YUKI – Playball/Sakamichi no Melody
UPDATE (May 4, 2012): Bump for release week.
UPDATE (April 4, 2012): Jacket art added.
UPDATE (March 13, 2012): More release details added.
YUKI will be performing the Sakamichi no Apollon OP, entitled “Sakamichi no Melody [trans: Sakamichi's Melody].
Title: Playball / Sakamichi no Melody [Regular Edition]
Price: Y971 (Y1020 Tax incl.) [USD $11.65]
Release Date: May 2, 2012
Details: Sakamichi no Melody is composed and arranged by Yoko Kanno, lyrics by YUKI.
Purchase from CDJapan.
Title: Playball / Sakamichi no Melody [with DVD, Limited Edition]
Price: Y1429 (Y1500 Tax incl.) [USD $17.14]
Release Date: May 2, 2012
Details: Sakamichi no Melody is composed and arranged by Yoko Kanno, lyrics by YUKI. This edition includes a bonus DVD with promotional footage and a sticker featuring an illustration of the anime.
Purchase from CDJapan.
Source: natalie.mu
March 12th, 2012 at 4:33 pm
And there’s our definitive proof that she’s composing original songs for this anime
March 12th, 2012 at 6:24 pm
A couple retailers list “TBA / YUKI” with a 5/2 release.
Limited Edition CD+DVD: ESCL-3895~6
Price: 1500 yen
Regular Edition CD: ESCL-3897
Price: 1020yen
March 12th, 2012 at 6:30 pm
Well, we won’t have to wait much!
March 12th, 2012 at 7:08 pm
Nice, thanks for the information
March 13th, 2012 at 2:37 am
There’s a great piece of news in this article: the anime will be broadcasted starting from April 12, in 1 month exactly!
March 13th, 2012 at 7:47 am
Wow, this Yuki is without doubt one of the most popular singers Kanno has written songs for (if not the most popular), did some looking around and she’s achieved some pretty crazy sales in past http://www.generasia.com/wiki/Joy_%28YUKI_album%29 :O
I listened to bunch of her songs and the familiarity of her voice was bothering me great deal before I realized she’s from the band that did Rurouni Kenshin’s first OP!!!
Her voice is certainly…unique, though to be honest I’ve never been all that much into numerous j-pop singers with such “nasal” vocal quality. Having said that if the song is anything at all like one for Rurouni Kenshin I’m going to enjoy it ^__^
Looking forward to it and other songs too (that this pretty much confirms)
March 13th, 2012 at 10:38 am
@Yy – gosh I knew I missed out something important in the article!
March 13th, 2012 at 10:40 am
@Xard – yes that’s right, she’s been raking in sales for a while now. No terribly big hits ala SMAP or AKB48, but popular enough to cause a LOT of fuss over at music communities.
March 13th, 2012 at 10:53 am
…..OMG. YUKI AND YOKO KANNO?!! My mind is melting. I have been following YUKI since hearing Judy and Mary in high school. They made me learn Japanese. OOOH! I hope it is good >.< YUKI's cute, raspy voice with Yoko Kanno? love.
March 18th, 2012 at 2:41 am
“I am very happy to be given a chance to talk about the opening song. Thank you.
It was the summer break of my first year in high school.
I had formed a band with some girls in my class, and I had just sung at a live performance.
It was an experience I had never felt before that filled my body with excitement.
Wishing that time would stop and remain in that moment, I would go to the practice room that I had gotten special permission to use after school and mess around as the sun set.
My first encounter with music felt like the excitement from a first love.
Like the characters in ‘Sakamichi no Apolon’ my life will always walk hand-in-hand with music.
Yoko Kanno’s song, thrilling yet sentimental and at a speed almost falling-over-itself, works perfectly with my vocals to express the shock and happiness I had when I first discovered music. I hope it suits the animation.
On a side note, the author’s name is the same as mine, so it seems like it was destined to be.”
-Yuki’s comment (http://www.noitamina-apollon.com/08music/index.html)
March 19th, 2012 at 5:29 am
Thanks for the translation!
I didn’t know the singer YUKI, I listened to some of her works from her different bands, and I don’t like it a lot. I’m curious of what Yoko Kanno will write for her for the opening of Sakamichi no Apollon!
April 8th, 2012 at 1:31 pm
Tracklist also out for this one, not much to report other than the lengths and info for the first song.
Play Ball = 4:33
Composer: Hidenori Tanaka / Arrange: YUKI, Kenji Tamai, Rui Momota / Lyrics: YUKI
Sakamichi no Melody = 4:43
April 8th, 2012 at 1:39 pm
Thanks again
May 4th, 2012 at 6:48 am
The full version is quite good: the first 1’30” are almost exactly the same as in the TV version then the arrangement is quite different and takes a whole different way.