was a little girl in the 50s, it made the men in our family sad I think it was a reminder of what was left behind in the East thanks for putting it on here

[favenchi]

@seamonkey41  a beautiful and specail rose.....a symbol

[Scottde420]

this is very special song to me thanks for the upload

[fredtappin]

I must say this is a delightful version which i enjoy........since i served in the far east

and up till now only heard Frankie Laine's hit version.

[favenchi]

@fredtappin

Please also look up this song by Petula Clark.....this is perhaps the next best version

[MizFayeTZ]

i'm only22 but i love this song!

[favenchi]

@MizFayeTZ so glad you like the song......it gets better every time it is played!

[yuetkukoihoje]

Mind if I ask where are those lyrics that rossharmonics had translated 7 months ago?

[favenchi]

@yuetkukoihoje I'd be glad to publish the definitive lyrics if I was given copyright clearance

[yuetkukoihoje]

@favenchi

Thanks for the intel & hope that you'll get the copyright clearance the sooner the better.

I'll try to wait patiently.

[rossharmonics]

@yuetkukoihoje It's ok with me if you get both the literal translation and the lyrics written to fit the music and carry the spirit of the original CHinese.

[elliott021]

When I was 10 way back in 1968 I found an old 78 rpm of the Frankie Laine version of this song and have always loved it as one of my favorites. This original version I have never heard before until today. It is very interesting. I like it too. Thanks for posting it favenchi!!

[favenchi]

@elliott021

Frankie Lane was a great singer......and I recently spotted Frankie playing a guest part in a 1959 episode of Perry Mason.....

[postwar46]

Chinese people " can do" and "will fix".....anything!! God bless them.

[postwar46]

This is such a beautiful peice. A springing bouncing musical number, so happy and full of life: Thank you so much for posting

[gogo31038]

This record was popularised in the UK by dj Wilfred Lawrence on his BBC record programme back in 1951.

[favenchi]

@gogo31038

Wilfrid Thomas....he was such a great radio presenter...originally from Australia.....Wilfrid was a true pioneer of radio documentaries and yes he did help bring this beautiful song to the world

[Spitalhatch]

I haven't heard this in years - and it's so clear, probably clearer than the original 78 that my Dad had in around 1950.

Many thanks.

[favenchi]

@Spitalhatch

Hey thanks for your special comments.......the record has had some processing on the computer....no added reverb either....so it is quite a pure sound....and we eliminated much of the disc surface noise.....

[thechinadesk]

@favenchi

What a wonderful thing to do!

A genuine labor of love.

Also, no added artificial reverb. Smart decision!

That is exactly the right approach.

Music lovers owe you a debt of gratitude.

[favenchi]

@thechinadesk You have honoured me with your comment

[thechinadesk]

@favenchi

Not at all!

A tiny trace of reverb to counteract an acoustically dead room is all anyone should ever use.

I'm an amateur voice student who sometimes performs in live recitals with piano accompaniment.

I also go to a Karaoke bar a friend runs once in a while, but the artificial reverb sticks in my craw. It lets people pretend they're better singers than they actually are.

They should learn how their voices actually sound, and improve them via voice training.

End of rant.

[favenchi]

@thechinadesk voice training is THE best way

[GG2873]

some years ago I met a group of Chinese students holidaying in England: we became friends when I told them I know a Chinese song. I It was this one, I started singing it and they joined, and we were all happy. Afterwards they told me it was a wonder for them finding an Italian student on holiday in England who could sing a Chinese song

[favenchi]

I heard this song in the movie "The Pillow Book, " with Vivian Wu and Ewan McGregor, directed by Peter Greenaway. The protagonist of the Japanese film, had a mother who had taught the Chinese Mandarin language and this was his mother's favorite record......

Thank you so much for your mention of the Movie The Pillow Book........I will almost certainly check out this movie...anything to do with "Rose" always has my top attention!

