Friday, January 27, 2017

Rooster Year: (Translated): xióng jī nian (雄鸡 年) Zodiac Sign n Rolling Stones

The Eastern Rooster

When Traditions Meet: Rooster Year 2017 (translated) 雄 鸡 年 2017

I was checking out a song to complement the year of the Rooster 2017, not a commercialised Chinese New Year song, but for a change, an English pop hit.  It must be suitable for believers of the Chinese Almanac and zodiac signs.

It was quite a challenge finding one. I found one, a popular song deep in tradition and derived from folklore and it's from the West.

Let's take a look the Chinese Rooster first. In the Chinese Almanac, the theory is that a person's character is decided by his or her zodiac sign including the element of either wood, fire, earth, gold or water.  And 2017 is a Fire Rooster Year.  
Here's the hitch, your own year of birth is not your lucky one in the 12 year Chinese astrological cycle. So if you believe in this theory at all and if you are a Rooster, just be a bit careful in 2017 😊.

Whatever your belief system is, here's a song that should be suitable for our Fire Rooster this year.  Our male chicken crows about himself:

I am the little red rooster
Too lazy to crow for day
I am the little red rooster
Too lazy to crow for day
Keep everything in the farmyard
Upset in every way.

Now that's defiance and he is in a fighting stance and ready to have it out with any of the farmyard domesticates. Sounds like a fiery one here. 
From what I understand about this traditional song, a Chicago Blues number, it's only to explain that a rooster brings about some kind of barnyard peace:

Dogs begin to bark now
And hounds begin to howl
Dogs begin to bark now
And hounds begin to howl
Watch out stray cat
The little rooster's on the prowl.

Looks like our cock means business. And he's going for the stray cat which could be a feline. But the zodiac character for a 2017 Rooster is: trustworthy, with a strong sense of time keeping and responsibility at work.
                                   The Western Rooster

It is possible then, if we interpret what a Rooster symbolises, both from an Eastern viewpoint and a Western one, that it is a reliable and trustworthy creature that could lead the barnyard responsibly and peacefully. And the farmer needs him home:

If you see my little red rooster
Please drive him home
If you see my little red rooster
Please drive him home
Ain't had no peace in the farmyard
Since my little red rooster's been gone

From my personal viewpoint, Mick Jagger's rendition of the song is all appropriate with his natural swagger on stage, rooster-neck movements, flapping arms, calculated tip-toed prance and sexy, pouting mouth, with all the nuances of a very strong, proud and cocky but successful personality. A true rock cock.
                                        
Thanks to songwriter Willie Dixon, and all the other lyricists before him, for the inspirational words that would make this 2017 Rooster Year a more positive one for all, especially with Chinese astrology believers and Western folklore enthusiasts. 

Welcome to the year of the cock. A local musician told me yesterday during a jam session, "Now all monkey business 🙉 will end and everybody will start to talk cock...🐓"

Did you read the Telephone Booth story with Rolling Stones' Off The Hook (Side B of their Single?) Click below.

http://singapore60smusic.blogspot.sg/2017/01/when-phones-were-in-booths-not-pockets.html

HAPPY LUNAR NEW YEAR EVERYONE.
Little Red Rooster 小小的红公鸡 (The Red Roosterfirst titled) is a blues standard, credited to songwriter Willie Dixon. It was recorded in 1961 by US musician Howlin' Wolf. Slide guitar playing rooted in Delta Blues style with theme derived from folklore.
Images: Google. 
An original article by Andy Lim.
Don't copy. Be original.

43 comments:

JANE DICK MANITOBA CANADA said...

Happy Lunar New Year Andy, to you and yours. Hope all is well with all of you. Quite a treat to watch the Rolling Stone video you included... great blues and... they are all so young...

Keith Richards looks like such an innocent boy ... ;-)

All the best,
Jane

MAJORIE CHIEW (JOURNALIST STAR NEWS MALAYSIA) said...

A Lucky Rooster Year Greeting

MARK said...

Kung Tze Fa Chai

PAT'S LIVE BAND (GROUP) said...

Happy New Year. Everybody Huat Ah!

JERRY FERNANDEZ (FRONTS THE NEU FACES) said...

Blessed Day As We Wake Up To A Great Lunar New Year. God Bless Us All.

VICTOR WOO (THE TRAILERS - LEAD GUITAR) said...

Gong Xi Fa Cai!

RICKY CHNG (LEAD GUITARIST FOR: THE ESQUIRES AND SILVER STRINGS said...

WISHING YOU AND YOUR FAMILY A HAPPY AND PROSPEROUS LUNAR NEW YEAR.

JERRY SARAM said...

HAPPY LUNAR NEW YEAR AMAZING 2017

SITA said...

Happy Chinese New Year Mr Lim

JCHONG said...

Happy New Year to you, Andy.

SLeng said...

Andy Here's wishing you and all your loved ones A Happy, Healthy, Successful and Prosperous Year of the Rooster. And tfor you especially, an exciting, eventful year.

