해바라기 - Sunflower
해바라기 - 해바라기 1집
01. 님에게 / To you
02. 떠날사람 보낼사람 / People leaving
03. 저 빗속으로 / In the rain
04. 마음 쉬는 곳에 / Where to rest
05. 고개를 숙인사람 / The bowing person
06. 안녕 내사랑 / Hello my love
07. 여름 / Summer
08. 지금은 헤어져도 / Even if I break up now
09. 사랑의 시 / Poetry of Love
10. 오고가며 / Coming back and forth
11. 바람되고 낙엽되어 / Winded and fallen
12. 섬소년 / Island Boy
13. 여름방학 / Summer vacation
14. 어허야 둥기둥기 / Hehe!
As expected, this early 80s album, influenced by hanging-in-the-air censorship and safe ballads and mellow sugar pop, this album really is not really better than that. It has a few nice elements to be expected from dual singers, and the arrangements are worked out well enough, with neo-classical elements, mellow pop and occasional “rock” elements and some etherial synths too, nothing really stands out or shows anything of a more creative mind, so that in the end for foreigners that this item is somewhat forgettable.
It is true that the duo continued something of a tradition coming from the 70s, but without improvement of that stage.
With a certain distance taken and renewed listen I understand there are also some musical elements still taken care for that were appreciated. Foreigners should take at least some big portion of caution. Maybe amongst a more commercial world this was different, in perspective of a international vision of a standalone it really did not distinguish itself with that much originally as it tends to become.
실험적이고 진보적 사운드를 추구했던 해바라기 1집...
장르를 넘나드는 실험적 사운드, 한편 어느 장르에도 구속되지 않으면서 철저히 대중성을 지켜가는 그들만의 독특한 음악세계를 보여준 해바라기1집. 이 음반은 마그네틱 마스터 테입으로부터 직접 리마스터하여 아날로그의 자연스러운 소리를 생생하게 감상 할 수 있습니다.
"A collection of sunflowers in pursuit of experimental and a more progressive sound ... leading to an experimental sound that crossed its genre, making Sunflower 1 a collection of unique musical worlds that are completely unpopulated and unrestricted. This record was remastered directly from the magnetic master tape to enjoy the natural analogue sound."
Other tracks that can be found:
추억의 신청곡 Best 40 (2011)
18 이젠 사랑할 수 있어요 / I can love you now
This is taken from their second album; a soft track with relaxed warm texturing keyboards sounds, soft drums and bass, use of harmony vocals.
친구야 소풍가자 / Let's have a picnic, my friend (2011)
CD1-12 모두가 사랑이예요 / Everybody's love
Also this comes from volume 2, with a relaxed almost romantic feel of a song.
원음으로 듣는 7080 통기타 베스트 / Best of Acoustic Guitar (2015)
CD1 18 이젠 사랑할 수 있어요 / I Can Love You Now
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A meeting with Sunflower – 해바라기
by ANNA LINDGREN posted 5 JUL 2008 UPDATED 12 APR 2019
Anna Lindgren meets with one of the fathers of modern Korean folk music, with special assistance from Jeon Sung-min. A few years ago I came across a stunningly beautiful folk piece. It was called 내마음의 보석상자 and it had been recorded by 해바라기, Sunflower, in 1986. After getting my hands on a couple of Sunflower compilations, I could conclude that Sunflower offered some of the highest quality music I had ever heard coming out of Korea. By a lucky chance it turned out that a friend of Philip, Jeon Sung Min, is the nephew of Sunflower founder and leader Lee Joo Ho. He kindly agreed to interview his uncle for me when they would meet next time. The text below could not have been written had it not been for his great help and assistance.
The Sunflower Catholic hall in Myeongdong, Seoul, had been a place for young musicians to come together to share their works and perform in the early 70s. Four of these musicians (Lee Joo Ho, Lee Jung Sun, Han Young Ae and Kim Young Mi – above) formed a quartet named after their Catholic hall and went on to release an official album in 1977 (below). The following year a second album was released, but as Lee Joo Ho had gone into military service Lee Kwang Cho took his place. However, it didn’t last for long and the quartet had broken up before Lee Joo Ho had a chance to come back.
