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Bad Boy (A-Mei album)

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Bad Boy
Studio album by
A-Mei
ReleasedJune 7, 1997
Recorded1997
Studio
  • Platinum Studio (Taipei)
  • Forward Studio
  • A-String Recording Studio
  • Mega Force Studio
  • Beat Sound Studio (Taipei)
  • Sun House Studio (Taipei)
  • Premium Recording Studio
  • Form Recording Studio (Singapore)
Genre
Length49:03
LabelForward Music
Producer
A-Mei chronology
Sisters
(1996) 		Bad Boy
(1997) 		You Make Me Free Make Me Fly!
(1997)
Singles from Bad Boy
  1. "Bad Boy"
  2. "Can't Cry"
  3. "Whenever I Think About You"
  4. "Dancing Alone"
  5. "Listen to the Sea"

Bad Boy is the second studio album by Taiwanese singer A-Mei. It was released on June 7, 1997, by Forward Music.[1] Predominantly an R&B, pop and soul record, Bad Boy centers on the theme of love and relationships.[2] The album was produced by her mentor Chang Yu-sheng with the aid of Benjamin Lin, Ma Yu-fen and Yu Guangyan.[2] It was ultimately the last album of hers that Chang was actively involved with due to his untimely death caused by a car crash five months later.[3] On August 17, 2018, 21 years after its initial release date, a vinyl reissue of Bad Boy was released by Forward Music.[4]

Commercially, the album found immense success at home and abroad, topping Taiwan's IFPI sales chart for 9 weeks and went on to sell over 1.38 million copies in Taiwan alone.[5] Since its release, Bad Boy has remained the highest-selling album of all time in Taiwan.[6][7] The album also managed to shift more than 6 million copies throughout Asia, setting a major record for the highest sales for a Taiwanese singer.[8]

In order to promote Bad Boy, five songs off it were released as singles; the title track, "Can't Cry," "Whenever I Think About You," "Dancing Alone" and "Listen to the Sea." All five singles attained commercial success throughout Asia and are now regarded as modern day classics in the Mandopop genre.[2] To this very day they are still sung at karaoke boxes and are often performed by contestants on major televised singing competitions.[9][10][11][12][13] A-Mei performed songs from the album on her concert tour A-Mei In Concert Live In Concert 1998 the following year.[14]

Background and production

[edit]

Seven months prior, A-Mei released her debut studio album, Sisters.[15] The record became an immediate success, selling over 1.21 million copies in Taiwan, becoming the fourth best-selling album of all time in the country, and shipping an additional 4 million copies throughout Asia.[16][17] Therefore, breaking a glass ceiling for Taiwanese aborigines in show business.[18] This meteoric rise to fame lead Billboard Magazine to declare her Asia's most popular singer on May 17, 1997.[19]

Afterwards, Chang Yu-sheng produced the album Bad Boy for A-Mei.[20] In terms of production, Chang chose to continue the "happy songs + love songs" model from the preceding album Sisters.[2] At the time of the album's production, Forward Music was just starting out, and producer Chang's request to A-Mei was to incorporate the singing style of the Beinan countryside into the songs, and sing them "a bit rockier, a bit more violent"; he hoped to inspire A-Mei's unique qualities, believing that such qualities were not possessed or were too shy to be displayed by urban women, the largest audience for pop music.[21] In addition, Chang also added some fashionable elements to the album.[22]

Writing and recording

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The album opener "Can't Cry" was written by Liu Si Ming and composed by Liu Zhihong.[23] As the first song of the album, the power ballad fully demonstrates A-Mei's prowess in singing lyrical slow songs.[2] The title track, "Whenever I Think About You" and "Lonely Tequila" were composed and written entirely by Chang Yu-sheng.[23] "Whenever I Think About You" in particular serves as a continuation of the song "Sisters." "Dancing Alone" was written by Yu Guangyan and composed by Sky Wu.[23]

"Listen to the Sea" was written by Eric Lin and was composed by Michael Tu.[23] On the day of writing the lyrics of "Listen to the Sea," Eric Lin went to a small bar with a book and didn't come out until four in the morning, then followed the bartender and drove to have a late-night snack, and at that time the dawn was breaking in the sky, and one of the waiters suddenly said that she would like to go to the seaside to have a look, and everybody felt that the proposal was good, so the group went there. When they went there, they sat on the beach and chatted, and Lin asked the girls about their relationship status and their views on relationships. All their answers were different, which gave Lin a certain understanding of women's views on relationships in that era, and laid the groundwork for the creation of "Listen to the Sea."[24]

