'Man On The Flying Trapeze' vs. 'On The Swing'

(It Happened One Night, 1934)

Following the previous post on 'Build Up A Home', here comes another case: Li Jinhui's 'On The Swing' (鞦韆架上 Qiuqianjia shang) and the nineteenth-century popular song 'The Man On The Flying Trapeze'.

'The Man On The Flying Trapeze', also known as 'The Daring Young Man On The Flying Trapeze', is a song about a real figure, the French acrobat and flying trapeze performer Jules Léotard. It was composed by Gaston Lyle, with lyrics by the English music hall singer George Leybourne.

For some historical accounts of this song, please visit The Word on the Street from National Library of Scotland, by which an original copy of the broadsheet is collected. Click the picture on the right to read lyrics, or rather the story of Jules Léotard.

Now listen to the Chinese 'On The Trapeze' by Ying Yin (英茵), a singer-actress from the 1930s, and follow the lyrics if by any chance you read Chinese. I believe 'On The Swing' was obviously adapted from 'The Man On The Flying Trapeze'.



那快樂已過去剩了悲傷
這個紫薇兒才向夏天脫掉衣裳
我淚珠兒滴滿了大地海洋
你這害人的漂亮姑娘

當你還是位那麼個小小姑娘
我就對你把愛情兒講
早從沒有一絲兒得你原諒
我就為著那個少年情郎

他飄悠悠坐在那鞦韆架上
那眼珠兒引動了四方姑娘
你先別管誰麻煩後兒愛梳 (not sure about this line)
你用媚眼兒向他飛揚

我就為他徹把低一來一封
不過我愛情就別再講
這樣沒過了三五個白天晚上
他倆並坐在鞦韆架上

他飄在天堂X樂洋洋 (one character unintelligible)
那美少年站在了鞦韆架上
那漂亮亮姑娘們都來一旁
我的愛情也從此了帳