What a LOSS!!!... Japan was the VERY FIRST BAND ( long before all the "Bauhaus", "Psychedelic Furs", "Siouxsie", "Magazine", etc, etc, etc, ) that this 41 year old "kid" was exposed to at the "tender age" of "10" back in '79!!!... They fucking BLEW MY MIND into another DIMENSION and to think that their PHENOMENAL/ INNOVATIVE bass player is GONE it really SADDENS ME!!!...
This is so cool. I thought so when i was a kid, I tried to look like David Sylvian. Luckily I had a butch mate to protect me. This song is streets ahead of anything anyone is doing today. Fantastic.
Oh thank you. There's lots of comments on Mr Sakamoto's fb page too. All got a bit too involved in alleged feuds for me though. It seems more important to concentrate on Mick.
So terribly sad to hear that Mick has advanced cancer this last weekend. I and, I'm sure, all of his fans are heartbroken. I met Mick a couple of times in the mid 80's and he was a very unassuming man with real poise and a gentle presence. God bless you Mick x
@LilacLooBoo You can go to nightporter.co.uk/pages/bass_auction.html to learn about a bass auction with the proceeds going to the Mick Karn Appeal to help this great bassist and his family during his recent time of need.
Difficulty for all the wannabe Sylvians was they could only copy a "facet" of his personality or "look" - OFTEN IMITATED / NEVER DUPLICATED!!! Sylvian has always been an original.. Rhodes, Ferry (yes bloody Ferry - check out Avalon!!!!) poor imitators....
@Skillusions Bryan Ferry wrote 'Virginia Plain' and other amazing original songs which came out in 72. He has never copied David. David isn't the first guy to wear makeup or have a side parting in his hair.
Its not hard to see the legacy of bands like this, Empire Of The Sun just completely take inspiration from Japan (the group) especially other tracks, nothing new under the sun i guess!
Nick Rhodes was desparate to be David Sylvian,back in the day.You only have to look at his outfits in the 80's.He even brought out a 3rd rate book of photography,like Sylvian did.
Recorded in 1979 according to my record. It's not just the ultimate in cool, but so far ahead mucically it's almost untrue.But, actually, further ahead than anything we have now. This is still the future!
HI all...have a google at - Andy Warhol and read about him a bit...there you will find the inspiration davy sylvian had to look as he did...and also...where nick rhodes also modelled himself...in a lot of interviews andy warhole was with nick rhodes and he openly admitted that his look originated from andy warhol...have a look...hes an important guy...much more so than davy sylvian in terms of art.
well i think its fair to say no one sounds like simon le bon and regardless of pretense, he is magnificent vocalist, lyricst and front man. one more point...as a fan of duran for 20 odd years and a fan of japan, i have never read that japan influenced duran any where but here on youtube. chic david bowie roxy music velvet underground new york dolls did and duran have cited this literally hundreds of times. so duran copying japan does not compute for me. i think both bands copied the above.
@gregingram1970 fair enough but Japan were certainly out first and Duran must have heard this when they recorded Planet Earth a year or so later whereas Japan were I'm sure not aware of Duran Duran in their Quiet Life stage at least. Still, you're right: let's appreciate them rather than split hairs! It's all about context as well. I can't look at DD the same way as Japan because they were the teeny boppers' favourite when I was at school whereas Japan (in the UK) were for the alternative crowd
duran duran never intended to be a teeny bop band. they have cited this on many occassions. japan tried to be art school cool and to an extent where successful however duran duran are not only a teenybop band and it can be proven by the fact that they sell millions of tickets in concerts ever year where 50% of their audience is male. I think what you meant is that japans quiet life and gentlement albums are copied in great detail from the same band duran copied their sound - brian eno.
@jasonpfinch i agree. i think le bons vocal is unique as well. im a duran fan of nealry thirty yearsa and a japan fan too. i must stress this. i think duran and japan modelled their sound on virtually the same artists except chic who duran took a lot oif their sound from...but bowie and roxy are hallmarks of japan and duran clearly.
In Mick's new autobiography he explains with embarrassment that the black singer all the way on the right in this video was really just a white girl in blackface and to top it all off she has no sense of rhythm- lol
@billyballoch Nick Rhodes , a genius too , he was only 17 writing first Number one Hits for Duran Duran , Rhodes produced, composed the fucking but excellent " Kajagoogoo" thing too...
Both are fucking amazing... there not much of that kind around today...
What a fucking GORGEOUS/ SEXSPECTACULAR creature, David Sylvain is!!! Sometimes I think if Bowie wasn't ONLY 10 years older than David Sylvain he could've FATHERED him!!! They have VERY simmilar features and a VOLCANIC CHARISMA that's enough to make you MELT like a fucking "stick of margarine" in the heat!!! They're both INCREDIBLE!!!
