Sukiyaki (song): Difference between revisions

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→‎Other versions: WP:SONGCOVER. The Selena one needs to go also, probably.
→‎Selena version: WP:SONGCOVER. Didn't chart; the album might be significant, but the cut isn't.
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===Selena version===
{{Infobox song
| name = Sukiyaki
| cover = Selena - Sukiyaki cover.jpg
| alt =
| type = single
| artist = [[Selena]]
| album = [[Selena (album)|Selena]]
| released = September 13, 1989
| recorded = 1987
| studio =
| venue =
| genre = [[Latin music (genre)|Latin]]
| length = 3:01
| label = [[EMI International|EMI]]
| writer =
* [[Hachidai Nakamura]]|[[Rokusuke Ei]]
* Janice-Marie Johnson
* [[Abraham Quintanilla|Abraham Quintanilla Jr.]] (Spanish lyrics)
* [[Pete Astudillo]] (Spanish lyrics)
| producer = [[A.B. Quintanilla]] III
| prev_title = Contigo Quiero Estar
| prev_year = 1989
| next_title = Mentiras
| next_year = 1989
| misc = {{Audio sample
| type = single
| file = Sukiyaki.ogg
| description = "Sukiyaki" (1989)
}}
}}
"Sukiyaki" ({{lang-en|I Shall Walk Looking Up}}, {{lang-es|Caminaré Mirando Arriba}}), was a single released by [[Selena]] in 1990, which was released as the fourth single from the 1989 album ''[[Selena (album)|Selena]]''. The song received much airplay at the time of release. It was a Spanish-language version of the song, featuring the lyrics written by Janice Marie Johnson translated into Spanish.<ref>{{cite web |title=Have You Heard Selena’s Version of "Sukiyaki"? |url=https://rare.us/entertainment-and-culture/selena-sukiyaki/ |website=Rare |access-date=29 September 2021 |date=16 April 2021}}</ref>

It was released as a single in the United States and Japan. It was included in several of Selena's greatest hits packages before and after her death.<ref>{{cite web |title=Selena – Mis Mejores Canciones • 17 Super Exitos (1993, CD) |url=https://www.discogs.com/Selena-Mis-Mejores-Canciones-17-Super-Exitos/release/3719248 |access-date=29 September 2021 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Selena - Exitos Y Recuerdos |url=https://www.discogs.com/Selena-Selena/master/1053127 |website=Discogs |access-date=29 September 2021 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Selena - Through The Years - A Traves De Los Anos |url=https://www.discogs.com/Selena-Through-The-Years-A-Traves-De-Los-Anos/master/1367418 |website=Discogs |access-date=29 September 2021 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=La Leyenda by Selena |url=https://genius.com/albums/Selena/La-leyenda |website=Genius |access-date=29 September 2021 |language=en}}</ref>


===Other versions===
===Other versions===

Revision as of 23:24, 15 March 2022

"Ue o Muite Arukō"
Single by Kyu Sakamoto
from the album Sukiyaki and Other Japanese Hits (US)
LanguageJapanese
English title"Sukiyaki"
B-side"Anoko no Namae wa Nanten kana"
Released
  • 15 October 1961 (Japan)
  • 1963 (US, UK)
Recorded1961
GenreKayōkyoku[1]
Length3:05
Label
Composer(s)Hachidai Nakamura
Lyricist(s)Rokusuke Ei
Producer(s)Kōji Kusano
Kyu Sakamoto singles chronology
"Kyū-chan Ondo (Sore ga Ukiyo to Iu Mono sa)"
(1961) 		"Ue o Muite Arukō"
(00000002) 		"Model Girl"
(1961)
Audio sample
"Kyu Sakamoto – Sukiyaki"

"Ue o Muite Arukō" (上を向いて歩こう, "I Look Up as I Walk"), alternatively titled "Sukiyaki", is a song by Japanese crooner Kyu Sakamoto, first released in Japan in 1961. The song topped the charts in a number of countries, including the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 in 1963.

The song grew to become one of the world's best-selling singles of all time, selling over 13 million copies worldwide.

