Who wouldn’t want to spend an afternoon than being in the company of not just one, but two of my favourite female singers?
I am of course, talking about Taiwanese pop sensation Hebe Tien – the “H” in the all-girl superstar trio S.H.E. – and Olivia Ong, the latter came on as a guest star at Hebe’s show yesterday afternoon at Festive Grand
Although Hebe by her own admission said she would normally be asleep at 2pm on a Saturday afternoon, the singer decided to put on a second show in the afternoon, due to overwhelming demand.
“I don’t normally get to do an afternoon show,” she said. “But since there were so many fans (who couldn’t get tickets for the evening show), I thought, ‘why not’. I also wanted to see if I could do it.”
What did we like about the show?
That the show couldn’t be more different from the usual S.H.E. do. For one thing, Hebe showed her taste in music spanned across more genres and styles than many Chinese acts we know of. And we’re not just talking about the songs from her album like Love, I Think I Can’t Love You, Where Will I Go and A Little Quiet Would Be Good.
According to Hebe, she wanted to show the different types of music that she loved to listen to. That would include The Beatles (Come Together), Katy Perry (I Kissed A Girl), Coldplay (Trouble), Jolin Tsai (Dancing Diva – brilliantly done with only acoustic guitar), Ingrid Michaelson (Die Alone), Emily Haines (Doctor Blind), Lisa Ekdahl (her version of Cry Me A River) and Emiliana Torrini (Ha-Ha).
And then there was that The Bird And The Bee nod – or their take of The Bee Gees’ How Deep Is Your Love, which she performed with Olivia. For my money, Olivia is probably one of the best voices of this generation, and she’s got a lot going for her.
She sang only two songs – her own composition, You & Me, and a raucous rendition of Hall & Oates’ I Can’t Go For That (No Can Do) – but she once again showed what we’ve known for quite a while: That she’s taller than Hebe (even without heels), and that certain hairstyles just may not work for her. Oh, and that given the right treatment, Olivia can be great star material.
Although the show was all about Hebe, she also dedicated a song, James Blunt’s You’re Beautiful to her band mate Selina (who’s slowly recovering after her tragic accident last year).
“She’s been through a lot,” said Hebe of her friend’s tragic burn accident. “But she won’t take it lying down, especially with support from her family, friends and fans.
“She’s my hero, and S.H.E. will definitely be back soon,” Hebe said to loud cheers from the crowd.
I would have liked a little more banter from her (the second half was practically devoid of any), especially when she talked about why she picked the songs, but maybe she felt, like I did, that the second half of the show, with its slew of slow numbers – Doctor Blind, Ha-Ha, Crying, I Can’t Forgive Myself and Die Alone – was getting a bit too draggy.
Hebe the solo artiste was more demure but what was interesting how the concert gave a better musical insight to the singer – who sometimes could be overshadowed by her S.H.E. mates Ella and Selina.
There may be many ways of spending a Saturday afternoon, but going to a Hebe concert is definitely one of the better ones.
