Jose Mari Chan's Big Hit: "Beautiful Girl": A Christmas Presence With Julie Anne San Jose

Beautiful Girl: Jose Marie Chan.

YouTube Video from: Aldrin Diana

SONGS I LOVE:

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I only heard Jose Mari Chan with Beautiful Girl in the early 90s. This carrier single from his album Constant Change sold very well and became a regional hit especially in Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia.

250,000 Copies:

But not many people know it's written by a Filipino. It exceeded 10 times 'Platinum' status, more than 250,000 copies, so the Philippines music industry had to come up with the 'Diamond' Record Award for JMC. By now, and so many years later, it has probably exceeded the number of copies mentioned.

Lea Salonga:

Beautiful Girl was even covered by Asian stars like Aaron Kwok, Paula Tsui, Sally Yee, Sandy Lam, Kamahl, Tomomi Akimoto and Yasuo T while other JMC romantic favorites by countrymate diva, Lea Salonga (Miss Saigon.)

Christmas In Our Hearts:

Jose sings with: JULIE ANNE SAN JOSE

Again and again, his songs have rebounded as hits for other artistes. So when I asked some Filipino musicians working in Singapore about Jose Mari Chan, they exclaimed, "Christmas In Our Hearts!" because it is the industry's biggest selling Christmas album in history. 

He even sang it with Asia's Limitless Star, Julie Ann San Jose [images], the beauteous Filipino actress, singer and entrepreneur. Blessed with a great voice, good looks, a talented mind and rapturous fans, it looks as if JMC has got them all. 

(A recent email from MusicMeister Larry Lai about JMC woke me up as I realized that he is one Filipino pop singer that I had to include in my list of musical influences.

Beautiful Girl by Jose Mari Chan

Beautiful girl, wherever you are/I knew when I saw you, you had opened the door/I knew that I'd love again after a long, long while/I'd love again.

You said "hello" and I turned to go/But something in your eyes left my heart beating so/I just knew that I'd love again after a long, long while/I'd love again.

Chorus: It was destiny's game/For when love finally came on/I rushed in line only to find/That you were gone.

Wherever you are, I fear that I might/Have lost you forever like a song in the night/Now that I've loved again after a long, long while/I've loved again.

Beautiful girl, I'll search on for you/'Til all of your loveliness in my arms come true/You've made me love again after a long, long while/In love again/And I'm glad that it's you/Hmm, beautiful girl.

Image: http://girl-xinhonline.blogspot.com/

Information: Wikipedia, other Websites.

Original article: Andy Lim.

Jose Marie Chan

Christmas In Our Hearts. It's around the corner!

JULIE ANNE SAN JOSE

Christmas In Our Hearts:

YouTube Video from: MYX Global

JOSE MARI CHAN FT. JULIE ANNE SAN JOSE - 

 (MYX Live! Performance)

Beautiful Girl is dedicated to good friend, John Lim, 

the handsome young man on the flying trapeze.

Jose Mari Chan: 60s Music Man, Filipino Singer, Composer, Business Man, Philanthropist (Pt I)

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In 1974 he was honoured with one of the Ten Outstanding Young Men (TOYM) titles from the Philippines. It was a Lifetime Achievement Awards from the Philippines Association Recording Industry and The Metro Pop Foundation. And it's not Freddie Aguilar.

Jose Mari Chan can be categorized as a mid-60s music man. He came into show biz in 1966 when he hosted and sang on a TV show called, 9 Teeners.

His first single Afterglow was released in 1967 and his first LP (long play vinyl) album Deep in My Heart was issued in 1969. In 1973 he represented the Philippines in the World Popular Song Festival in Tokyo with his song Can We Just Stop and Talk A While.

From 1970 to 1975, he composed more than 20 theme songs for movies and some earned him nominations at the Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences Award. He wrote commercial jingles and the well-known ones were the Philippine Air Lines Love At Thirty Thousand Feet and the Alaska Milk jingle. He was also at his peak with a series of TV network specials spotlighting his lyrics and music.

 Just as popular in the US, and with his degree in Economics, he moved to America and concentrated on his own business and remained there for 11 years. When he came back to the Philippines in 1986, he recorded Tell Me Your Name. This 60s musician had connected himself to the younger generation.

In 1989 he recorded, Constant Change and it was named Album of the Year by the Awit Awards (Philippines), equivalent to the American Grammy Awards. Chan is an international star and has appeared in the big cities in the US including Vegas and Carnegie Hall. He won the hearts and ears of UK and European fans and most of Asia.

