It was about losing a music revolutionary, and an age of time.

As you all know, Blink 182 is back.this is the greatest news ever for all the fans, included me.And this reminded me of this Hong Kong well-known band, Beyond.

Beyond was a famous rock band in Hong Kong. They have always identified with the people of Hong Kong, as reflected in their songs about social issues, pursuit of dreams, politics, and peace.Formed in 1983,before i was borned! The members were Wong Ka Kui (vocals, guitar), Yip Sai Wing (vocals, drums), Ka Kui's younger brother Wong Ka Keung (vocals, bass) and Paul Wong Koon Chung (vocals, lead guitar). Beyond were initially part of the "band boom" which occurred in Hong Kong in the 1980s, alongside other groups and the few next albums saw several of the most important songs in the history of Hong Kong music.

In June 1993,when i was still 1, Wong Ka Kui sustained massive head injuries after falling from a broken stage on a Fuji Television game show in Japan. Wong Ka Kui fell into a coma and died one week later. He was 31 years old. His funeral procession caused traffic in various major city streets of Hong Kong to grind to a standstill, and almost every famous Hong Kong Cantopop singer was in attendance.

After Ka Kui's death, Beyond's first album produced was 2nd Floor Back Suite (二樓後座). Within this album was a stirring solo tribute to Ka Kui that was written, composed and sung by his younger brother, Ka Keung. They played their last concert in Hong Kong under the Beyond name on 1 February 2005, before embarking on a world tour, including stops in Toronto, Canada and various cities in mainland China, after which the band officially disbanded in their last stop in Singapore.At present, the band has parted ways, with each member pursuing his own solo career.

Wong Ka Kui's " 海闊天空 (Boundless Oceans Vast Skies) & 光輝歲月(Glorious Years) are two of their best known works.

Glorious Age ( 光輝歲月), is about racism and the struggle of Nelson Mandela in South Africa. The song, at the time, was a fresh breath of air in the midst of saccharin sweet love songs that were dominating the Hong Kong music scene. Wong Ka Kui won the best lyrics award in the Hong Kong Grammy-equivalent award ceremony.The guitar solo opening for the song paints the loneliness of Mandela's struggle. The guitar solo went on to be one of the most recognizable electric guitar rift in Hong Kong rock music.

Boundless Oceans Vast Skies (海闊天空)

Truly Love You (真的爱你）

Even though I was still young, I already got to know them through my sisters.They were the idols of all primary and high school students in the 90's, just like Linkin Park or Jonas Brothers now.I bet not so many 16/17 teenagers know this famous band Beyond.I can only listen or watch their performances through videos and albums.Unlike Beyond, all members of Blink 182 are still here and they can continue making more music.We don't want to see another great band disappear from the history of music.

The Japanese will never understand, for us and for Hong Kong, that the incident was not merely about the loss of an artist. It was about losing a music revolutionary, and an age of time. - Paul Wong on the death of Ka Kui

cui ying #