These Japan STUNNERS don't have to fucking "peddle" anything!!! They'd have to tear me away with a fucking GIANT crowbar 'cause David's so fucking LUSCIOUS!!!
Yikes...you've made it over to the Japan clips now, Mr. Phreak? What part of the country do you live in, lovie? Honestly, if you live near any kind of metro area, you need to get out of the house and interface with some live humans. You've got too much passion running through your veins just to porn out for old Peter and Japan videos.
I like Sylvian's clothes in this video a lot, it's like the quiet life album. Maybe the photo was shot the same day? I think Karn is wearing what he did on the back of the album as well. It's kind of 60s mod looking, my friend said a look sort of out of the movie Blow Up.
I use to favour the adolescent sex era, but now I have opened my mind and really love post Gentlemen... love Visions of China and The Art Of Parties, can't understand how Japan are SO underrated, it's ridiculous, but it keeps them as our little secret ;D
.lets not forget where they came from (automatic gun, adolescent sex through to rodesia, getlemen take polaroids, swing and the seminal album tin drum) these guys were masters in the making, pushing the boundaries of production, art and altruism....long live japan and all its creative and productive members
Those fucking gorgeous English lads from the 80's never stop amazing me... David Sylvain and Peter Murphy should've been bedmates or something!!!! Two fucking beauties, indeed!!!!
Very right Lepurestyle. Very different. I got into an argument with my dad over David Sylvian. I think he had just been 'awarded' most beautiful man ever and I tearfully told my dad this when he wanted the volume down. "No, it was Adonis. Adonis!" Yeah. Right.
honestly, i nerver understood all this comparaison with Duran Duran...
the bands are deeply different artistically, and it's not going further than some similarities in Rhodes way of looking. I really do apreciate Duran's work (especially Rio album and the Arcadia one), but they are clearly not playing in the same league though still compatible to listen.
I agree lepurestyle, also with Japan you didn't get the sexist outdated (even for the 80s) images of women (girls on film etc) Japan was way more mature to stoop to T and A to sell records! They didn't need to.
Btw, David Sylvian was the first person to establish that detached manner of singing perculiar to future neo-romantic acts like Duran Duran, OMD, Spandau Ballet and many more.
One of the best examples of new-romanticism ever! David had a huge impact on the early 80's music/fashion trends (along with Steve Strange of course).
And when it comes for this EXELLENT song it sounds so ahead of its time and it really stood a test of time!!!
aaah, i do agree...although steve strange, hmmm, don't know what to make of him ever since he was on that BBC show Scissorhands..anyway, i agree with what you say...bands like duran duran and even spandau ballet were clearly influenced by japan....
also a criminally under rated band were japan... it's strange for me because i'm kind of young, i mean, i was born in the lat 80s, so i found out about japan a few years ago and all that :)
I was born that same year, 1979 I mean :). So this video is my age mate. And as for Steve Strange - he was a frontmen of another hort-lived but highly influential band Visage!!! You should know new-romantic smasher by Visage >>> "Fade To Grey" from 1980.
oh, 1979..wow, well, i was born in 1988, so i found about 80s music later on...oooh, yeah yeah i know visage, yeah, i never knew that steve strange was in visage, that never occurred to me...yeah, that song 'fade to grey',it's allright i suppose....wasn't midge ure in visage by the way?
Yes Oogie, Midge Ure along with Rusty Egan and Steve Strange formed Visage in 1978, but of course Midge Ure will be first of all associated with Ultravox :)
oh i see....ok, thanks...i never knew that steve strange was in visage, seems, well, strange :)
aah, ues, ultravox, i just know 2 of their songs but both of those songs are brilliant, 'Vienna' and 'Dancing with tears in my eye', i think it's called...
by the way, what do u think of Japan's rendition of 'I Second That Emotion'?
what by ultravox?....lament???..i love ultravox...this tops lament...by far ...check out my play list and my favs...something 4r you too go on...help ur self...
hot boys in make up! drool.....i was listening to them on vinyl in 79..crap i'm old...but hey they're all 50 now,steve jansen the drummer and brother of the singer is beautiful still,has bits of grey in his hair and beard,davids cute still too...
have to say i was one of those 80's guys who wore makeup. Lipstick, Eyeliner and nail varnish. Now i have 3 sons and am still that happy hetrosexual I was in the 80's
I disagree, I'd say DD and Japan are equally talented. I'm a huge fan of both groups. but I agree Japan should have been bigger than they were.
