Eyes on Me (Faye Wong song) explained

Eyes on Me
Cover:FayeWong-EyesOnMe.jpg
Caption:"Eyes on Me" CD single cover
Type:single
Artist:Faye Wong
Album:Sing and Play
B-Side:Red Beans
Released:February 24, 1999
Genre:Pop
Label:Toshiba-EMI
Composer:Nobuo Uematsu
Lyricist:Kako Someya

"Eyes on Me" is a song by Chinese recording artist Faye Wong as a love theme for the video game Final Fantasy VIII. It was released on February 24, 1999, as the first Final Fantasy pop ballad. The song was composed by Nobuo Uematsu with English lyrics written by Kako Someya.

Background and release

The song was released as a CD single in Japan on February 24, 1999. The B-side was a ballad, "Red Bean", composed by Jim Lau with Mandarin lyrics by Lin Xi. The Japanese title for it was . It had been included in Faye Wong's 1998 album Sing and Play, along with a Cantonese version "Repayment", and was popular in its own right. "Eyes on Me" was re-released on a 18 cm vinyl record on November 3, 2017.[1]

Composition

"Eyes on Me" was composed by Nobuo Uematsu with English lyrics by Kako Someya.[2] It was the first pop ballad song in the Final Fantasy series.[3] It was performed by singer Faye Wong.[3] The main theme of Final Fantasy VIII was used for the song's melody.[3]

Reception

Critical reception

Square Enix Music Online writer Dave felt "Eyes on Me" was both "overhyped and overcriticized" since it was "ultimately a replica". He called it "enjoyable, fitting, [and] beautiful", though also "unremarkable". In 2020, Lisa Cam of the South China Morning Post listed the song as one of Faye's best, noting it had been a "matter of national pride" that she had performed the end theme for "arguably one of the most popular RPGs of the 1990s".[4]

Commercial performance

Upon the song's release in Japan, it placed number one on the Oricon Western Singles Chart for 19 consecutive weeks, and generated lifetime sales of over 500,000 copies,[5] [6] placing it as the best-selling video game music disc ever released in Japan until the release of "Hikari" by Utada Hikaru for Kingdom Hearts.[7] In 2000, it was the first song in video game history to win an award at the 14th Annual Japan Gold Disc Awards, where it won "Song of the Year (Western Music)".[8] [9] [10]

The song was popular among the video game community in the Western world, and brought Faye Wong to the attention of many who were not previously familiar with her music.[11] In 2017, Brian Ashcraft from Kotaku described "Eyes on Me" as one of the most iconic songs of the Final Fantasy franchise, as well as one of the most commercially successful singles associated with the video game industry.[1]

Theme song in the game

Near the end of the production of Final Fantasy VII, the developers suggested to use a singer, but abandoned the idea due to a lack of reasoning based on the game's theme and storyline.[12] However, Nobuo Uematsu thought a ballad would closely relate to the theme and characters of Final Fantasy VIII. This resulted in the game's developers sharing "countless" artists, eventually deciding on Faye Wong, a Chinese vocalist. Uematsu claims "her voice and mood seem to match my image of the song exactly", and that her ethnicity "fits the international image of Final Fantasy". After negotiations were made, "Eyes on Me" was recorded in Hong Kong with an orchestra.[13] IGN claimed that she was reportedly paid $1 million US dollars for her work.[14]

The lyrics, written in imperfect English,[15] unveil the hopes of a night club singer for romance with a member of her audience. Within Final Fantasy VIII, the song is written by Julia Heartilly, a pianist who is a love interest of Laguna Loire.[16] It is heard repeatedly throughout the game in various incarnations as an instrumental piece, including a version entitled Julia. Its full version is heard during a pivotal moment between Squall Leonhart and Rinoa Heartilly—the main protagonists—on board the Ragnarok. An orchestrated version of the theme plays once more during the game's ending.

Covers and other versions

A happy hardcore remix was recorded for the 2000 Dancemania compilation Speed 4,[17] and on the Dancemania Speed Best 2001 of the Dancemania Speed series.[18] There is another dance remix of the song made by Almighty, later included on the Japanese release of Wong's 2000 album Fable, Dancemania X5,[19] and Dancemania Diamond Complete Edition (Millennium Hits Collection).[20]

In 2004, a Japanese version sung by Manami Kiyota titled with lyrics by Kazushige Nojima was included on Final Fantasy Song Book: Mahoroba.[21] The original song was also covered by Angela Aki for release on her 2006 single "Kokoro no Senshi", with minor grammatical changes.[22] In an Excite Japan interview, Aki said Uematsu had told her that her version 'shed light on "Eyes on Me"'.[23] Covers by Kanon and Susan Calloway were also created. The singer MayBee covered a Korean language version of the song.

