John Dang - ProfilesArchive

About Me

I am a singer, a songwriter, musician and music producer.
I was born in little town in Vietnam, raised in the UK and I'm now working in Bangkok and Manchester (UK). My life is consumed by music! Music and songs.
I'm currently writing and producing for several very talented artists and bands, from both indie and major labels. As a singer I'm also working on my own material. It's funny because I can remember being fresh out of university looking for a record deal...that was the dream - to get signed and get my CD out! Well these last few years I've been lucky enough to work with some of the very best people in the music business and I'm a lot more patient. The best things in life are worth waiting for! :)
My favourite quotation: .."life should not be measured by the number of breaths we take but by the number of moments that take our breath away"..
I believe that if you have a dream you should follow it! Let nobody tell you that it can't be done because it can! You just have to reject all other possibilities! Believe in yourself, work your butt off and go for it. Things have a funny way of working themselves out!
So here I am and this is my life. I'm just stumbling along, making lots of mistakes along the way but progressing slowly! Feel free to add me if you like the music or enjoy my random musings on the blogs. It'll be lovely to have someone to share this journey with me. :)
You are now marked on my profile visitor map!
Spare a thought for those visitors to my page that are living in the middle of the ocean. Amazing huh?

My Interests

Music:

Member Since: 6/29/2005
Band Website: johndang.co.uk
Band Members: For the tracks you can hear. All recorded at Canalot Studios in London (except the acoustic ones which are recorded at home!):

John Dang: Singer, Songwriter, Backing Vocals, Some piano, some guitars.
Michael Choi: Bass & other instruments
Tim Vanderkuil: Guitars
Jamie Norton: Main Keyboards, Wurlitzer, Organs
Pete Harris: Guitars
Chris Robinson: Guitars
Miguel 'TAT' Hico: Drums, percussion
Thanks also to Rachel & Reina my wonderful string players and Haley for beautiful BVs on 'Tonight Tonight'.
Influences: Back in the 80s I had a bigger sister (I still have a sister but she hasn't grown so she's no longer bigger). She would indoctrinate me with really unashamedly big smiley POP sounds and make me do dance routines with her (and they were awful). We'd listen to Wham! Duran Duran, Queen, Bruce Springsteen, Boy George, Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston - that kind of thing. She'd wear blue eye shadow, big hair, stripey tops with those dance leggings thingies from FAME(which i notice have come back in fashion. why oh why??!). She'd also try to dress me up in girls clothes and I'd refuse...but she was bigger than me then.

Oh the scars! :)

A few years later, with Yuppydom fading fast, Dynasty, Dallas and big hair all falling out of fashion and the chancellor declaring an economic crisis I was thrown into my teenage angsty music phase: Nirvana (of course) radiohead, U2, REM and later people like Jeff Buckley, Coldplay, Bob Dylan. But it wasn't all depressing! There were always the great american rock bands around giving me a kick of adrenaline - your G'n'Rs, Bon Jovis and Aerosmiths playing at full volume on my stereo.

In 1994 I did the other mandatory thing and started a rock band with a school friend, writing my own stuff for the first time and keeping the friends family crowd happy by occasionally throwing in some T-Rex, Otis Redding, Bowie, Blondie and anyone else we could work out!

Post school, I stuck to the program, did the usual thing and started listening to lots of old records: rat pack stuff, Motown hits, older bands...even jazz (but I'm sorry to say it bored me - I guess that'll come later when I go through my mid life crisis). I'd like to think I was maturing musically but I think i was actually inspired by the fact that soul and swing made much better conversation and background music when I had a date around for dinner. It was always more succesful than pop or rock bands and so I learned to love it. :)

Soooooooo where does that leave you regarding my influences? More confused than ever? Well I suppose...a great big hodge podge brit-pop-rock mixture and I guess it's all underwritten by that 80s/early 90s Pop music my sister used to play. It's music that I used to love listening to - those fantastic feel-like-summer pop songs and those big, epic sounding U2 tracks. That kind of thing!!
Sounds Like: It varies from the acoustic to the pop to the rock...but people have said David Bowie, U2, Robbie Williams, Alex Lloyd and Jeff Buckley amongst others. All my heroes so I guess that's a good thing! Well, let me know what I sound like to you ok!
Record Label: Chinaboy Music
Type of Label: None

My Blog

Wed 15 Oct 2008 - Sigh...

I'm currently sitting on a big, comfy, cushion laden chair at a cosy open air restaurant. A few metres to my left a small family talks excitedly about what they've been doing this week. To my right th...
Posted by John Dang on Wed, 15 Oct 2008 12:28:00 PST

Thu 28th Sept 2008 - Suitcase of songs...

My mum is currently in Thailand and my sister is in Barbados on holiday so I've been holding the fort here in Manchester and looking after our little Thai Gift Shop. In the evenings and spa...
Posted by John Dang on Fri, 19 Sep 2008 05:30:00 PST

Sat 23rd Aug 2008 - Manchester is gay

From my open apartment window I can hear whilsting, whooping and cheering. At first I thought it was just the usual gathering of John Dang fans and I considered hanging my teddy bear off the balcony ...
Posted by John Dang on Sat, 23 Aug 2008 08:02:00 PST

Thu 24th July 2008 - Fridges, cakes and superstars...

Well here's something...I was in a bar the other day with some friends. Upstairs there was a club night and the music was sent through the downstairs speakers where we were sat. The three of us&n...
Posted by John Dang on Fri, 25 Jul 2008 05:40:00 PST

Weds July 10th 2008 - Brazillian skills, Radiohead and Jason Mraz

My football team lost again. 20-11 today. It's not even American football. It's normal football and we still manage to generate scores in high double figures. I hasten to add that it's 5-aside an...
Posted by John Dang on Thu, 10 Jul 2008 04:47:00 PST

Tues 8th July 2008 - My thought for the day...

"The person who says it cannot be done should not interrupt the person doing it" - Chinese Proverb Use this the next time you attempt to do something you have no idea how to do - like putting tog...
Posted by John Dang on Tue, 08 Jul 2008 02:49:00 PST

Mon 7th July 2008 - New songs, new plans...

Here in Manchester I've set up my temporary music studio in the back room of mum's apartment - it's only about the size of a walk-in wardrobe but i love it! It's real cosy and there's a smal...
Posted by John Dang on Tue, 08 Jul 2008 04:32:00 PST

Sun 6th July 2008 - New balls please...

I've just watched possibly the greatest tennis game ever; played out between two of the games finest players. I'm a Roger Federer fan - I think he's an incredible player but today I&nbs...
Posted by John Dang on Sun, 06 Jul 2008 03:21:00 PST

Mon 30th June 2008 - sleepless for you

Each time I lie down. My head starts spinning. Maybe this will all go wrong. And so it goes around. If this or if that. Must this and musn't that. In every answer a question. Solutions are too hard to...
Posted by John Dang on Tue, 01 Jul 2008 06:27:00 PST

Sun 29th June 2008 - knock knock knockin

Last night I went to watch the UK's best Guns N Roses tribute act...who's that you say? Well my dears that would be Guns TO Roses of course. Hahahaha Rockkkkkkk on! It was actually my friend's idea t...
Posted by John Dang on Sun, 29 Jun 2008 07:47:00 PST