On Your Mark (song)

Last updated
"On Your Mark"
Single by Chage and Aska
from the album Heart
A-side "Heart / Natural / On Your Mark"
ReleasedAugust 3, 1994
Genre Pop, rock
Length19 minutes 28 seconds
Label Pony Canyon Inc.
Songwriter(s) Ryō Asuka
Producer(s) Chage & Aska and Go Yamazato
Chage and Aska singles chronology
"You can not go back to why""On Your Mark""Love Affair"

On Your Mark is a song by the Japanese rock duo Chage and Aska. The song was released in 1994 as part of the single Heart. It became a million selling hit single upon its release and has been performed in concert by the duo. The song has been included on a variety of their albums. Originally written with Japanese lyrics an English language adaptation was created and released under the title Castles in the Air. It was notably performed by Chage and Aska during their recorded MTV Unplugged session, the first such session by an act from Asia.

Contents

In 1995 a music video was created by Studio Ghibli. Hayao Miyazaki wrote and directed the animated short film as a side-project after having writer's block with Princess Mononoke . The short film, with the title Ghibli Experimental Theater On Your Mark was played in concert in June 1995 and had a theatrical release in July together with Whisper of the Heart .

Song

On Your Mark is an original song created and released by the Japanese duo Chage and Aska. The music and lyrics were written by Aska. The original lyrics were written in Japanese. [1] The title is based on the sports term on your mark, get set, go, a phrase used for the duo's 15th anniversary releases in 1994 and other promotional materials since then. The lyrics of the song were inspired by the lifestyle of the Japanese bubble economy. On August 3, 1994, the song was released as the third track on the Heart, Natural, On Your Mark Mini CD single for the Pony Canyon label. It reached number 1 on the Oricon Singles Chart upon its release. More than 1.1 million copies have been sold. [2] [3]

On Your Mark was used as the theme song for the 1994 "American Festival". [4] The 1994 Festival was an event held, to reinforce Japan-U.S. ties, marking the 150th anniversary of the Convention of Kanagawa establishing Japan–U.S. relations. [5] [6]

Releases

On Your Mark was first released as the third track on a CD single also featuring the songs Heart and Natural and appeared on the album Code Name. 2 Sister Moon. The song was included on several compilation albums. For the Japanese market on Chage and Aska Very Best Roll Over 20th and for international markets on Greatest Hits, The Best and Asian Communications. [4]

Live performances and recordings

‘’On Your Mark’’ was first performed live in concert at their fan club meeting, held at the Makuhari Messe in Chiba, for the Concert Tour '95~'96 Super Best 3 Mission Impossible on June 29, 1995 and continues to be included on set lists for Chage and Aska live performances. It has been recorded live and appears on their 25 Anniversary live album Chage and Aska Concert Tour 2004 - Two Five. Footage from the tour has been released on DVD and Blu-ray.

The original lyrics were written in Japanese. On July 8, 1996, a song with the same original music track but with English lyrics, credited to Aska and Ervin Bedward, was released under the title Castles in the Air on the album One Voice: The Songs of Chage and Aska. A compilation of their songs performed by the duo and other artists, including Maxi Priest featuring Shaggy, Lisa Stansfield, Chaka Khan, Michael Hutchence, Alejandro Sanz, Cathy Dennis, Apache Indian, Boy George, Richard Marx, Londonbeat, Marianne Faithfull and Wendy Matthews. Created with executive producer Safta Jaffery, released by EMI outside Japan for the international market. Castles in the Air was among the songs performed live for a recorded MTV Unplugged session, the first MTV Unplugged session by an act from Asia, released on CD, VHS and DVD. [7] [8] [9]

Credits

Vocals were performed by Chage and Aska with Tōru Hasebe on drums, Chiharu Mikutsuki on bass, Takumiichi Korenaga on acoustic and electric guitar, strings by Joe Strings. The synthesizer sound designer was Nobuhiko Nakayama. Taisuke Sawachika, who was the musician on acoustic piano and keyboards, also did the arrangement for the song. It was released on the Pony Canyon label.

Music video

In 1994 Chage and Aska, through their agency Real Cast and the record company Pony Canyon, approached Studio Ghibli for the creation of a promotional video. The collaboration resulted in the animated short film Ghibli Experimental Theater On Your Mark . The film has been shown on stage at their concerts and had a theatrical release together with the animated Ghibli feature Whisper of the Heart .

