Kyu Sakamoto

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Kyū Sakamoto in the early 1960s
Kyū Sakamoto with his older sister Yachiyo in 1956
Chart positions
Explanation of the data
Albums
Sukiyaki And Other Japanese Hits
  US 26th 08/17/1963 (8 weeks)
Singles
Sukiyaki
  DE 2 08/01/1963 (20 weeks)
  UK 6th 06/29/1963 (13 weeks)
  US 1Template: Infobox chart placements / maintenance / NR1 link 05/11/1963 (14 weeks)
China Nights (Shina No Yoru)
  US 58 08/24/1963 (6 weeks)

Kyū Sakamoto ( Japanese 坂 本 九 , Sakamoto Kyū , civil: 大 島 九 , Ōshima Hisashi ; * December 10, 1941 in Kawasaki , Kanagawa Prefecture ; † August 12, 1985 when the Japan Airlines flight 123 crashed in Ueno , Gunma Prefecture ) was a Japanese singer and actor who became known worldwide in particular for the 13-time million seller and evergreen Sukiyaki .

life and career

Sakamoto was the youngest of nine children of a cargo shipper. He got into show business at an early age and made his film debut in 1955. In May 1958 he became a member of the popular rock'n roll singing group The Drifters , but he left them six months later in an argument with the other group members. After he had devoted a year mainly to his studies, he became a member of the group The Paradise Kings in 1958 , which got a recording deal with him as lead singer in 1959 and had their first big hit with Kanashiki Rokujissai in 1960 . Sakamoto quickly became a star in Japan and received an offer from Toshiba Records for a recording contract as a solo singer, which he accepted.

In 1961 he published the song Ue o muite arukō , which was the most successful song of the year in Japan. The title roughly means “While I am running I look upwards…”, the text continues: “… so that the tears do not flow down” ( namida ga kobore nai you ni ). Two years later, this song was published under the title Sukiyaki in western countries, so it reached number 1 in the US charts and reached number 2 in the German charts. The song Sukiyaki was later covered at least 150 times and is probably the most internationally most famous Japanese pop evergreen . After this success, Sakamoto undertook an international tour from the summer of 1963, which took him to Germany as well as the USA.

With China Nights (Shina no Yoru) Sakamoto was only able to place himself in the American charts once more in 1963, but he remained particularly popular in his home country. In 1964 he appeared at the Olympic Games, in 1968 he was heard at the international singing competition Festival Internacional da Canção in Rio de Janeiro with the song Sayonara, Sayonara . Sakamoto married the actress Yukiko Kashiwagi (* 1947) in 1971, with whom he remained married until his death and had two daughters.

Kyū Sakamoto was killed on August 12, 1985 in the crash of Japan Airlines flight 123 . In October 1998 the asteroid (6980) Kyusakamoto was named after him.

Albums

  • Sukiyaki And Other Japanese Hits (1963)
  • Kyu Sakamoto Memorial Best (2005)
  • Kyu Sakamoto CD & DVD The best (2005)

Movies

  • Takekurabe (1955)
  • Subete ga Kurutteru (1960)
  • Kigeki: Ekimae Danchi (1961)
  • Ushichi Jini Aimasho (1963)
  • Shiawase nara Te o Tatake (1964, Clap your hands when you are happy )
  • Garibā no Uchū Ryokō (1965, Gulliver's Travels Beyond the Moon )
  • Kyū-chan no Dekkai Yume (1967, English Kyu-chan's big dream )
  • Tokkan (1975)
  • Ue o Muite Arukō - Sakamoto Kyū Monogatari (2005 documentary)

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Chart sources: DE UK US
  2. ↑ 坂 本 九 さ ん 〜 心 の ふ る さ と ・ 笠 間 〜. In: Kasama Tourist Board. Archived from the original on April 3, 2008 ; Retrieved March 2, 2008 (Japanese).
  3. ↑ Ringo Houso: 上 を 向 い て 歩 こ う. (No longer available online.) In: A Ringo House. Archived from the original on July 15, 2011 ; Retrieved March 2, 2008 (Japanese). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.ringohouse.com
  4. ↑ Minor Planet Circ. 32789

Web links

Commons : Kyu Sakamoto  - Collection of images, videos and audio files
personal data
SURNAME Sakamoto, Kyu
ALTERNATIVE NAMES 坂 本 九 (Japanese); 大 島 九 (Japanese, real name); Ōshima Hisashi (real name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Japanese singer and actor
DATE OF BIRTH December 10, 1941
PLACE OF BIRTH Kawasaki , Kanagawa Prefecture
DATE OF DEATH August 12, 1985
Place of death near Ueno , Gunma Prefecture