Hong Kong Cantopop icon Alan Tam at 70 – remembering his best loved songs like Friends, Love in Autumn and Foggy Love and his duets with protégé Hacken Lee
Starting with The Wynners, his near-five-decade career has seen him become known as Principal Tam for the way he’s nurtured up-and-coming stars – and is compared with Elton John for his popularity across generations
Alan Tam is one of the living legends in Hong Kong’s Canto-pop scene and this Sunday, August 23, sees him celebrate his 70th birthday. He was the singer in 1970s pop band The Wynners and had a stellar solo career through the 1980s, 1990s and early 2000s.
A staunch believer in age being nothing but a number, Tam famously said that he turns 25 every year. With a net worth in the multimillions, his discography, films and concerts are all a testament to his almost five-decade career. Being a mentor to many stars in the Hong Kong music industry – notably Hacken Lee – has earned him the moniker of Principal Tam.
In recent years, he became better known for his political stance which led to him quitting Twitter after cyberbullying. Love him or hate him, Tam is one of the most enduring Canto-pop artists of our time – here are some of our favourite tunes by this icon.
Love in Autumn
One of the signature tunes that shot Tam to superstardom in the 1980s, this song is still part of the set list in his concerts to this day.
Half Dazed, Half Awoken
This is one of the most iconic ballads of the 1980s. There is a lot of tame kissing in this strange music video, but you can see many fresh-faced silver screen beauties such as Maggie Cheung and Pauline Yeung making an appearance.
The Root of Love
