Empty Glass

“The dew that gathers in your cold eyes is so beautiful. I look upon you endlessly, and my heart is crying as well. Oh, my poor love.” –Nam Jin, Empty Glass [translated lyrics]

Hello, Readers! I would like to greet you all first because this is my first post in 2014. Well, as you all already know, I’ve been writing about a music program called “Immortal Songs 2: Singing the Legend” during these last four months. There are some reasons why I keep that up, but the most of all is that “Immortal Songs 2” is an amazing program that makes me feel grateful. Why? Because it takes me to get to know those great Korea’s classic hits. And as you all can see, I will keep posting about those immortal songs in my 2014 posts. Hence, I will try to balance it with some posting about drama series and movies. So, I sincerely hope that you all could enjoy those works of arts as much as I enjoy them. In the end, to conclude the opening of 2014, let’s fill our 2014’s empty glasses with journeys and lessons and drink it up till we get drunk on it.

Cover album "Empty Glass" oleh Nam Jin - source: www.maniadb.com

For the first song review in 2014, I would like to introduce you to a song called “Empty Glass”. “Empty Glass” dipopulerkan oleh solois pria legendaris Korea Selatan, Nam Jin, dan pertama kali dirilis pada tahun 1982. Lagu ini diciptakan oleh pencipta lagu legendaris Korea Selatan, almarhum Park Chun Seok. “Empty Glass” was the song that allowed Nam Jin to have a successful comeback after five years of hiatus. It was released in the 1980s but gained popularity in the 1990s. Nam Jin himself said his praising of the late Park Chun Seok and about this song, “It’s the only song that I wasn’t able to promote properly. Despite that, it gained popularity. I think good songs naturally become known.” Indeed, half of Nam Jin’s hits were composed by Park Chun Seok.

The original version of “Empty Glass” is a slow-tempo rock ballad song. Its lyrics tell about life from the perspective of lonely people. It’s a remedy for those lonely people in this world. Love comes from sharing the commonness, sharing the same feeling, same experiences, and even sharing the same loneliness. “Those lonely ones gather and get together and fall in love.” This song is about how a lonely person describes the life as an empty glass. For them, life is an empty drinking glass, you get drunk on it. “Indeed, life is just about holding up your empty glass and getting drunk.” Life is about lonely people who are meeting one another. And as they gather, they’re emptying their glasses and getting drunk on life’s glory and pain. And so, we’re not alone in this life. Any obstacles, any pain, any worries, just pour them all and share them. “So just pour your remaining sorrows and fill them into my empty glass.”

Jay Park ketika membawakan lagu "Empty Glass" pada program "Immortal Songs 2" Episode 40

“Empty Glass” telah ditampilkan sebanyak dua kali dalam program “Immortal Songs 2”. Penampilan yang pertama adalah dalam episode 40, di mana Park Chun Seok menjadi legend. Episode tersebut merupakan edisi spesial “The Legend of Park Chun Seok and 7 Artists” dalam rangka memperingati dua tahun meninggal dunianya almarhum Park Chun Seok. Episode tersebut mengudara pada tanggal 3 Maret 2012 di stasiun televisi KBS, serta pada tanggal 24 Maret 2012 di channel KBS World. Dalam episode tersebut, “Empty Glass” dibawakan oleh solois pria, Jay Park alias Park Jae Bum. Jay Park mengaransemen lagu ini menjadi sebuah lagu dance R n’ B dengan gayanya yang khas dan unik. With his distinctive yet marvelous performance, Jay Park filled the empty glass with R n’ B. He expressed the feel of being drunk through dance. Plus, the guitar tone of the arrangement was unique and nice. Overall, that was a stage you get drunk on, and I personally very in love with this performance. Unknowingly, I got addicted to it since the first time I heard.

Penampilan yang kedua adalah dalam episode 118, di mana kali itu Nam Jin yang menjadi legend. Episode tersebut merupakan bagian ketiga sekaligus terakhir dari edisi spesial “The Heartthrob is Back!”. Edisi spesial “The Heartthrob is Back!” Part 3 itu sendiri terdiri dari dua bagian, yaitu episode 118 sebagai Part 1 dan episode 119 sebagai Part 2. “Empty Glass” ditampilkan oleh solois wanita, Ailee, dalam episode 118. Episode ini ditayangkan pada tanggal 14 September 2013 di stasiun televisi KBS, serta pada tanggal 5 Oktober 2013 di channel KBS World. The arrangement was an urban pop with semi blues and rock feels. That performance was the first time Ailee try the sexy concept. And so, the male fans were going wild because of her. The most impressive aspect from her performance was that she threw away her shoes in the middle of the performance. Her powerful barefoot performance shook the stage and made her the winner of Nam Jin’s Part 1 special episode.

Ailee ketika membawakan lagu "Empty Glass" pada program "Immortal Songs 2" Episode 118

Despite any arrangement that put within it (not to mention that I’ve fallen in love with Jay Park’s remake version), the original version of “Empty Glass” itself has a beautiful basic melody. Moreover, it has a philosophic lyric that’s everlasting. The man behind the song, the composer himself, Park Chun Seok, was a truly Korean music industry’s legend. Died on March 14^th, 2010, he left behind famous songs and famous artists. It was said at that time that “the big star of popular music has faded”. He’s the composer that had given hit songs to top artist, such as Nam Jin, Na Hoona, Lee Mi Ja, and Patti Kim, who all had ruled over the South Korea’s music industry in the 1960s and 1970s. Passed away at the age of 80, Park Chun Seok had touched the entire nation with his amazing music. And although he’s gone, his melody would still live on forever, and he will always have a place in Korean music industry.

“Those lonely ones gather and get together and fall in love. Indeed, life is just about holding up your empty glass and getting drunk. So just pour your remaining sorrows and fill them into my empty glass.” –Nam Jin, Empty Glass [translated lyrics]

“Geudaeui ssaneulhan nungae goineun iseuli aleumdawo

(The dew that gathers in your cold eyes is so beautiful)
Hayeomeobsi balrabone nae maeumdo ttala une

(I look upon you endlessly, and my heart is crying as well)
Gayeoun naui yeoiniyeo

(Oh my poor, poor love)

Oelroun salamkkili a mannaseo geuleoge tto jeongi deulgo
(Those lonely ones gather and get together and fall in love)

Eochapi insaengeun bin suljan deulgo chwihaneun geot

(Indeed, life is just about holding up your empty glass and getting drunk)
Geudaeyeo nameoji seolumeun naui binjane chaewo ju

(So just pour your remaining sorrows and fill them into my empty glass)”