Dear all....

29th of February....It's end of the month of February..and here we go! We have Jon's February letter...:) I have only 30 minutes to upload it for you all before it strike to 12 am....

so here's our February 2008 Letter from him...^_*

Happy reading,
Eveline

---

Hey guys, I'm cutting it a bit close with this month's letter (writing
it on the last day of the month), good thing that its a leap year. how
has everyone been of late? I have received quite a lot of emails these
few weeks and apologise that I was not able to reply all of them. This
month has been a little crazy for me, I did something for teens
magazine and teenage magazine, I-weekly, Lianhe Zaobao and The New
paper. Apart from that there was love is in the air at the university
cultural centre, I hope those who went for the show enjoyed it. It was
cosy, right? It was a nice change for me to sing some jazz tunes as
opposed to writing for the album. there's a charm about the classics,
I guess. My personal favourite was Mr. Bojangles, that's a really good
song... the ironic thing is that among all the songs I sang, Mr
Bojangles was the newest (being written in the late 1970s). This month
has also been filled with meetings with old friends, couple of
birthday parties, chinese new year... in retrospect, it kind of
hindered the work a little bit productivity wise... but whatever. No
point in thinking about time that has already passed.

This is totally random but as much as I am anxious to release an album
for myself, the other day I was thinking about a couple of songs that
(on multiple listens) do not quite make the cut... I was a little
tempted to leave it so that production could start sooner but in the
end I decided to chuck those songs and go back to writing new tunes
instead, it's better to take a longer time but end up with songs I am
more confident of. You know, all this talk about the album and the
time people spend waiting for it and talking to me about it, and
asking me about it... I can't help but think that expectations are
going to be high and judgment is going to be harsh. Maybe I should
release it under a pseudonym... that should take some of the pressure
off. Haha, The past week has been slow, writing wise. I plan to kick
into high gear after this coming weekend.

In the past month, newspapers have also been full of entertainment
scandals and nonsense like that, it kind of set me thinking whether
its possible to be a rather significant contributor to the popular
music scene but not be part of this kind of frivolous news. It has to
work both ways and it takes two hands to clap. There must be both a
demand from the media and a supply from the artistes. I guess some
people like this kind of coverage (in a cathartic sort of way) and all
the drama that goes along with it, I won't understand why though.
Strange how people are.

I haven't had the chance to catch many movies of late, I missed Sweeny
Todd, it was taken down from theatres without me even knowing. I was
really looking forward to watching Tim Burton's work with Stephen
Sondheim's tunes. I caught one movie which I thought was really good,
Juno. Great script and a nice soundtrack to boot.

This month I will end my letter with the lyrics to Mr bojangles, its
really good. Talk to you guys again soon, I have quite a packed day
ahead, gotta run.

"I knew a man, Bojangles, and he danced for you
In worn out shoes.
With silver hair, a ragged shirt and baggy pants,
The old soft shoe.
He jumped so high, jumped so high, then he lightly touched down.
I met him in a cell in New Orleans, I was
So down and out.
He looked at me to be the eyes of age,
As he spoke right out.
He talked of life, he talked of life. He laughed, clicked heels instead.
Mister Bojangles

He danced for those at minstrel shows and county fairs
Throughout the South.
He spoke with tears of fifteen years how his dog and he
Traveled about.
Then his dog up and died, part of him died, after twenty years he still
grieved.
He said, I dance now at every chance in honky tonks
For my drinks and tips.
But most of the time I spend behind these county bars.
He said, I drink a bit.
He shook his head and as he shook his head I heard someone ask, please
Mister Bojangles
come back and dance."

Jon.

Dear Jon

Great to see that you are having many media publicity recently. Enjoyed “Mr Bojangles” most too, especially with the whimsical touch that you put in. Must say you did the whistling tune with great charm!

Hope your album is progressing well? Not too many hiccups? Do agree that the expectations are going to be high. You will rise to the occasion and come out with a gem rite! So real to share your concerns that some of your songs do not quite make the cut and tempted to just leave them. On further thought, you pushed yourself harder to write better songs coz its got to pass your own confidence level mark. Do think its tough writing in Mandarin though, jiayou! Its amazing you gonna do all your own compositions? That will indeed give you more music control and staying power in the business.

Feeling very proud that Singapore will host the 1st Youth Olympic Games 2010, its truly a great achievement! Everyone involved has worked really hard and together with the many other exciting things happening around us, we will become a more vibrant place. Hopefully, we will also be a more gracious society.

These challenges seem like a mirror image of what you are going through now and likewise you will have the well deserved success. Some pressure is good as it motivates you to excel but don't worry about things not within your control. As long as you have tried your best which we know you will!

Believe recognition of your talent and hard work will come one day soon, maybe its just some months down the road. We have faith in you!

$love

Thanks bro, so busy yet the time for a newsletter for us :)

i love tat song Mr bojangles too! :)

You suit jazz hehex!

Alright i gotta get going too!

take care to all!

Nice to hear from ya bro, esp writing to us
on the last day of the month, leap year :)

Jiayou in your music scenes!

hey jon, good job!

good to hear that u r progressing well in the music industry!

keep up the good work and rawk on!!

rooting 4 ya!!!

meanwhile, take care n jiayou jiayou jiayou!!!!

Hello Jon

Time passes real fast...
The 15th letter from you...
thanks so much for writing...
and keep in touch with us.

Hope your SOLO album will release soon.
Looking forward to it!


THE BLESSINGS OF MUSIC

Music is a gift that feels our heart each day
The blessings of music heal our souls each day
Music relieves the stress in our daily lives
Music is soothing to our ears
The blessings of music heal the sick and comfort the sick also
The blessings of music
Is powerful
It is wonderful to hear
When somebody is playing something for every one to listen
His giving you his gift of music to you and others
And to you also God
The blessings of music
Music is powerful
And has a great impact in everybody’s lives
The blessings of music
Music is universal
The blessings of music
You can hear the music being played from far away
Every song is special
Every song has a different meaning and different words

Aldo Kraas

hi Jon,

Press On!!! :P

Hi jon and everyone. Happy lunar new year if it's not too late. It's been a long time since I posted in the forum. Very happy that all is well. I have a new baby boy, going 6mths old. Therefore very busy with work and family. Jon, you look great on tv for the ntuc show. Miss you guys lots! Love, wati.

Dear Jon,

Thanks for remembering to write.
Wishing you all the best for your forthcoming album.
smitten

hello Jon, so nice of you to write though u sound so busy. So many things u have on.

Dat's how it is with celebrities, always in the lime light, wether for good or bad stuff. The price to pay for stardom!

Hope to hear your new album soon, not giving u stress lar! :)

Mizz you!

Strangely, I dreamt of Jonathan Leong last night. Then I realised how much I still am a fan! Fortunately, I have his songs on my iPod and definitely had to listen to them on my way to work!

Welcome, Xiaotong, to the club! smile3 smile3

thanks jonfan, you have a very cute name!

itz so sweet of jon to write so many letters for fans to read, havent seen him long long already! what's he doing now?

Yes, I enjoyed Juno very much. Good storyline, great acting by the young actress (can't recall her name now), and nice soundtrack. Love Jason Bateman & Jennifer Garner too. And I liked Atonement as well... quite gripping movie... was watching it late at night but was so awake throughout the movie.

If you all haven't seen these 2 movies, go watch it. :P

Will we see another letter this month? Been so quiet, hope to see jon on tv soon.