Kyu Sakamoto - Ue o Muite Arukō (1961)

Born in 1941 in Kawasaki, Japan, this artist is remembered for singing the only Japanese song to reach the top of the Billboard charts. When he was only two and a half years old, he and his family fled the bombings of Tokyo occurring during World War II. As a teenager, he joined a Japanese band, known as The Drifters, until internal strife led to him parting ways. After the success of his major solo hit, heard below, he embarked on a worldwide tour that eventually spawned a decently successful follow-up single and full-length album. In 1985, he died in the crash of Japanese Airlines Flight 123, the worst single-aircraft accident in human history.

Originally titled “Ue o Muite Arukō, or “I Look Up When I Walk,” this song was written by lyricist Rokusuke Ei and composer Hachidai Nakamura. When the British owner of Pye Records, Louis Benjamin, visited Japan, he heard the song multiple times during his trip and decided to bring it back with him to England. He chose to have the song renamed to "Sukiyaki" so that it would be both easier to pronounce and still sound distinctly Japanese. The new name, as seen above, had absolutely no relation to the lyrics of the song, as it is the name of a Japanese food dish. Released in the United States in 1963 with its new name, the song went to number one.



Kyu Sakamoto - Ue o Muite Arukō (1961)

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Lyrics:

Japanese Lyrics	English Lyrics
Ue o muite arukou Namida ga kobore nai you ni Omoidasu haru no hi Hitoribotchi no yoru Ue o muite arukou Nijinda hoshi o kazoete Omoidasu natsu no hi Hitoribotchi no yoru Shiawase wa kumo no ue ni Shiawase wa sora no ue ni Ue o muite arukou Namida ga kobore nai you ni Nakinagara aruku Hitoribotchi no yoru Omoidasu aki no hi Hitoribotchi no yoru Kanashimi wa hoshi no kage ni Kanashimi was tsuki no kage ni Ue o muite arukou Namida ga kobore nai you ni Nakinagara aruku Hitoribotchi no yoru Hitoribotchi no yoru	I look up as I walk So that the tears won’t fall Remembering those spring days But I am all alone tonight I look up as I walk Counting the stars with tearful eyes Remembering those summer days But I am all alone tonight Happiness lies beyond the clouds Happiness lies up above the sky I look up as I walk So that the tears won’t fall Though the tears well up as I walk For I am all alone tonight Remembering those autumn days But I am all alone tonight Sadness lies in the shadow of the stars Sadness lies in the shadow of the moon I look up as I walk So that the tears won’t fall Though the tears well up as I walk But I am all alone tonight But I am all alone tonight