Yui is my favourite singer songwriter and I would like to share a small selection of her songs with you and to try to advocate her to you by explaining some of the lyrics and the context of the songs.
I have not given all the words of the songs, I just wanted to give you an idea of the themes.
But first a little background. Yui did not have an easy life as she was from a single parent family and quite poor. She had to work part time in High School to help pay for tuition. She was encouraged by her mother to keep a journal of her feelings, and she converted many of the journal entries to poems and also songs and this was how she began to write songs.
The early influence of her was the band Bianco Nero from her home town of Fukuoka and it was this band that advised her to leave high school and attend a music school. While studying at the music school she made money by busking at the railway station in her home town, which in interviews, she has said was a great education in performing and it confirmed her belief that music was what she wanted to do.
Her first track to be released was It’s Happy Line which was limited to 2000 copies and only released in her home town, but it gained some attention. It was a year later in 2005, she was invited to write a song for a drama series. She wrote and performed the theme for the TV drama “Fukigen Na Gene” and because of the exposure due to the success of the drama the track “Feel My Soul” sold over 100,000 copies and began her career as a major artist. Since then, she has released four albums which have all been very high quality and all have been platinum discs.
I have chosen five songs for you to try and give a feel for her work.
The first song is a related to my last Spill post as this song Rolling Star was written as the fifth opening theme for the anime Bleach. Yui is not just the typical girly singer songwriter who writing introspective songs about love (although of course she does this also) She likes rock and often plays electric guitar. Rolling Star is a good example of the more rocking style of some of her songs.
The lyrics in the song relate to the story line in the anime, which is heroic and supernatural, but she focuses in the song on the motive of building a peaceful world and the rather clumsy nature of the hero in the series.
She sings:
A world like the one I dreamt of
Where everyday life is peaceful, and without conflict
But the truth is, those days are trouble
And sometimes those kinds of Rolling days are frustrating
… Yes, I understand
Stumbling, way to go!!
Yeah!! Yeah!! A rolling star, covered in mud!!
The next song I choose is Feel My Soul. This is really one of my very favourites by her. This song follows one of the recurring themes of her songs which is leaving home or moving on from people or places to follow dreams and ambitions. Of course in a country like Japan, where many young people leave their home towns to work or study in the big cities like Tokyo (as I did) these songs can really touch people.
She Sings:
The words that you softly whispered, you say it
“Start moving, the road is so opened up that it’s like you can’t see it”
I feel my soul, take me your way, yes, even as I struggle
I’ll always be able to walk along like this
It wasn’t by chance, and it wasn’t an everyday dream either
You’re right, all right, you’re right, all right
The Third song I have chosen is Gloria, It is a song about facing the future and being brave and honest and is sung like a monologue to a friend. I like this song as for me it is about being brave and doing what you need to even when you are afraid. I find it a powerful and positive song.
She sings:
You’re not losing
Gloria shine away to the future
You’re approaching closer
Cry
I do not even blame anybody anymore
Embrace it all
If you think of only yourself it’s all a crooked lie
Uh uh uh the time the cherry trees start blooming
Uh uh uh I’ll be able to find myself
I believe it’s not only a dream
Though I am really afraid
The fourth song is Goodbye Days. This is a break up song but there is a slight difference to the normal break up songs. The singer is going to break up with a guy that she really likes but has somehow become a friend and not a lover anymore, so she is sad but strong about her intention. I think this is a situation which many girls can relate to.
She sings:
So I’m going to go see you right now, that’s what I’ve decided
I want to have you listen to this song, that I have in my pocket
Quietly, I turned up the volume, to make sure that it was there
Oh good-bye days, right now I’ve got the feeling that things are going to change; so long to everything up until yesterday
An un-cool kindness is at my side
With you
I pass one ear phone over to you
And this moment slowly streams over to you
If you have read and listened this far I would like to say thank you very much.
This last song is actually my favourite song of hers and is the most personal to me. It is called Tokyo and is about her leaving home and her home town to come to Tokyo and the sadness of leaving home and friends behind. For me this is song captures how homesick I feel sometimes. In the song she sings about the train and the station, but of course my home is much further away than her home town, and the train for me was the plane, and the station becomes the airport, but somehow this very simple song really moves me.
