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==Overview==
==Overview==
{{Listen
|pos=left
|filename=YMO - Firecracker.ogg
|title="Firecracker"
|description=A sample of "Firecracker". The song was later combined with the "Computer Game" track into a hit single called "Computer Game". It was later sampled by artists such as [[Afrika Bambaata]] and [[Jennifer Lopez]].
|format=[[Ogg]]
}}

The album was intended to be a one-off project for producer and bass player [[Haruomi Hosono]] and the two session musicians he had hired: drummer [[Yukihiro Takahashi]] and keyboard player [[Ryuichi Sakamoto]]. The trio were to recreate [[Martin Denny]]'s 1959 [[exotica]] tune "Firecracker" with modern electronics, as a [[subversion]] of the [[exoticisation]] and [[Orientalism]] of the original tune, along with various original compositions also exploring themes of [[Asian people|Asianness]], exoticisation and Orientalism from a Japanese perspective.<ref name="guardian_ymo">{{cite web|last=Lewis|first=John|title=Back to the future: Yellow Magic Orchestra helped usher in electronica - and they may just have invented hip-hop, too|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2008/jul/04/electronicmusic.filmandmusic11|work=[[The Guardian]]|accessdate=25 May 2011|date=4 July 2008}}</ref> The album also featured the use of a computer in conjunction with a synthesiser, as part of music production, to create a new sound that was not possible until then.<ref name="billboard_1979">{{citation|title=Artists and producers strive for inroads overseas|work=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]|date=26 May 1979|volume=91|issue=20|issn=0006-2510|page=61|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=_iQEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PT61|accessdate=2011-05-29}}</ref> The album would eventually be called ''Yellow Magic Orchestra'', as a satire of Japan's obsession with [[black magic]] at the time.<ref name="guardian_ymo"/> The project proved highly popular, culminating in a career for the three musicians; one that would last until 1983, before successful solo careers and reunions over the decades to come.
The album was intended to be a one-off project for producer and bass player [[Haruomi Hosono]] and the two session musicians he had hired: drummer [[Yukihiro Takahashi]] and keyboard player [[Ryuichi Sakamoto]]. The trio were to recreate [[Martin Denny]]'s 1959 [[exotica]] tune "Firecracker" with modern electronics, as a [[subversion]] of the [[exoticisation]] and [[Orientalism]] of the original tune, along with various original compositions also exploring themes of [[Asian people|Asianness]], exoticisation and Orientalism from a Japanese perspective.<ref name="guardian_ymo">{{cite web|last=Lewis|first=John|title=Back to the future: Yellow Magic Orchestra helped usher in electronica - and they may just have invented hip-hop, too|url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2008/jul/04/electronicmusic.filmandmusic11|work=[[The Guardian]]|accessdate=25 May 2011|date=4 July 2008}}</ref> The album also featured the use of a computer in conjunction with a synthesiser, as part of music production, to create a new sound that was not possible until then.<ref name="billboard_1979">{{citation|title=Artists and producers strive for inroads overseas|work=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]|date=26 May 1979|volume=91|issue=20|issn=0006-2510|page=61|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=_iQEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PT61|accessdate=2011-05-29}}</ref> The album would eventually be called ''Yellow Magic Orchestra'', as a satire of Japan's obsession with [[black magic]] at the time.<ref name="guardian_ymo"/> The project proved highly popular, culminating in a career for the three musicians; one that would last until 1983, before successful solo careers and reunions over the decades to come.


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{{Listen
{{Listen
|pos=right
|pos=right
|filename=YMO - Firecracker.ogg
|filename=YMO - Computer Game.ogg
|title="Firecracker"
|title="Computer Game"
|description=A sample of "Computer Game" from the album. This track was later combined with the "Firecracker" song from the same album into a hit single called "Computer Game". The track [[Sampling (music)|samples]] [[Arcade game|arcade]] [[Video game music|video game sounds]] from ''[[Space Invaders]]'' and ''[[Circus (video game)|Circus]]''.
|description=A sample of "Firecracker" from the 1978 album ''Yellow Magic Orchestra''.
|format=[[Ogg]]
|format=[[Ogg]]
}}
}}


