Sally Yeh
Encyclopedia
Sally Yeh sometimes written as Sally Yip or Yip Sin-Man, is a Cantopop
singer in the Hong Kong
music industry and an actress in the Hong Kong film industry
.
, Taiwan
, she grew up in Victoria
, British Columbia
. Yeh's singing career started in the early 1980s and gradually became a memorable diva whose career has expanded for three decades with a total of thirty albums, plus forty-odd compilations and live recordings. Yeh speaks Cantonese
, Mandarin, and English
. Her jazz
-trained vocals allow her to handle a wide range of musical genres. Apart from a good record track of original hits, Sally Yeh has, through the years, covered a number of Western songs, ranging from Madonna
to Céline Dion
by way of the Titanic theme song
. She is most often considered the "Celine Dion of Hong Kong" due to her unique voice and the number of awards she has received in her career. In the 1980s-1990s, her popularity in Hong Kong was only matched by Anita Mui
and Priscilla Chan
.
She has also collaborated on a number of soundtracks (mostly on Tsui Hark
's movies with scores by Wong Jim
), including "Lai Ming But Yiu Loi" from A Chinese Ghost Story
(1987), which won the Best Original Song award at the 7th Hong Kong Film Awards. Other notable hits of her include, A Woman's Weakness, Heart of Fire
, Cheers
, Bless
, Bygone Wound, Believe in Yourself (duet with Alex To
), Ten Past Midnight, You Have to Leave Today, I Want To Keep Living, and much more.
Oddly enough, Yeh's mastery of written Chinese is rudimentary at best, and she often used romanized phonetics to help her read Cantonese and Mandarin lyrics.
Yeh's career seemed to be in decline after her marriage in 1996 to Hong Kong pop star and composer-producer George Lam
. Many considered her discography ready to be shelved in the oldies section; however, in 2002, Yeh unexpectedly re-entered the Cantopop
market with a new record, "Can You Hear," followed by a concert tour. By early 2003, she had two titles in the Hong Kong hit parade. With new records currently in production, her career seems to be going smoothly.
She is the only Hong Kong singer to have received the Most Popular Hong Kong Female Singer award four times (1990, 1991, 1992, 1993) at the Jade Solid Gold Top Ten Awards. This awards is one of the most coveted awards in the Hong Kong Music Award Ceremonies. Although she decided to retire after the release of her 2002 album, "Can You Hear," she still holds concerts and participate in concerts of other fellow artists, such as Joey Yung, George Lam, Liza Wang, and much more.
Sally Yeh received the Golden Needle Award at the 33rd RTHK Top Ten Chinese Gold Song Music Award Ceremony, which was held on January 7th, 2011 at Hong Kong Science Park (HKSP). Golden Needle Award is a highly respected lifetime achievement award for the most accomplished singers, performers, composers and lyricists who have contributed enormously to the Hong Kong music industry. It is recognized as one of the highest honors in the entire Chinese music industry.
Cantopop
Cantopop is a colloquialism for "Cantonese popular music". It is sometimes referred to as HK-pop, short for "Hong Kong popular music". It is categorized as a subgenre of Chinese popular music within C-pop...
singer in the Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
music industry and an actress in the Hong Kong film industry
Cinema of Hong Kong
The cinema of Hong Kong is one of the three major threads in the history of Chinese language cinema, alongside the cinema of China, and the cinema of Taiwan...
.
Overview
Born in TaipeiTaipei
Taipei City is the capital of the Republic of China and the central city of the largest metropolitan area of Taiwan. Situated at the northern tip of the island, Taipei is located on the Tamsui River, and is about 25 km southwest of Keelung, its port on the Pacific Ocean...
, Taiwan
Taiwan Province
Taiwan Province is one of the two administrative divisions referred to as provinces and is controlled by the Republic of China . The province covers approximately 73% of the territory controlled by the Republic of China...
, she grew up in Victoria
Victoria
- Given name :* Victoria , word origin and list of people* Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom, Empress of India * Victoria, Crown Princess of Sweden * Victoria of Baden , the queen-consort of Sweden as wife of King Gustaf V...
, British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
. Yeh's singing career started in the early 1980s and gradually became a memorable diva whose career has expanded for three decades with a total of thirty albums, plus forty-odd compilations and live recordings. Yeh speaks Cantonese
Standard Cantonese
Cantonese, or Standard Cantonese, is a language that originated in the vicinity of Canton in southern China, and is often regarded as the prestige dialect of Yue Chinese....
