Long Season

Last updated
Long Season
Fishmans Long Season.jpg
Studio album by
ReleasedOctober 25, 1996 (1996-10-25)
RecordedJuly 1996
Studio
  • Vivid Sound
  • Hawaii Studio Ver2.1
  • Little Bach
Genre
Length35:16
Label Polydor
Producer
  • Fishmans
  • ZAK
Fishmans chronology
Kuchu Camp
(1996)
Long Season
(1996)
Uchu Nippon Setagaya
(1997)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svg [1]

Long Season (stylized in all caps; subtitled ...we are not four seasons) is the sixth studio album by Japanese musical group Fishmans. It was first released on October 25, 1996 in Japan by Polydor Records. [2] It was recorded in July 1996 and consists of a single 35-minute composition based on the band's earlier song "Season". The album was released to modest success in the Japanese alternative scene, but was scarcely known outside Japan until the 2010s, and has since garnered critical acclaim and online media attention. Fishmans performed the entire Long Season album as one piece during their final live shows in December 1998, a recording of which was included on the album 98.12.28 男達の別れ .

Contents

Background

The idea for Long Season developed from a chat between the members of Fishmans. They wanted to create a one-song album instead of a standard track-by-track album like their previous efforts. Several recording sessions were held, with the band composing the album's sole song "Long Season" by building upon their earlier song "Season", which had been released as a single in 1996. Fishmans and co-producer ZAK developed ideas for the album at their studio Waikiki Beach and made detailed edits. There were episodes in which ZAK would "shed blood from his eyes" from viewing computer monitors for too long. [3]

Fishmans invited a number of guest musicians to assist in the recording of Long Season. The band were again joined by frequent collaborator Honzi (keyboards, violin), as well as J-pop singer MariMari, whom Fishmans would frequently perform alongside in the years following the album's release. Long Season would also be the first Fishmans album to feature Michio "Darts" Sekiguchi as a guest guitarist. He would go on to play with the band until their final concert. Singer UA contributed vocals to the album.

Track listing

The album consists of one 35-minute-long composition, which has been split up into five parts on multiple issues.

All tracks are written by Shinji Sato

Original Digipak CD
No.TitleLength
1."Long Season" (part 1)8:43
2."Long Season" (part 2)5:24
3."Long Season" (part 3)6:33
4."Long Season" (part 4)4:47
5."Long Season" (part 5)9:49
Total length:35:16
2012 limited edition CD and streaming
No.TitleLength
1."Long Season"35:16
Total length:35:16
2016 limited edition vinyl LP
No.TitleLength
1."Long Season" (parts 1–3)20:40
2."Long Season" (parts 4–5)14:36
Total length:35:16

Personnel

Credits adapted from the album's liner notes.

Charts

2016 reissue

Chart (2016)Peak
position
Japanese Albums (Oricon) [4] 100

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fishmans</span> Japanese pop band

Fishmans are a Japanese band formed in 1987 in Minato, Tokyo. They are known for their unique psychedelic sound and the distinctive vocals of the late lead singer Shinji Sato, as well as the drum playing of Kin-Ichi Motegi and rocksteady basslines of Yuzuru Kashiwabara. Fishmans remained relatively underground and disbanded with the sudden death of Shinji Sato in 1999, but later accumulated an international cult following largely driven by their popular acclaim on internet discussion boards. In a 2019 article for The Japan Times, James Hadfield wrote that their albums Aerial Camp and Long Season "are now undisputed landmarks in the Japanese rock canon."

<i>Image</i> (album) 1992 studio album by Luna Sea

Image is the second studio album by Japanese rock band Luna Sea, released on May 21, 1992. It is their major label debut on MCA Victor, reached number nine on the Oricon Albums Chart, and charted for 14 weeks. In 2000, it was certified Platinum by the RIAJ for sales over 400,000.

Kome Kome Club is a Japanese pop rock band formed in 1982 which achieved commercial success by blending soul and funk musical styles. They also use the style of rakugo.