Japan had pretty much everything that DD had that made them big - great music, style, and hella good looking bandmembers - one of the big differences is that DD took advantage of music videos and Japan did not :(
no but i was assuming you were if you are such an authority on what is gay, that's all.
by the way - I saw Japan 3 times when they were about and they were one of the best performing bands around at the time - way ahead of their time as well. lots of straight/bi/hetero men wore make-up - it was part of the scene. anyway - if you think it's shite then say so. saying something is gay is so puerile.
man, if these guys hadn't split up when they did i bet they could've made it big. great looking, well-dressed guys playing fantastic pop music...what more could you want ;) they should have been as big as duran duran.
Yes. A superlative band capable of excellence. In twenty years since then have we advanced? I don't think so. Young men, have a bath, get a haircut, read something, get some style, elevate your minds and work on your playing. Japan showed the way.
This is like a delicious piece of candy....the pretty boys, the fantastic synths.......you almost miss the dark lyrics. And yeah, seems like the brothers shared the same bottle of peroxide. But then, it looks fab with that $1000 leather jacket David Sylvian is wearing ;0
how could they share the same bottle of peroxide if Sylvian is the only one of the two brothers with bleached hair? the other one with the bleached hair is Mick Karn, bass player extraordinaire.
why do the music today getting worst and worst... the new brit band seems to be so frustrated... peter hook from new order jsut said "it will be the end of post punk!!! "god help us
why do the music today getting worst and worst... the new brit band seems to be so frustrated... peter hook from new order jsut said "it will be the end of post punk!!! "god help us
Did you know Japan's manager got a thousand dollars from the record company to buy all the group clothes for the 'Quiet Life' record cover shoot. David blew it all on one jacket - the red leather one!!!
That story sounds like BS. I doubt that chessey jacket cost $1000 furthermore why would they be so stupid to waste the money like that. What is your source for this?
what album is this song from ( love japan ) just cant find the album
401ashen 1 week ago
I love this song
MySarianna 5 months ago
very glam, looks like nik rhodes from Duran duran much?
danNYx86 5 months ago
THIS SONG IS GREAT. SUPPORT THE PEOPLE OF JAPAN. 30.000 kILLED BY THE QUAKE AND THE TSUNAMI.
thegerrie19561 10 months ago
2:03 1st line: its only buildings and houses,
2nd Line: why should i care
1:: well not anymore
2:: well frankly i dont either
Harryburke360 10 months ago
A first class act, never to be repeated and thank you to Duran too for what they did for us all.
depmodeno 10 months ago
best ever,reminds me of bensham.
langley6 11 months ago
The best. R.I.P Mick.
tonyghost20 1 year ago
RIP :(
k3zzyB 1 year ago
Coolest person in this: Mick Karn 2:29 stood next to some Debbie Harry bloke. Lets Disco.
jh9214 1 year ago 2
What a LOSS!!!... Japan was the VERY FIRST BAND ( long before all the "Bauhaus", "Psychedelic Furs", "Siouxsie", "Magazine", etc, etc, etc, ) that this 41 year old "kid" was exposed to at the "tender age" of "10" back in '79!!!... They fucking BLEW MY MIND into another DIMENSION and to think that their PHENOMENAL/ INNOVATIVE bass player is GONE it really SADDENS ME!!!...
petermurphreak 1 year ago 8
He was a fantastic, imaginative bassman
cosmiccliff 1 year ago 3
R.I.P Mick .
bangtidy77 1 year ago
Before there was emo's
Before there was goth
The was punk, and I love it :-D
ACTORnSCREENWRITER 1 year ago
This is so cool. I thought so when i was a kid, I tried to look like David Sylvian. Luckily I had a butch mate to protect me. This song is streets ahead of anything anyone is doing today. Fantastic.
tonyghost20 1 year ago 4
Oh thank you. There's lots of comments on Mr Sakamoto's fb page too. All got a bit too involved in alleged feuds for me though. It seems more important to concentrate on Mick.
LilacLooBoo 1 year ago
So terribly sad to hear that Mick has advanced cancer this last weekend. I and, I'm sure, all of his fans are heartbroken. I met Mick a couple of times in the mid 80's and he was a very unassuming man with real poise and a gentle presence. God bless you Mick x
LilacLooBoo 1 year ago
@LilacLooBoo You can go to nightporter.co.uk/pages/bass_auction.html to learn about a bass auction with the proceeds going to the Mick Karn Appeal to help this great bassist and his family during his recent time of need.
ronbo11 1 year ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
David, babe: I wanna GIVE YOU HEAD til you come in my MOUTH!!!.... I'm your GAY ADMIRER!!!
petermurphreak 1 year ago
Well, it's true that Avalon sounds at times like a streamlined version of Gentlemen Take Polaroids...