, Mandarin, and English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
. Her jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
-trained vocals allow her to handle a wide range of musical genres. Apart from a good record track of original hits, Sally Yeh has, through the years, covered a number of Western songs, ranging from Madonna
Madonna (entertainer)
Madonna is an American singer-songwriter, actress and entrepreneur. Born in Bay City, Michigan, she moved to New York City in 1977 to pursue a career in modern dance. After performing in the music groups Breakfast Club and Emmy, she released her debut album in 1983...
to Céline Dion
Celine Dion
Céline Marie Claudette Dion, , , is a Canadian singer. Born to a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, Dion emerged as a teen star in the French-speaking world after her manager and future husband René Angélil mortgaged his home to finance her first record...
by way of the Titanic theme song
My Heart Will Go On
"My Heart Will Go On" is the theme song/love theme of the 1997 blockbuster film Titanic. With music by James Horner, lyrics by Will Jennings, and production by Simon Franglen, James Horner and Walter Afanasieff ,, it was recorded by Céline Dion...
. She is most often considered the "Celine Dion of Hong Kong" due to her unique voice and the number of awards she has received in her career. In the 1980s-1990s, her popularity in Hong Kong was only matched by Anita Mui
Anita Mui
Anita Mui Yim-fong was a popular Hong Kong singer and actress. During her prime years she made major contributions to the cantopop music scene, while receiving numerous awards and honours. She remained an idol throughout most of her career, and was generally regarded as a cantopop diva...
and Priscilla Chan
Priscilla Chan
Priscilla Chan Wai-han is a female Cantopop singer in Hong Kong.-Background:Chan has a younger brother and sister. Her father is a retired senior officer of Hong Kong Immigration Service. She attended Marymount Secondary School in Happy Valley, Hong Kong...
.
She has also collaborated on a number of soundtracks (mostly on Tsui Hark
Tsui Hark
Tsui Hark , born Tsui Man-kong, is a Hong Kong New Wave film director and producer. He is viewed as a major figure in the Golden Age of Hong Kong cinema .-Early life:...
's movies with scores by Wong Jim
Wong Jim
James Wong Jim was a Cantopop lyricist and writer based primarily in Hong Kong. He was also a well known in Asia as a columnist, actor, film director, screenwriter and talk show hosts. He took part in creative directing positions within the entertainment industry in Hong Kong...
), including "Lai Ming But Yiu Loi" from A Chinese Ghost Story
A Chinese Ghost Story
A Chinese Ghost Story is a 1987 Hong Kong romantic comedy horror film starring Leslie Cheung, Joey Wong, and Wu Ma, directed by Ching Siu-tung, and produced by Tsui Hark...
(1987), which won the Best Original Song award at the 7th Hong Kong Film Awards. Other notable hits of her include, A Woman's Weakness, Heart of Fire
Heart of Fire
Heart of Fire is a 3-page comic written by John Ostrander. It was published in three parts from May through July 2001. The story is set in the Star Wars galaxy two years after the Battle of Naboo in Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace, and 30 years before the Battle of Yavin in Star Wars...
, Cheers
Cheers
Cheers is an American situation comedy television series that ran for 11 seasons from 1982 to 1993. It was produced by Charles/Burrows/Charles Productions, in association with Paramount Network Television for NBC, and was created by the team of James Burrows, Glen Charles, and Les Charles...
, Bless
Bless
Bless may refer to:* Blessing, a religious pronouncement* Bless , hip-hop artist from Montreal* "Bless" , a 2010 single by L'Arc-en-Ciel* Bless, another name for the Swedish group Bubbles* Bless , an album by Bubbles...
, Bygone Wound, Believe in Yourself (duet with Alex To
Alex To
Alex To is a Hong Kong and Taiwan based singer and actor. He is the winner of the 4th annual New Talent Singing Awards in 1985. He has released numerous albums throughout his career and mainly has R&B influenced songs.-Early life and career:...
), Ten Past Midnight, You Have to Leave Today, I Want To Keep Living, and much more.
Oddly enough, Yeh's mastery of written Chinese is rudimentary at best, and she often used romanized phonetics to help her read Cantonese and Mandarin lyrics.
Yeh's career seemed to be in decline after her marriage in 1996 to Hong Kong pop star and composer-producer George Lam
George Lam
George Lam Chi Cheung, also known professionally by his surname Lam, is a Hong Kong-based veteran Cantopop singer and actor of Xinhui area origin. Lam studied at the Diocesan Boys' School in Kowloon, Hong Kong...
