“SUKYI YAKI” is a vintage SONG by the late KYU SAKAMOTO. Coping with REJECTION? “I’ll always LOOK UP when I WALK.”

It’s vintage time, so let me usher you into the magical era of the 60s.

3 am, pre-dawn.

The rain has just stopped.

And there’s no owl in sight (good grief).

This 24-hour radio service is belting out an old, familiar song called SUKYI YAKI.

It’s in Japanese, and for goodness sake, I do not comprehend a single word.

The crooner’s voice is pleading, lilting and soulful, so much so that it sears deep inside. Badly.

Enthusiasm persuades me to look up the dictionary.

Have you gone through rejection pains as this guy is pining out sadly in his song?

Then look no further.

Listen to the man, he is nursing his angst on being dumped by his lover.

Being betrayed in love spells a thousand sorrows, trust me.

Try it if you do not believe that life has its stark brutalities.

I used to hum along with the song when I was a kid.

SUKI YAKI?

I googled for the name of the singer and yes, the name KYU SAKAMOTO surfaced.

He was really famous then, but he perished in the sky in the 80s, such a real pity. It’s horrific.

Is death predestined?

On August 12, 1985, the ill-fated JAPAN AIRLINES FLIGHT 123 carrying 520 passengers and crew including KYU SAKAMOTO plummeted from mid-air.

It was the deadliest single-aircraft accident in history,

and the third worst plane crash in history behind the TENERIFE DISASTER and the SEPTEMBER 11th ATTACKS.

It had been reported that, before the aircraft lost its bearing, SAKAMOTO wrote a farewell note to his wife.

Toying with Fate?

Don’t. It is bizarre and an eerie recall.

LIFE IS SHORT, reminding you again.

So enjoy every “moment” while you can.

It’s here now, gone forever tomorrow.

The 60s to the 80s carry the REAL years when you MUST have a genuine voice to be a singer.

These days, if you are prettily endowed, then you can get connected to a music producer, indulge in image packaging coupled with decent studio “enhancements” for high-pitch songs …..

This’d be the first step to the entertainment threshold.

The rest is up to you.

KYU SAKAMOTO has the distinction of being the only Japanese artist to ever scored a top international hit.

His song (”I Look Up When I Walk”; Sukiyaki in the West), sung completely in Japanese and against all odds, reached #1 in the US Billboard charts in 1963.

The music was written by Hachidai Nakamura.

It is said that Rokusuke Ei wrote the touching lyrics after his heart was broken by actress Meiko Nakamura.

The lyrics tell the story of a man who looks up while he is walking so his tears would not fall.

It is interesting to note that Sukiyaki is not even mentioned in the song ; the West just needed something that was easily pronounceable and associated with Japan.

SUKI YAKI is translated thus into ENGLISH:

I look up when I walk

So the tears won’t fall

Remembering those happy spring days

But tonight I’m all alone

I look up when I walk

Counting the stars with tearful eyes

Remembering those happy summer days

But tonight I’m all alone

Happiness lies beyond the clouds

Happiness lies above the sky

I look up when I walk

So the tears won’t fall

Though my heart is filled with sorrow

For tonight I’m all alone
(whistling)

Remembering those happy autumn days

But tonight I’m all alone

Sadness hides in the shadow of the stars

Sadness lurks in the shadow of the moon

I look up when I walk

So the tears won’t fall

Though my heart is filled with sorrow

For tonight I’m all alone
(whistling)

Yeah, LIFE is a song, no less.

We can’t all be happy everyday.

But whatever life’s lot is, there is always somebody out there who’s a lot less fortunate than you.

We just have to count our blessings.

RIGHT?

Taking a walk down memory lane?

I have selected 3 songs from You Tube for your listening pleasure.

The first is sung by the grand master KYU SAKAMOTO.

The last two are fitting tributes.

“Just CALL me NOBODY” 大笑江湖 Movie Review. The MISADVENTURES of a NINCOMPOOP.

“JUST CALL ME NOBODY”

PRESS PREVIEW

You can expect this movie to be as goofy as it can get, going by the title.

The English translation is “Big laughter in the Martial Arts World”.

And it’s a comely excuse to usher in a brand new year with a loadful of guffaws.

The Chinese really believe that a good dose of spontaneous laughter is important to warm our hearts, makes the world go round and we, in turn, will reap abundant “harvests”.

No?

Then treat this as a martial arts comedic offering from Taiwanese director CHU YEN PING who has been in hibernation for a good couple of years.

His last notable credit was KUNG FU DUNK, remember?

He is back, in top form to celebrate the year-end festivities with this nonsensical action flick, so pray, stop looking so glum.

Our film director wants to escort you on a blind adventure, to get tickled pink with the raucous jokes he laces in the movie, so as to justify his expectations.

He has summoned a crazy potpourri of the hottest ASIAN comedians from Taiwan (Tien Niu, Kelly Lin, Xiao Xiao Bin, Jacky Wu), Mainland China (Xiao Shen Yang), Singapore (Mark Lee) and Hong Kong (Eric Tsang) to render the precarious merry-go-round of fun-fun-fun, so there!

CHU YEN PING hopes his feature make money.

So be kind, pass the word around.

Rally your friends and family to the cinema to appraise his film and he will reap good returns.

“JUST CALL ME NOBODY” tells the story of a love-lorn cobbler (Xiao Shen Yang) who’s besotted with a pretty damsel (Kelly Lin) he encounters in a chance meeting.