Niqsson 1 year ago
Difficulty for all the wannabe Sylvians was they could only copy a "facet" of his personality or "look" - OFTEN IMITATED / NEVER DUPLICATED!!! Sylvian has always been an original.. Rhodes, Ferry (yes bloody Ferry - check out Avalon!!!!) poor imitators....
Skillusions 1 year ago 2
@Skillusions Bryan Ferry wrote 'Virginia Plain' and other amazing original songs which came out in 72. He has never copied David. David isn't the first guy to wear makeup or have a side parting in his hair.
pobstrel 1 year ago 2
Its not hard to see the legacy of bands like this, Empire Of The Sun just completely take inspiration from Japan (the group) especially other tracks, nothing new under the sun i guess!
benjo231 1 year ago
@benjo231 Well Empire OTSun sound more like Scissor Sstrs...not Japan or D. Sylvian...
tommyboynude 1 year ago
Nick Rhodes was desparate to be David Sylvian,back in the day.You only have to look at his outfits in the 80's.He even brought out a 3rd rate book of photography,like Sylvian did.
janahr 1 year ago 3
This song reminds me of some of the early Roxy Music.
Delisle4 1 year ago
you mean, the middle roxy music era
daniva 1 year ago
@daniva
You are right, I mean the middle Roxy Music era.
Delisle4 1 year ago
Recorded in 1979 according to my record. It's not just the ultimate in cool, but so far ahead mucically it's almost untrue.But, actually, further ahead than anything we have now. This is still the future!
tonyghost20 2 years ago 3
the coolest band of all time
jasonpfinch 2 years ago
Nobody even comes close to this. Japan! They make todays so called stars look so small, Sorry Simon..
tonyghost20 2 years ago 3
"Life in Tokyo" indeed!. The best city in the world and sung by one of the best 'New Romantic/New Wave' bands from the 1980s
Regalseven 2 years ago
HI all...have a google at - Andy Warhol and read about him a bit...there you will find the inspiration davy sylvian had to look as he did...and also...where nick rhodes also modelled himself...in a lot of interviews andy warhole was with nick rhodes and he openly admitted that his look originated from andy warhol...have a look...hes an important guy...much more so than davy sylvian in terms of art.
gregingram1970 2 years ago
@gregingram1970 Warhol inspired them yeah but he didn't sing like this, did he? Or like Lou Reed or Nico
jasonpfinch 2 years ago
well i think its fair to say no one sounds like simon le bon and regardless of pretense, he is magnificent vocalist, lyricst and front man. one more point...as a fan of duran for 20 odd years and a fan of japan, i have never read that japan influenced duran any where but here on youtube. chic david bowie roxy music velvet underground new york dolls did and duran have cited this literally hundreds of times. so duran copying japan does not compute for me. i think both bands copied the above.
gregingram1970 2 years ago
@gregingram1970 fair enough but Japan were certainly out first and Duran must have heard this when they recorded Planet Earth a year or so later whereas Japan were I'm sure not aware of Duran Duran in their Quiet Life stage at least. Still, you're right: let's appreciate them rather than split hairs! It's all about context as well. I can't look at DD the same way as Japan because they were the teeny boppers' favourite when I was at school whereas Japan (in the UK) were for the alternative crowd
jasonpfinch 2 years ago
duran duran never intended to be a teeny bop band. they have cited this on many occassions. japan tried to be art school cool and to an extent where successful however duran duran are not only a teenybop band and it can be proven by the fact that they sell millions of tickets in concerts ever year where 50% of their audience is male. I think what you meant is that japans quiet life and gentlement albums are copied in great detail from the same band duran copied their sound - brian eno.
gregingram1970 2 years ago
@jasonpfinch i agree. i think le bons vocal is unique as well. im a duran fan of nealry thirty yearsa and a japan fan too. i must stress this. i think duran and japan modelled their sound on virtually the same artists except chic who duran took a lot oif their sound from...but bowie and roxy are hallmarks of japan and duran clearly.
gregingram1970 2 years ago
In Mick's new autobiography he explains with embarrassment that the black singer all the way on the right in this video was really just a white girl in blackface and to top it all off she has no sense of rhythm- lol
1948librarian 2 years ago
I just came to this video to check it out as I'm reading Mick's book, ha ha.
Thermaland 1 year ago
Is the book any good???
thepinktent 1 year ago
It's pretty badly written and cringeful in bits but quite informative if you're a fan.
