Album Review: Z-Chen (張智成) – ‘你愛上的…(In Love With…)’

Album release date: 2011
Genre: R&B/pop/ballad, Cpop
Rating: 4/5                   
Review by: jct

On his 8th studio album, 你愛上的…(In Love With…), singer Z-Chen clearly solidifies his status as R&B 小王子 (Little Prince of R&B). It is evident on this album that he returns sounding more comfortable and crisp vocally and instrumentally. With his strong and soulful vocals, he continues to please listeners/fans with his usual R&B love ballads and at the same time sounding contemporary. 

Tender & Romantic

Although the songs in his last album, 暗戀 (Secret Love), were good, he sounded somewhat lackluster on many of the songs. However, it turns out that spending a considerable time off was a good idea as he returns sounding rejuvenated. The album starts off with the title track, “金玉良言 (Valuable Advice)”, which is a piano love ballad about receiving some love advices as he sings, “If we have the opportunity to reunite/ I want to meet up but it would be too random/ The hurtful words are still ringing near my ears/ Goodbye for us is the most valuable advice I got.”

A real gem though is the mid-tempo R&B track, “Wish You Well” which is about sincerely hoping his ex-lover finds love and happiness as he sings smoothly, “He’s there to accompany you when we’re at a friend’s wedding/ That sweet feeling, I’m really happy for you.”  And he clearly sounds sincere singing those words, and he continues, “My happiness is not important as long as you are happy/ I don’t bother about the past, I still can nod and smile/ My happiness is not important as long as you are happy/ I wish you well with a hug. Do not think about the past/ I wish you well, you’ll understand only after you truly loved someone.”

The album covers a wide range of love topics and most of the songs are R&B/pop love ballads that his fans are used to and had come to enjoy. However, he also explores other genres while still trying to maintain some R&B sounds such as the electronic folk track, “Bring Me Back” and the synthpop dance track, “Toyboy”.  However, not all of the songs are on point. Particularly, “Toyboy”, which sounds somewhat disjointed and his soothing vocals are hindered by the synthesizer. But despite its flaws, the album overall is filled with tender and romantic tracks, which is certainly recommended for those who enjoy R&B/pop love ballads.

Tracklist

1. 金玉良言 (Valuable Advice)
2. 2013 
3. 你愛上的我 (In Love With Me)
4. Wish You Well 
5. 帶我回去 (Bring Me Back)
6. Dream Love 
7. 相逢恨早 (Met Too Soon)
8. 寂寞有罪 (Being Alone is Wrong)
9. ToyBoy 
10. 陪我好不好 (feat. 陈佳薪) (Be With Me feat. Chen Jiaxin)

New Music: Z-Chen (張智成) - Wish You Well (2011)

Z-Chen released his 7th album, In Love With..., on November 7, 2011. Whoa!!! I'm so late!!! Such a bad fan! Way too busy with school, sigh...

From what I'm hearing so far, it sounds great - R&B with smooth vocals!!! The lyrics are nice and romantic. I'll post a review on the album during the holidays.

Check out the track, "Wish You Well":

A Blast To The Past (Part IV): Cpop (Part 1)

Z-Chen (張智成) - '末日之戀 (End of Love)' 
Year: 2004
From Album: 蒐藏張智成 (Save Z-Chen) Z-Chen Greatest Hits    

Lyrics: 張思爾, 施人誠
Music: 林俊傑  (JJ Lin) 

'末日之戀 (End of Love)' is a slow-tempo R&B/pop love ballad about being with a loved one until the end of time. The lyrics are original and romantic.

Z-Chen is a R&B singer-songwriter. Here's his bio on my blog: link

Check out the live performance (He always gives a nice spin to his songs when he perform them live which makes his performances unique): 






Lyrics:
(Chinese)
剩下沒多少時間 
讓我再唱一首歌 給妳 
一過了今夜 世界就毀滅 

我想我還有一天 
可以學會如何來 愛妳 
在來不及以前 渴望來得及 

閉上眼睛 忍住淚 別哭泣 
末日前夕 請留在 我懷裡 
看 太陽暗去 月光失明 
我只想牽妳的指尖 繞地球最後一圈 

黑夜降臨 別害怕 我愛妳 
末日前夕 請留在 我懷裡 
我 在這世界最眷戀的事情 
就是曾擁抱妳(多想永遠擁抱妳) 