Cheng Hua Jiuan wrote and composed the song "Sweet Words."[23] The torch song "Lover? Enemy?" was written by Wu Yukang and composed by Guo Tzu.[23] "Loving Isn't Too Early or Too Late" is a synthesizer-laden ballad written by Daryl Yao and composed by Zheng Zhiming.[23] The pop, R&B and gospel influenced album closer "Loved You" was penned by Lo-Jung Chen and composed by Chen Chih-yuan.[23]

Reception

[edit]
Bad Boy broke the record for the highest-selling album in Taiwan, which was previously held by Jacky Cheung's 1993 album The Goodbye Kiss

Buoyed by the success of several hit singles, Bad Boy debuted at number one on the Taiwan IFPI albums chart and remained at that position on the chart for nine weeks, becoming her second consecutive record to accomplish this.[25] Bad Boy sold 1.38 million copies in Taiwan, making it the record holder for Taiwan's highest-selling album to date, a record which was previously held by Jacky Cheung's The Goodbye Kiss (1993).[26][27] The album sold 6 million copies throughout Asia.[28] The success of Bad Boy led A-Mei to receive various music awards in Asia, which attracted the high attention of the international music scene and established her status as one of the most sought-after celebrities in East Asia.[29]

The album's title track made it onto the leaderboard of the 4th China Music Awards' Chinese Top 20 Chart Songs, which was held by Channel V.[30] At the same ceremony she also won the prize for Best Newcomer.[30] At the 9th Golden Melody Awards held in 1998, Michael Tu was nominated for Best Composer for his work on the song "Listen to the Sea."[31] At the same ceremony A-Mei herself was nominated for Best Mandarin Female Singer while the album Bad Boy was nominated for Album of the Year.[31] Bad Boy ranked first in the 1997 Golden Songs Dragon and Tiger Chart Annual Ranking on February 17, 1998.[32]

Track listing

[edit]
No.TitleLyricsMusicArrangementLength
1."哭不出來" (Can't Cry)Liu Si MingLiu ZhihongBaby Chung4:44
2."一想到你呀" (Whenever I Think About You)Chang Yu-shengChang Yu-shengKoji Sakurai4:48
3."孤單Tequila" (Lonely Tequila)Chang Yu-shengChang Yu-shengKoji Sakurai5:11
4."一個人跳舞" (Dancing Alone)Yu GuangyanSky WuBaby Chung4:29
5."聽海" (Listen to the Sea)Eric LinMichael TuMichael Tu5:18
6."Bad Boy"Chang Yu-shengChang Yu-shengMartin Tang4:22
7."甜言蜜語" (Sweet Words)Zheng HuajuanZheng HuajuanKoji Sakurai4:51
8."情人？敵人？" (Lover? Enemy?)Wu YukangGuo TzuRicky Ho5:00
9."愛，不太早不太晚，剛好。" (Loving Isn't Too Early or Too Late)Daryl YaoZheng ZhimingMartin Tang4:49
10."愛過你" (Loved You)Lo-Jung ChenChen Chih-yuanChen Chih-yuan5:27
Total length:49:03

Charts

[edit]

