Momoe Yamaguchi

Momoe Yamaguchi 山口 百恵
Born	January 17, 1959 (1959-01-17) Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan
Occupation	Singer, actress
Years active	1973 (1973)–1980 (1980)
Spouse	Tomokazu Miura (1980–present)

Momoe Yamaguchi (山口 百恵, Yamaguchi Momoe, born January 17, 1959) is a former Japanese singer, actress, and "idol" whose career lasted from 1972 to 1980, when she became one of the most famous singers in Japanese music. She withdrew from the entertainment business to marry her frequent costar, actor Tomokazu Miura. She still commands public interest with constant inquiries about her coming back.

Biography

Early life and career

Yamaguchi was born in Tokyo, Japan in 1959. Not long afterwards she was left in the care of her maternal grandparents. At around four she was returned to her parents and the family then moved to Yokohama. Her father soon left, and her mother became a single parent to her two daughters, Momoe and her younger sister Toshie. The family moved once again to Yokosuka, where they would stay until Momoe rose to stardom.

At the end of 1972, Yamaguchi appeared on the "idol" talent search television show Star Tanjō! at the age of 13. She sang "Kaiten Mokuba" (回転木馬, meaning "Merry-go-round"), originally a hit for Yumi Makiba (牧葉ユミ) earlier that year. Though she finished second, she still received several deals, and chose a contract with Hori Productions.

Her first single, "Toshigoro" (としごろ), coupled with her first movie of the same title, did not fare very well in the charts, peaking at a low 37 on the oricon. But her second single "Aoi Kajitsu" (青い果実) peaked at number 9. Japanese pop culture historians have accredited its success to its suggestive lyrics. The chorus goes "You can do what ever you want with me; it's OK if rumors spread that I'm a bad girl" (Japanese: あなたが望むなら、私何をされてもいいわ。いけない娘だと噂されてもいい anata ga nozumu nara, watashi nani o sarete mo ii wa. ikenai musume da to uwasa sarete mo ii).

These suggestive songs were written for her by her production company. One of her biggest hits was her 5th single "Hito natsu no Keiken" (ひと夏の経験, meaning "an experience one summer"), which includes lyrics like "I'll give you the most precious thing a girl has" (あなたに女の子の一番大切なものをあげるわ Anata ni onna no ko no ichiban taisetsu na mono o ageru wa) and "Everyone experiences it at least once, the sweet trap of seduction" (誰でも一度だけ経験するのよ　誘惑の甘い罠, dare demo ichido dake keiken suru no yo, yūwaku no amai wana).

Rising popularity

With increasing popularity, Yamaguchi gained more control over her career and was able to select her own songwriters. One of her choices was Ryudo Uzaki, because she liked his song "Secret Love", recorded by the Down Town Boogie Woogie Band. This resulted in her biggest-selling single, "Yokosuka Story" (横須賀ストーリー) in 1976, written by Uzaki with lyrics by his wife, Yoko Aki. It sold more than 600,000 copies and peaked at number one on the charts. This was the beginning of a lasting collaboration with the husband and wife songwriting team. Songs were also written for her by writers such as Masashi Sada, who wrote one of her most popular hits, "Cosmos" (秋桜, kosumosu). Her songs from this later period, such as "Ii Hi Tabidachi", and "Sayonara no Mukō Gawa" are covered frequently.

Her popularity as a singer was paralleled by rising success in a series of films and television programs. Her second film, Izu no Odoriko (based on a story by Yasunari Kawabata), paired her with actor Tomokazu Miura, chosen because he had previously done a commercial for Glico with her. Though Yamaguchi was just 14, and Tomokazu was 22, they hit it off and had great screen chemistry. They starred together in a total of 14 of her 17 movies, one every winter and summer. In 1980, their last film brought them back to a work by Kawabata, Koto (古都 The Old Capital), based on the novel of the same title.

By the end of her career, Yamaguchi's music had become very much more sophisticated than the "idol" songs of the early part. Because she wanted to make a rock song before she ended her career, Uzaki and Aki wrote "Rock 'n Roll Widow" for her, which was included on the concept album Moebius's Game (メビウス・ゲーム). Her 21st album, Phoenix Densetsu (不死鳥伝説), was written as a rock opera. Her 12th and 18th albums, Golden Flight and L.A. Blue, were recorded in London and Los Angeles respectively, using local musicians and production staff.

When her television series were broadcast in China in the 1980s, she also became hugely popular as an actress there, with the Akai series of television dramas achieving viewing figures of 100% on Chinese television at the time. In China she is known as "Shan Kou Bai Hui", based on the Chinese pronunciation of her kanji name. According to a 2000 poll by the "News Station" news magazine programme, she was the Japanese person known most widely among the Chinese. In the 1980s, Chinese-language versions of some of her songs, such as Manjushaka, were released by Hong Kong star Anita Mui. In 2011, another Hong Kong star, Joey Yung released a song entitled 山口百惠 (using the Chinese version of her name in kanji).