<i>Atomic Heart</i> (album) 1994 studio album by Mr. Children

Atomic Heart is the fourth studio album by Japanese rock band Mr. Children, released in September 1994. The album features two successful lead singles "Cross Road" and "Innocent World".

<i>Versus</i> (Mr. Children album) 1993 studio album by Mr. Children

Versus is the third, and second full-length album, by Japanese rock band Mr. Children released on September 1, 1993. The album debuted on the Japanese Oricon music charts at #3 and sold 802,140 copies during its run on the chart. Just like the previous two albums, Versus contains only one single released on July 1, 1993, titled "Replay" with another album track "And I close to you" also being included in Mr. Children's fourth single "Cross Road". Versus also marked the first time use of Takeshi Kobayashi as a writer and composer for Mr. Children.

<i>Everything</i> (Mr. Children album) 1992 studio album by Mr. Children

Everything, is the seven-track EP recorded by Japanese pop rock band Mr. Children, released under the record label Toy's Factory in May 1992. It has generally been considered their first studio album.

<i>Shin-shiro</i> (album) Album by Sakanaction

Shin-shiro is the third studio album by Japanese band Sakanaction. It was released on January 21, 2009 through Victor Entertainment. The release was the band's first album after relocating to Tokyo and moving to Victor Entertainment's main roster. Led by the singles "Sen to Rei" and "Native Dancer", the album became the group's first release to chart in the top 10 albums on Oricon's weekly album chart.

<i>Oiro Naoshi</i> 1985 studio album by Miyuki Nakajima

Change is the 12th studio album by Japanese singer-songwriter Miyuki Nakajima. It was released in April 1985. The album comprises nine tracks originally written for other singers, including "Kamome wa Kamome," which is known as one of the signature songs for Naoko Ken, and "Sparrow (Suzume)", which became the sole top-ten charting solo single for ex-Pink Lady member Keiko Masuda.

<i>Okaerinasai</i> (album) 1979 studio album by Miyuki Nakajima

Okaerinasai (おかえりなさい) is the sixth studio album by Japanese singer-songwriter Miyuki Nakajima, released in November 1979.

<i>Mind Travel</i> 2011 studio album by Superfly

Mind Travel is the third studio album by Japanese pop-rock band Superfly, the first studio album from the group fronted by Shiho Ochi in nearly two years. The record features guest musicians from Beat Crusaders, Losalios, and Mo'Some Tonebender, and the limited edition version of the album includes a DVD with 10 music videos from songs on the album. The album will be supported by Superfly's "Mind Traveler" national tour.

<i>Beautiful World</i> (Arashi album) 2011 studio album by Arashi

Beautiful World is the tenth studio album of the Japanese boy band Arashi. The album was released on July 6, 2011, in Japan under their record label J Storm in two editions: a limited edition version with a 48-page booklet and a regular CD version with a 32-page booklet. The album debuted at number-one on the Oricon weekly album chart, selling 631,000 copies, making it their third consecutive album to reach sales of more than half a million copies. As of December 2011, the album has sold more than a million copies. According to Oricon, Beautiful World is the best-selling album of 2011 in Japan. It was released digitally on February 7, 2020.

<i>98.12.28 Otokotachi no Wakare</i> 1999 live album by Fishmans

98.12.28 Otokotachi no Wakare is the third and final live album by Japanese dub band Fishmans. It documents the band's final live performance with frontman Shinji Sato. The show was recorded and filmed at Akasaka Blitz on December 28, 1998, and was first released on September 29, 1999, by Polydor Records in Japan. The album title roughly translates to "A Farewell of Men: December 28th, 1998", a reference to the tour name, and to bassist Yuzuru Kashiwabara's departure from the band and the end of the band's three-piece era. The performance was released on DVD under the name Otokotachi no Wakare 98.12.28 @ Akasaka Blitz in 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kodoku no Akatsuki</span> 2013 single by Ringo Sheena

"Kodoku no Akatsuki" is a song by Japanese musician Ringo Sheena. It was released as one of the A-sides of her 14th single, along with the song "Irohanihoheto", released on May 27, 2013. The release date was the 15th anniversary of the release of Sheena's debut single "Kōfukuron" in 1998.