Sales and certifications

[edit]
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Taiwan (RIT)[35] 3× Platinum+Gold 1,380,000[34]
Summaries
Asia — 6,000,000[36]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "《BAD BOY》專輯" (in Chinese). Retrieved April 4, 2024.
  2. ^ a b c d e "張惠妹《BAD BOY》", Apple Music (in Chinese), retrieved July 8, 2024
  3. ^ Kwok Kar Peng (June 23, 2021). "Late Taiwanese singer Chang Yu-sheng's 1996 unplugged performance in Singapore goes viral, Entertainment News". AsiaOne. Retrieved December 8, 2022.
  4. ^ "《Bad Boy》黑膠專輯" (in Chinese). Retrieved April 4, 2024.
  5. ^ "經典重現！張惠妹、張雨生經典專輯黑膠發行". tw.stock.yahoo.com (in Chinese). August 15, 2018. Retrieved November 12, 2023.
  6. ^ "九零年代超強專輯歌手，第一名真的是天后中的天后！" (in Chinese). May 19, 2017.
  7. ^ "台灣百萬唱片销量獲得認證專輯,張惠妹第一138萬張" (in Chinese). January 2, 2020.
  8. ^ "阿妹《Bad Boy》賣破600萬張 經典黑膠重生" (in Chinese). August 16, 2018. Archived from the original on March 12, 2022.
  9. ^ "郑淳元《听海》：催泪演绎 中文逆袭 - 单曲纯享《我是歌手3》I AM A SINGER 3【歌手官方音乐频道】". youtube.com (in Chinese). November 26, 2018. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  10. ^ "黄丽玲 《一想到你呀》-《我是歌手 3》第九期单曲纯享 I Am A Singer 3 EP9 Song: A-Lin Performance【湖南卫视官方版】". youtube.com (in Chinese). February 27, 2015. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  11. ^ "超級偶像8 學長姐 杜牧 - 一個人跳舞". youtube.com (in Chinese). February 25, 2014. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  12. ^ "容祖儿《Bad boy》-我是歌手第四季第11期精选单曲20160325 I AM A SINGER 4 【官方超清版】". youtube.com (in Chinese). March 25, 2016. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  13. ^ "G.E.M. 鄧紫棋【快樂大本營】《哭不出来》HD 720p". youtube.com (in Chinese). February 19, 2014. Retrieved September 6, 2023.
  14. ^ "她把歌曲唱進你我的心坎裡！華語天后張惠妹的「妹力」人生". Harper's Bazaar (in Chinese). Retrieved July 8, 2024.
  15. ^ "《姊妹》專輯" (in Chinese). Retrieved April 5, 2024.
  16. ^ "紀念恩師! 阿妹重新詮釋"姊妹"". news.cts.com.tw (in Chinese). December 13, 2016. Retrieved September 5, 2023.
  17. ^ "BIO人物傳記頻道：張惠妹 （Biography®：A-Mei）". youtube.com (in Chinese). June 21, 2016.
  18. ^ "靈魂的旅程 回家吧！都市不是我的家／我是原住民 驕傲喊出我的名【台灣啟示錄】復刻版 第625集｜洪培翔". YouTube. November 14, 2019. Retrieved October 15, 2023.
  19. ^ A-Mei Surges Forward Into Taiwan Pop (PDF). Billboard. May 17, 1997. p. 17. Retrieved November 11, 2023.
  20. ^ "张雨生走了21年，但在我的歌单里，他从未离去". ent.sina.com.cn (in Chinese). November 13, 2018. Retrieved July 8, 2024.
  21. ^ "人物：偏执面与平常心：张惠妹的20年". old.lifeweek.com.cn. December 26, 2016. Retrieved July 8, 2024.
  22. ^ "回首张惠妹的来时路". Sohu Entertainment. Retrieved July 8, 2024.
  23. ^ a b c d e f g h Bad Boy (CD album; Liner notes). 張惠妹. Forward Music. 1997. 97-20035.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  24. ^ "歌曲《听海》的艺术特征与演唱处理". m.fx361.com (in Chinese). May 21, 2017. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
  25. ^ "經典重現！張惠妹、張雨生經典專輯黑膠發行". tw.stock.yahoo.com (in Chinese). August 15, 2018. Retrieved November 12, 2023.
  26. ^ "九零年代超強專輯歌手，第一名真的是天后中的天后！" (in Chinese). May 19, 2017.
  27. ^ "台灣百萬唱片销量獲得認證專輯,張惠妹第一138萬張" (in Chinese). January 2, 2020.
  28. ^ "阿妹《Bad Boy》賣破600萬張 經典黑膠重生" (in Chinese). August 16, 2018. Archived from the original on March 12, 2022.
  29. ^ "台灣史上銷量最高專輯《Bad Boy》！開啟張惠妹金曲獎14次入圍驚人紀錄" (in Chinese). March 31, 2021.
  30. ^ a b "第四届华语榜中榜获奖名单(1997年)". ent.sina.com.cn (in Chinese). November 22, 2002. Retrieved November 11, 2023.
  31. ^ a b "第九屆金曲獎入圍名單". bamid.gov.tw (in Chinese). Archived from the original on November 24, 2018. Retrieved November 11, 2023.
  32. ^ "九零年代超強專輯歌手，第一名真的是天后中的天后！" (in Chinese). January 19, 2019.
  33. ^ "IFPI Taiwan Chart – Top 20 Albums" (in Chinese). IFPI Taiwan. Archived from the original on October 11, 1997. Retrieved April 10, 2024.
  34. ^ "九零年代超強專輯歌手，第一名真的是天后中的天后！" [The super album singer of the 1990s, the number one is really the queen of divas!]. Yahoo News (in Chinese). May 19, 2017. Retrieved April 1, 2024.
  35. ^ 認證紀錄 [Certifications Awarded] (in Chinese). Recording Industry Foundation in Taiwan.
  36. ^ "阿妹《Bad Boy》賣破600萬張 經典黑膠重生" [Amei's "Bad Boy" sells over 6 million copies of classic vinyl reborn]. Apple Daily. August 16, 2018. Archived from the original on March 12, 2022. Retrieved April 1, 2024.
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