Kimi no Heart wa Marine Blue explained

Kimi no Heart wa Marine Blue
Cover:Kimi_no_Heart_wa_Marine_Blue_cover.jpg
Type:single
Artist:S. Kiyotaka & Omega Tribe
Album:River's Island
Length:4:52
Label:VAP
Lyricist:Chinfa Kan
Composer:Tetsuji Hayashi
Producer:Koichi Fujita
Prev Title:Asphalt Lady
Prev Year:1983
Next Title:Riverside Hotel
Next Year:1984

is a single by Japanese band S. Kiyotaka & Omega Tribe released by VAP on January 21, 1984. Produced by Koichi Fujita and written by Tetsuji Hayashi and Chinfa Kan, the song helped the band be "properly recognized as [a band]" after the poor sales of the band's previous single, "Asphalt Lady". It peaked at 12th place on the Oricon Singles Chart.[1]

Background

After the poor sales of the band's previous single, "Asphalt Lady", the production team refocused their efforts on better compositions for future songs including "Kimi no Heart wa Marine Blue". Fujita composed a "sorrowful sound" as well as leaning into the image of the sea that was present in their debut single, "Summer Suspicion".[2]

While recording, Fujita made vocalist Kiyotaka Sugiyama do multiple takes and gave detailed criticisms for every vocal take, telling Sugiyama to "paint a picture" in his head and "be the hero of the story" while singing.[3]

Commercial performance

The single peaked at 12th place on the Oricon Singles Chart and was ranked at 45th place on Oricon's year-end chart.[1] Although never entering the top 10 on the Oricon charts, the song was featured on the shows and ; it peaked at 14th place on The Best Ten before going down to 39th place in the second half of 1984 while it reached 7th place on The Top Ten.[4] Spending 23 weeks on the Oricon charts, the single helped the band's sophomore album, River's Island, double its sales from the previous album, Aqua City.

Performances and other usage

The song was used as the theme song for the TBS show, starring Ken Utsui and running from January 10, 1984, to March 27, 1984.[5] The song made its debut on the Fuji TV show on April 9, 1984. The song is one of Sugiyama's most self-covered songs during live performances after becoming a solo artist.[3]

Charts

Year-end charts

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 杉山清貴&オメガトライブのランキング情報. ja. Oricon.
  2. Web site: 世界が求めた日本の哀愁. ja. August 1, 2023 . Nikkei.
  3. Web site: 杉山清貴「『君のハートはマリンブルー』レコーディングは何度もダメ出し」. August 29, 2016. Smart Flash. ja.
  4. Book: Suzuki, Susie. February 2017. 1984年の歌謡曲. East Press. 43. 978-4-7816-5080-7.
  5. Web site: 林哲司さんインタビュー. ja. 3. Nippon TV.