Related Research Articles

<i>MTV Unplugged</i> Music program aired by MTV

MTV Unplugged is an American television series on MTV showcasing musical artists usually playing acoustic instruments. The show aired regularly from 1989 to 1999 and less frequently from 2000 to 2009, when it was usually billed as MTV Unplugged No. 2.0. Since 2009, MTV Unplugged specials have aired occasionally, sometimes online only. Episodes and specials have tended to showcase one artist or group, playing a combination of their hit songs and covers.

<i>On Your Mark</i> 1995 music video directed by Hayao Miyazaki

Ghibli Experimental Theater On Your Mark is an animated music video created by Studio Ghibli for the song "On Your Mark" by the Japanese rock duo Chage & Aska. The song was released in 1994 as part of the single "Heart". In 1995, Hayao Miyazaki wrote and directed the short film for the song as a side-project after having writer's block with Princess Mononoke. The anime music video is non-linear, providing multiple reiterations and alternate scenes to depict the events. The music video added sound effects to the audio track, but contains no dialogue. Miyazaki purposely misinterpreted the lyrics to present his vision of a world where the surface becomes inhospitable and humans live in an underground city. He made the video cryptic to evoke creative interpretations among viewers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">On a Plain</span> 1991 promotional single by Nirvana

"On a Plain" is a song by American rock band Nirvana, written by vocalist and guitarist, Kurt Cobain. It is the 11th track on their second album, Nevermind, released in September 1991.

Chage and Aska (チャゲ&飛鳥) were a Japanese popular music duo composed of male singer-songwriters from Fukuoka Prefecture: Chage and Aska. To date they have sold over 31 million albums and singles in Japan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Toshio Suzuki (producer)</span> Japanese producer

Toshio Suzuki is a Japanese film producer of anime and a long-time colleague of Hayao Miyazaki, as well as a co-founder and the president of Studio Ghibli. Suzuki is renowned as one of Japan's most successful producers after the enormous box office success of many Ghibli films.

<i>Kiss Unplugged</i> 1996 live album by Kiss

Kiss Unplugged is a live album by the American rock band Kiss, released in 1996. It was recorded in studio for the television program MTV Unplugged and released as part of a series of live and video albums. It is the first Kiss live album that is not part of the Alive! series.

<i>Best: Second Session</i> 2006 greatest hits album by Koda Kumi

Best: Second Session is the second greatest hits album released by Japanese pop-R&B singer Koda Kumi. It was released in March 2006 and contained all of her singles used in her 12 Singles Collection. It charted at number 1 on the Oricon charts, making it her second album to reach the spot, and stayed on the charts for 78 weeks.

Lead is a Japanese hip-hop dance and vocal group, initially formed under the name Rhymix in Osaka, Japan in March 2002. They went through two name changes before debuting as "Lead" in May 2002 under the Pony Canyon sub-label Flight Master. The group consists of Shinya Taniuichi, Keita Furuya, Akira Kagimoto and, formerly, Hiroki Nakadoi.

Aska, Ryo Aska or Ryō Asuka is a Japanese singer-songwriter.

KinKi Kids is a Japanese duo consisting of Koichi Domoto and Tsuyoshi Domoto under the talent agency Johnny & Associates. KinKi Kids was formed in 1993 and officially debuted on July 21, 1997. With more than 30 million physical copies sold, they are one of the best selling boy groups in Asian history and top 20 best-selling artists of all time in Japan. Although the members share the same surname, the only relation they have to each other is that they both hail from the Kinki region, hence the duo's name.

"Say Yes" is a Japanese single by Chage and Aska, released by Pony Canyon on July 24, 1991. The song was used as a theme of the Japanese television drama 101 kaime no Propose. It was regarded as a wedding song.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Welcome to the Edge</span>

"Welcome to the Edge" is a song by American singer-songwriter Billie Hughes, from his 1991 album of the same name. Written by Hughes, Roxanne Seeman, and Dominic Messinger, the single was released in Japan by Pony Canyon on May 15, 1991, under the title "Todokanu Omoi".