[rossharmonics]

@favenchi I will also check out this film. It was also used in The White Countess but anachronistically. The White Countess takes place in Shanghai in 1937 and the song was recording in 1940.

[GG2873]

ho sentito questa canzone nel film "I racconti del cuscino", con Vivian Wu e Ewan McGregor, regia di Peter Greenaway. La protagonista giapponese del film, aveva la madre cinese che le aveva insegnato la lingua mandarina e questo era il disco preferito di sua madre

[RealMimimoo]

I too remember it as a kid - it was on radio in the UK all the time. Brought tears to my eyes when I heard it again. Thankyou so much for listing it. Ralph

[rossharmonics]

I have the literal translation ready. It brings tears to my eyes as I hear the deeper meaning of Chinese defiance.

[favenchi]

@rossharmonics thank you again.....at last a true meaning of a song which has haunted me for years...no wonder this melody is a classic and so too the lyrics.......my email address is favenchi@yahoo.com  maybe another posting of the song can be made with the english (properly translated) lyrics as video overlays....I would try my best to put the lyrics as close to sync as possible.....Frankie was good with US "western" songs...but not this classic. Petula..indeed a lovely voice!

[rossharmonics]

Because China was at war with Japan, the indomitable spirit of the rose is also the indomitable spirit of the Chinese people!

[rossharmonics]

Even though the all the English lyrics have nothing to do with the original, I do like the quality of Petula Clark's voice. She sounds almost Chinese. Frankie Lane turns into something unrelated to anything Chinese. A better title, which fits the Chinese line

玫瑰玫瑰我愛你

mei gui mei gui wo ai ni

in rhythm and meaning is Roses, Roses, I love you.

China has a long tradition in the arts and folklore about the character of flowers. This is about the indomitable spirit of the rose!

[rossharmonics]

I am writing a line by line translation with the Chinese characters and the pronunciation of each character below in the second line with a third parallel line giving a more literal translation. After that I will work on a translation capturing the original text's spirit, one that scans perfectly with the music. This will require more space than the comment section allows. Suggestions?

[rossharmonics]

I'll soon supply you with a rough literal translation, Still a good lyric from Chinese to English is always a labor of love and will take longer since Chinese is so succinct and so expressive and English is so verbose.

[favenchi]

@rossharmonics thank you so much......the translation will be much appreciated of such a favourite song...to know the true meaning after all these years will be extra special!

[rossharmonics]

I'll soon supply with a rough literal translation but a good lyric from Chinese to English is always a labor of love since Chinese is so succinct and so expressive and English is so verbose.

[rossharmonics]

The English versions are not translatioins of the Chinese. It is about the flower and not about a woman named Rose. Unfortunately, I don't know if the original words would appeal to an American audience. I'm working on it in the meantime.

[favenchi]

@rossharmonics thank you so much for your comment....the english translation was of course "westernised"...I'd dearly love to read a literal translation of this song....so I look forward to hearing more of the results of your good work.

[chinenyuyafan]

I love this song! The first time I heard this was probably in the Jackie Chan movie... um, not sure if I remember the title, but yeah. ;)

[allyoucaneat8]

It sounds so cheerful, fresh, and youthful, and it will be forever lovely. Thank you for this amazing journey into Chinese pop.

[favenchi]

this hit was a sensation in parts of the western world in the early 1950's....and hopefully it will be revived sometime...soon I hope......glad you enjoyed the recording

[omoetamo]

thanks a lot, favenchi!!!!!!!

[favenchi]

thanks to you too for your comment...I am so glad that this song is still popular today....it was my favourite "back then" and still is today

[DuracellBunny2]

Excellent! Nostalgia rocks! Did you do the restore yourself, favenchi?

[favenchi]

Captured from original 78 rpm disc by computer, surface noise sampled and removed..clicks and pops also zapped out. As near to original as possible. Aint computers marvellous!

[mrrk]

very nice