Composition

"Ue o Muite Arukō" (pronounced [ɯe o mɯite aɾɯkoꜜː]) was written by lyricist Rokusuke Ei and composer Hachidai Nakamura. The lyrics tell the story of a man who looks up and whistles while he is walking so that his tears will not fall, with the verses describing his memories and feelings. Ei wrote the lyrics while walking home from participating in the 1960 Anpo protests against the U.S.-Japan Security Treaty, expressing his frustration and dejection at the failed efforts to stop the treaty. However, the lyrics were purposefully generic so that they might refer to any lost love.[2][3]

The English-language lyrics of the version recorded by A Taste of Honey are not a translation of the original Japanese lyrics, but instead a completely different set of lyrics arranged to the same basic melody.

English title

In Anglophone countries, the song is best known under the alternative title "Sukiyaki", the name of a Japanese hot-pot dish with cooked beef. The word sukiyaki does not appear in the song's lyrics, nor does it have any connection to them; it was used only because it was short, catchy, recognizably Japanese, and more familiar to English speakers. A Newsweek columnist compared this re-titling to issuing "Moon River" in Japan under the title "Beef Stew".[4]

Well-known English-language cover versions with altogether different lyrics often go by the alternative name or something completely different, including "My First Lonely Night" by Jewel Akens in 1966, and "Sukiyaki" by A Taste of Honey in 1980 (see below). The song has also been recorded in other languages.

Commercial performance

In Japan, "Ue o Muite Arukō" topped the Popular Music Selling Record chart in the Japanese magazine Music Life [jp] for three months, and was ranked as the number one song of 1961 in Japan.

In the US, "Sukiyaki" topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1963, one of the few non-English songs to have done so, and the first in a non-European language. It was the only single by an Asian artist to top the Hot 100 until the 2020 release of "Dynamite" by the South Korean band BTS.[5] "Sukiyaki" also peaked at number eighteen on the Billboard R&B chart,[6] and spent five weeks at number one on the Middle of the Road chart.[7]

Sakamoto's follow-up to "Sukiyaki", "China Nights (Shina no Yoru)", charted in 1963 at number 58. That was the last song by an artist from Japan to reach the US pop chart for 16 years, until the female duo Pink Lady had a top-40 hit in 1979 with its English-language song "Kiss in the Dark".[8]

Internationally, the song is one of the best-selling singles of all time, having sold over 13 million copies worldwide.[9][10]

Charts

Chart (1961–1963) Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[11] 1
Canada (RPM) 1
Japan (Music Life)[12] 1
New Zealand (Lever Hit Parade)[13] 1
Norway (VG-lista)[14] 1
UK Singles (OCC)[15] 6
US Billboard Hot 100[16] 1
US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)[17] 1
West Germany (Official German Charts)[18] 2

Legacy

An instrumental version of the song was played by NASA over the radio for the Gemini VII astronauts as mood music, thereby becoming one of the first pieces of music sent to humans in space.[19]

On March 16, 1999, Japan Post issued a stamp that commemorated the song.[20] The stamp is listed in the Scott Standard Postage Stamp Catalogue as Japan number 2666 with a face value of 50 yen.

In the summer of 2021, the song was performed during the closing ceremony of the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo (which had been postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic).

Covers and variations (as "Sukiyaki")

A Taste of Honey version

"Sukiyaki"
Single by A Taste of Honey
from the album Twice as Sweet
B-side"Don't You Lead Me On"
ReleasedMarch 1981
Recorded1980
GenreQuiet storm[21]
Length3:44
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)George Duke
A Taste of Honey singles chronology
"Rescue Me"
(1980) 		"Sukiyaki"
(1981) 		"I'll Try Something New"
(1982)

Background

A Taste of Honey vocalist Janice-Marie Johnson would recall how at age nine she had heard Kyu Sakamoto's "Sukiyaki" on the radio in the summer of 1963 and said: "Mom! Buy me this record!", as despite not understanding the lyrics she was deeply moved by the song. Constantly playing the single, Johnson phonetically learned its lyrics and taught them to her sister, with the pair participating in neighborhood talent shows singing "Sukiyaki" while performing their approximation of an Oriental dance number.[22] Years later, after A Taste of Honey had scored their 1978 number-one hit "Boogie Oogie Oogie", Johnson heard the Linda Ronstadt hit remake of Smokey Robinson and the Miracles' "Ooo Baby Baby" on her car radio causing Johnson to realize that remaking a 1960s hit could be a good career move for A Taste of Honey, with Johnson's obvious choice for the remake being her beloved "Sukiyaki".[23][24] Johnson contacted the song's Japanese lyricist Rokusuke Ei who provided her with a literal translation of what he had written:[25] as this translation did not yield complete sentences in English, Johnson endeavored to write a new set of lyrics she felt would capture the spirit of the song.[23] To Johnson, it seemed the song's original lyrics had 3 possible interpretations: as the mindset of a man facing execution; as someone trying to be optimistic despite life's trials; or as the story of an ended love affair: Johnson decided; "me being the hopeless romantic that I am, I decided to write about a love gone bad."[26]

