Toy and Help Yourself


Toy and Help Yourself are two 1997 Cantonese EPs recorded by Chinese Cantopop singer Faye Wong when she was based in Hong Kong.
In 1996, the last year of her recording contract with Cinepoly Records, Wong recorded ten original songs in Cantonese, all with lyrics by Lin Xi but composed by others such as Wong Ka Keung, Adrian Chan, and Chan Xiao Xia. These songs were supposed to be released as an album in 1996/1997; however, Cinepoly decided to release the 10 tracks separately on 4 occasions. Cinepoly later released eight of these songs in the two EPs entitled Toy and Help Yourself. The other two songs were included in later compilations.

''Toy''

Toy was released in February 1997, during Faye Wong's parental leave where she gave birth to her first child. The EP's cover photo depicts Wong in her home in Beijing, China, having moved back there after several successful years based in Hong Kong.
The five tracks on Toy would be Wong's most significant release of new Cantonese songs until her self-titled album in 2001.
  1. "" –
  2. : Undercurrent
  3. "" –
  4. : Date/Rendezvous
  5. "" –
  6. : Perfunctoriness/Negligence/Equivocation
  7. "" –
  8. : Toy/Plaything
  9. "" –
  10. : I Believe

    ''Help Yourself''

Help Yourself followed in May 1997.
Although this EP contained new songs, including the hit ballad "On Time", and was welcomed by fans, it received lukewarm critical responses, particularly for the three remixes of songs from earlier albums.
The album cover was a photograph of Faye Wong taken several years previously.
  1. "" -
  2. : Punctuality/On Time
  3. "" –
  4. : Guardian Angel
  5. "" –
  6. : Help Yourself
  7. "Di-Dar" –
  8. "" –
  9. : Pledge/Vow
  10. "" –
  11. : Sleepwalk

    Other songs

Cinepoly's first releases of their remaining original recordings by Faye Wong were as follows:
Be Perfunctory is the last Cantonese album by Chinese singer Faye Wong.
In 2015, a fan of Faye Wong purchased the Hong Kong publishing rights from Cinepoly and started a company called Chaotic Silence in order to issue the 10 tracks together in one album.
  1. "" –
  2. : Be Perfunctory
  3. "" –
  4. : Undercurrent
  5. "" –
  6. : Scary
  7. "" –
  8. : Guardian Angel
  9. "" -
  10. : Punctuality/On Time
  11. "" -
  12. : Unbelievable
  13. "" –
  14. : Toy/Plaything
  15. "" –
  16. : I Believe
  17. "" –
  18. : Help Yourself
  19. "" –
  20. : Date/Rendezvous