The song "Firecracker" was released as a single twice in the United States, the first time in 1979 as "Firecracker", which became a major [[Contemporary R&B|R&B]] hit in the United States.<ref name="guardian_ymo"/> The following year, it was released again in the United States as the "Computer Game" single, which combined the "Computer Game" and "Firecracker" tracks together. The "Computer Game" single was an ever greater international success, entering the top 20 of the [[UK Single Charts]]<ref name="chartstats_game"/> and selling over 400,000 copies in the United States,<ref name="sarasota">{{cite journal|title=Computer rock music gaining fans|journal=[[Sarasota Journal]]|date=August 18, 1980|url=http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=7s4mAAAAIBAJ&sjid=h44EAAAAIBAJ&pg=4481,2128223|accessdate=2011-05-25|page=8}}</ref> where it was particularly popular with the emerging [[hip hop]] community which appreciated the new electronic sounds and in [[the Bronx]] where it was later sampled by pioneering hip hop artist [[Afrika Bambaataa]] in his famous 1983 debut album ''Death Mix'' (1983).<ref>{{cite book|last=Buckley|first=Peter|title=The rough guide to rock|year=2003|publisher=[[Rough Guides]]|isbn=1843531054|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=7ctjc6UWCm4C&pg=PT908|accessdate=25 May 2011|page=901}}</ref> The song was also sampled in a number of later songs, including [[2 Live Crew]]'s "Mega-Mixx II" (1988),<ref>{{cite web|title=Yellow Magic Orchestra|work=whosampled.com|url=http://www.whosampled.com/sampled/Yellow%20Magic%20Orchestra/|accessdate=2011-05-28}}</ref> [[Warp (record label)|Warp]]'s "[[WarpVision|Testone]]" (1990),<ref>{{citation|title=Techno Rebels|author=Dan Sicko & Bill Brewster|edition=2nd|publisher=[[Wayne State University Press]]|year=2010|isbn=0814334385|page=76|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=h6TNjUt-QrkC&pg=PA76|accessdate=2011-05-28}}</ref> [[Jennifer Lopez]]'s hit song "[[I'm Real (Jennifer Lopez song)|I'm Real]]" (2001), and the original unreleased version of [[Mariah Carey]]'s "[[Loverboy (Mariah Carey song)|Loverboy]]" (2001).<ref>{{cite web|title=Mariah 'Ripped Off' Twice on Same Record|url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,49437,00.html|publisher=[[Fox News Channel|Fox News]]|date=April 4, 2002|accessdate=2011-05-28}}</ref>


The song "Firecracker" was released as a single twice in the United States, the first time in 1979 as "Firecracker", which became a major [[Contemporary R&B|R&B]] hit in the United States.<ref name="guardian_ymo"/> The following year, it was released again in the United States as the "Computer Game" single, which combined the "Computer Game" and "Firecracker" tracks together. The "Computer Game" single was an ever greater international success, entering the top 20 of the [[UK Single Charts]]<ref name="chartstats_game"/> and selling over 400,000 copies in the United States,<ref name="sarasota">{{cite journal|title=Computer rock music gaining fans|journal=[[Sarasota Journal]]|date=August 18, 1980|url=http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=7s4mAAAAIBAJ&sjid=h44EAAAAIBAJ&pg=4481,2128223|accessdate=2011-05-25|page=8}}</ref> where it was particularly popular with the emerging [[hip hop]] community which appreciated the new electronic sounds and in [[the Bronx]] where it was later sampled by pioneering hip hop artist [[Afrika Bambaataa]] in his famous 1983 debut album ''Death Mix'' (1983).<ref>{{cite book|last=Buckley|first=Peter|title=The rough guide to rock|year=2003|publisher=[[Rough Guides]]|isbn=1843531054|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=7ctjc6UWCm4C&pg=PT908|accessdate=25 May 2011|page=901}}</ref> The song was also sampled in a number of later songs, including [[2 Live Crew]]'s "Mega-Mixx II" (1988),<ref>{{cite web|title=Yellow Magic Orchestra|work=whosampled.com|url=http://www.whosampled.com/sampled/Yellow%20Magic%20Orchestra/|accessdate=2011-05-28}}</ref> [[Warp (record label)|Warp]]'s "[[WarpVision|Testone]]" (1990),<ref>{{citation|title=Techno Rebels|author=Dan Sicko & Bill Brewster|edition=2nd|publisher=[[Wayne State University Press]]|year=2010|isbn=0814334385|page=76|url=http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=h6TNjUt-QrkC&pg=PA76|accessdate=2011-05-28}}</ref> [[Jennifer Lopez]]'s worldwide hit "[[I'm Real (Jennifer Lopez song)|I'm Real]]" (2001), and the original unreleased version of [[Mariah Carey]]'s "[[Loverboy (Mariah Carey song)|Loverboy]]" (2001).<ref>{{cite web|title=Mariah 'Ripped Off' Twice on Same Record|url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,49437,00.html|publisher=[[Fox News Channel|Fox News]]|date=April 4, 2002|accessdate=2011-05-28}}</ref>