<i>Hi Izuru Tokoro</i> 2014 studio album by Ringo Sheena

Hi Izuru Tokoro, also known as Sunny, is a fifth studio album by Japanese musician Ringo Sheena released on November 5, 2014 by Universal Music Japan sublabel Virgin Records. It is a compilation studio album compiling singles released since 2009 as well as new compositions.

<i>Kikuuiki</i> 2010 studio album by Sakanaction

Kikuuiki is the fourth studio album by Japanese band Sakanaction. It was released on March 17, 2010, through Victor Entertainment. In January, the album was preceded by the single "Aruku Around", which was met with the greatest commercial success for the band since their debut, reaching number three on Oricon's singles chart. The album was nominated as one of the finalists for the CD Shop Awards, and was lauded by critics for its cohesive sound and literary lyrics. At the time of release, it was their most commercially successful release since their debut, reaching number three in Japan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yoru no Odoriko</span> 2012 single by Sakanaction

"Yoru no Odoriko" is a song by Japanese band Sakanaction. Commissioned by the design school Mode Gakuen for commercials starring Jonte' Moaning, it was released as a single on August 29, 2012. A high tempo song with elements of dance, pop and rock, "Yoru no Odoriko" has a progressive structure that builds for over two minutes before reaching the song's chorus. The band took elements from their previous compositions for the song, in order to create something that would express Sakanaction's entire story to their newly found audience. Critics in Japan responded very positively to the song, believing it showed off an essential identity and style of Sakanaction's music.

C-C-B was a Japanese pop-rock band under Polydor Records label active in the years 1982–1989. At first, they were named CoConut Boys, however in 1985 the name changed to the initials, C-C-B. They became a nationwide success. In 2008, the band reformed once only with three members. The group's biggest hit, "Romantic ga Tomaranai", was used frequently in the Japanese television series Densha Otoko.

<i>Navigator</i> (1986 Omega Tribe album) 1986 studio album by 1986 Omega Tribe

Navigator is the debut album by 1986 Omega Tribe. The album is the most popular release of the band and charted at number 2 on the Oricon chart.

<i>Uchū Nippon Setagaya</i> 1997 studio album by Fishmans

Uchū Nippon Setagaya is the seventh and final studio album by Japanese dream pop band Fishmans, first released 24 July 1997 on Polydor. The album's title roughly translates to Space, Japan, Setagaya.

<i>Gundam Song Covers 3</i> 2022 studio album by Hiroko Moriguchi

Gundam Song Covers 3 is a cover album by Hiroko Moriguchi, released by Sonic Blade on March 9, 2022. The sequel to 2019's Gundam Song Covers and 2020's Gundam Song Covers 2, the album features Moriguchi's versions of 11 popular Gundam theme songs originally recorded by male vocalists. Musicians collaborating with Moriguchi in the album include pianist Kotaro Oshio, violinist Naoko Terai, Japanese choir VOJA, singer-songwriter Mami Ayukawa, guitarist Masayoshi Ōishi, Wagakki Band shakuhachi player Daisuke Kaminaga, pop duo Salt & Sugar, and rock band TM Network. The album cover, illustrated by Tsukasa Kotobuki, features Moriguchi cosplaying as Sayla Mass, with the RX-78-02 Gundam in the background.

References

  1. Simpson, Paul. "Long Season – Fishmans". AllMusic . Retrieved July 6, 2020.
  2. "LONG SEASON | フィッシュマンズ" (in Japanese). Oricon . Retrieved July 6, 2020.
  3. Onojima, Dai (November 5, 2019). "佐藤伸治(フィッシュマンズ)(後編)" (in Japanese). Natalie . Retrieved November 27, 2019.
  4. "LONG SEASON | フィッシュマンズ" (in Japanese). Oricon . Retrieved August 2, 2017.