Article Written by Andrew Yip

simbra73@hotmail.com

Hello everyone, It has been such a great joy reading so much stuff about Tracy this past one year, since I discovered Thomas Ng's excellent Tracy site. I live in England now (but I am from Malaysia originally), so I am not as fortunate as most of you, being so accessible to news about Tracy. My love for Tracy's music goes back a long long way, as in the case with some of you. I first heard her in the movie 'Deep in My Heart', in which she sang the theme song. Then, 'Move River' came along.... The rest is history.

Tracy is the only Chinese singer whose albums I have an almost complete collection. In fact, when Thomas visited England last year, he brought me more than 20 CDs of Tracy's previous releases, for which I was eternally grateful. Lately there has been some discussion about Tracy's musical direction. Having been around for 25 years, she seems to be moving on to something new, whose effects are mixed. Personally, I think the musicality and creativity of her albums since 'Spring' have been wonderful, a positive sign of her collaboration with those Japanese musicians.

However, the quality of her vocals has been less consistent. She sounded, on the whole, fabulous in 'Spring' and 'We Oh We', but the thinness of her vocals was quite apparent in some of the tracks in 'Pure Tracy', 'Flower Talk', and the latest 'Crazy for Love'. I often wonder if the inconsistency is a deliberate move on her part to flirt with different vocal styles, or her voice is losing its resilience.

I love Tracy for her 'breathing technique'. She breaths into certain parts of the lyrics which stamps her unique style. For this reason, I love her 'Loving You From The Heart' (1992) album. The tracks on this album are not of superlative quality, but she uses her 'breathing technique' to very good effects.

In reality, Tracy's voice and singing are not the best among her contemporary Taiwanese female singers. Her voice lacks the purity of Chyi's and the range of Julie Su's. She neither has the depth and emotionality of Chai Ching, nor the phrasing acumen of Teresa Teng. Yet, as I have said, she has her own style which I absolutely adore. It is hard for a fan to accept that his/her adored singer is experiencing unavoidable vocal changes due to the natural process of ageing.

Tracy has been around for so long, which in itself is evidence that she has substance. However, it will be unfair for us to expect her voice to continue to sound like what it was like in the 1970s. Ageing does bring about the deepening of one's singing voice and its range.

Olivia Newton-John, to whom Tracy was constantly compared in the 1970s, is a good example. In her 'Back With A Heart' album released last year, she re-recorded 'I Honestly Love You' which won her a Grammy way back in 1973 (or was it 1974?). Notwithstanding the musical arrangement changes, she sounded quite different. Twenty-five years ago she sang the song as a young woman with a pure but less moderated voice. Now, she sings it as a more mature woman with a mellowed voice, with a slight edge.

The same goes to Barbra Streisand, Tracy's favourite English singer. In the 1960s, she belted out those Broadway numbers with the power and strength that shattered me. In her latest album 'Higher Ground' released in 1997, it is evident that she has lost some of her vocal prowess, but she made it up with greater interpretive depth, and a heightened sense of musicality and emotionality.

Of course, singing is more than mere vocals. It is also about emotions and interpretation. I can accept the fact that Tracy might have lost some of her vocal range, but I will still continue to like her for her more mature approach to her music. She has to choose her material more carefully though. I personally think that she sounds really strained in 'Flower Talk', and more so in 'None Of Us Is Right'. I think she is at her best as a mature and self-assured woman in 'Spring' (both the studio and the acoustic versions).

So, keep up the good work, all you lucky people who could be at the front of the queue if ever Tracy performs in public again. I am too far away to take advantage of that. Believe me, not having seen her live is one of my greatest regrets. Tracy has many years to go yet. Let's continue to support her. She is too talented to allow herself to get stuck in a musical mould. She will continue to try new things. Some of them wouldn't work, but we should respect her for trying! Guess what? I am listening to her 'Loving You From the Heart' album right now as I type. Oh the breathing.... Go, Tracy, go!!