Music appreciation - Listen to The Wynners, album by The Wynners, 1970s Hong Kong pop group

The Wynners

Philips

The 1970s were the most important decade in the formation of Hong Kong's identity. Key local institutions, such as the ICAC, were founded, paving the way for the economic takeoff.

The baby boom generation of twentysomethings that emerged after the 1967 riots was in the offing and created a new hybrid of English-Cantonese culture for the city they called home. So in hindsight, Listen to The Wynners, the debut 1974 album from the era's most popular local band, is as iconic as the TV series Below the Lion Rock launched in the same year.

Celebrating their 40th anniversary this year, the band were barely a year old when they produced their first opus. The chic image of the five members - all with fashionably long hair, bell-bottom pants and platform shoes - appealed to the youth of the day. Led by lead singers Alan Tam Wing-lun (then 24) and Chung Chun-to (aka Kenny Bee, 22), the band redefined the pop music scene in Hong Kong.