Li Fei Hui Concert
Esplanade Concert Hall
Last Saturday
Home-grown singer-songwriter Roy Loi’s solo gig was equal parts music concert and story-telling session.
His signature hit is the ballad Waited For You Till My Heart Ached. But some fans got to know about the singer, better known as Li Feihui, from the classic ballad he wrote, Love Like The Tides, sung by Taiwanese star Jeff Chang.
Still others encountered him as an actor first, including from his turn as a baddie in the long-running Channel 8 drama 118 (2014-2015).
Over the course of four hours, the full-house audience of 1,600 got to know him better.
He recounted how he started out listening to Western heavy metal and hard rock, was inspired to pick up the guitar on his own and how he was given a chance to release his first album in 1988, despite being overweight when the record label first contacted him.
He was a personable presence on stage. He could laugh at himself and was also happy to crack jokes at the expense of old friends such as singer Eric Moo, who was performing in Taipei that same night.
At one point, he sang a snatch of Moo’s hit, Too Foolish, before cheekily adding: “That’s not written by me, you won’t hear it tonight.”
After all, there was more than enough material for him to cover.
As a singer in his own right, he released five albums in Singapore and then three in Taiwan in the mid-1990s, with hits such as Please Pass Through My Heart, Time Flies, Love Flies and Only You Can Complete My Song.
He also penned songs for the biggest stars of Chinese pop and the likes of Andy Lau and Jacky Cheung sent their best wishes in video segments played during the concert.
Loi displayed a talent for mimicry when he imitated Lau’s way of singing for the track Practice.
Impressively, he even sang the xinyao classic, Friendship Forever, in the distinctive styles of a few singers.
Even those who know him as a talented songwriter might be surprised at how prolific he is.
Sandy Lam’s Shadow Lover, Daniel Chan’s A Man Like The Wind and even the theme song of Jack Neo’s long-running sketch show Gao Xiao Xing Dong (Comedy Tonight) were all penned by him. Neo showed his support by turning up to sing that familiar number.
The evening ended, of course, with a mass singalong of Waited For You Till My Heart Ached.
The concert may be over, but with Loi continuing to write songs and to act in more projects, it is clear that he is not quite done with telling stories just yet.
(ST)