Takahashi Yuichi – Tooi Machi (English Lyrics)

遠い街
Distant Town

In a distant town, surrounded by mountains, stands an old gas station
Day after day, waiting for customers, the man there works away

Unconcerned with the oil and sweat sullying his hands
He simply smokes his cigarette

In the scorching afternoon heat, he opens the half-broken faucet
Cool water spraying against his tanned, brawny arms

In a nursery school, near the gas station, is where his lover works
She yearns for the big city; says it’s her dream to live there

She would always tell him
“Let’s leave this place together!”

Not saying a word, he would light his cigarette
Always a hint of sadness on his face, removing his glasses

Staying here would ruin them, she would insist
Him, always just quietly listening, wiping his glasses

Dust blowing in the dry wind across the road
Today, just as every other day, he heads to work

Even if everyone else was to go, leaving him in his lonesome
He alone would remain in this town, no matter what

Her feelings grow distant — she gives up on the halfhearted man
And one morning, she quits her job and gets on a long-distance bus

As they parted the man spoke
“Think of me when you get lonely”

Dust blowing in the dry wind across the road
The bus, with her inside, vanishes into the distance

While everyone else abandons this place, leaving it behind
He alone would remain in this town, living there forever

Today, just as every other day, he lights his cigarette
Only a hint of sadness on his face, removing his glasses

Even if everyone else was to go, leaving him in his lonesome
He alone would remain in this town, no matter what

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Takahashi Yuichi – Yume (English Lyrics)


Dream

That night I had a dream
One I just can’t forget, try as I might

On the stage of a small pub
A man held his guitar
As he sang his song

A sad song about trying to stop his lover from leaving
He kept singing it over and over again
It’s like he was singing about me
And when I thought of you, it hurt so much

Trying to catch a glimpse of his face
It would only blur like paint

I couldn’t even hear his voice as he sang
And yet I found myself singing along
Dreams can be so strange…

A sad song about trying to stop his lover from leaving
He kept singing it over and over again
It’s like he was singing about me
And when I thought of you, it hurt so much

The dream ends, but since you’re no longer here
I’d have preferred to just keep dreaming
A sad song about trying to stop his lover from leaving
And it’s me who’s singing

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Takahashi Yuichi – Ano Natsu no Companion (English Lyrics)

あの夏のコンパニオン
Summer Companion

That summer at my part-time gig
I saw you and your long hair and I was in love

I remember us sneaking out the shop
Walking endlessly on the beach

“When summer ends and we stop seeing each other
You’re going to forget about me”
Oh, how sad you looked
That summer evening

Since then, I’ve come back to this town
Once or twice I even got in touch, but…

With the cold wind blowing outside my window
I was yearning for someone by my side

“When summer ends and we can’t see each other anymore
Even then don’t forget about me”
Oh, how lonely you looked
That summer evening

Summer ended and we stopped seeing each other
Sure enough, it feels like I’m about to forget you
You begin to vanish into the scenery
Summer days growing distant
Summer days fading away

That summer… That love…
That summer… That you…

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Takahashi Yuichi – Summer Holiday (English Lyrics)

サマー・ホリデー
Summer Holiday

Here at last, it’s summer holiday
Let’s go out, just the two of us
Wind so alluring — Lovers on a Beach
Holiday of my dreams

Setting up the parasol, I turned around to look
You were so dazzling, I had to close my eyes
Embraced by a feeling of pure happiness
Watching you playing in the waves

Here at last, it’s summer holiday
Let’s go out, just the two of us
Play the cassette — Dreamin’ on the Beach
Holiday of my dreams

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Minuano “Love Logic” Reissue With English Lyrics

I’m very excited to announce the CD reissue of Minuano‘s first album, Love Logic, on August 22, featuring English lyrics of all songs on the album.

This special reissue is available on Shopify and Bandcamp.

The lyrics were translated by yours truly, and I had the pleasure of spending hours upon hours thoroughly discussing them with Minuano’s main architect and songwriter Ogata Takero, painstakingly going through each and every line to make sure the English lyrics would accurately portray the original vision of the beautiful Japanese lyrics.

Now, just in case you weren’t previously familiar with Love Logic

Minuano’s debut album, first released in 2009, features influences from MPB, soft rock, jazz, and city pop, reshaping them into a unique soundscape blending romance and ennui, with the whispered vocals of Sakakibara Kaori (Lamp) as the icing on this cake of aural tapestry.

Lemon Elegy,” a fleeting fusion of the vibrancy of Brazilian jazz and the sentimentality of Japanese lyricism. “Soleil,” with its MPB-esque key changes and a sense of melancholy towards a summer nearing its end. The bossa nova of “A Mischievous Wind,” also featuring vocalist Nagai Yusuke (Lamp). The scaled-down soft rock piece “Rain-Colored Diary” which truly makes one see the raindrops…

A total of 10 songs, capturing in vivid detail these fragments of a world in motion.

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