CUI Jian Cūn Jiàn 崔 健 B
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
◀ Criminal Justice System Comprehensive index starts in volume 5, page 2667. CUI Jian Cūn Jiàn 崔 健 b. 1961 Singer and musician Cui Jian is China’s first rock and roll star. His song “Nothing to My Name” has become an anthem of loss for the Tiananmen generation who witnessed the crackdown on student dis- sidents in 1989. ui Jian, China’s first rock and roll star, was born to musician parents of Korean descent and raised in Beijing during the Cultural Revolution (1966– 1976). He began learning trumpet at age fourteen and in 1981 joined the Beijing Philharmonic Orchestra. In his spare time he explored popular music. Although Cui’s first album was a largely unnoticed collection of pop music covers (Lanzigui, 1984), he soon began writing his own music and lyrics and developing his trademark gravel-voiced style, drawing inspiration from Western rock bands such as the Beatles, the Roll- ing Stones, and the Police. In Beijing in May 1985 Cui per- formed one of his first rock songs, “Nothing to My Name,” a disconsolate ballad melding Western rock with tradi- tional Chinese melodies and instrumentation. The per- formance rocketed him to stardom, and the song remains The rock star Cui Jian. Photo by Chang Gong. his signature hit and an anthem of loss for the Tiananmen generation, the youth who witnessed the bloody crack- down on student democracy activists on 4 June 1989. Further Reading Cui’s albums include Rock and Roll on the New Long Cui Jian. (2001). Retrieved September 20, 2008, from March (1987), Solution (1991), Balls under the Red Flag http://www.cuijian.com/ENGLISH/Pages/main_ (1994), Power of the Powerless (1998), and Show You Color interface.html (2005). Jones, A. F. (1992). Like a knife. Ithaca, NY: Cornell East Alexa OLESEN Asia Series. 528 Cuisines ▶ C © 2009 by Berkshire Publishing Group LLC.