She sings:
The day has come when I will leave the room I’m so used to living in
My new journey is still disorienting meOn the bus to the station
I emailed my friendOn the platform in the morning, I tried calling too
But it felt like something had changedI’ve brought one old guitar with me
I’ve left all my photos behindLetting something go and then gaining something new
Does the same cycle repeat itself?When I pretend to be strong, it always leads to dreams
When I let myself be cowardly, they stopAs the train began to move
I cried a little
I hope you enjoyed the songs
One of the frustrations of my love for Japanese ( and other foreign) music is that I can’t understand the words and so have to look for something else to interest me.
Not that I’m big on words anyway, I prefer a song that works as a whole rather than one that’s overtly lyrical.
Thanks for sharing these.
Pairubu!
I hope you are not angry that I used your title!
Singer songwriters are not so everybody’s taste I think so, but I wanted to share these because I love them so much!
Thank you for listening to them!!!
But you can learn Japanese – it is really very easy! My first English teacher in middle school (in joke) told us that English was a dialect of Japanese and in our first lesson taught us all the words we borrowed from English!!! For example…. bīru = beer, hankachi = hanky chief, ōbā = over (like it is over baby!), aisu kurīmu = ice cream…… And there are so many more!!! So you see it is easy!!!!
It really took the fear away from us. He was a great teacher and very kind actually.
Yes, of course I am furious that you dared to steal my words *
One of the things I love most about my ever growing Japanese pop collection is when I’m listening to a song sung in Japanese and all of a sudden something like “Punk Rock” cuts through.
I’m sorry to hear that the Japanese had no handkerchiefs in days of old ( otherwise they would have had a word for them), is that what the big sleeves on the Kimono are for ?
Welsh is similar, in the supermarket in Chepstow the signs are in English and Welsh, the word for toilet is “Toiled” and the word for paper “papur”.
I do worry about that.
* “Joke”.
LOL!!!! The big sleeves on the Kimono are to hide love letters!!!!
Sometimes bands (particularly punk bands) will put in almost random English words and sometimes bands will mix English and Japanese, The band Love Psychedelico do this really nicely.
Here is one of their songs…
http://v.youku.com/v_show/id_XMTkwOTYzODc2.html
Goodbye Days:
“..(she’s) going to break up with a guy that she really likes but has somehow become a friend and not a lover anymore” story of my life there (on the receiving end) even ended up giving my best friend (and ex girlfriend) away on her wedding day in place of her Dad (who wasn’t about)… interesting day for all involved!
Tokyo:
I like your definition of why It means so much, words like “I’ve left all my photos behind… Letting something go and then gaining something new…” is how I’ve lived my life , so can totally relate. I have any number of songs like that in my collection – VERY VERY powerful emotions in my mind, but looking from the outside – they can’t mean as much to others. I guess from your words it’s still traditional to go to the big city and grow up.. standing on your own two feet and all the emotion that brings with it.
A rite of passage song.
These were nice to listen to – but without the context of the lyrics they don’t have a unique hook for me – what I did like is her vocals, some of the Female singers voices from Japan can feel too high pitched for me. (I’ve only listened to the odd screaming Pop hit – so really need to widen my listening…. fascinating as ever.. love your ever developing descriptive powers in English. Wish I could use my OWN language as well as you use it.
Hi Saneshane
I am really pleased you enjoyed the tracks. Oh I am sorry that Goodbye days reminds you unpleasant times! Actually my boyfriend actually started as a friend, who I met when I was 18 and started University, and we were friends for nearly 5 years before we started dating! So you can never really know how or when love will come into your life!
The song Tokyo really sometimes feels like it is the story of my life!!!! I t means so much to me!
Thank you so much for the compliment on my English! It takes me quite some time to write these posts as I really like to check everything carefully before I make a post. I do cheat quite a lot actually, as I write in WORD where i change the language to English and I use the English spell check and grammar check and then I paste in to the comment box, and I use an on line dictionary also.
