Hong Kong (song)
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| “Hong Kong” | ||
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| Single by Gorillaz from the album D-Sides and Help: A Day in the Life |
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| Released | 9 September 2005 | |
| Genre | Alternative | |
| Length | 7:09 | |
| Label | Independiente Records | |
| Producer | Gorillaz, War Child | |
| Alternate covers | ||
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| "Help: A Day in the Life" Cover | ||
"Hong Kong" is a song by Gorillaz, written by singer and co-producer Damon Albarn. The song was first featured on the compilation album Help: A Day in the Life and was reworked for the second Gorillaz b-side compilation D-Sides.[1] The track was performed on the Demon Days Live concerts in Manchester and Harlem (the Manchester performance was featured on the Demon Days Live DVD.)[2] The performances featured Zeng Zhen playing the guzheng (a traditional Chinese harp, similar to the Japanese koto.)
[edit] History
War Child UK contacted Albarn (along with the other artists on the Help compilation) to record the song on September 8, 2005 to complete a song within thirty hours.[3] Albarn took this as an opportunity to learn more about oriental music and is perhaps one of the first steps towards Monkey: Journey to the West, a Chinese-themed opera whose musical score was composed by Albarn himself.[4]. The track was actually recorded in Hong Kong while Albarn and Jamie Hewlett were promoting Gorillaz' Demon Days.
"Hong Kong" is reminiscent of Damon Albarn's more melancholic tracks for the band Blur, such as "Out of Time" and "This Is a Low". The song's instrumentation is sparse, featuring little more than an acoustic guitar, layered pianos, the guzheng and a metronome-like drumbeat alongside Albarn's (as 2D) vocals. Live versions added some percussion and a string arrangement. The song was reworked for the D-Sides compilation by adding a different string arrangement than the one used in live performances and some effects to the opening guzheng and closing keyboard lines.[5]
[edit] References
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