Marriage and retirement

With the on-screen romances between Yamaguchi and Tomokazu Miura, an off-screen romance grew. During a trip to Hawaii in early 1979, Tomokazu proposed to Yamaguchi. She accepted, and she also said that she would retire from the entertainment industry to marry him. Yamaguchi announced their relationship at a concert in October 1979, and the announcement about their marriage date and her retirement was made in March 1980. Within eight months after the announcement, she gave her farewell concert at the Nippon Budokan on October 5, 1980, released her last album This is my trial on October 21, 1980, and released her last single "Ichi E" (一恵) on November 19, 1980. She also wrote the lyrics to this song under the pen name "Kei Yokosuka", and continued to write a few songs for a while after retirement, such as Ann Lewis's La Saison from 1982.

In her autobiographical book, Aoi Toki, she claimed that she disliked repeatedly singing the same songs. She also admitted in an interview at the time of retirement that she disliked the Japanese show business world and did not want to continue working as a singer or an actress. She also stated that she wanted to stop working to devote all her time to the wellbeing of her husband.

On October 15, 1980, Yamaguchi officially retired from show business, and on November 19, 1980, the pair were married. Though rumors circulated after her retirement that she would come back, she devoted herself to being a homemaker and mother to two sons since retirement. Her husband, Tomokazu Miura, continued to work as an actor after her retirement, even though his career up to then had mostly consisted of playing romantic leads in her films and television series. Despite her retirement, she is a regular topic of gossip magazines, and suffered considerable difficulty in attending school events for her children due to television crews and photographers, who sometimes used deception to gain access. Fans have frequently been found hanging around her residence, and in at least one case a fan has even broken into her house.

Her two sons, Yutaro and Takahiro Miura, both also entered careers in entertainment. Her hobby is quilt making and she exhibits her quilts under her married name, "Momoe Miura". In a November 2011 television interview, Ryudo Uzaki said that she still receives a healthy income from record royalties. Her biographical book Aoi Toki sold over three million copies.

Discography

Studio albums

The following list gives the studio albums recorded during her career. Several live albums as well as many compilations were also released.

Romanized title	Original title (if not romanized)	Translation or note on title	Date of release
Yamaguchi Momoe Fāsuto Arubamu: Toshigoro	山口百恵ファーストアルバム　としごろ	Momoe Yamaguchi's first album: "Toshigoro" (adolescence)	21 August 1973
Yamaguchi Momoe Sekando Arubamu "Aoi Kajitsu" / "Kinjirareta Asobi"	山口百恵セカンドアルバム　青い果実／禁じられた遊び	Momoe Yamaguchi's second album "Unripe fruit" / "Forbidden play"	21 December 1973
15-sai no Tēma: Momoe no Kisetsu	１５才のテーマ 百恵の季節	Theme for a 15-year-old: The season of Momoe	21 April 1974
15-sai no Tēma: Hito Natsu no Keiken	１５才のテーマ ひと夏の経験	Theme for a 15-year-old: An experience one summer	1 August 1974
15-sai	１５才	Fifteen years old	10 December 1974
16-sai no Tēma	１６才のテーマ	Theme for a sixteen year old	1 May 1975
Sasayaka na Yokubō	ささやかな欲望		5 December 1975
17 sai no teema	１７才のテーマ	Theme for a seventeen-year-old	21 April 1976
Yokosuka Sutōrī	横須賀ストーリー		1 August 1976
Pāru-karā ni Yurete	パールカラーにゆれて	In pearl colours	5 December 1976
Momoe Hakusho	百恵白書	Momoe's white paper	21 May 1977
Golden Flight			21 August 1977
Hana Zakari	花ざかり	A flower in bloom	5 December 1977
Cosmos / Uchū	COSMOS／宇宙	Although the song is about a flower, this puns the meaning with uchū (the universe)	1 May 1978
Doramachikku	ドラマチック	Dramatic	1 September 1978
Hatachi no Kinenbei Manjushaka	二十歳の記念碑 曼珠沙華	A monument for a twenty year old: Manjushaka	21 December 1978
A Face in a Vision			1 April 1979
L. A. Blue			1 August 1979
Harutsugedori	春告鳥	Bird of spring	1 February 1980
Möbius's Game	メビウス・ゲーム	(The romanization is as written on the album.)	21 May 1980
Fenikkusu Densetsu	不死鳥伝説	Legend of the Phoenix	21 August 1980
This is My Trial			21 October 1980

