"Sukiyaki" by Kyu Sakamoto |
"It is like releasing ‘Moon River’ in Japan with the title ‘Beef Stew.'” -- Newsweek Magazine |
| After hearing Kyu Sakamoto sing his #1 hit in Japan in 1962, Louis Benjamin, an executive with the British label Pye Records, had his group Kenny Ball & his Jazzmen record an instrumental version of "Ue O Muite Aruki." But since the title was too difficult for the English audience, he renamed it after his favorite Japanese dish, sukiyaki. When a Washington state disc jockey played Sakamoto's version under the British name, it took off. In June it reached the top of the charts and held the position for three weeks. "Sukiyaki" wasn't the first foreign language song to succeed on the American charts. Notable Elvis Era predecessors were: "Nel Blu Dipinto Di Blu" by Domenico Modugno in 1958 (#1), "Morgen" by Ivo Robic in 1959 (#13), "La Bamba" by Ritchie Valens in 1959 (#22), "Sailor" by Lolita in 1960 (#5), and of course, also in 1963, "Dominique" by The Singing Nun (#1). "Sukiyaki" would return to the charts in 1981 when A Taste of Honey made it a #3 hit (with different, English lyrics), and then by 4 P.M. in 1994 (#8). Kyu Sakamoto died in a Japan Airlines plane crash in 1985. |
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LYRICS:
Ue o muite arukou
Namida ga kobore naiyouni
Omoidasu harunohi
Hitoribotchi no yoru
Ue o muite arukou
Nijinda hosi o kazoete
Omoidasu natsunohi
Hitoribotchi no yoru
Shiawase wa kumo no ueni
Shiawase wa sora no ueni
Ue o muite arukou
Namida ga kobore naiyouni
Nakinagara aruku
Hitoribotchi no yoru
Whistling
Omoidasu akinohi
Hitoribotchi no yoru
Kanashimi wa hosino kageni
Kanashimi wa tsukino kageni
Ue o muite arukou
Namida ga kobore naiyouni
Nakinagara aruku
Hitoribotchi no yoru
Translation:
I look up as I walk
So that the tears won't fall
Remembering those those spring days
But I am all alone tonight
I look up as I walk
Counting the stars with tearful eyes
Remembering those summer days
But I am all alone tonight
Happiness lies beyond the clouds
Happiness lies up above the sky
I look up as I walk
So that the tears won't fall
Though the tears well up as I walk
For tonight I'm all alone tonight
(whistling)
Remembering those autumn days
But I am all alone tonight
Sadness lies in the shadow of the stars
Sadness lurks in the shadow of the moon
I look up as I walk
So that the tears won't fall
Though the tears well up as I walk
For tonight I'm all alone
(whistling) |
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| week debuted |
highest ranking |
Date Highest Rank |
Weeks in Top Twenty |
Weeks in Top Forty |
BillBoard Rank |
Cashbox Ranking |
GT rank |
| 1962 8 11 |
1 |
1962 9 1 |
9 |
11 |
22 |
38 |
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