Thermaland 1 year ago
nihonjon, you should be embarrased.
this song is coolest.. it just is!
valgehiir 2 years ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
I'm embarrassed I live in Tokyo now.
nihonjon 2 years ago
since Japan came first, Duran Duran was a lot like Japan
marehtseira 2 years ago 3
This comment has received too many negative votes show
Bunch of bloody puffs. Ha
steviepage7 2 years ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
i sat through 1 minute and 31 seconds of this and saw no cock at all
Raeanne231 2 years ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
wow giorgio moroder whips his cock out @ 1:31
miamiwax 2 years ago
wow awards for stupidest comment go to you
paintedship 2 years ago 7
I have the vinyl album It is the BEST!!! great to see the video!!! Reminds me of my high school days!!!
mrpharmajohn1 2 years ago 2
I still have the 12" version of this! Fantastic
OssettChick 2 years ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
fuck you
daga66613 2 years ago
going to tokyo soon! cant wait!!!
Allyness92 2 years ago
Never thought I'd see the video for this. Most excellent stuff.
Thx for posting!
andrew80s 2 years ago 2
infectious amazing chorus
sscrystal10 2 years ago
alltime fav song by them =)
mrrotweiler2 2 years ago
True ! Life can be cruel in Tokyo ....lol
2009ginasweetie 2 years ago
MIcks' bass playing is stellar as always.
Orbit91 2 years ago
anyone from the early eighties, late seventies, duran duran came from japan
futlang 2 years ago
This makes me wonder if this is who Duran Duran took their early look from.
DavePerry2012 2 years ago
yes
paintedship 2 years ago
That might be true... I used to confuse David Sylvian with Nick Rhodes! There's no confusing Mick Karn with John Taylor though, hehe...
nolketessa 2 years ago
Nick Rhodes took his look from David Sylvian, not that i have anything against Nick Rhodes. I think they're both pretty amazing...
billyballoch 2 years ago 12
@billyballoch Nick Rhodes , a genius too , he was only 17 writing first Number one Hits for Duran Duran , Rhodes produced, composed the fucking but excellent " Kajagoogoo" thing too...
Both are fucking amazing... there not much of that kind around today...
All the best.
Tiramisator 11 months ago
@billyballoch He looks more like Joan Rivers...seriously..
ram29jackson 7 months ago
there's no need to confuse them,
David Sylvian- genius
Nick Rhodes- fanboy
rhodesia789 2 years ago 3
...no confusing Roger Taylor with Steve Jansen, either...
Overall, with David Sylvian and Steve, Japan were better looking than Duran Duran.
sscrystal10 2 years ago 2
better musicians I'd say too
jobber4life 2 years ago 2
Yeah, and that's a lot to say since Duran Duran are pretty good.
sscrystal10 2 years ago 3
-_-"
shizukashiawase 2 years ago
I loved Japan in the eighties, Can't understand why none of their stuff has been remixed.
37angel 2 years ago 3
no thanks.
dont ever want to hear some young know-nothing dj butcher this song with a trance version.
the original sounds are the best.
ultraxmusic 2 years ago 4
Mi piace lo stile '80s di questo video, mi piace lui, (è molto sexy, soprattutto con quella giacca), e la canzone è ovviamente bellissima!
tsubychan 2 years ago
SIMPLY GREAT !
vaico65 2 years ago 2
" -give me some sugar baby. "
Blackshin3 2 years ago
What a fucking GORGEOUS/ SEXSPECTACULAR creature, David Sylvain is!!! Sometimes I think if Bowie wasn't ONLY 10 years older than David Sylvain he could've FATHERED him!!! They have VERY simmilar features and a VOLCANIC CHARISMA that's enough to make you MELT like a fucking "stick of margarine" in the heat!!! They're both INCREDIBLE!!!
petermurphreak 2 years ago
This is about Tokio's sleazy street corners were they peddled their lovely wares. They look too clean in here, though!
loiraso 2 years ago
These Japan STUNNERS don't have to fucking "peddle" anything!!! They'd have to tear me away with a fucking GIANT crowbar 'cause David's so fucking LUSCIOUS!!!
petermurphreak 2 years ago
Yikes...you've made it over to the Japan clips now, Mr. Phreak? What part of the country do you live in, lovie? Honestly, if you live near any kind of metro area, you need to get out of the house and interface with some live humans. You've got too much passion running through your veins just to porn out for old Peter and Japan videos.
2coin 2 years ago
You're fucking HILARIOUS!!! Lol!!!
petermurphreak 2 years ago
Oh, scheisse--don't start growing on me now!