===Chart positions===
===Chart positions===

Revision as of 07:29, 30 May 2011

Untitled

Yellow Magic Orchestra is the first album by Japanese electronic music band Yellow Magic Orchestra. Originally released in Japan in 1978, the album was re-released in the United States the following year with new cover art and without the closing track of "Acrobat". Both would later be re-issued in 2003 as a double-disc format, with the American version as the first disc.

Overview

"Firecracker"
A sample of "Firecracker". The song was later combined with the "Computer Game" track into a hit single called "Computer Game". It was later sampled by artists such as Afrika Bambaata and Jennifer Lopez.
Problems playing this file? See media help.

The album was intended to be a one-off project for producer and bass player Haruomi Hosono and the two session musicians he had hired: drummer Yukihiro Takahashi and keyboard player Ryuichi Sakamoto. The trio were to recreate Martin Denny's 1959 exotica tune "Firecracker" with modern electronics, as a subversion of the exoticisation and Orientalism of the original tune, along with various original compositions also exploring themes of Asianness, exoticisation and Orientalism from a Japanese perspective.[1] The album also featured the use of a computer in conjunction with a synthesiser, as part of music production, to create a new sound that was not possible until then.[2] The album would eventually be called Yellow Magic Orchestra, as a satire of Japan's obsession with black magic at the time.[1] The project proved highly popular, culminating in a career for the three musicians; one that would last until 1983, before successful solo careers and reunions over the decades to come.

Both "Computer Game" tracks proper contain the same audio and were made to sound as if both games were being played in the same room; each track being from the perspective of its titular arcade game unit: Circus and Space Invaders. Both Circus and Space Invaders, along with several other popular arcade video games, were also featured in the promotional film for "Tong Poo".

The titles for several songs on the B-side are based on Jean-Luc Godard film names. “Tong Poo” is the Cantonese title for Le Vent d'est. “La Femme Chinoise” is La Chinoise with “femme” (the French word for “woman”) added after the feminine definite article “la.” Finally, “Mad Pierrot” is an English translation of 気狂いピエロ ([Kichigai Piero] Error: {{nihongo}}: text has italic markup (help)), the title under which Pierrot le fou was released in Japan.

Release history

The album was first released in Japan in 1978. It was released in the US on 30 May 1979 by A&M Records on the Horizon label with a new mix by Al Schmitt, new cover art and a slightly different track listing. This "US version" was subsequently released in Japan on 25 July 1979 by Alfa. Promotional A&M copies were pressed on yellow vinyl.

"Firecracker" was released as a single under the name "Computer Game". As such, on early US pressings of the album, "Computer Game 'Theme from The Circus'" and "Firecracker" were combined as one track, while the firecracker sound effect at the end of the track was indexed by itself as "Firecracker". This was corrected on later pressings. US pressings also featured a more American-friendly mixing (highlighting a punchier equalization and heavy use of reverb.) Several of the segues on the second side of the album were edited differently, while "Bridge over Troubled Music" was given an additional electric piano solo over top of the introductory percussion.

Region Date Label Format Catalog
Japan 25 November 1978 Alfa Records 12" LP; cassette LP: ALR-6012; cassette: ALC-1511
USA 30 May 1979 A&M Records, Horizon Records & Tapes 12" LP SP-736, AMLH 68506
Japan 25 July 1979 Alfa Records 12" LP; cassette (US version) LP: ALR-6020; cassette: ALC-1533

