Man Wenjun's attractive qualities are his resonant tenor and his genuine, touching lyrics.

Mainland singer Man Wenjun is an exception within the fickle and fancy pop scene of China, with his old-fashioned, slightly homely appearance. Instead of image, Man Wenjun's attractive qualities are his resonant tenor and his genuine, touching lyrics.

"Year after year, time has left its trace on your smiling face, yet who understands your lonely heart. You’ve given me all your love and set me up to conquer the world. How I wish I could walk by your side and tell you that I knew it all along."

This song I Understand You All the Time offers thanks for the gift of motherly love, a gratefulness rarely directly expressed by China's sons and daughters. These lyrics from Man Wenjun have therefore proved very popular, thanks to their quality of highlighting something that many people feel, but find difficult to say.

Previously a night club singer, Man Wenjun's dream had always been to form a band and sing his own songs, until 1992, when he met the man who helped him reach reality. That man was songwriter Xue Ruiguang, who found Man Wenjun's voice to be ideal for his song, which turned out to be none other than I Understand you all the Time, the hit we've just heard. With this song, Man Wenjun found his footing on the musical stage, and followed up with another popular tune, Homesickness.

That was the song Homesickness, reminiscing on the bonds which link many city dwellers to small, unknown towns, with these towns cherished as the home of their roots and as secret, unsullied places. Again, Man Wenjun's singing style is unaffected and sincere, in simply solidifying the feelings that surround and emerge from everyday life.

Following his second album Homesickness, Man Wenjun joined one of the majors, Sony, in the hope of molding himself into an internationally-known singer. Interesting, his two albums under Sony sold quite badly, with only the title track, Love Is Boundless, faring well. Have a listen to this song, and see what you think of the change in singing style.

That was Love is Boundless, a well-made love ballad, but one of many thousands in the current pop market. Indeed, with his Sony releases, it seemed that Man Wenjun had tried so hard to be universally acceptable that he'd lost the characteristics which had made him locally popular. After a rethink, Man Wenjun came out with his most recent album, the 2005 release Time for Missing. Most notably, he had returned to his healthy, unpretentious style, and successfully won back his previous audience.

(CRI November 28, 2005)