"The Bund," as a sensational and memorable Cantopop (Cantonese popular music) hit, was originally performed in standard Cantonese by Frances Yip, and it was one of the early collaborations between composer Joseph Koo and lyricist Wong Jim.
"The Bund" (上海 /Shàng Hǎi Tān, literally "Shanghai Bund") was a Hong Kong period drama produced by Television Broadcasts Limited (TVB) during the 1980s, when it became a blockbuster. People still remember this series as TVB’s best work ever, and its theme song, which shares the name of the series, is so popular that it became one of the top 10 songs in the 1980 RTHK Gold song awards. When locals hear the melody now, most will spontaneously sing along with it, recollecting the series.
The Bund, in a narrow sense, is a one-mile stretch of riverside along the bank of the Huangpu River in Shanghai. But it also represents the whole of Shanghai, especially during the time of the Republic of China (1912-1949), which is the period the television series was set in. Now, the Bund is not only the epitome of Shanghai’s modern history, but also an essential attraction when visiting the metropolis, due to its beautiful view of the fantastic skyscrapers and the river.
The song, as a sensational and memorable Cantopop (Cantonese popular music) hit, was originally performed in standard Cantonese by Frances Yip, and it was one of the early collaborations between composer Joseph Koo and lyricist Wong Jim. Due to its popularity, the series spawned several sequels, remakes, and film adaptations, and likewise, the song has been covered many times, even by stars like Andy Lau and Leslie Cheung, and it has spread widely, making quite an impact beyond its original Chinese audience and spreading throughout eastern Asia. It has also been covered in other languages, including English, Vietnamese, and Thai. In mainland China, the song is still rated as the most popular on Karaoke TV.
Superficially, the series was a gangster story, but it really transcended beyond that to reach an almost spiritual level. It is a tale of good versus evil, self-worth, community, choices, and destiny. Accordingly, the song is quite sensational and compares all feelings and disturbances felt by the hero in Shanghai with the torrential waves of the Huangpu River. It starts with powerful and catchy lyrics describing the rough water, comparing it to the troubles of the world, and then wandering back to memories of the past, as the melancholy flows through the rhymes: “爱你恨你，问君知否，似大江一发不收。” (I wonder if you know my intertwined feeling of love and hatred for you. It is like a giant river, which once distributed will not be withdrawn). “问君知否” is an interrogative sentence in the classical literary style, which usually appears in traditional poetry. “君” is an honorific title, while “否” is a negative word placed behind the verb, turning the phrase into an interrogative sentence. Later, the lyrics read: “转千弯，转千滩，亦未平复此中争斗。” (Even time flies and circumstances have changed, I cannot yet suppress these struggles deep in my heart. This river has flowed past so many bays and beaches all the way through, its huge surfs and rough waves still remain as before). Using analogies, the whole song associates the turbulent Huangpu River with the strong emotions of the characters. At last, one realizes that disturbances and feelings will pass away, like the waves, as time elapses. No matter what has happened, we should let it go. So the end of the song is quite wistful.
The original version by Francis Yip is sung in Cantonese, which sounds totally different from Chinese Mandarin. Cantonese is still quite widely spoken in certain areas of china, like Hong Kong and Canton, where Cantonese is the prestige dialect. Mandarin (also called Putonghua), however, is the official language of the People’s Republic of China. Therefore, if you ever learn Chinese, it will most likely be Mandarin. As for the song, there are several Mandarin versions, one of them produced by Francis Yip himself, but the Cantonese version is always the most widely accepted one, as the accent adds a peculiar flavor to the song. In the mainland, even if one cannot speak the language, he or she can sing this song fluently in Cantonese!
Standard Chinese:
浪奔 浪流 万里涛涛江水永不休
淘尽了 世间事 混作滔滔一片潮流 是喜 是愁 浪里分不清欢笑悲忧 成功 失败 浪里看不出有未有
爱你恨你 问君知否 似大江一发不收 转千弯 转千滩 亦未平复此中争斗 又有喜 又有愁 就算分不清欢笑悲忧 仍愿翻 百千浪 在我心中起伏够
爱你恨你 问君知否 似大江一发不收 转千弯 转千滩 亦未平复此中争斗 又有喜 又有愁 就算分不清欢笑悲忧 仍愿翻 百千浪 在我心中起伏够 仍愿翻 百千浪 在我心中起伏够
Translation:
Rushing waves, flowing waves. Thousand miles of the torrential river flows ceaselessly forever. Washed away the worldly affairs. Torrential mixing of the tidal currents. Is it happiness? Is it sorrow? Hard to differentiate between happiness and sorrow in the waves. Success losing hard to see in the waves. Love you, hate you. Asked you if you know. Like a giant river, once distributed will not be withdrawn. Passed by in many bays. Passed by many beaches. Still not yet to suppress these struggles. Both happiness and sorrow. Unable to differentiate between them. Still wishing to overcome these waves. My heart has enough of those rises and falls. Still wishing to overcome these waves. My heart has enough of those rises and falls.