我感受到什麼在劇烈顫抖 
是天空或者妳的手 
別讓任何事情打斷我看著妳 
最後一次看著妳 


(English translated)  *please credit jctmusicnotes if post the translations elsewhere*
There's not much time left
Let me sing another song for you
After this night, the world will be destroyed 

I thought I've still got one more day
To learn how to love you
Before it's too late, I hope it's not too late

Close your eyes, hold your tears in, don't cry
Before it ends, please stay in my arms
Watch as the sun goes dim, the moonlight fades away
I just want to hold your fingertips, and go around the earth one last time 

The dark night is coming, don't be afraid, I love you
Before it's the end, please stay in my arms
To me, in this world the most important thing 
Is to be able to embrace you (wishing to hold you in my arms forever) 

I can feel that something is shaking violently
Is it the sky or is it your hand?
Won't let anything stop me from looking at you 
The last time I look at you 


Chinese lyrics credit: yam media  

[Update]: Z-Chen & Fish Leong - '一家一 (One plus One)' (2010) MV

I previously posted about this song (Note # 12), and the MV was released recently (Jan 2011). I really like it! It's very sweet!

Watch it below:






Extra: Z-Chen performed "凌晨三點鐘 (3 am)" live on the show, 康熙來了, on Dec. 22, 2010. I really like his live performances

Z-Chen & Fish Leong - '一家一 (One plus One)' (2010)

Yeah!! Something new by Z-Chen. It's a slow-tempo R&B love ballad with sweet lyrics about love and marriage as they sing smoothly, "Addition of love:/ one plus one equals infinity/ increase in love with love.../ one plus one equals to our home."

This duet is in Fish Leong's new album 'What Love Songs Didn't Tell You'.  Z-Chen also mentioned that this song is a gift to people that are getting married in 2011.

Note: 1+1 in Chinese is actually written like this: 一加一, but 加 sounds exactly like 家, which means home. So yea, smart word play.


Listen here:

Album Review: Z-Chen – ‘May I Love You’, ‘3a.m.’, ‘Listen To Me’

Album release date: 2002, 2003
Genre: R&B, Cpop     
Review by: jct

Note: This is a review for Z-Chen’s first 3 albums since debut in Taiwan. All in 1 review!

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Z-Chen is truly a talented R&B artist as his vocal is natural regardless of fast or slow songs. Despite being underrated, he always delivers smooth and romantic love ballads that are well-sung. In these albums, he does a great job of establishing the emotions in all the songs, and it never gets dull.

Subtle Romantic Charm

One of Z-Chen’s trademarks is hopeless romantic and broken heart songs, as can be seen from the title tracks of all three albums, “May I Love You”, “3 a.m.”, and "Listen To Me". The title track of the first album, “May I Love You” is a hopeless romantic R&B/pop song, where he sings smoothly, “ After giving the key to you, you turn and lock me up/ into a door called ‘waiting’/ You have already tried so many ‘lock of heart’, why don’t you come and open my love?/ Love you, love you, may I love you, tell me what to do?/ How can I let you and myself not be alone, finding happiness together/ when the world slowly become from luxury to a wasteland/ please don’t worry, I’m still your believer”.   The title track of the second album, ‘3 a.m.’ is a slow-tempo R&B song about a broken heart as he sings: “However, after a heart is broken, how to put it together/ Baby, baby, love can be so beautiful/ Can only blame that moment, the words were too harsh/ Everything was out of control/ baby baby, love should be so beautiful/ You give too much and now I understand.” 

The title track of the third album, “Crossing the Line” is also a slow-tempo song about a broken heart as he sings: “The sky will only leave behind the spiral of soundless loneliness/ Will time be able to rewind a little/ And stop at your smile on a clear day.” Some notable tracks from the three albums include “時間剛剛好 (Perfect Timing)”, “Forever”, “重返寂寞 (Return To Loneliness)”, “刺心 (Barbed Heart)”, “請問愛情 (Please Ask Love) “,“很想妳 (Thinking of You A Lot)”, “說 (Speak) “, “回憶錄 (Memories)”, and “傷心換日線 (Sadly Crossing the Line)”.

There are also some upbeat songs, like “Cap Girl” and “完美 (Perfection)”. However, they aren’t quite as good as the slower material, but to Z-Chen’s credit he manages to sound comfortable on these songs and not awkward or out of his element at any time.  