This rooster here knows how to strut. Hope it brings a smile to your lips.

SAM said...

CHINESE NEW YEAR GREETINGS IN CHINESE

SPYeo (a frequent contributor) said...

Hi Andy and All At Home,

HAPPY NEW YEAR !

May you all be blessed with more good luck, more good wealth, more good health and more good years!!!

GEORGE CHEW (LEAD GUITAR: THE BURNS) said...

a HAPPY LUNAR NEW YEAR TO YOU

FABIAN FOO said...

A HAPPY NEW YEAR ROOSTER GREETING

IRENE YAP (1970's RECORDING ARTISTE) said...

Happy Lunar New Year to you Andy and family

ANN KING said...

A HAPPY ROOSTER YEAR. (RAP CHICK)

J (student) said...

happy cny

RONNIE SEE of RONNIE AND THE BURNS said...

THANK YOU DEAR ANDY, YOU'RE A DEAR BUDDY IN EVERY SENSE. WISHING YU AND ALL IN THE FAMILY A HAPPY LUNAR NEW YEAR FILLED WITH ABUNDANCE OF WELLNESS AND HAPPINESS.
WARMEST REGARDS,
RONNIE

MIKE AND HERB BEATLES OF MALAYSIA said...

Andy,
Wishing you a very happy and prosperous Chinese New Year 2017.
Best wishes
Mike & Herb
Australia

Barry Walker said...

Happy Chinese New Year Andy, also to ALL the Singapore Chinese that read your blog.

Very best wishes

Barry Walker

EDWIN GOH said...

HAPPY NEW YEAR

I like your 'South of the Border' song. Send it to POTUS Trump.

BEBE N ALVIN GOH said...

happy new year old friend

B (TERTIARY STUDENT NUS) said...

HAPPY NEW YEAR

ANTHONY TAN KH said...

Good Afternoon Andy,
Wish u and family a Blessed Healthy Happy Lunar Chinese New Year

LIM KUAN MIN said...

HUAT HUAT HUAT

YEN CHOW said...

HAPPY CHINESE NEW YEAR

AK said...

HAPPY CHINESE NEW OF THE ROOSTER

MRS HELEN POK said...

BABA NYONYA HAPPY NEW YEAR
SELAMAT TAHON BARU
PANJANG PANJANG UMOR

EUSOOF ANGULLIA said...

WISHING YOU AND YOUR LOVED ONES A HAPPY AND PROSPEROUS YEAR OF THE ROOSTER
KUNG HI FA CHAI ANDY

CHAN BB said...

新年快乐

JUST ME JACKIE said...

新年快乐

VICTOR LAM (DRUMMER: MYSTERIANS AND THE BURNS) said...

Happy Lunar New Year to you and your family too!

JOHN CHER (WRITER/ PERCUSSIONIST) said...

Thank you Sir! All the bet to us. Esp. good health of mind body and spirit!
Cheers.

Anonymous said...

Happy CNY

JULIN said...

gong xi fa cai!

henri gann said...

A CNY Parade led by a firing of cannons, loud cymbal and drums
A parade of women carrying flowers and giant size chinese mannequins
Followed by the beauty queen and princesses each standing on a motor tricycle
There was no crowd on the parade route
And the cars were just driving by and tooting their horns
Left were only a few tourist like myself Chasing the parade and float with my iphone in hand
This is YongChun. Eternal Spring in Chinese. A town abandoned a decade ago. Now just a mountain community in the province of Fujian. You can still see the remnants of ancient home and farm terraces And the few Yongchuners still living in the old city shop houses and farm. Its' descendants who left at the turn of the the 19th century are now gone
And leaving the memories to its next of kin.

ANDY: Pop Music Not Pills. © said...

Thank you all for the New Year wishes and support from UK, Australia, Canada, US, Malaysia and Singapore. I truly appreciate the kind readers and friends who responded to this posting and the Chinese New Year Rooster theme.

SUNNY WEE said...

Happy Chinese New Year to you and family.

CHRISTOPHER TOH (MUSIC JOURNALIST: 'TODAY' NEWSPAPER) said...

Hi Andy.
Gong xi fa cai! Hope you had a good day spent.

RICKIE CHNG (LEAD GUITAR 'THE ESQUIRES') said...

Hi Andy

This is a classic from one of the more famous 60s group The Rolling Stones and recorded by all the original members of the group. A great selected piece to bring joy to this festive season at the right time. It so happen to be one of my favorite too, thanks.

Regards - Rickie

Anonymous said...

Hi Andy,

Chinese New Year has been celebrated in Darwin where I live since the very early days of settlement. The lion dance troupe will be out and about over the coming weeks.

Gong Hee Fat Choy used to be the greeting here, but that seems to have changed and it's all Gong Xie Fa Cai now!

Happy Chinese New Year everybody.

Regards

Steve

DIANE PHELAN said...

Hi! Looking forward to connecting in the twitterverse. If you'd like to, check out my other interest pages.