According to Johnson, when Cecil Hale, vice-president of Capitol Records, heard her sing the lyrics she had written for "Sukiyaki" in the slow balladic style she envisioned for the track, "he said, 'absolutely not! Black people don't want to hear Japanese music.' I was stunned [having been] so sure he would like it. I looked at him and I said 'Last time I looked in a mirror I was black and I want to hear it.'"[27] Producer George Duke, who was assigned to produce the upcoming A Taste of Honey album Twice as Sweet, shared Hale's lack of enthusiasm. Duke recalled: "'Man, what am I going to do with "Sukiyaki"?' I thought [Johnson] was crazy, but I said 'If that's what she wants to do, I'll do it.'"[28] Johnson would recall Duke, "thought we could do a kind of uptempo version [but] I [saw] it as a love ballad, which is how it was done. [Duke] did a fantastic arrangement."[27] Duke replied, "we did the song and had Clare Fischer do the string arrangement and brought June [Kuramoto] in to give it a Japanese flavor" - Kuramoto being a koto player whom Duke knew from the jazz band Hiroshima - "We added an R&B section, and that was it. It was a simple tune I never thought would become a hit. To this day, I can't believe it was as big a record as it was."[28]

Cecil Hale remained resistant to the track: as late as the master for Twice as Sweet being placed on the disc cutter "Sukiyaki" was omitted, the track only being added to Twice as Sweet before the album's August 1980 release after some eleventh hour negotiations between Johnson and Capitol Records, most essentially that Johnson be disallowed credit or royalties for her new lyrics (Capitol Records held the copyright of the Kyu Sakamoto original).[22][25] After the album's uptempo advance single "Rescue Me" fell short of the R&B chart Top Ten and failed to cross over to the Billboard Hot 100,[29] Johnson urged for "Sukiyaki" to be the next single[28][23] only for Capitol to issue another uptempo track: "I'm Talkin' 'Bout You", which would stall at number 64 on the R&B chart.[29] Capitol did finally afford single release to "Sukiyaki" in January 1981, the track being both serviced to radio and shipped to retail the first week of the year and being re-serviced to radio two weeks later in a promotional package that included a folding fan: in February 1981 - as "Sukiyaki" moved up the R&B chart Top 40 and began charting on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 - Capitol reinforced the single's radio profile by sending out 6000 custom-cut fan-shaped promo copies of "Sukiyaki" to Pop- and R&B-oriented radio stations.[30] The "Sukiyaki" single was packaged in a picture sleeve showing Johnson and her A Taste of Honey partner, Hazel Payne, wearing kimono, and the duo were similarly dressed in their television performances to promote the single. These performances featured a traditional Japanese fan dance by Johnson, while Payne (who was not featured on the recording of "Sukiyaki") played (or in mimed performances appearing to play) June Karumoto's koto part.[31] A number-one hit on both the R&B and A/C chart, "Sukiyaki" crossed over to number three on the Billboard Hot 100 in June 1981.[32][33]

Chart performance

4 P.M. version

"Sukiyaki"
Single by 4 P.M.
from the album Now's the Time
ReleasedSeptember 6, 1994
Recorded1994
Length2:42
LabelLondon (UK)
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • Mauro P. DeSantis
  • Jerry Melillo
4 P.M. singles chronology
"Sukiyaki"
(1994) 		"Lay Down Your Love"
(1995)

4 P.M.'s 1994 a cappella version of "Sukiyaki" reached number 8 on the Billboard Hot 100. The group remade the song—utilizing the English-language lyrics of the A Taste of Honey version—at the suggestion of Next Plateau Records president Eddie O'Loughlin.[45] The 4 P.M. version was also a chart success in Australia (number 3), New Zealand (number 5), and Canada (number 7).

