I enjoy most, if not all of Oh-chan’s solos, his vocals are absolutely amazing, powerful and passionate. He definitely has the voice of an angel, one of the best among in Arashi and JE. Of all of his solo, Rain , ranks as number one on my charts -- impressive and intense lyrics.
Rain Vocals: Ohno Satoshi Lyrics: IntoGroove Music: Peter Bjorklund, Joel Eriksson
Ame no oto hibiku kimi no koe kieta
Juwaki no mukou ni
The sound of rain echoed, your voice disappeared
over the telephone’s receiver.
Kimi wa dare to iru no?
Himitsu wo kakushite
Boku ni suki to iu
Who are you with? I will make it a secret.
Say that you like me.
Kuchibiru wo boku no sore kasane
Osaete dakiyoseru
My lips are sealed.
I suppress my feelings and embrace you. More
To be frank, I am a casual listener of KAT-TUN, there is only three or four songs of theirs that had really impressed me. I really did not expect much when clicking the WMP play button last night, had only downloaded Rescue out of curiosity.
To my surprise, it has became quite an addicting song. Their voices blend in nicely with the highly catchy melody of the song along with the soul-touching lyrics. The English portions are also sang clearly. My only complaint would be the annoying rap in the mist of this harmony; never been fond of it, the only one that I can stand is Arashi’s Sho-kun.
Here are the lyrics:
Ya’ll ready? Listen up!
I’m not scared,
Until my heartbeat’s gone,
I’ll rescue you.
I don’t wanna cry alone
I don’t wanna cry aloneMore
While reorganizing the drama folder on my PC last night and I had came across 君臣情深 (楊麗花歌仔戲). It’s awesome ancient Chinese series with an excellent main cast, highly recommended if you like a good drama. I had always came to a liking to its themesong, 朋友 (Friends), sang by 高向鵬 and 傅振輝. Quite refreshing to hear it again – catchy melody and meaningful lyrics(like its title, it describes the appreciation of friendship, much like the one portrayed between 王文英 and 宋仁宗 in the drama). I am not going to go in-depth regarding 君臣情深; if you’re curious, the synopsis and a list of cast can be found on the TTV website.
After listening to it for the nth time, I had decided to search for the full version of 朋友. Unfortunately, my luck had ran out, not even one file was found. Guess it will have to be the TV version for now. If anyone is so kind to advise where the full version of song can be found, it would be much, much appreciated. I can bake some virtual cookies for you.
I came across a few of 陳亞蘭 (Chen Yar Lan) songs while re-watching Taiwanese opera/歌仔戲. It’s been quite a while, I’d love watching these during my younger days and enjoy them even more now. **Yes, I have weird interests and have godzillion fandoms. These would be the television version (not stage ones); they are not much different from our TV series, except vocals are included, usually to express thoughts and feelings. I’ll touch on 歌仔戲 on a later date.
亞蘭姐 is a well-known Taiwanese actress, mostly famous for her roles portraying male characters (小生) in 歌仔戲. Please note, male leads are usually performed by females due to their singing roles. One of my favorite 歌仔戲小生 aside from her sensei, the infamous 楊麗花 (Yang Li Hua). Her profile can be found here and the 歌仔戲 one here.
Themesongs are usually not attention grabbing at first, but they do grow on you. I’m sure all of you know what I mean. The one for 紅塵奇英 sure did; pretty soon, I was search high and low for the full version. So off I went into cyberspace looking for the singer; to my surprise, it was 亞蘭姐. Had no idea that she had release a three albums; there no doubt she can sing 歌仔戲 (for 20+ year or so), but modern songs too? ? I guess I shouldn’t be surprised since she is quite talented.
放阮一個人 MV
Below are some lyrics of my favorites: 換一個所在住(台視楊麗花歌仔戲《紅塵奇英》片頭曲)
寂寞 惦惦充滿歸房間
阮的目周愈金 愈感覺冷清清
後悔 慢慢凌治阮的心
從今以後袂擱隨便講感情
是什麼原因會凍改變人的眼神
對愛空虛 對情無味 還是對人無信心
應該換一個所在住 無需要外大
只要溫暖 求一個快活
只好換一個所在住 無免定定越頭看
因為一個人的生活卡贏 倆個人為著作伴受情磨 More
To be honest, I am not fond of most of Jun-kun’s solos due to his very nasalized vocals. Yes, shame on me..hehe..but I still love him to bits. However, La Familia is an exception, beautifully written by Jun-kun for Arashi’s Iza Now concert. It’s a heartwarming song that showcases the friendship shared between his band members and the journey taken during the first five years of Arashi. Without a doubt is a wonderful song and always brings a grin to my lips.
Live Performance ~ 2004 Iza, Now Concert
Lyrics: La Familia Vocals & Lyrics: Matsumoto Jun ~ Music: SPIN
Subete wa hawai de hajimari ARASHI ARASHI for DREAM
Haado na mainichi ga tsuzuku naka de minna to kawashita akushu
Chikara ga nakute jibun ga nakute Fuan bakari kakaeteta
Sore demo mienai michi wo mite Hitasura hashitte ita
It all began in Hawaii
A.RA.SHI A.RA.SHI for dream
Clasping hands alternately with everyone,
while keeping up each day’s arduous schedules
Lacking the ability, and cannot find one’s self,
holding in unease the entire day
Still, even if the road ahead is undefined,
Run towards the present with all your strength More
I had always came to a liking to its themesong, 朋友 (Friends), sang by 高向鵬 and 傅振輝. Quite refreshing to hear it again – catchy melody and meaningful lyrics(like its title, it describes the appreciation of friendship, much like the one portrayed between 王文英 and 宋仁宗 in the drama). I am not going to go in-depth regarding 君臣情深; if you’re curious, the synopsis and a list of cast can be found on the 
Guess it will have to be the TV version for now. If anyone is so kind to advise where the full version of song can be found, it would be much, much appreciated. I can bake some virtual cookies for you. 
The one for 
Heya, I am Fiona or Fiona-chan, a 26-ish Chinese-American gal who loves dramas & movies, video games, manga & anime, music, writing, history, all things geek and Japanese. My true indulgences include chocolate, cheesecake, Häagen-Dazs ice cream and Arashi (fangirling since 2008).