THROWBACK THURSDAYS
Every Thursday we’ll revisit a Taiwanese language classic from anytime between the 1930s - 2015ish... #TBT
| TAIWANESE | ENGLISH |
|---|---|
| Lán nn̄g-lâng, tsuè-tīn gia̍h tio̍h tsi̍t ki sió hōo-suànn 咱兩人 做陣攑著一枝小雨傘 | The two of us, together holding one little umbrella |
| Hōo jú tuā, guá lâi tsiàu-kòo lí, lí lâi tsiàu-kòo guá 雨愈大 我來照顧你 你來照顧我 | The heavier the rain, the more I’ll look after you, the more you’ll look after me |
| Sui-jiân siang-lâng kiânn sio-uá, tú tio̍h hong-hōo tsiah-nī tuā 雖然雙人行相倚 拄著風雨遮爾大 | Even though we’re walking side-by-side, encountering such heavy winds and rain |
| Khám-khia̍t sió-lōo iū pháinn-kiânn, lán tio̍h sió-sim kiânn 坎坷小路又歹行 咱著小心行 | Over narrow paths that are rough and hard to walk, we’ll have to go carefully |
| Lí kah guá, tsuè-tīn gia̍h tio̍h tsi̍t ki sió hōo-suànn 你佮我 做陣攑著一枝小雨傘 | You and me, together holding one little umbrella |
| Hōo jú tuā, ak kah tâm-kôo-kôo, sim-tsîng iā khuìnn-ua̍h 雨愈大 沃甲澹糊糊 心情也快活 | The heavier the rain, soaked through and through, yet we’re still cheerful |
| Lán nn̄g-lâng, tsuè-tīn gia̍h tio̍h tsi̍t ki sió hōo-suànn 咱兩人 做陣攑著一枝小雨傘 | The two of us, together holding one little umbrella |
| Hōo jú tuā, guá lâi tsiàu-kòo lí, lí lâi tsiàu-kòo guá 雨愈大 我來照顧你, 你來照顧我 | The heavier the rain, the more I’ll look after you, the more you’ll look after me |
| Lí guá siang-lâng kāng sim-kuann, m̄-kiann hong-hōo tsiah-nī tuā 你我雙人仝心肝 毋驚風雨遮爾大 | You and I are a couple with a single heart, we aren’t afraid of turbulent winds and rain |
| Oo-àm sió-lōo tsin pháinn-kiânn, lán tio̍h sió-sim kiânn 烏暗小路真歹行 咱著小心行 | Dark narrow paths are truly hard to walk, we’ll have to go carefully |
| Lí kah guá, tsuè-tīn gia̍h tio̍h tsi̍t ki sió hōo-suànn 你佮我 做陣攑著一枝小雨傘 | The two of us, together holding one little umbrella |
| Hōo jú tuā, ak kah tâm-kôo-kôo, sim-tsîng iā khuìnn-ua̍h 雨愈大 沃甲澹糊糊 心情也快活 | The heavier the rain, soaked through and through, yet we’re still cheerful |
The Backstory
Under martial law strict regulations censored music deemed too political, too sad, or too realistic in depicting everyday hardships. In 1976, additional regulations for TV and radio restricted broadcasts of Taiwanese language songs to just 2 per day. Under this oppressive environment, Taiwanese pop music experienced a lull until songs like “One Little Umbrella” (1982), sung by the 19-year-old Chris Hung | Âng Îng-hông 洪榮宏, broke through the silence with its upbeat spirit, jump starting a new wave of Taiwanese pop music in the early 1980s.
Son of a famous songwriter, Chris Hung | Âng Îng-hông 洪榮宏 sang with his father on stage at 10, moved to Japan and received vocal training at 13, and achieved his first popular hit with One Little Umbrella | Tsi̍t Ki Sió Hōo-suànn 一支小雨傘” (1982) at 19. With an award-winning and expansive career that continues to this day, he is known as the "King of Taiwanese Pop".