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (1994–1995) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[46] 3
Canada Top Singles (RPM)[47] 7
Canada Adult Contemporary (RPM)[48] 1
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[49] 5
US Billboard Hot 100[50] 8
US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)[50] 17
US Top 40 Mainstream (Billboard)[50] 5

Year-end charts

Chart (1995) Position
Australia (ARIA)[51] 21
Canada Top Singles (RPM)[52] 55
Canada Adult Contemporary (RPM)[53] 40
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[54] 43
US Billboard Hot 100[55] 48

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[51] Platinum 70,000^
United States (RIAA)[56] Gold 500,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

G. H. Hat versions

"Sukiyaki"
Single by G. H. Hat
from the album Sukiyaki Versions
ReleasedApril 13, 2018
Recorded2018
Length4:18
LabelViscount Music
Songwriter(s)
Audio sample
"Sukiyaki feat. Eriko Tamura"

G. H. Hat released 4 original versions of Sukiyaki and 8 remixed versions of these original tracks in April and July 2018, including remixes by Ralphi Rosario and Dinaire+Bissen. All versions are in the Dance Genre and charted on Billboard's Dance Club Songs Top 50 for 10 weeks with a peak position of number 19.[57] The April versions featured US Singer Alina Renae and used the English Language lyrics written by Janice Marie Johnson. The July versions featured Japanese Super Star Eriko Tamura and used the original Japanese lyrics.

Charts

Chart (2018) Peak
position
US Billboard Dance Club Songs Top 50[57][58] 19

Other versions

In 1963, the British record label Pye Records released an instrumental cover version of the song by Kenny Ball and his Jazzmen. They were concerned that English-speaking audiences might find the original title too difficult to remember/pronounce, so they gave it the new title of "Sukiyaki". This title was retained when Capitol Records in the United States, and His Master's Voice (HMV) in the UK, released Kyu Sakamoto's original version a few months later.

Many other artists have recorded cover versions of the song, while others have written and/or performed songs based on the melody.