<i>Welcome to the Edge</i> (album) 1991 studio album by Billie Hughes

Welcome to the Edge is the second solo studio album by American singer-songwriter Billie Hughes, released in Japan by Canyon International on June 12, 1991. The title track was released as a single titled "Todokanu Omoi" and was used as the theme song of the Fuji TV drama series I'll Never Love Anyone Anymore. The song became the No. 1 International Single of the Year in Japan in 1992.

<i>Whisper of the Heart</i> 1995 Japanese animated film directed by Yoshifumi Kondō

Whisper of the Heart is a 1995 Japanese animated romantic drama film directed by Yoshifumi Kondō and written by Hayao Miyazaki based on the 1989 manga of the same name by Aoi Hiiragi. It was animated by Studio Ghibli for Tokuma Shoten, Nippon Television Network and Hakuhodo. The film stars Yoko Honna, Issei Takahashi, Takashi Tachibana, Shigeru Muroi, Shigeru Tsuyuguchi and Keiju Kobayashi.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Short films by Studio Ghibli</span> Short films by Japanese animation studio Studio Ghibli

Studio Ghibli is a Japanese animation film studio founded in 1985. In addition to producing 18 feature films, the studio has produced several short films, including commercials, films for the Ghibli Museum, music videos, and works released directly to video.

<i>Debut Live</i> 2004 live album by Björk

Debut Live is a live album by Icelandic singer Björk. While featuring live versions of songs from Debut, the album does not feature the songs as performed during the Debut Tour from 1993–1994. Instead the majority of the CD comes from an acoustic performance of Debut on the MTV Unplugged television program. Originally released in the 5 disc Live Box set in 2003, Debut Live was later released separately on 1 June 2004 by One Little Indian records.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jaguar Line</span> 1994 single by Shizuka Kudo

"Jaguar Line" is a song recorded by Japanese singer Shizuka Kudo, from her ninth studio album, Expose. It was released through Pony Canyon as the album's second and final single on July 21, 1994.

<i>Rin</i> (album) 2017 studio album by Shizuka Kudo

Rin is the seventeenth studio album by Japanese singer Shizuka Kudo. It was released a day shy of Kudo's 30th anniversary, on August 30, 2017, through Pony Canyon. The album marks Kudo's first studio album in over twelve years and includes nine original songs written by Japanese singer-songwriters Koji Tamaki, Tak Matsumoto and Kaori Kishitani, among others. it also features various collaborations with veteran songwriters, including lyricist Gorō Matsui, a long-time collaborator of Kudo's, as well as with new talent, such as Niconico utaite Mafumafu, the singer-songwriter duo Yoshida Yamada and first-time songwriter and author Shizuka Ijūin, while Kudo serves as the album's executive producer.

<i>D404ME</i> 1985 studio album by Akina Nakamori

D404ME is the eighth studio album by Japanese singer Akina Nakamori. It was released on 10 August 1985 under the Warner Pioneer label. The album includes renewed version of the smash hit "Meu amor é...".

<i>Bitter and Sweet</i> (Akina Nakamori album) 1985 studio album by Akina Nakamori

Bitter and Sweet is the seventh studio album by Japanese singer Akina Nakamori. It was released on 3 April 1985 under the Warner Pioneer label. The album includes a renewed version of the No. 1 single "Kazari ja Nai no yo Namida wa".

References

  1. ↑ "Lyrics: On Your Mark". Oricon (in Japanese). Retrieved January 4, 2014.
  2. ↑ Chage and Aska ヒストリ [Chage and Aska History]. Oricon (in Japanese). Retrieved January 6, 2014.
  3. ↑ "History 1994". Official Website Chage and Aska. Retrieved January 4, 2014.
  4. 1 2 "Discography: On Your Mark". Official Website Chage and Aska. Retrieved January 4, 2013.
  5. ↑ "Torch July 9, 1994". Smithsonian. July 10, 2010. Archived from the original on January 16, 2014. Retrieved January 16, 2014.
  6. ↑ "American Enterprise: Team". American Enterprise. Retrieved January 16, 2014.
  7. ↑ "Discography: Castles in the Air". Chage and Aska. Retrieved January 4, 2013.
  8. ↑ Billboard. June 22, 1996.
  9. ↑ Hahn, Lorraine (December 14, 2005). "Chage & Aska Talkasia Transcript". CNN. Retrieved January 4, 2013.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.