. Many considered her discography ready to be shelved in the oldies section; however, in 2002, Yeh unexpectedly re-entered the Cantopop
Cantopop
Cantopop is a colloquialism for "Cantonese popular music". It is sometimes referred to as HK-pop, short for "Hong Kong popular music". It is categorized as a subgenre of Chinese popular music within C-pop...
market with a new record, "Can You Hear," followed by a concert tour. By early 2003, she had two titles in the Hong Kong hit parade. With new records currently in production, her career seems to be going smoothly.
She is the only Hong Kong singer to have received the Most Popular Hong Kong Female Singer award four times (1990, 1991, 1992, 1993) at the Jade Solid Gold Top Ten Awards. This awards is one of the most coveted awards in the Hong Kong Music Award Ceremonies. Although she decided to retire after the release of her 2002 album, "Can You Hear," she still holds concerts and participate in concerts of other fellow artists, such as Joey Yung, George Lam, Liza Wang, and much more.
Sally Yeh received the Golden Needle Award at the 33rd RTHK Top Ten Chinese Gold Song Music Award Ceremony, which was held on January 7th, 2011 at Hong Kong Science Park (HKSP). Golden Needle Award is a highly respected lifetime achievement award for the most accomplished singers, performers, composers and lyricists who have contributed enormously to the Hong Kong music industry. It is recognized as one of the highest honors in the entire Chinese music industry.
Filmography
- 一根火柴
- Marianna 賓妹 (a.k.a. 你要活著回去) (1982)
- Crimson Street 殺人愛情街 (1982)
- A Flower in the Storm (a.k.a. Falling in the Rain Flowers) 飄零雨中花 (1983)
- A Certain Romance 少女日記 (1984)
- Funny Face 醜小鴨 (1984)
- Golden Queen Commando (a.k.a. Amazon Commando/Jackie Chan's Crime Force/Sexy Commando) 紅粉兵團 (1984)
- Pink Force Commando (Sequel) 紅粉游俠 (a.k.a. 烈血長天) (1984)
- Shanghai BluesShanghai BluesShanghai Blues is a Hong Kong film directed by Tsui Hark, which had its premiere on September 1984. Kenny Bee, Sylvia Chang and Sally Yeh starred in this film. The music is composed by Wong Jim...
上海之夜 (1984) - The Occupant (a.k.a. The Tenant) 靈氣迫人 (1984)
- Teppanyaki 鐵板燒 (1984)
- Mob Busters 惡漢笑擊隊 (a.k.a.情報販子) (1985)
- Seven Foxes X陷阱 (1985)
- Cupid One 愛神一號 (1985)
- Just For Fun 空心少爺 (1985)
- The ProtectorThe Protector (1985 film)The Protector is a 1985 Hong Kong / USA action film, directed by James Glickenhaus and starring Jackie Chan. It was Chan's second attempt at breaking into the American film market, after 1980's The Big Brawl, a film which had flopped at the box office...
威龍猛探 (1985) (Hong Kong version) - Welcome 補鑊英雄 (1986)
- Aces Go Places 4Aces Go Places 4Aces go Places 4 also known in the United States as Mad Mission 4: You Never Die Twice is a 1986 Hong Kong action-comedy film directed by Ringo Lam, and starring Sam Hui and Karl Maka.-Cast:* Sam Hui - King Kong* Karl Maka - Albert Au...
(a.k.a. Mad Mission IV/You Never Die Twice) 最佳拍擋IV之千里救差婆 (1986) - Peking Opera BluesPeking Opera BluesPeking Opera Blues is a 1986 Hong Kong film directed by Tsui Hark. The movie combines comedy, Hong Kong action, and serious drama with scenes involving Peking Opera...
刀馬旦 (1986) - Vampire Strikes Back (1988)
- The Laser ManThe Laser Man (1988 film)The Laser Man is a 1988 Hong Kong film in the style of a crime drama parody....
(1988) - Diary of A Big Man 大丈夫日記 (1988)
- I Love Maria (a.k.a. RoboForce) 鐵甲無敵瑪利亞 (1988)
- Spirit vs. Zombie (1989)
- The Killer 喋血英雄 (1989)
- The BanquetThe Banquet (1991 film)The Banquet , also known as Party of a Wealthy Family, is a 1991 Hong Kong comedy film...
豪門夜宴 (1991) - Sisters of the World Unite 莎莎嘉嘉站起來 (1991)
- Love Under the SunLove Under the SunLove Under the Sun is a 2003 musical short film directed by Andy Lau. It depicts an evening ball in which a rumor spreads among the guests that one among them has contracted AIDS. The film was meant to raise awareness about AIDS and dispel common misconceptions regarding its contagiousness. It...
(2003)