In all of the songs, his vocals are on-point and he’s able to tell a story through his music. If you take the time to listen to the albums, his music with its subtle romantic charm will grow on you. Overall, 3 a.m. is more of a solid album compare to the other two. However, all three albums are definitely enjoyable and demonstrate Z-Chen’s strong and smooth vocals.

Overall Rating

May I Love You – 3.5/5

3 a.m. – 4.5/5

Listen To Me – 4.5/5

Tracklist

May I Love You
1. Intro
2. May I love you
3. 梁祝 (Butterfly Lovers)
4. 沒有你 (Without You)
5. 完美 (Perfection)
6. I Need Love

7. 後來才知道 (Realizing It Later)
8. Easy Come Easy Go
9. 忘年 (Miss The Year)
10. 時間剛剛好 (Perfect Timing)
11. 名字 (Name)

3 a.m. 1. 凌晨三點鐘 (3 a.m.)
2. 在KTV過夜 (Overnight At KTV)
3. 下次再見 (See You Next Time)
4. Forever
5. 重返寂寞 (Return To Loneliness)
6. 愛情 (Love)
7. 明知故問 (Asking the Obvious)
8. 不夜城 (Never Sleep)
9. 刺心 (Barbed Heart)
10. 耿耿於懷 (Brood)
11. 請問愛情 (Please Ask Love)
12. Wonderful Tonight (Eric Clapton’s cover)

Listen To Me
1. 換日線 (Crossing the Line)
2. 詩人 (A Poet)
3. 莫非定律 (Following Rules)
4. 完全明白 (Completely Understand)
5. 三千 (Three Thousand)
6. 很想妳 (Thinking of You A Lot)
7. Cap Girl
8. 老歌手 (Old Singer)
9. 說 (Speak)
10. 回憶錄 (Memories)
11. 傷心換日線 (Sadly Crossing the Line)

Album Review: Z-Chen – ‘暗戀 (Secret Love)’

Album release date: 2009
Genre: R&B, Cpop
Rating: 4/5                   
Review by: jct

After a three year hiatus, R&B singer Z-Chen comes back fresh and energetic with his 7th album, 暗戀 (Secret Love). Z-Chen is one of the smoothest and most consistent singers in R&B; and in his latest album, he continues to provide more love ballads, and at the same time demonstrating a greater range of vocals. For the most part, his music sounds the same as what his fans have come to enjoy and love.

Love and Relationships

The album starts off with an upbeat dance single called “Enchanted” which is about a loved one having opposing emotions from one moment to the next. This song is quite different from his usual style as he sings with a much higher pitch. However, it is refreshing to hear Z-Chen sing an upbeat song, and it sounds quite good after a couple of listen. The rest of the album is pretty much what you’ve come to expect from Z-Chen: sweetly sung songs about love and relationships. This time, the album emphasizes more on the difficulties experienced in a relationship. The title track, “Secret Love”, is a slow-tempo love ballad about lacking the courage to confess to his crush: “Oh good friend, only a good friend/ If accidentally told you, I would laugh it off/ We stand on both sides of the window/ and have limits even to touch/ If cross over the border to each other/ would it become closer or more distant.” Another highlight is the song “The Key of Love” as he sings smoothly in both Mandarin and English, with romantic lyrics: “Every door has a key/ Let me open your heart/ and lead you to the skies behind/ If we try, we will find our paradise.”

If there’s anything that detracts from the album, it’s that some of the songs are somewhat cliché as he has already covered some of these topics before such as “Pieces of Love” and “The Key of Love”. To be honest, there’s not a whole lot of new ground covered on the album, but Z-Chen is the type of artist who doesn’t need to reinvent himself to deliver smooth and comforting R&B music.  Overall, Secret Love is a solid package and recommended for those who enjoy R&B/pop.

Tracklist
1. 迷魂陣 (Enchanted)
2. 愛來的剛好 (Love Comes Just In Time)
3. 暗戀 (Secret Love)
4. 愛與罰 (Love and Punishment)
5. 第四者 (Party of Four)
6. 可愛可不愛 (To Love or Not To Love)
7. 殘骸 (Pieces of Love)
8. The Key of Love (Bonus Track)

Album Review: Z-Chen – ‘Happiness’, ‘Love Tree’

Album release date: 2005, 2006
Genre: R&B, Cpop     
Review by: jct

Note: These two albums contain nearly the same songs, with only 2 new songs added to Love Tree. So, I wrote a review for both of them combined.