2coin 2 years ago
This brings back brill memories of the punk/new romantic era
blondie1159 2 years ago
great song.... is amazing....
osvaldoalcazar 2 years ago 2
brilliant music. I used to think Sylvian looked great and I styled my hair on his in the early eighties. I think their songs and music are excellent.
teddysdodge 2 years ago
I like Sylvian's clothes in this video a lot, it's like the quiet life album. Maybe the photo was shot the same day? I think Karn is wearing what he did on the back of the album as well. It's kind of 60s mod looking, my friend said a look sort of out of the movie Blow Up.
pnnews90 2 years ago
I use to favour the adolescent sex era, but now I have opened my mind and really love post Gentlemen... love Visions of China and The Art Of Parties, can't understand how Japan are SO underrated, it's ridiculous, but it keeps them as our little secret ;D
dizzymisslizzylane 2 years ago
Yeah, I love no one knowing about them =D <3
HumanJarv 2 years ago
Totally excellent song, it would shit on a lot of brit pop imagery and band that are about today
caine7sfg 2 years ago 5
Totally right there !! Can't beat it !
psychodamned 2 years ago
What a master-piece !!!!
RockIsMyRock 2 years ago
i absolutely love this song n never get tired listnin 2 it,n david sylvian is stunning,,i just soooo love japan xxxxxxx
margaretf75 2 years ago
.lets not forget where they came from (automatic gun, adolescent sex through to rodesia, getlemen take polaroids, swing and the seminal album tin drum) these guys were masters in the making, pushing the boundaries of production, art and altruism....long live japan and all its creative and productive members
seventytwonames 2 years ago
Comment removed
seventytwonames 2 years ago
Those fucking gorgeous English lads from the 80's never stop amazing me... David Sylvain and Peter Murphy should've been bedmates or something!!!! Two fucking beauties, indeed!!!!
petermurphreak 2 years ago
This is a great track and stands the test of time.
Alwyn38 3 years ago 5
Who cares if they were the most beutiful guys , the music was shit hot.
08041965 3 years ago 2
Most underated band of the 80s. Music to my youth.Brilliant.
feefers3 3 years ago 4
Very right Lepurestyle. Very different. I got into an argument with my dad over David Sylvian. I think he had just been 'awarded' most beautiful man ever and I tearfully told my dad this when he wanted the volume down. "No, it was Adonis. Adonis!" Yeah. Right.
contrabandsnatch 3 years ago
Love the sound of furturism from a group that is so glamorous.
clockwork8484 3 years ago
honestly, i nerver understood all this comparaison with Duran Duran...
the bands are deeply different artistically, and it's not going further than some similarities in Rhodes way of looking. I really do apreciate Duran's work (especially Rio album and the Arcadia one), but they are clearly not playing in the same league though still compatible to listen.
lepurestyle 3 years ago
first duran duran clearly shows some influence from them for sure
highervoltage2 3 years ago 2
I agree lepurestyle, also with Japan you didn't get the sexist outdated (even for the 80s) images of women (girls on film etc) Japan was way more mature to stoop to T and A to sell records! They didn't need to.
moogme68 3 years ago
I thought girls on film was a criticism of T and A but then again the video seems to say otherwise.
paperblitztissue 2 years ago
Btw, David Sylvian was the first person to establish that detached manner of singing perculiar to future neo-romantic acts like Duran Duran, OMD, Spandau Ballet and many more.
osetrik1 3 years ago
One of the best examples of new-romanticism ever! David had a huge impact on the early 80's music/fashion trends (along with Steve Strange of course).
And when it comes for this EXELLENT song it sounds so ahead of its time and it really stood a test of time!!!
Magnificent ;)
osetrik1 3 years ago
aaah, i do agree...although steve strange, hmmm, don't know what to make of him ever since he was on that BBC show Scissorhands..anyway, i agree with what you say...bands like duran duran and even spandau ballet were clearly influenced by japan....
also a criminally under rated band were japan... it's strange for me because i'm kind of young, i mean, i was born in the lat 80s, so i found out about japan a few years ago and all that :)
oogie11 3 years ago
I was born that same year, 1979 I mean :). So this video is my age mate. And as for Steve Strange - he was a frontmen of another hort-lived but highly influential band Visage!!! You should know new-romantic smasher by Visage >>> "Fade To Grey" from 1980.