Singles

• Toshigoro ("Adolescence") (としごろ, 21 May 1973)
• Aoi Kajitsu ("Blue fruit") (青い果実, 1 September 1973)
• Kinjirareta Asobi ("Forbidden play") (禁じられた遊び, 21 November 1973)
• Haru Kaze no Itazura ("Spring wind's tease") (春風のいたずら, 1 March 1974)
• Hito Natsu no Keiken ("An experience one summer") (ひと夏の経験, 1 June 1974)
• Chippoke na Kanshō ("Tiny Sentiment") (ちっぽけな感傷, 1 September 1974)
• Fuyu no Iro ("Winter Colors") (冬の色, 10 December 1974)
• Mizuumi no Kesshin ("Resolution at a lake") (湖の決心, 21 March 1975)
• Natsu Hiraku Seishun ("Youth starts in summer" 夏ひらく青春, 10 June 1975)
• Sasayaka na Yokubō ("Modest desire") (ささやかな欲望, 21 September 1975)
• Shiroi Yakusoku ("White promise") (白い約束, 21 December 1975)
• Ai ni Hashitte ("Running to love") (愛に走って, 21 March 1976)
• Yokosuka Story (横須賀ストーリー, 21 June 1976)
• Pearl-Color ni Yurete ("Swaying in Pearl-color") (パールカラーにゆれて, 21 September 1976)
• Akai Shōgeki (theme to television series "Akai Shogeki") (赤い衝撃, 21 November 1976)
• Hatsukoi Sōshi ("First love storybook") (初恋草紙, 21 January 1977)
• Yumesaki Annainin ("Dream guide" 夢先案内人, 1 April 1977)
• Imitation Gold (イミテイション・ゴールド, 1 July 1977)
• Cosmos (秋桜, 1 October 1977)
• Akai Kizuna (Red Sensation) (Theme to television series "Akai Kizuna") (赤い絆 (レッド・センセーション), 21 December 1977)
• Otomeza Kyū ("The Constellation Virgo") (乙女座宮, 1 February 1978)
• Playback part 2 (プレイバックpart 2, 1 May 1978)
• Zettai Zetsumei ("Stalemate") (絶体絶命, 21 August 1978)
• Ii Hi Tabidachi ("Leaving on a good day") (いい日旅立ち, 21 November 1978)
• Bi Silent ("Be silent")(美・サイレント, 1 March 1979)
• Ai no Arashi ("Storm of love")(愛の嵐, 1 June 1979)
• Shinayaka ni Utatte ("Supple singing") (しなやかに歌って, 1 September 1979)
• Aizenbashi ("Bridge of love") 愛染橋, 21 December 1979)
• Shanikusai ("The carnival") (謝肉祭, 31 March 1980)
• Rock 'n' Roll Widow (ロックンロール・ウィドウ, 21 May 1980)
• Sayonara no Mukō Gawa ("The other side of goodbye")(さよならの向う側, 21 August 1980)
• Ichie (一恵, 19 November 1980)

Covers

Her songs are regularly covered by other performers. Ayako Fuji regularly performs Yamaguchi songs, and released an "enka" version of her hit Manjushaka in 2003. Cosmos has been covered by many artists, including its creator, Masashi Sada, as well as Akina Nakamori. Imitation Gold was covered by Tak Matsumoto with Mai Kuraki in 2003. In 2004, a tribute album Yamaguchi Momoe Toribyuto Thank You For... appeared of Yamaguchi covers by singers such as Masaharu Fukuyama, Sowelu, and Hiromi Iwasaki. A second volume, Yamaguchi Momoe Toribyuto Thank You For ... Part 2, with more covers, came out in 2005.

In English, in 1991 The Nolans released an album of songs entitled "Playback Part 2" containing well-known Yamaguchi songs with English lyrics. (The lyrics are rewritten and not translations of the originals.) This was repackaged and re-issued as "Sings Momoe" or "Momoe 2005" in 2005. These albums were sold only in Japan.

Screen appearances

Films

• Toshigoro (としごろ)
• Izu no Odoriko (伊豆の踊子) (film version of the short story The Dancing Girl of Izu by Yasunari Kawabata).
• Shiosai (潮騒)
• Onechan Ote Yawaraka ni (お姐ちゃんお手やわらかに) (as herself)
• Hana no Kou Ni Trio Hatsukoi Jidai (花の高２トリオ 初恋時代)
• Zesshō (絶唱) (1975)
• Eden no Umi (エデンの海)
• Kaze tachinu (風立ちぬ)
• Shunkinshō (春琴抄)
• Doro darake no Junjō (泥だらけの純情)
• Masako, Junko, Momoe - Namida no Sotsugyō Shiki Shuppatsu (昌子・淳子・百恵 - 涙の卒業式 出発)
• Kiri no Hata (霧の旗)
• Furimukeba Ai (ふりむけば愛)
• Honō no Mai (炎の舞)
• White Love (ホワイト・ラブ)
• Tenshi o Yuwaku (天使を誘惑)
• Koto (1980)

Television

• Kao de Waratte (顔で笑って)
• Genka TV Shōsetsu "Akari no Urumu Koro" (銀河テレビ小説 「灯のうるむ頃」)
• Akai Meiro (赤い迷路)
• Akai Giwaku (赤い疑惑)
• Akai Unmei (赤い運命)
• Akai Shōgeki (赤い衝撃)
• Akai Kizuna (赤い絆)
• Hito wa Sore wo Scandal to Iu (人はそれをスキャンダルという)
• Yamaguchi Momoe Intai Kinen Special Drama "Akai Shisen" (山口百恵引退記念スペシャルドラマ「赤い死線」)

See also

• Notes on lyrics of "Hito Natsu no Keiken" from Japanese Wikipedia.
• Akai series, from Japanese Wikipedia.

External links

• Sony Music Japan | Yamaguchi Momoe
• Momoe World (in Japanese)
• Momoe Yamaguchi at the Internet Movie Database