Embedded Files
April Fool's Day • Only Fools Rush In｜愚人节随想
1. About this Issue • 愚人节随想
1. About this Issue • 愚人节随想
我们都曾经犯过傻。回想你做过的一件“傻事”——为了什么？如果重来一次，你会不会再犯一次傻？
愚人节之际，我们欣赏一首陈淑桦演唱的英文歌，歌曲第一句是“聪明人说，只有傻瓜才贸然行事”。本期的主题是“傻事“：且让我们回顾陈淑桦早中期生涯中的贸然行事，并探讨猫王、陈淑桦、和邓丽君对这首经典歌曲不同的诠释。
Think of a foolish thing you've done. What drove you to it, and would you do it again?
As we celebrate April Fool’s Day, we listen to an English song by Sarah Chen featuring the line, "Wise men say only fools rush in." We revisit three of her bold ("foolish") musical endeavors and compare the song's three renditions by Elvis, Sarah Chen, and Teresa Teng.
2. Song of The Issue • 本期歌曲
2. Song of The Issue • 本期歌曲
"Can't Help Falling In Love" by Sarah Chen (1987), originally performed by Elvis Presley (1961). Songwriters: Hugo Peretti, Luigi Creatore, & George Weiss.
陈淑桦1987年的歌「情不自禁地爱上你」，原唱是猫王 Elvis Presley。词曲：Peretti, Creatore, & Weiss
Can't Help Falling in Love (Click for English)
Can't Help Falling in Love (Click for English)
If you are looking for evidence of Sarah Chen's "foolish" musical endeavors, you need look no further than her English song “Can't Help Falling in Love.” The song opens with the line, "Wise men say only fools rush in," a fitting introduction to Chen's daring decision to cover an Elvis classic.
Miracle of Love (1987) was a collection of touching ballads originally performed mainly by male singers1,2. Notable tracks include “Can’t Help Falling in Love,” “There’ll Be Sad Songs,” and “Because I Love You.” Making English covers for the Asian market might seem like a straightforward task, but this project carried risks, especially since it came soon after Sarah Chen had been crowned Taiwan’s “Best Female Singer”3. Few things posed a greater risk to that reputation than recording songs that might be judged inferior to their originals. Singing gender-reversed songs also meant that Chen had few suitable models to follow. In addition, she had to overcome the audience’s expectations of how these songs should sound – in Elvis’s deep, flowing voice, for example.
Chen rushed in and released Miracle of Love to an audience eager to hear her (Figure 1). The album sold well4, but unfortunately, it soon lost label support when EMI restructured. The 2002 reissue distorted the songs' tempo and key. Over time, the original recordings gradually faded from circulation, even though the album remains Chen's personal favorite (1992 interview with Gui Ya-Lei).
如果要找陈淑桦生涯中犯过的傻，你只需听一听她翻唱的英文歌「情不自禁地爱上你」。这首歌的第一句是：“聪明人说，只有傻瓜才会贸然行事”，这是对陈淑桦大胆翻唱猫王 Elvis Presley 经典作品的贴切描述。
陈淑桦的英文专辑「爱的奇迹」（1987）是一张情歌盛宴，歌曲的原唱大都是男歌手1,2。广为流传的歌包括「情不自禁地爱上你」，「会有悲伤的歌」，和「因为我爱你」。当时，为亚洲市场制作英文翻唱专辑看似简单，但这张专辑出在陈淑桦拿下金钟奖最佳女歌手之后不久3，如果演唱不及原唱，这会损坏她刚建立起来的天后之名。由于原唱是男歌手，陈淑桦没有合适的范本可供参照。她还得克服听众对这些歌的期待，比如听众期待的是猫王深沉雄厚的歌声，而不是轻柔的女声。
虽然面对风险，陈淑桦依然”贸然行事“，录制了「爱的奇迹」。她的歌迷迫切地在等待新歌辑（图一），专辑销量不错4。不幸的是，百代唱片重组后，这张专辑失去了后续的宣传与支持，2002年的重发版扭曲了歌曲的音调和音速，原版演唱在民间逐渐失传。尽管如此，「爱的奇迹」是三张百代英文唱片中陈淑桦自己最喜欢的一张（1992年，归亚蕾访谈）。
Figure 1. Zotero entry for a 1987 magazine report on "The Miracle of Love."
图1：1987年「爱的奇迹」杂志报道的文献条目（Zotero）。
3. She Who Rushed In • 陈淑桦贸然行事
3. She Who Rushed In • 陈淑桦贸然行事
She Who Rushed In (Click for English)
She Who Rushed In (Click for English)
What were some of Sarah Chen's "foolish" musical endeavors? To answer this, we examine magazine entries through 1987 (mid-career).
