Suīto Karorain?
April 17, 2012 2:46 AM Subscribe
Who would be considered the Neil Diamond of Japan? I'm looking for a (slow) song for my husband to sing at our first karaoke outing. We're in Japan, and this karaoke night will be full of students from our work's Japanese and English classes. Everyone will sing a song in their "opposite" language. I've picked a Yumi Matsutoya song for myself.
Are you looking for enka? When I was in Aomori, old guys would always ask if I knew the famous Tsugaru song, and then proceed to sing it even though it is by a female singer (津軽海峡・冬景色, male singer, karaoke)
Everyone knows this one: 上を向いて歩こう (Ue o Muite Arukō or Sukiyaki)
This is so easy to remember, even with little Japanese: ゲゲゲの鬼太郎
Another song people know: 世界に一つだけの花
This song is medium-fast, but it has a pretty regular beat, which makes it easy to sing: キセキ
リンダリンダ is fast, but doesn't have many lyrics. Also, it has the easiest chorus ever.
リンダリンダ is probably your best choice if you want a "Sweet Caroline" style singalong.
posted by betweenthebars at 4:13 AM on April 17, 2012 [1 favorite]
Everyone knows this one: 上を向いて歩こう (Ue o Muite Arukō or Sukiyaki)
This is so easy to remember, even with little Japanese: ゲゲゲの鬼太郎
Another song people know: 世界に一つだけの花
This song is medium-fast, but it has a pretty regular beat, which makes it easy to sing: キセキ
リンダリンダ is fast, but doesn't have many lyrics. Also, it has the easiest chorus ever.
リンダリンダ is probably your best choice if you want a "Sweet Caroline" style singalong.
posted by betweenthebars at 4:13 AM on April 17, 2012 [1 favorite]
For a sing-a-long, you really can't go wrong with what betweenthebars recommended, 上を向いて歩こう (Ue o Muite Arukō). It's a great song, nearly everyone in Japan knows it. It's slow, so if he can read furigana and katakana, he's got a fighting chance. On the other hand, you could easily find some lyrics in romaji and just bring them in.
posted by Ghidorah at 6:29 AM on April 17, 2012 [1 favorite]
posted by Ghidorah at 6:29 AM on April 17, 2012 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: Thanks for the tips, people! We can read hiragana and katakana. I easily found the Yumi Matsutoya lyrics in romaji, and am doing a little homework following along with the YouTube video. I'll bring the romaji lyrics with me to karaoke night so I don't have to rely entirely on the machine's screen. Hubby can do the same with the song he chooses.
posted by dmvs at 4:23 PM on April 17, 2012
posted by dmvs at 4:23 PM on April 17, 2012
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Does your husband speak or read Japanese? Just a heads up, but every karaoke machine I've ever seen here only displays song lyrics in Japanese (usually in kanji, and often without furigana pronunciation guides).
Have fun!
posted by Kevtaro at 3:50 AM on April 17, 2012