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (1999)Peak
position
Japan (Oricon)[24] 9
Japan Western Singles (Oricon)1
Taiwan (IFPI)[25] 1

Year-end charts

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: For The First Time, Final Fantasy 8's 'Eyes On Me' Will Be Sold On Vinyl . August 25, 2017. Brian. Ashcraft. Kotaku Australia.
  2. Web site: Final Fantasy VIII - Eyes on Me . Square Enix . September 20, 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160305072942/http://www.squareenixmusic.com/lyrics/ff8/eyesonme.shtml . March 5, 2016 . dead.
  3. Web site: Final Fantasy VIII: Eyes on Me - Faye Wong :: Review by Dave . Square Enix Music Online . Dave . June 20, 2023.
  4. Web site: Cam . Lisa . August 7, 2020 . Cantopop diva Faye Wong’s 18 best songs . March 14, 2024 . . en.
  5. Web site: ja:プレスリリース エキサイトと東芝EMIが共同で、 『エキサイト"フェイ・ウォン"スペシャルサイト』開設. July 7, 2001. Excite.co.jp. November 21, 2004. https://web.archive.org/web/20041121124929/http://www.excite.co.jp/pr/release/detail/010724_FayeWong@excite.dcg. dead.
  6. Web site: Greening. Chris. Square Enix Album Sales. Square Enix Music Online. August 5, 2011.
  7. Web site: Square Enix USA site staff . Nobuo Uematsu's Profile . Square Enix USA . March 17, 2006 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20090312044802/http://www.square-enix-usa.com/uematsu/profile/index.html . March 12, 2009.
  8. Web site: Walt Disney Concert Hall - Nobuo Uematsu. Walt Disney Concert Hall. March 15, 2007. https://web.archive.org/web/20080322072539/http://www.laphil.com/music/artist_detail.cfm?id=1895. March 22, 2008. dead.
  9. http://www.riaj.or.jp/e/data/gdisc/2000.html Japan Gold Disc Award 2000
  10. Web site: http://www.riaj.or.jp/data/others/gdlist/pdf/gd1-20_list.pdf . ja:ゴールドディスク大賞受賞者一覧 . ja . Recording Industry Association of Japan. List of Gold Disc Awards . 7. February 15, 2012.
  11. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/music/4177006.stm The changing musical tastes of China
  12. Web site: Mielke . James . February 15, 2008 . A Day in the Life of Final Fantasy's Nobuo Uematsu . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20130207072140/http://www.1up.com/do/feature?pager.offset=0&cId=3166165 . February 7, 2013 . August 5, 2008 . 1UP.com.
  13. Maeda, Yoshitake (1999). Final Fantasy VIII Original Soundtrack (Limited Edition). DigiCube.
  14. Web site: IGN . January 7, 1999 . Pop Star Fantasy . May 16, 2022.
  15. Web site: Final Fantasy VIII: Eyes on Me - Faye Wong . October 11, 2009 . Square Enix Music Online . a prime example of Engrish.
  16. Raine: "Then the first song she released was 'Eyes On Me'?" / Laguna: "H-How does the song go?" / Raine: "You don't know?" / Laguna: "Well, you never let me hear it!" / Raine: "I didn't think you listened to music. The song's about being in love... I really like it". (Final Fantasy VIII)
  17. [Discogs]
  18. [Discogs]
  19. [Discogs]
  20. [Discogs]
  21. http://www.universal-music.co.jp/mahoroba/index.html Mahoroba track list
  22. Web site: Angela Aki/Kokoro no Senshi . March 27, 2007 . Neowing.
  23. Web site: March 6, 2005 . Interview . https://web.archive.org/web/20080410183533/http://www.excite.co.jp/music/closeup/0601/angela.dcg . April 10, 2008 . December 4, 2010 . Excite.co.jp . ja.
  24. Web site: Eyes on Me | フェイ・ウォン.
  25. Web site: Taiwan Top 10 Singles . IFPI Taiwan . April 5, 2024 . https://web.archive.org/web/19991224030756/http://ifpi.org.tw/chart/1999/single19.htm . December 24, 1999 . zh . May 23, 1999.