(1) Playing the lute to a cow 对牛弹琴
By the time Sarah Chen debuted in 1976, she had already received a decade of musical training, much of it in English and Japanese songs3–5. At the time, Taiwan's music scene was dominated by campus folk songs and lounge ballads. Chen's musical taste was ahead of its time, creating a mismatch between what she liked and what audiences wanted. Stubborn, Chen stuck to her Western singing style, even recording three full English albums4. Few appreciated what she did6. Even as her technique and style fully matured, she remained only "almost famous”6,7.
(2) Battling on through repeated defeats 屡败屡战
When she received her first major music award – the 1985 Golden Bell Award for Best Female Singer in Taiwan – Sarah Chen had already built a reputation as a singer familiar with failure3. Love's Sun, her first album at age 15, did not gain traction; Farewell, My Love, her coming-of-age album, left little trace. Neither the three years with Big Ocean Records nor the next four with Haishan Records brought stardom8.
By 1981, when Spring Comes Again failed to sell3, Chen had recorded over 150 songs without a major hit. She went an entire year without any recording opportunities. Most would have given up, but she kept going.
(3) The diva who tried new things 不断更新
Perhaps the most "foolish" thing Sarah Chen did was to try new things after she had finally gained recognition as a great ballad singer. While the younger Chen could rush in without consequence, the established Chen had a reputation and legacy to protect. Yet the first album she made after becoming a Mandopop diva was the rock-heavy Waiting for the Storm (1987)9. Critics liked it10, but the market reaction was lukewarm11. Unfazed, Chen went on to produce an R&B album, Forever (1995), fulfilling a major musical wish.
从当年的报刊剪辑里，我们总结出陈淑桦至1987年职业中期时三件“贸然行事”。
(1) 对牛弹琴
陈淑桦在1976年成为专业歌手时，已经累积了十年的音乐训练，其中不少是英文歌和原曲为日曲的歌3–5. 那时台湾流行的是民谣和酒吧歌曲，和陈淑桦的品味不同，造成她和听众审美上的差异。陈淑桦也录过民谣和酒吧歌曲，但她偏爱的是西洋歌曲，后来甚至在百代录制了三张英文专辑4. 她自己说西洋歌唱得很孤单6. 至八十年代初她加入百代唱片时，她的演唱技巧和风格都已经完全成熟，但还只是「将红未红」，「差那么一点」6,7.
(2) 屡败屡战
1985年陈淑桦首次获得金钟奖最佳女歌手奖，那时她已经是闻名的「屡败屡战」歌手3. 15岁首张专辑「爱的太阳」没有打响，18岁的「再会吧，心上人」没留下几首好歌。在大三洋耗了三年，又在海山唱片进修四年，唱红了一些歌，但就是红不起来8.
1981年电影专辑「又见春天」发行时，陈淑桦已经录制了150多首歌。但「又见春天」销量不高，陈淑桦整整一年没有录音机会3。换了任何人都早已放弃了。
(3) 不断更新
从某种意义来说，陈淑桦最大的“傻事”是在成名后还不断地尝试新的造型和音乐风格，尤其是在金钟奖之后。早年的各种尝试对于一位半温不火的歌手来说是值得的。但金钟奖封后以后，她得维护自己的名声和功绩。然而，金钟奖后不久，百代在台湾的代理商转变，金钟歌后陈淑桦录制的第一张唱片是一张摇滚乐居多的「等待风起」（1987）9. 当时音乐评述认为唱片非常棒10, 但市场反应一般11. 陈淑桦并没有因此退缩，几年后完成一张风格大异的心愿作——1995年的节奏蓝调专辑「淑桦盛开」。
4. The Mother Of Success • 成功之母
4. The Mother Of Success • 成功之母
The Mother of Success (Click for English)
The Mother of Success (Click for English)
It is often said that "failure is the mother of success." Yet Sarah Chen’s career suggests something different: the key to success is not failure itself, but the willingness to take risks despite likely failure.
For much of her career, Sarah Chen worked in an environment conducive to failure. The late 1970s were a difficult time for Taiwan's music production8. Chen's own history as a child singer5, while important for her artistic development, took away the novelty factor so critical for a new singer’s breakthrough. Although artistically sophisticated, Chen failed to gain recognition with a Mandarin repertoire that fit poorly with her Western style of singing6,7.
Her first break came in 1982, when she performed at the 13th World Popular Song Festival in English and Japanese12. She became a finalist in a highly competitive field that included Celine Dion and Anne Bertucci, drawing the attention of EMI Singapore, which needed a singer who could bridge the East-West musical divide13. EMI gave Chen the support she needed14 – music that fit her style, promotion that centered on her, and resources that made her competitive for the Golden Bell Award.
All this grew out of her history of singing English songs. What once seemed like risky choices eventually led to fame, major hits, and an enduring musical and cultural influence. More importantly, it gave Sarah Chen her unique artistic identity, a style that blends the best of Eastern and Western music11,15,16.