Followers have found this philanthropist's love songs refreshing, captivating, heart-warming and lyrical. A Love To Last A Lifetime, Can We Stop To Talk Awhile, Afraid For Love To Fade, Deep In My Heart, Is She Thinking About Me and the 2005 South East Asian Games theme song are just some of the many compositions he penned.

I am thinking about Aguilar (Anak) and Chan... Two totally different personalities but both touched the hearts of people around the world with their hauntingly beautiful songs.

To read about Freddie Aguilar, click Labels below.

Information: Wikipedia, http://www.josemarichan.net/

Foreign [Asian] Songs Become English Hits [Part I]

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Asian Songs Become English Hits (1): 

It is a well-known fact that countless 60s popular and classical music from foreign countries become English language hits in the UK, US and other parts of the world. This posting will focus on some of these classics. We start in Asia.

Mandarin:

Rose, Rose I Love You is an English adaptation of the Mandarin song, Méigui Méigui Wǒ Ai Ni by Yao Li (1940s), the only song written by a Chinese to become a major English language chart hit.

The English lyrics were written by a British DJ, Wilfred Thomas and recorded by 50s pop singer Frankie Laine and the Norman Luboff Choir, with Paul Weston and his Orchestra in 1951. The song, with different English lyrics, was also covered in the UK by Petula Clark (1951) and by Kyu Sakamoto (1960s).

Japanese:

The second Asian song, Sukiyaki by Kyu Sakamoto went to the top in 1963. So far, this is the only song by a Japanese singer to hit the ceiling in the U.S. The Japanese title is Ue O Muite Aruko, which means I Look Up When I Walk. It is definitely a Singaporean favourite even till today. The Blue Diamonds (Holland) recorded it with English lyrics in 1963 and personally, is one of the best versions!

Filipino:

Another Asian pop classic, the very famous, Anak (1971) or child is a Tagalog song written and sung by Filipino folk-singer Freddie Aguilar. It has been translated to over a hundred local and international languages. The English version, by Aguilar, is a direct translation of the original and should not be missed by anyone who loves a beautiful rendition of an exceptionally sad song.

Image: Google.

Original Article: Andy Lim

Sukiyaki Blue Diamonds

Freddie Aguilar Anak Philippino Music Influence

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(UPDATE: 27 May, 2025) 

FOLK singer and Original Pilipino Music (OPM) icon Freddie Aguilar died Tuesday. He was 72. Reports said Aguilar passed away around 1:30 a.m. at the Philippine Heart Center.

RIP FREDDIE. 

THANKS FOR 'ANAK' N YOUR LOVELY MUSIC.

CONDOLENCES TO MR. AGUILAR'S FAMILY.

This blog does not usually discuss late 70s music but there's always an exception and this particular song is going into that territory.

Most 60s music lovers and those in the business, play this song over and over again because of its haunting melody and heart rendering tale of a parent’s love for a wayward child. It has captured the ears and hearts of many Singaporeans and to many, it seems to be the only folk song that comes from this beautiful country of music, love and 7,107 islands.

The original Tagalog version that brought it an international success, climbed fast to the top ten charts in Japan and Europe; over 30 million copies were sold worldwide, with more than 100 cover versions and 55 conversions in 27 languages, including English.

The singer is Freddie Aguilar, the one Asian singer, and composer who broke into the western market with this unbelievably poignant song. Aguilar has been given the distinction of being the only Asian artist to achieve worldwide fame. It was such a big hit that Billboard Magazine reported it as a No. 2 on the Top 100 Hits of the World in the 80s. He received an Asia Star Award in 2008 and is President's Duterte's favourite singer.

Go to any nightspot in Singapore today and the song is still being played by our local artistes, sometimes in Tagalog and sometimes in English. I first heard it sung by a Filipino singer at the former Glass Hotel at Havelock Road.

18 April 2015

Organised by musicologist, Dr. Joe Peters (he likes my blog), I met Mr. Aguilar during one of his special performances here about four years ago when he was invited by the Singapore Management University where he described his early years as a music maker and his life and performances. He went through much hardship but settled into an astonishing career. His son performed too with their accompanying band, if I remember correctly.

Good friend Rickie Chng (lead Silver Strings) accompanied me to the talk and short performance. 

An Original Article: Andy Lim.

Two friends, Dr. Joe Peters, who loves this blog and old friend, Dr. Kirpal Singh, NTU/NIE lecturer in the 2000s. They were with Freddie Aguilar at the talk given by this famous Filipino pop singer and icon in 2015.

Goodbye Mr. Aguilar. 

Rest In Peace...