;)
osetrik1 3 years ago
oh, 1979..wow, well, i was born in 1988, so i found about 80s music later on...oooh, yeah yeah i know visage, yeah, i never knew that steve strange was in visage, that never occurred to me...yeah, that song 'fade to grey',it's allright i suppose....wasn't midge ure in visage by the way?
oogie11 3 years ago
Yes Oogie, Midge Ure along with Rusty Egan and Steve Strange formed Visage in 1978, but of course Midge Ure will be first of all associated with Ultravox :)
osetrik1 3 years ago
oh i see....ok, thanks...i never knew that steve strange was in visage, seems, well, strange :)
aah, ues, ultravox, i just know 2 of their songs but both of those songs are brilliant, 'Vienna' and 'Dancing with tears in my eye', i think it's called...
by the way, what do u think of Japan's rendition of 'I Second That Emotion'?
oogie11 3 years ago
Check out Rage In Eden if you're looking for more Ultravox, it's one of their best recordings.
mikanally 3 years ago
aww, thanks i'll chek them out :)
oogie11 3 years ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
in my opinion, "lament" is much better !! ;-)
FLORENT2222 2 years ago
what by ultravox?....lament???..i love ultravox...this tops lament...by far ...check out my play list and my favs...something 4r you too go on...help ur self...
someblokecalledchris 2 years ago
perfect! sexy style & cool sound!!! i love DAVID!
StreetManic 3 years ago
Has a Roxy Music feel.I'd love to hear Bryan Ferry sing this
blapo38 3 years ago
with blonde and pink hair? thats mick karn.....the bassist
moogme68 3 years ago
Who's the other blonde beside David Sylvian?
momonyx76 3 years ago
that would be mick karn greatist base player ever
jenniferBG 3 years ago 2
Davvero Avanti!!!
DyaneEst 3 years ago
hot boys in make up! drool.....i was listening to them on vinyl in 79..crap i'm old...but hey they're all 50 now,steve jansen the drummer and brother of the singer is beautiful still,has bits of grey in his hair and beard,davids cute still too...
moogme68 3 years ago
sexy soud!!
haruomix1983 3 years ago
"That was 'Japan', with 'Life can be cruel in Tokyo'! I'm sure life can be cruel in Tokyo, its very crowded, but I'd love to go" Haha.
PUMF 3 years ago 2
the afeminate futurists...... from the 80's
A-HA!
Scorthead 3 years ago
Technically, this was released in 1979, but it's very close to the '80's
It's a good pop/rock song.
marehtseira 3 years ago
i know it was made in 1979, but actually did not chart until 1982. certainly has an early 80's feel.
maxfrasier 3 years ago
another 80's classic
scottyr2 3 years ago
OH the memories.
I spent a year listening to noting but Japan.........
EESASTORM 3 years ago 7
Richard Barbieri, David Sylvian,
<3333333
furyplum44 3 years ago 2
is this that dude that sang the song that was in silence of the lambs?SYNTHESIZERS were the musical instrument of choice in the 80s.
arm4life87 3 years ago 3
I LOVE this song
ACTORnSCREENWRITER 3 years ago 9
wow..this is amazing!
thanks for sharing,dear friend:)
omasobawa 3 years ago 2
Glad you liked it :-)
ACTORnSCREENWRITER 3 years ago 2
Thank's for sharing ;-]
Hatchet666gitmo 3 years ago
Wow, I love a man in makeup!
ZannaRox 3 years ago 4
have to say i was one of those 80's guys who wore makeup. Lipstick, Eyeliner and nail varnish. Now i have 3 sons and am still that happy hetrosexual I was in the 80's
Zurumren 3 years ago 3
Im 15 and wear eyeliner, yet am not gay and dont hate gays either,eyeliner has kind of come back in for guys, I LOVE JAPAN!!
furyplum44 3 years ago
They were waaaayy more talented than duran duran, they should have been bigger!!!!!!
furyplum44 3 years ago
I disagree, I'd say DD and Japan are equally talented. I'm a huge fan of both groups. but I agree Japan should have been bigger than they were.
Japan had pretty much everything that DD had that made them big - great music, style, and hella good looking bandmembers - one of the big differences is that DD took advantage of music videos and Japan did not :(
saladcat 3 years ago 2
there is just something about synth pop new wave and the city of Tokyo!
KROMEXICAN 3 years ago 2
This comment has received too many negative votes show
This is gay
cccris2000 3 years ago
why ? are you gay ?
alanlescouse1967 3 years ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
nope u?
cccris2000 3 years ago
no but i was assuming you were if you are such an authority on what is gay, that's all.
by the way - I saw Japan 3 times when they were about and they were one of the best performing bands around at the time - way ahead of their time as well. lots of straight/bi/hetero men wore make-up - it was part of the scene. anyway - if you think it's shite then say so. saying something is gay is so puerile.
alanlescouse1967 3 years ago 3
Oh right so this is gay? 'Female Japanese Rap' in his favourites isn't however =S Can't get my head around that one..