「失败是成功之母」是众所周知的成语。但陈淑桦的生涯给了另一种说法：成功的来源不是失败，而是在明知可能失败的情况下，仍然愿意去尝试。
陈淑桦也许是生不逢时。七十年代中后期是台湾歌曲创作最萧条的时候8. 陈淑桦童星起家5, 虽然有很深的音乐根基，但早年的歌唱史剥夺了新秀最重要的新鲜感优势。哪怕她的歌艺已经完全成熟，她很难赢得听众的注意。无论大三洋的酒吧小调还是海山期的朴素民谣，都和她的西洋式唱腔格格不入6,7.
陈淑桦职业的第一次转折来自1982年在东京举行的，第十三届世界流行歌谣赛，她演唱了英文和日文的「今夜承诺我」12. 当时参赛的有 Celine Dion 和 Anne Bertucci 之类的名星, 陈淑桦进入决赛，赢得国际唱片公司百代唱片的注视。百代需要一位能够融合中西音乐风格的歌手，于是和她签约13. 百代制作人谭健常曲风偏西化，新专辑和陈淑桦风格一致。百代唱片公司在新、马、台三地的宣传着重于陈淑桦，又给她提供角逐金钟奖的资源和条件14。
这些好事的根源是陈淑桦深厚的西洋歌演唱史。她早年的傻事是后来突破的关键，从一个就“差那么一点”的歌手，变成大红大紫、影响深远的华语乐坛巨星。但名声并不是最重要的。那些勇于失败的尝试塑造了陈淑桦，赋予她独特的中西结合的演唱风格11,15,16.
5. Blog: Elvis, Sarah Chen, & Teresa Teng
5. Blog: Elvis, Sarah Chen, & Teresa Teng
猫王，陈淑桦，邓丽君
猫王，陈淑桦，邓丽君
When Teresa Teng covers a song, it becomes inseparable from her interpretation; when Sarah Chen covers a song, it becomes a beautiful rendering of the song, but she does not make it her own.
Figure 2. Waveforms of the vocal components in the song "Can't Help Falling in Love." Top: Elvis Presley (1961). Bottom: Sarah Chen (1987). The x-axis represents time (s) and the y-axis represents normalized amplitude.
图2️：「情不自禁地爱上你」人声部分的波形图：上：猫王版 1961；下：陈淑桦版 1987. 横轴为时间（秒），纵轴为振幅。
This "duet" between Elvis Presley and Sarah Chen shows excellent alignment between the two singers, despite their singing in different keys and the complete absence of coordination.
这段猫王和陈淑桦跨时空的“合唱”，虽然音调不同而且录音完全独立，演唱却感觉非常协调。
Elvis, Sarah, & Teresa (Click for English)
Elvis, Sarah, & Teresa (Click for English)
"Can't Help Falling in Love" is a signature song of Elvis Presley, first recorded in 1961 as the theme for the film Blue Hawaii. Elvis performed it over 700 times17, often as a closing song in concerts. In the Mandopop sphere, Teresa Teng performed it in a 1982 concert, while Sarah Chen recorded a studio version in 1987.
Among the three versions, Teresa Teng's is most different. She sings at a faster tempo (~88 BPM), set to quick drum beats, creating a celebratory concert atmosphere. The performance ends with an uplifting energy, an unmistakable statement that "falling in love with you" is something to be celebrated. Teng's version carries her characteristic surface features. It becomes a Teresa Teng song, no longer an Elvis song.
Sarah Chen's version, in contrast, is much more faithful to Elvis's original. The waveforms (Figure 2) show that the two singers are closely aligned in tempo (69 BPM). Both expressed deep love and acceptance of falling in love despite hesitation. Their styles differ: Elvis is more dynamic in vocal energy, with frequent pauses that articulate the song's rhythm. Chen's singing is less beat-driven; she flows through the lines, creating a continuity that makes her version feel slower. Despite these differences, Chen's version retains the essence of Elvis's song, moderated by her own qualities and emotions.
The contrast between Teresa Teng and Sarah Chen extends beyond this example to their broader approach to covers. When Teresa Teng covers a song, it becomes inseparable from her interpretation. The song becomes strongly associated with Teng rather than the original singers (e.g., Night Jasmine, On the Other Side of the River). When Sarah Chen covers a song, it becomes a beautiful rendering of the song, but she does not make it her own (e.g., Beautiful Remembrance, Meeting in a Dream). These are two different approaches, not that one is better than the other.
To new listeners, Teng is immediately recognizable, while Chen can be more elusive. Yet Chen clearly possesses a strong musical identity: her original songs are notoriously difficult to cover. Red Dust, Dancing Light, Dream to Awakening – once heard in Chen's voice, later versions do not merely fall short, they often feel ruinous.
