Thanh Phong

Thanh Phong (1942-    ) is a popular Vietnamese singer who had first risen to fame in Saigon during the 1960s as part of the all-male pop trio, Tam Ca Sao Băng.

Tam Ca Sao Băng:  (Left to Right) Thanh Phong,Phương Đại and Duy Mỹ

He was born to parents of Hoa descent on May 3, 1942 in Saigon, South Vietnam and was given the birth name, Đào Công Thanh.  At the age of 10, he became a pupil of renowned music teacher/talent promoter Nguyễn Đức, who would later come up with his stage name, Thanh Phong.  At the age of 18, Thanh Phong began performing nightly at the legendary Olympia Nightclub in Saigon and also collaborated with various singing troupes such as Văn Nghệ Bảo An and Biệt Đoàn Văn Nghệ Trung Ương.  In the early Sixties, Thanh Phong along with two other singer friends, Phương Đại and Duy Mỹ, formed the singing trio known as Tam Ca Sao Băng.  The trio became one of the most successful acts in the pop music industry of South Vietnam during the 1960s and early 1970s.  At major nightclubs and cabarets all over Saigon, they were headliners.  On a national level, the trio performed in live concerts for audiences in major cities throughout South Vietnam and recorded for various record labels such as Dư Âm, Sóng Nhạc, Sơn Ca and Mây Hồng.  Among their most popular recorded signature songs include Chúng Mình 3 Đứa (written by Song Ngọc & Hoài Linh), Gót Phiêu Du (written by Thanh Sơn) and Thôi (written by Y Vân).  Thanh Phong also scored tremendous successes in duets with various top female singers of South Vietnam prior to 1975 such as Trộm Nhìn Nhau (written by Trầm Tử Thiêng), recorded with Hoàng Oanh, Nếu Một Mai Anh Biệt Kinh Kỳ (written by Minh Kỳ & Hoài Linh), recorded with Phương Dung, Căn Nhà Màu Tím (written by Hoài Linh), recorded with Thanh Tuyền, Đường Tình Đôi Ngã (written by Lê Văn Thiện), recorded with Giao Linh and Lời Hát Cho Quê Hương (written by Bằng Giang), recorded with Phương Hồng Quế.

During the early 1970s, Thanh Phong's celebrity status in South Vietnam reached unimaginable heights not only because of his achievements in the pop music industry but from the unwanted publicity generated from the tabloids over his alleged extra-marital affair with singer Phương Hồng Quế, who is 11 years his junior.  It is believed that Thanh Phong had channeled the events in this alleged romantic liason with the young starlet into inspiration in order to come up with lyrics of the songs, Anh Buồn Em Thương, for which he had recorded as a duet with singer Thanh Tuyền, Đã Lỡ Duyên Rồi, for which he had recorded as a duet with singer Hoàng Oanh, and HợpTan, for which had been recorded by singer Thanh Lan.  As a songwriter/composer, Thanh Phong opted to be credited under the pen name, Nguyễn Đào Nguyễn.  He has publicly revealed that his pen name was a portmanteau of both his and his alleged lover's surnames.

After the Fall of Saigon, Thanh Phong collaborated with the Kim Cương Theater Troupe, headed by legendary actress Kim Cương, for a number of years.  Toward the end of April in 1979, Thanh Phong along with his wife and three daughters fled from the oppressive communist regime in Vietnam by boat.  After nearly a week at sea, the boat arrived safely, coincidentally on his birthday, May 3. 1979, at the Malaysian refugee camp island known as Pulau Bidong where he would be greeted by fellow singers Thanh Tuyền and Băng Châu.  While residing in Pulau Bidong, Thanh Phong owned and operated a local business he named Café Phong.  

Thanh Phong and Phương Đại on Paris By Night Volume 45 (1998)

Like most refugees, Thanh Phong and his family's resettling to Paris, France during the early 1980s were not met without its challenges.  In a few years after their arrival, he and his wife pooled their resources together to take over a local candy shop business.  The steady revenue from the candy shop coupled with Thanh Phong's earnings performing for the overseas Vietnamese communities in France and other European countries enabled him to open up a Vietnamese cabaret nightclub located in the 13th district of Paris in 1985.  From 1986 to 1988, Thanh Phong traveled frequently to the United States and collaborated with various overseas Vietnamese music production labels such as Thanh Lan, Làng Văn, Người Đẹp Bình Dương and Thanh Thúy Enterprises, headed by legendary Vietnamese pop singer Thanh Thúy.  In 1998, Thanh Phong traveled to Toronto, Canada to appear on volume 45 of the popular live show music video series produced by Thúy Nga, Paris By Night, where he reunited with his old singing partner, Phương Đại, in a reprisal performance of their classic hit song, Tôi Trở Về Thành Phố (written by Y Vân).   In 2006, Thanh Phong traveled to Houston, Texas to perform on volume 52 of the popular live show music video series produced by Asia Entertainment with Tường Nguyên, Tường Khuê and Duy Trường a remake of his classic hit song, Ly Cà Phê Cuối Cùng (written by Minh Kỳ & Thế Vinh).  Thanh Phong has since been invited back to appear on several more volumes of Asia Entertainment's live show music video series.  Among his most memorable performances for Asia Entertainment include a duet performance with Ngọc Minh of the song, Anh Về Với Em (written by Nhật Trường) on volume 58 in 2008 and another duet performance with Phương Hồng Quế of the song, Đò Chiều (written by Trúc Phương) on volume 74 in 2014.  In March of 2013, Thanh Phong went on a successful concert tour of Australia.

Giao Linh and Thanh Phong at Tribute Show for His Late Wife
 Held at WE Nightclub in Ho Chi Minh City (6-24-2017) 

On July 8, 2017, Thanh Phong's longtime wife of over 40 years, Liên Sa, passed away.  She was 76.  Together, Thanh Phong and his wife had 3 daughters, all of which are overseas Vietnamese singers.  His two eldest, Thanh Thanh and Thanh Mỹ, both reside in Paris, France, while his youngest, Thanh Vy, who used to record for Biển Tình Productions in the 1990s, currently resides in San Diego, California.