References

  1. ^ Schanen, Naomi (11 July 2016). "'Sukiyaki' lyricist Rokusuke Ei dies at 83". The Japan Times. Retrieved 22 December 2021.
  2. ^ "Bittersweet At No. 1: How A Japanese Song Topped The Charts In 1963". NPR. 2013-06-28. Retrieved 2017-10-27.
  3. ^ 恒子の昭和: 日本初の女性報道写真家が撮影した人と出来事 [Tsuneko's Showa: People and events taken by Japan's first female news photographer] (in Japanese). 小学館. 2012. ISBN 978-4-09-682066-7.[page needed]
  4. ^ Fred Bronson (2003). "Sukiyaki". The Billboard Book of Number 1 Hits. Billboard Books. p. 141. ISBN 0-8230-7677-6.
  5. ^ Lee, Yoojung; Kim, Sohee (2020-09-30). "K-Pop sensation BTS is heading towards the multi millionaire-mark". The Economic Times. Retrieved 2020-10-25.
  6. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 509.
  7. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2002). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–2001. Record Research. p. 213.
  8. ^ Campion, Chris (2007-09-21). "Unsung Heroes No.2 - Pink Lady". The Guardian. Retrieved 2020-02-27.
  9. ^ 坂本九さん 〜心のふるさと・笠間〜. Kasama Tourist Association (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 2006-07-10. Retrieved 2008-02-20.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) ()
  10. ^ 【85年8月12日】日航ジャンボ機墜落事故…坂本九さん死去. Sports Nippon (in Japanese). Retrieved 2009-12-27. [dead link]
  11. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. Australian Chart Book, St Ives, N.S.W. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  12. ^ "上を向いて歩こう特集 Powerd by MUSIC Imidas - Yahoo! JAPAN". 2014-04-19. Archived from the original on 2014-04-19. Retrieved 2018-10-30.
  13. ^ "flavour of new zealand - search lever". Flavourofnz.co.nz.
  14. ^ "Kyu Sakamoto – Sukiyaki". VG-lista.
  15. ^ "Kyu Sakamoto: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 5 October 2014.
  16. ^ "Kyu Sakamoto Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
  17. ^ "Kyu Sakamoto Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard.
  18. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Kyu Sakamoto – Sukiyaki" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. To see peak chart position, click "TITEL VON Kyu Sakamoto"
  19. ^ https://archive.org/details/Gemini7-6/2042.mp3 (Song plays from 1:19:55)
  20. ^ "わたしの愛唱歌シリーズ第9集郵便切手". Japan Post. 1999-03-16. Retrieved 2008-06-03.
  21. ^ Breihan, Tom (23 May 2018). "The Number Ones: Kyu Sakamoto's "Sukiyaki"". Stereogum. Retrieved May 4, 2021. In 1981, the American duo A Taste Of Honey got to #3 with a lush quiet-storm cover of "Sukiyaki" that really was quasi-racist Orientalist kitsch, at least on some level.
  22. ^ a b "A great song by any other name . ". 2000-03-07.
  23. ^ a b c Los Angeles Times 3 May 1981 "Taste of Honey: sweet, strong" by Dennis Hunt p.83 (Calendar)
  24. ^ "Sukiyaki". Billboard. Vol. 107, no. 3. 21 January 1995. p. 86.
  25. ^ a b "Saved by 'Sukiyaki'".
  26. ^ White, Adam; Bronson, Fred (1993). The Billboard Book of Number One Rhythm & Blues Hits. Highland Park MI: Bpi Communications. ISBN 978-0823082858.
  27. ^ a b Arena, James (2016). Legends of Disco: forty stars discuss their careers. Jefferson NC: McFarland & Company. pp. 112–113. ISBN 9781476664965.
  28. ^ a b c "George Duke: Facing the Music".
  29. ^ a b "A Taste of Honey Songs ••• Top Songs / Chart Singles Discography ••• Music VF, US & UK hits charts".
  30. ^ Cashbox Vol 42 #39 21 February 1981) p.15
  31. ^ "Sukiyaki by A Taste of Honey on Soul Train". Youtube. Archived from the original on 2021-12-22. Retrieved 4 March 2012.
  32. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 566.
  33. ^ "Billboard Hot 100 - June 20, 1981". Billboard.com. 2011-11-19. Retrieved 2011-11-24.
  34. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 305. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  35. ^ "Top RPM Adult Contemporary: Issue 6078." RPM. Library and Archives Canada.
  36. ^ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 0360." RPM. Library and Archives Canada.
  37. ^ "The Official New Zealand Music Chart". Nztop40.co.nz.
  38. ^ "A Taste of Honey Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard.
  39. ^ "A Taste of Honey Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
  40. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2015-06-03. Retrieved 2016-10-16.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  41. ^ "Archived copy". www.collectionscanada.gc.ca. Archived from the original on 20 October 2012. Retrieved 17 January 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  42. ^ "The Official New Zealand Music Chart". Nztop40.co.nz.
  43. ^ "Top 100 Hits of 1981/Top 100 Songs of 1981". Musicoutfitters.com.
  44. ^ "1981 Yesp". Retrieved 2016-07-19.
  45. ^ Billboard Vol 107 #5 (4 February 1995)"They're Playing My Song" by Peter Cronin p.16
  46. ^ "4 P.M. (For Positive Music) – Sukiyaki". ARIA Top 50 Singles.
  47. ^ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 9071." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
  48. ^ "Top RPM Adult Contemporary: Issue 7990." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
  49. ^ "4 P.M. (For Positive Music) – Sukiyaki". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved December 21, 2010.
  50. ^ a b c "Billboard - Music Charts, News, Photos & Video". Archived from the original on February 22, 2011. Retrieved February 23, 2011.
  51. ^ a b "ARIA Top 100 Singles for 1995". ARIA. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
  52. ^ "RPM Top 100 Hit Tracks of 1995". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. December 18, 1995. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
  53. ^ "RPM Top 100 Adult Contemporary Tracks of 1995". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. December 18, 1995. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
  54. ^ "End of Year Charts 1995". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved December 3, 2017.
  55. ^ "Billboard Top 100 – 1995". Billboardtop100of.com. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
  56. ^ "American single certifications – 4 P.M. – Sukiyaki". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
  57. ^ a b "Sukiyaki". Billboard. 2018-06-09. Retrieved 2018-06-09.
  58. ^ "Dance Club Songs". Billboard. June 9, 2018. Retrieved October 12, 2018.
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