Love, Sandy

When I was on my way to see Sandy Lam’s concert Pranava, I came across two westerners who were also on their way to see her show. They are well-versed in her oeuvre and were talking about how much they love her most recent album Re:Workz in which she reinterpreted her classics. A few local concert goers nearby were shocked by their presence and whispered among themselves “They don’t understand the language, what are they doing here?”

I wanted to tell them that even though I don’t know any Japanese, I’ll happily go to a Mika Nakashima concert because her music touches me. But I kept the thought to myself because I didn’t want to ruin their night out and I’m not argumentative.

It is barely surprising that Lam’s music can draw audiences from around the world. She is in a music league of her own. She was one of the few Hong Kong singers who pioneered R&B music. In the late 80s and the early 90s she stunned the industry with her forward-thinking city project, a trilogy of concept albums that explore the many facets of urban life reflected through the vision of a city girl. The photos on the album sleeves were shot in cities like Milan and Venice, intensifying their contemporary vibes.

In the mid 90s she broke onto the Japanese music scene with two albums. They weren’t wildly successful, but it took courage for her to leave behind Hong Kong where she is established and go back to square one in Japan.

Even though the name Sandy Lam has become synonymous with city girl since the late 80s, she wanted to be more than that. She still loved experimenting after almost three decades in the industry. The result was the album Gaia, which was released in 2012 and was three years in the making. It heightens environmental awareness and advocates a return to a harmonious relationship with Mother Nature. In the concerts MMXI and MMXII, she wore an upcycled dress worn back in her 2005 tour (the dress was dyed red and the sleeves were cut) to demonstrate that she wasn’t just singing about loving the environment.

This year sees the release of Lam’s new album In Search of Lost Time, which features her renditions of 80s classics from singers such as Michael Kwan (關正傑) and George Lam (林子祥). Through the album, she hopes to bring back the love that was in abundance in the 80s. I sincerely hope that she will succeed – there is no such thing as too much love and we can all love more.

Sandy the city girl on the cover of City Magazine, 1993

Sandy's rendition of Michael Kwan's《殘夢》featured in In Search of Lost Time