Lee Joo Ho released a solo album, but he wanted to have two acoustic guitars and harmony vocals so he set out to find a duet member. In 1982, You Ik Jong had joined him for the duo Sunflower and its first album was released. Sunflower in its duo form exists still today, but Lee Joo Ho’s duet partner has changed over the years. Often they would leave while he was concentrating on making new songs, but sometimes they came back. Another partner, Lee Kwang Joon, joined him for three albums, but the current partner, Kang Sung Woon, has been with him for the longest, 10 years.
Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young, Bob Dylan and James Taylor along with Korean folk pioneers Kim Min Gi and Han Dae Soo inspired Lee Joo Ho, but growing up with a school music teacher for a mother he found most of his musical inspiration at home. The times being as they were in Korea, Kim Min Gi and Han Dae Soo both faced heavy censorship and Lee Joo Ho had to resort to metaphors to express his feelings and ideas: “For example, my song ‘Please say it right now’ (어서 말을 해) sounds like an ordinary love song as it says ‘You’re fool if you can’t say you love the person.’ However, it’s actually about the suppression of the press by the Korean government.”
The feelings and ideas that make Lee Joo Ho write songs are such that he’d like to share with his family, friends and nation. The lyrics are usually influenced by daily lives, and love is a main theme. “However, the love I’d like to sing is not just the one between man and woman. It’s much more than that,” he explains before continuing: “The love I’d like to sing is the very pure love which all we have for others, especially for those who are in need. I’d like to make my country, my family and my friends love each other through my songs. It’ll never be enough to love each other.”
A song that summarizes that which Lee Joo Ho wants to say about love is ‘With love’ (사랑으로), released in 1989: ‘We put our hands to the dark side of the world and brighten them with our love which will never change’. It is the most famous and popular song of Sunflower – covered even by tenor José Carreras on his 2001 ‘Around The World’ album – and also Lee Joo Ho’s answer to my question of which the best Sunflower song is. While Sunflower songs are often covered, Lee Joo Ho has also written quite a few songs for others that not necessarily resemble typical Sunflower music. The most famous and popular song in this category is the latin dance tune ‘The face I’m missing’ (보고싶은 얼굴), performed by Min Hye Kyung.
Sunflower celebrated 30 years last year and for the past couple of years Lee Joo Ho has been working on a 30th anniversary album. His best five songs and fourteen new, dealing with “old friends, memories of life and of course the love I’m still seeking for,” are recorded for it. A 30th anniversary tour with a string quartet and a band too is planned. As for other performances, Lee Joo Ho used to perform all the time but nowadays he’s down to about 15 performances per month as he needs more time to himself. He’s always willing to perform outside of Korea and has already performed in the US, Canada and Europe – including the UK. Perhaps he’ll visit Europe again someday soon and play for his fellow Koreans.
As somebody that has been an active musician for more than thirty years, Lee Joo Ho offers a perspective on the differences in music now and then: “Maybe it’s not just the story of Korean music. Music itself has changed a lot. The music of my early days was made in somewhat poor and insufficient life. So the music used to have some space for us to rest in there. But it’s quite quick and easy to make music nowadays. In addition, thanks to the great technology, recent music sounds so full. But there’s not much space for us to rest in there. I’d say this is the biggest difference between music of early days and nowadays.”
To conclude the interview, Jeon Sung Min asked his uncle how he would like to be remembered in history and this is his answer: “Most of all, I’d like to be remembered as a musician who loved music so much and all of my lives are explained through my music itself. And a musician who found real rest and happiness in music. Finally, a musician who made music for his country and a people, and always wanted to make them love each other.”
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CONCLUSION:
For a local market Sunflower was a different and alternative sound, for the international market it has less to offer. I have based myself mostly upon just one album but didn't find much that could stand out very well to satisfy the demands of an international market of collectors.