I tend to try to think in English when I write or speak English because when I try and translate in my mind I sound like Yoda from Star Wars! (Regarding translation between English and Japanese difficult it is!!!).Actually translating between Japanese and English is very difficult as the languages are so different! The other challenge is in Japanese, what is not said, and what is implied, is so important. We have the saying here – say one word and understand five.
For the translations of the song lyrics I used as a basis many of the fan translations that you can find on the internet and then checked and changed if I thought they needed it, by listening to the songs.
I do enjoy writing and reading English so I have a a lot fun here!!!
I am please you liked the songs!!
If I may play “Mr Butinski” here for a mo, I second Shane’s compliment to your English ( he says, patronisingly), you do amazingly well and I particularly admire your ability to understand and play with the “jokes” some unkind people sometimes make at your expense.
That, I think , is a very difficult thing to do in a foreign language.
I’ll give you an A*
As to the “implied” words, English can be like that too, I think, especially in conversation. A simple “Really” can mean several things ( either “Really “really” or, if said with raised eyebrows and intonation “Who are you kidding, Buddy ?”).
I have a pet theory that, as “Islanders” we have more in common with Japanese than most people think*
* Except eels, we only eat them here.
Thank you so much for your kind words about my English!!!
I studied English and Performing arts at university and lived for a year in the USA studying also.
I try really hard to keep learning more and to not loose what I know as I really enjoy languages.
I read quite a lot in English and sometimes I listen to the radio on the internet in English mainly BBC Radio 2 as many of the other stations are blocked for outside the UK. And of course now I can practice writing here and on RR!! (I will confess to pouncing on lost tourists at every opportunity also!!)
I think you maybe right about being “Islanders” I always feel more connection with the UK and British people even though I lived in USA. I did enjoy the USA, but it was very difficult sometimes.
I think maybe the Japanese and the British have the same sense of humour, as I do enjoy the jokes!!! (even the octopus and eel ones)
Thank you!
I think you’re right about the humour I love Hard Gay and this is one of my favourites ever ( English or Japanese, they keep vanishing from Youtube though. Episode 10 is one of the most hilarious things I’ve ever seen anywhere).
It is great isnt it!!!! I do love it so much!!!
I listened to YUI in the Dropbox last night without any contextual knowledge. I just enjoyed the music, so thanks for the additional information.
Hi Webcorewebcore!
I am happy you enjoyed the songs!!! Of course for singer songwriters very often the music is not so great, but I think Yui writes good tunes also.
I really am happy you liked her music!!!
Great post Sakura. Goodbye Days is a nice twist on the “You’re Dumped” genre and I think that everyone can relate to it and Tokyo.
I am really pleased you like the post! Thank you so much!!!! I do think that her songs are easy to relate to!
Thanks for this Sakura, I liked what i’d heard and seen on telly of Yui anyway, so it was nice to have a packaged post to put it all together.
“Free My Soul” was the only one knew before (and liked before too!) but “Tokyo” was really great. Simple and honest lyrics (that even I could understand almost all of!) and heartfelt singing. Thanks!
Re: Japanese. Yes, it ain’t as hard as it first seems. You don’t need a subject or even a verb in some sentences and all those lovely katakana words are indeed very handy!
But to get all the nuances, as in any language, it takes a lot of hard work and full immersion, i’m still learning American English as I come across so much of it over here, but I can’t quite get all the nuances and meanings!
Me and Mrs Panther usually use Japanese with each other at home and when we go out with friends, of course it’s all Japanese, and of course that’s how it should be.
About the implied nature of the unsaid in Japanese, yes, true, but I was thinking about this just the other day and in a lot of ways, Japanese and Japanese people are a lot more direct in speech and speak more readily about their emotions. For example, if you are scared, you can say in Japanese “kowai!” (“i’m scared”), but in English, that would be really weird. We might say afterwards, that we WERE scared, but at THAT time, we wouldn’t declare our emotion at that moment to everyone…..hmmm…..anyway, I was just forming a theory in my head the other day, what do you think? I’m probably completely way off the mark as usual!
p.s. your English is great by the way!