Track listing

Original pressing

Side one
No.TitleLyricsMusicLength
1."Computer Game 'Theme from The Circus (コンピューター・ゲーム —サーカスのテーマ—)" Yellow Magic Orchestra1:48
2."Firecracker (ファイアークラッカー)" Yellow Magic Orchestra, Martin Denny4:50
3."Simoon (シムーン)"Chris MosdellHaruomi Hosono6:27
4."Cosmic Surfin' (コズミック・サーフィン)" Haruomi Hosono4:51
5."Computer Game 'Theme from The Invader (コンピューター・ゲーム —インベーダーのテーマ—)" Yellow Magic Orchestra0:43
Side two
No.TitleLyricsMusicLength
1."Tong Poo (東風, tonpū, "east wind")" Ryuichi Sakamoto6:15
2."La femme chinoise (中国女, Chūgoku-onna)"Chris MosdellYukihiro Takahashi5:52
3."Bridge over Troubled Music (ブリッジ・オーバー・トラブルド・ミュージック)" Yellow Magic Orchestra1:17
4."Mad Pierrot (マッド・ピエロ)" Haruomi Hosono4:20
5."Acrobat (アクロバット)" Haruomi Hosono1:12

US pressing

Side one
No.TitleLyricsMusicLength
1."Computer Game 'Theme from The Circus" Yellow Magic Orchestra1:48
2."Firecracker" Yellow Magic Orchestra, Martin Denny4:50
3."Simoon"Chris MosdellHaruomi Hosono6:27
4."Cosmic Surfin" Haruomi Hosono4:51
5."Computer Game 'Theme from The Invader" Yellow Magic Orchestra0:46
Side two
No.TitleLyricsMusicLength
1."Yellow Magic (Tong Poo)" Ryuichi Sakamoto6:17
2."La femme chinoise"Chris MosdellYukihiro Takahashi5:55
3."Bridge over Troubled Music" Yellow Magic Orchestra1:18
4."Mad Pierrot" Haruomi Hosono4:21

Personnel

Chart positions

Year Release Chart Peak
Position 		Weeks Total
sales
1978 LP Oricon LP Chart 20 73 18700
1978 Cassette Oricon CT Chart 17 35 6300
Chart (1980) Peak position[3]
Billboard 200 81
R&B Albums 37

Firecracker / Computer Game

The song "Firecracker" was released as a single twice in the United States, the first time in 1979 as "Firecracker", which became a major R&B hit in the United States.[1] The following year, it was released again in the United States as the "Computer Game" single, which combined the "Computer Game" and "Firecracker" tracks together. The "Computer Game" single was an ever greater international success, entering the top 20 of the UK Single Charts[4] and selling over 400,000 copies in the United States,[5] where it was particularly popular with the emerging hip hop community which appreciated the new electronic sounds and in the Bronx where it was later sampled by pioneering hip hop artist Afrika Bambaataa in his famous 1983 debut album Death Mix (1983).[6] The song was also sampled in a number of later songs, including 2 Live Crew's "Mega-Mixx II" (1988),[7] Warp's "Testone" (1990),[8] Jennifer Lopez's worldwide hit "I'm Real" (2001), and the original unreleased version of Mariah Carey's "Loverboy" (2001).[9]



Chart positions

Chart (1980) Peak position[10][4]
UK Singles Chart 17
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 60
U.S. Dance Club Singles 42
U.S. R&B Singles 18

References

  1. ^ a b c Lewis, John (4 July 2008). "Back to the future: Yellow Magic Orchestra helped usher in electronica - and they may just have invented hip-hop, too". The Guardian. Retrieved 25 May 2011.
  2. ^ "Artists and producers strive for inroads overseas", Billboard, vol. 91, no. 20, p. 61, 26 May 1979, ISSN 0006-2510, retrieved 2011-05-29
  3. ^ "Yellow Magic Orchestra: Billboard Albums". Allmusic. Retrieved 2011-05-25.
  4. ^ a b "Computer Game (Theme From 'the Invaders')". chartstats.com. Retrieved 2011-05-28.
  5. ^ "Computer rock music gaining fans". Sarasota Journal: 8. August 18, 1980. Retrieved 2011-05-25.
  6. ^ Buckley, Peter (2003). The rough guide to rock. Rough Guides. p. 901. ISBN 1843531054. Retrieved 25 May 2011.
  7. ^ "Yellow Magic Orchestra". whosampled.com. Retrieved 2011-05-28.
  8. ^ Dan Sicko & Bill Brewster (2010), Techno Rebels (2nd ed.), Wayne State University Press, p. 76, ISBN 0814334385, retrieved 2011-05-28
  9. ^ "Mariah 'Ripped Off' Twice on Same Record". Fox News. April 4, 2002. Retrieved 2011-05-28.
  10. ^ "Yellow Magic Orchestra: Billboard Singles". Allmusic. Retrieved 2011-05-25.
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