Perhaps this is also why Teresa Teng and Sarah Chen rarely covered each other's signature songs: both recognized that the original was unlikely to be surpassed.
猫王、陈淑桦、邓丽君
猫王、陈淑桦、邓丽君
「情不自禁地爱上你」是猫王 Elvis Presley 的代表作, 1961年首录，是电影「蓝色的夏威夷」的主题曲。这首歌猫王曾演唱过七百多次17, 常用于演唱会的闭幕曲。在华语歌坛, 邓丽君在1982年演唱会中唱了这首歌, 而陈淑桦在1987年录制了这首歌。
这三个版本中，邓丽君的最不同。她在快速的鼓点中，以更快的速度演唱（约 88 BPM），带有演唱会欢乐的气氛。最后一句是典型的邓丽君的高昂，表白「爱上你」是件值得庆祝的事。她的版本带着明显的邓丽君特色，歌曲成了邓丽君的歌，而不是猫王的歌。
相比之下，陈淑桦的版本更接近猫王的原版。歌声波形图（图二）显出两位歌手在节奏和时间线上几乎完全一致（都是69 BPM）。两个版本都表达了深沉的爱和对爱的接受，哪怕原本不愿意落入情网。他们的风格有差异：猫王歌声的起伏更大，有更明显的停顿，以此标出歌的节奏。陈淑桦的演唱不受节奏驱动，演唱更流畅，这种一口气唱下来的方式使她的版本感觉更慢。尽管如此，陈淑桦的版本保留了猫王版的精髓，融入了陈淑桦的特色和情感。
邓丽君和陈淑桦在这首歌上的差异反应了她俩在翻唱作品中不同的方式。邓丽君翻唱的歌通常和她相连——一旦你听过邓丽君的版本，你很难忘掉她在这首歌中添的特色，此后歌曲就和邓丽君连在一起（如「夜来香」，「在水一方」）。陈淑桦翻唱的歌非常优美，但那首歌依然和原唱挂钩，没有变成陈淑桦的歌（如「倩影」，「相见在梦中」）。这两种方式各有千秋。
对新听众来说，邓丽君可以立刻识别，而陈淑桦不容易抓住。但这不等于说陈淑桦没有自己的特色。她原唱的歌很难被后来的歌手翻唱成功。「滚滚红尘」、「流光飞舞」、「梦醒时分」——一旦你听过陈淑桦的原版，后来的翻唱就几乎听不下去。
这些差异也许是为什么邓丽君和陈淑桦很少翻唱彼此的经典作：她们都意识到原唱版不可超越。
邓丽君翻唱的歌通常和她相连——一旦你听过邓丽君的版本，你很难忘掉她在这首歌中添的特色。陈淑桦翻唱的歌非常优美，但那首歌依然和原唱挂钩，没有变成陈淑桦的歌。
References 参考文献
References 参考文献
1. 陈淑桦再换新造型 （Miracle of Love）. (1987).
2. 新加坡记者. 商人重利轻别，陈淑桦最憎恨生意人（Miracle of Love). 新加坡报刊 (1987).
3. 辜振滨君. 揭开“金钟歌后”陈淑桦的星路历程：“浪迹”歌坛多年，伴侣仍在“天涯”，她要“打开失去钥匙的心锁”. 台北航讯 (1985).
4. (陈淑桦西洋歌历史）. (1987).
5. 七星唱片事业有限公司. 七星唱片宣传文案: 七星唱片最新国语连动歌曲. (1970).
6. 新加坡记者. 陈淑桦（霉运）. (1984).
7. 《海洋之歌》评述：陈淑桦破网而出. (1983).
8. 尔媃. 明星专辑：陈淑桦心中有个结. 电视周刊 101–115 (1983).
9. 陈淑桦借「光阴的陷阱」大突破，怪杰钮大可制作，日本编曲家助阵. (1987).
10. 伟毅. 最佳的一次（光阴的陷阱专辑短评）. 新加坡报刊 (1987).
11. 综艺杂志. 陈淑桦一华一英出击. 综艺杂志 (1987).
12. 蕭容慧. 屡败屡战的歌手——记金钟奖得主凌峰、陈淑桦. 台湾光华杂志 (1985).
13. 陈淑桦不再忌讳和黄露仪并提. (1985).
14. 百代唱片. 陈淑桦三年努力，在新马闯出佳绩. 百代唱片 (1986).
15. 新马地区. 陈淑桦问鼎星马. (1985).
16. 任翔. EMI 红头巾 意犹未足. 新加坡报刊 (1986).
17. Elvis setlist. https://www.setlist.fm/stats/elvis-presley-73d6a2b1.html
Acknowledgements
Acknowledgements
This site was enriched by the generosity of a long-time Sarah Chen fan from Malaysia, C.Y., who shared her personal collection of clippings and magazine articles spanning much of Chen's career (1983-1996).
Google Sites
Report abuse