Canto a Go Go

MP3 download Nancy Sit and/or Josephine Siao "Go Go" | Video clip download "I Love A Go Go" (avi, 34 MB)

Blindly trailing the clerk through stacks of old Cantonese musicals that had been converted to VCD, she finally handed me a disc wrapped in a cover boasting nothing particularly distinctive from the rest. "I think you will like this one," she said. Trusting the judgment of strangers was all I could rely upon during my shopping escapades in the record stores of Hong Kong, so I carried the disc up to the counter, keeping my fingers crossed that at least the term "rock and roll" had squeezed through the language barrier. Indeed, it had.

Check out this amazing video clip from the film "I Love A Go Go" (1967) (avi, 34 MB), which stars Josephine Siao (aka Xiao Fangfang/Fong Fong), Nancy Sit (Ka-Yin), Adam Cheng, and Woo Fung (click here if you want to read about the plot). Pay close attention to the gals in hats for their extra fly dance moves. The guitar trio should also recognized for playing their instruments so fast that the chord progressions and solos cannot be detected by the naked eye... And just in case the movie wasn't campy enough already, they threw in a suspicious guy with thick plastic-rimmed glasses, a stick-on moustache, and a cigar for good measure.

You can also download the song featured in this clip right here (MP3), but I'm not quite sure if it's Siao or Sit singing the tune. Nancy Sit was actually a go-go girl back in the 60's, releasing a number of records of both Chinese tunes and covers of English pop songs. She was a featured artist on Girls in the Garage Vol. 9 (click to listen to Sit's cover of "Love Potion No. 9", real audio from an archive of Three Chord Monte with Joe Belock), but from her voice seems a bit lower than the one featured in the movie. It could be Josephine Siao providing the vocal track for her own character, though she is mainly known for her acting career (to further cloud the issue, I dug up what appears to be an album cover picturing Siao, left). Since all roads lead back to New Jersey, I must mention that Siao took a break from acting in 1969 to study Communications at Seton Hall University. If you've got any more info on the go-go ladies of China, please share in the comments section.

Comments

[Bruno]

Thanks you so much for the research,you've been a big help!
All the best,Bruno

[benoit]

2 instrumental Hong Kong 60's a'gogo eps are available for download at:
http://www.tofu-magazine.net/newVersion/pages/gogo.html

Charlie and His Go-Go Boys / TWIST SHAKE A'GOGO
Return To Me My Love / Let's A Go-Go / Unforgettable / My Dear Chew Siang
Wooly Bully / Wonderful World /These Boots Are Made For Walkin' / Satisfaction

Do someone get any information on this Charlie and His Go-Go Boys, please let us know.

[Chrisz78]

Of course Siao Fongfong sings herself! She started very young with girl roles in Cantonese Opera (around 1962) and in the latter part of the decade recorded quite a number of "western-style" songs both in movies and on record, including some English-language cover versions, e.g. of Mary Hopkin songs. EMI spelled her name SHAO FONG FONG on record covers, but she is also credited as Josephine SIAO sometimes.