Me again ! Mr Buttinski.
It’s a subject I find fascinating. My personal ( stress the “personal” here) theory is that no matter how hard we try we can never really grasp the subtle nuances of other people’s way of speaking/thinking and that the differences go down to family and even personal level ( very few people understand what the Hell I’m on about most of the time).
National differences are even more profound. There was an interesting piece here http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-13545386 on a similar topic.
Personally I’m glad about that, I love the differences and think they should be celebrated, with cake and a fizzy drink and balloons.
It would be an awfully “grey” world without surprises.
Pairubu and Panthersan
I really found the article you linked to interesting! I think the differences are so fascinating! I think that may be one reason I could often feel uncomfortable in the USA was that they speak so loudly and have such big gestures (and Americans all seem so big to me) that I felt quite intimidated at times. But of course this was really not the intention at all.
I had never noticed about expressing emotions like you say Panthersan, but I think you are right! It is a very interesting thought!!!
Interesting, I found Americans, at times, came across pretty as quite aggressive ( not all of them, obviously) and, dare I say it, rude. Which, I think, was due mainly to their way of expressing themselves rather than any real antipathy.
I think the schools are attempting to change our attitude to expressing emotions a bit, my daughter has come out with a few rather startling ( to an Englishperson) things which she claims they said she should do.
I’m very much against this. I want her to grow up “properly” English, reticent, sexless, tea drinking and misanthropic, like my ancestors have been for centuries, not some kind of tree hugging hippy.
I’ll admit that when she came out with “You’ve hurt my feelings” my response was “So what ?”
I am a very unkind Dad.
Well, as an American i’ll throw 2 cents in here fwiw. I credit the American “aggressiveness”, dead seriously, to not having a class system. Of course we have a class system, but not that kind. We’ve never had royalty or peerages, so we’ve never had to tug forelocks or doff caps or bow or curtsy. We also don’t have the reverence of the elderly like some Asian countries do. So everyone gets an opinion, and and equal right to express it, for better or worse. We don’t really have to censor ourselves for anyone unless we choose to.
Arguing is kind of sport here. One of my friends was saying the other day that it’s weird how people don’t get that about us – we can disagree, not terribly respectfully. Fight like animals then pack it in and have a beer afterwards with no hard feelings. And continue to like each other a lot.
On the other hand, we tend to say “please” and “thank you” a lot. When we get on and off the bus, when someone serves us our coffee, etc. I don’t know if this is common elsewhere. They say we’re a friendly lot.
The Guardian will tell you that Americans don’t do irony. You’ll find that many on CiF take that at face value, and consequently miss an awful lot. There’s a sort of pitch black, deadpan humor with some here. It’s kind of fun to go off on a riff saying exactly the opposite of what you mean, then sit back and watch the fallout. How do other Americans recognize when someone is taking the piss? We recognize it as over the top, where someone from another culture will swallow the stereotype whole.
disclaimer -
That’s just the perspective of one American here. Others may have a completely different take on it.
Hi Amylee!
I do hope so that you did not think I was criticising the Americans.
I only really wanted to comment on the differences in culture and language. I just think the US body language and way of speaking is very challenging for Japanese people as it is so different from ours.
I hope you are not offended!
Not at all, we don’t get offended easily! It just that we seem to be a bit of a mystery to some older cultures.
Oh poor Ubette!!!
How could you???? But I am sure she loves you even if you hurt her feelings!!
Ummm…..I am not sure you can teach people to express emotion in school, I think it is a character thing either you do express feelings or not…….maybe….I need to think about it.
The English are not misanthropic!!!
@pairubu
You made me spill my tea with your description of how you want your daughter to grow up properly English!
Also struggling with the language barrier, not a problem if the tune is the focus, but with singer/songwriters it’s usually about the words. So can only really file these under “pleasant”, but that’s on me for not knowing the language.
Like Maki’s Flam posts, it’s great to have to have these cultural insights on the ‘Spill, even if I’m not going to rush out to buy the records. Thanks so much for sharing.
Donds.