HumanJarv 3 years ago
Mick 0:30-0:40
Sexy lol
rt16 3 years ago
man, if these guys hadn't split up when they did i bet they could've made it big. great looking, well-dressed guys playing fantastic pop music...what more could you want ;) they should have been as big as duran duran.
teaFFFFf 3 years ago 5
Yes. A superlative band capable of excellence. In twenty years since then have we advanced? I don't think so. Young men, have a bath, get a haircut, read something, get some style, elevate your minds and work on your playing. Japan showed the way.
katebushrules 3 years ago 5
never a truer word spoken......u have been on other japan pages...lol
sinister066 3 years ago
that what i think every bloody day when i look around... i think i will end up as a bloody lonely lady with so untasty "men" around. uuuahhh :(
(okey, thats my opinion, so dont kill me, peeps.)
popperkanal 3 years ago
@popperkanal ahhh i feel just the same!! i'm waiting for my own personal Sylvian clone to come along, heheh ;)
shinysynthcity 1 year ago
Panascas do caralho... é por vossa causa cus putos de hoje em dia são Emos!!!
kesofeatures 3 years ago
This is like a delicious piece of candy....the pretty boys, the fantastic synths.......you almost miss the dark lyrics. And yeah, seems like the brothers shared the same bottle of peroxide. But then, it looks fab with that $1000 leather jacket David Sylvian is wearing ;0
BetteDillinger 3 years ago
how could they share the same bottle of peroxide if Sylvian is the only one of the two brothers with bleached hair? the other one with the bleached hair is Mick Karn, bass player extraordinaire.
motellife 3 years ago
Japan were so cool! I love this track, wasn't British Music just the best in the 80's?
barcyorky 3 years ago 2
Now that is what I call hair.
flares 3 years ago
why do the music today getting worst and worst... the new brit band seems to be so frustrated... peter hook from new order jsut said "it will be the end of post punk!!! "god help us
clubklass45 3 years ago 2
why do the music today getting worst and worst... the new brit band seems to be so frustrated... peter hook from new order jsut said "it will be the end of post punk!!! "god help us
clubklass45 3 years ago
I like both styles of Japan, the early, raw sound (Lovers on Main Street etc) and the polished sound (Life in Tokyo etc).
optien41 3 years ago
dude! where the hell did you find this!!
Japan - one of my favourites... and without question, most of their stuff has totally stood the test of time...
fugusushi 3 years ago
could've eaten up Mick Karn, he looks so pretty
blondie1159 3 years ago 2
love Japan.
A unique sound.
Saw DS live in 88. A true genius.
optien41 3 years ago
Mick Karn looks stunning in this video, excellent multi-instrumentalist too
blondie1159 3 years ago
went to see japan in sheffield in the early
80,s i used to love David Sylvian. it was great to see the video again after all theses years
scottyr2 3 years ago
I'm pretty sure by now it's pretty clear that
Sylvian is golden in my eyes...but Jansen looks way pretty: could've eaten him up!
silmalila 3 years ago
Brilliant 80s band. thanks for superb.makes me want to wear my tukka boots again.
feefers3 4 years ago
Is that Richard Barbieri on keyboards? It looks like him, but I thought he came on with Quiet Life.
m74k3H 4 years ago
Definitely is.
GumDispencer 4 years ago
with this hair he loks like steve nick's lost brother.GREAT SONG!!!
adamalvespin 4 years ago
oh brilliant!
caryllg 4 years ago
Did you know Japan's manager got a thousand dollars from the record company to buy all the group clothes for the 'Quiet Life' record cover shoot. David blew it all on one jacket - the red leather one!!!
I think it was worth the money!!!!
fingersin 4 years ago 2
Agreed
m74k3H 4 years ago
That story sounds like BS. I doubt that chessey jacket cost $1000 furthermore why would they be so stupid to waste the money like that. What is your source for this?
freetobefreddy 4 years ago
I love how demure and low-key the drummer looks. You don't see that much in rock/pop.
Joschkoj 4 years ago
is it just me, or does David Sylvian look like Blondie's big (errr) sister???
Thanks for the post - love Japan, they were decades ahead of their time!
mumpty 4 years ago
They sound like Blondie -- Heart of gLASS. Same era, same look, same groove.
jimmykeiko 4 years ago
That's because Giorgio Moroder who wrote "Call Me" for Blondie co-wrote this song with David Sylvian.
ad1968 4 years ago
This has been flagged as spam show
....and tonight Matthew Iam going to be Bryan Ferry
happygoldensunshine 4 years ago