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In a perfect world, R&B singer, Z-Chen would be huge, while other, lesser-talented artists would flop instead of chart-topping successes. Z-Chen has a unique music style and his vocals are smooth and powerful. He might not top the charts, but Z-Chen is definitely an outstanding artist.

Hope & Love

In his 6th and 7th album, Happiness and Love Tree, respectively, Z-Chen continues with what he does best: creating music that tugs on your heartstrings. The albums are filled with a handful of slow and soothing songs with romantic lyrics. The title track of the 6th album, “Happiness” is a mid-tempo R&B song that he composed using a popular tune from the Cantonese song “Needing You Every Minute (分分钟需要你)” as a sample. The song is about being in love and understanding happiness in the process, as he smoothly sings in both Mandarin and Cantonese, “Loving you, I understand happiness/ It allows me to go through a rare and precious lecture/ Having you, I will become happier and also fulfilling”.  The title track of the 7th album, “Love Tree” is a slow-tempo R&B song about comparing one’s love to a tree. He sings, “The most painful thing in love is cannot lean close to each other/ But I will wait for you/ Recalling the season/ My love is a tree/ Never will it leave a step/ Snow and wind is so ruthless/ but I believe I can stand them all.”  Also deserving mentioning is the cover song of Shakin Stevens’ “Because I Love You”, as he sings completely in English to demonstrate his fluency in the language.

The albums do falter slightly as a couple of the songs may sound similar to the tracks from his previous albums. However, with his smooth vocals, the songs can still tug on the listener’s heartstrings and are pleasant to listen to. Although the two albums have nearly all the same songs, the addition of “Love Tree” and “Recovered” in the 7th album is certaintly welcoming. Overall, the two albums are very solid releases and are recommended for those who enjoy slow-tempo R&B and R&B/pop.

Overall Rating
Happiness - 4/5
Love Tree - 4.5/5

Tracklist

Happiness
1. 快樂 (Happiness)
2. Just Once
3. 讓時間開口 (Let The Time Say)
4. 擔心 (Worry)
5. 貼身情人 (Close Lover)
6. Because I Love You
7. 拖延 (Delay)
8. 樂天派 (Optimist)
9. 預言 (Premonition)
10. 放我的真心在你的手心 (Placing My Sincerity Into The Palm Of Your Hands)

Love Tree
1. 愛情樹 (Love Tree)
2. 快樂 (Happiness)
3. 痊癒 (Recovered)
4. 讓時間開口 (Let The Time Say)
5. Just Once
6. 擔心 (Worry)
7. 貼身情人 (Close Lover)
8. Because I Love You
9. 樂天派 (Optimist)
10. 預言 (Premonition)
11. 放我的真心在你的手心 (Placing My Sincerity Into The Palm Of Your Hands)

Artist bio: Z-Chen (張智成)

Profile
Date of Birth: May 8, 1973, in Malaysia
Education: Engineering, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia
Profession: singer
Debut Album: 名字 (My Name) 2001
Also Known as: Little Prince of R&B (R&B 小王子)

Early Life
Z-Chen (Zhang Zhi Cheng) was born and raised in Malaysia, but based his career in Taiwan. While in university, he was involved in many music activities. In 1996, he won first place at a national singing contest (Seven Star Cup Singing Contest) in Malaysia. This led to his debut and career in Taiwan.

Career
Z-Chen is an R&B singer-songwriter, but in general, he doesn’t compose much. Z-Chen has a unique style as he sings R&B genre and commits to it throughout his music career, which is rare in Cpop. His debut album was released in 2001 in Malaysia, but from 2002 and onwards, he focused his career mainly in Taiwan, where he gained the most success. In Taiwan, he is nick-named ‘Little Prince of R&B (R&B 小王子)'. Although his songs are in Mandarin, there are some songs that are in Cantonese and English. This allows him to gain a wider fan base in other countries like Hong Kong and Malaysia. Z-Chen is fluent in Mandarin, Cantonese, English and Malaysian.

Discography

名字 (My Name)   2001
May I Love You   2002
凌晨三點鐘 (3 a.m.)   2003
 Listen To Me     2003
蒐藏張智成 (Save Z-Chen) Z-Chen Greatest Hits    2004
快樂 (Happiness)     2005
愛情樹 (Love Tree)     2006
暗戀 (Secret Love)     2009
你愛上的…(In Love With…)  2011
記得,是最好的遺忘 (The Best Memory)  2013

Source: princezzz.blog (Z-Chen’s blog), itunes