He then sets out on a perilous quest in search of his lady love, and what follows in his version of a martial arts world is a series of misadventures tussling thugs and villians along the way.

You will be gaping at gags of absurd Kung Fu action, designed to make you roar with laughter.

In “JUST CALL ME NOBODY”, everything goes wrong when it plays just right.

The premise would seem to be a boy meets girl, falls in love and goes to look for her.

And as this event takes place against a martial arts background, you just throw in a sprinkle of sub-plots with nasty, devilish murderers to ensure the audience’s curiosity is sufficiently piqued.

It is positioned as a COMEDY here and comedies depend on the execution.

“JUST CALL ME NOBODY” has just about the right ingredients to keep you entertained, if only you suspend disbelief and have nowhere to go after work.

It’s a very watchable film, done with some style and worthy aplomb.

Yeah, RIGHT.

FIAT, lead CROONER of THAI Band LINK CORNER. “LIFE’s a SONG, so just LET it BE.”

I must admit that I can be totally immersed, listening to FIAT, lead crooner of Thai band LINK CORNER, when he sings.

He’s truly mesmerizing, the intense way he delivers the lyrics.

You can feel the vibrancy of soul in his songs, the pain, the angst, the love.

It’s like one gigantic magical painting of the emotive self.

But I daresay we did not hit it off well in the first instance when a mutual friend introduced us,

but the scene now is past tense,

just like water off a duck’s back.

Why?

We were both hot-headed and the weather was humid.

We did not see clarity in one mind then, allowing professional arguments to set in.

We can both joke about that uncomely situation now.

“Never the twains shall meet”?

Not quite so – as Art and Science may be long, but life is short.

It’s all about live and let live.

FIAT is a THAI new-age singer who swears that he can be one sensitive soul.

It’s a healthy indulgence, he beams, to keep my creative juices flowing in order to compose more songs.

“In everything I do, I thrive on a latent amount of creativity and this reflex exercise delves deep into the recesses of my mind.”

LET IT BE, as JOHN LENNON aptly professed in his famous song.

“I have learnt to watch my own drama of life and career intertwined, while at the same time knowing that I, the person is very much, MORE than my own drama.”

he explains.

FIAT is a popular deejay by profession who’s game for creative pursuits such as song writing.

The following is an account of my candid interview with him:

1. Many bands have come and gone in recent years, so how do you ensure that LINK CORNER is not going to be just another flash-in-the-pan?

We are not positioned as a pretty boy band. We believe in raw talent which we have, to maintain the scene. We work hard, we revamp, we compose our own songs, we aim to be different all the time. This is our unique selling proposition.

2. What is Link Corner and how does the name come about?

Link Corner is a name of a fabric sewing machine, this name is derived from one of our x member who used to work in a factory, he listed us different names for us to pick from when we had to pick a name to produce our own cds.

3. How many guys in total group and are you lead singer?

3 members Ter Guitarist/Songwriter , Fiat Vocal/Songwriter ,Chart Bassist and all of us are responsible to arrange our own part, like doing homework to find the best way to play our part or seeking more references to finding new sound to the piece.

4. You have cut only one EP or single …?

So far we used to cut one EP and mostly singles, this is our first time we’ve just launched the full album under Warner Music Thailand. , took us 5 years from the first single we ever released.

5. How long has this group been in existence?

7 years

6. Do you all compose your own songs?

Most of the songs 80%

7. Not all songs found on you tube are recorded on EP, right?

All songs on youtube are on recorded EPs too!

8. How do you all spend your time professionally, public performances in such places as SIAM SQUARE or…?

We go on media , performing on TVs and at different venues, this coming Sat , we playing on Channel 7 , national TV, our name is known and our singles have gotten into many charts through out the country, so we are pretty excited.

9. What are future plans for your band in the face of competitive singers on the rise?

We plan to make more good music and be true to ourselves, and enjoy every moment of it while it lasts.. competition is unavoidable so I guess we just gotta keep doin but mostly of all enjoying it.

10. Would you consider an alternative career in acting?

Hell no. But who knows, man? If the right script and offer comes along, why not?

I asked FIAT if he has anything to say to his fans.

And here’s his parting shot:

“EXPERIENCE is a teacher.

Both pain and happiness teach us about LIFE.

When I look back I can see how experiences have contributed to my growing process.

Of course LIFE itself is a school.

And we are still learning and will continue to do so until we die.”

Thoughtful wise words from a wise guy.

Carpe diem, FIAT.

Wanna listen to FIAT’s original compositions?

I have uploaded two hits here from YOU TUBE for you to relish.

Enjoy!

I am SURE my FATHER always said, “WALK TALL, my SON.”

Sometimes, I wish I can be the stuff of what I read.

If so, LIFE’d be smashingly wonderful.

Yet everything always appear to be easier said than done.

Living and growing have their implications,

complications and imperfections, right?

Things don’t always flow along as you plan.

Nevertheless, we should maintain a straight face,

put up with the lot we have,

and …..

act HAPPY, WALK TALL.

Wise words.

I stumble across this inspirational adage not so long ago.

I am sharing this “perk-me-up” to YOU, my dear friend.

Hopefully what you read here will make sound sense in your application to this thing called LIFE.

Here goes:

“You are strong ….. when you take your grief and teach it to smile.

You are brave … when you overcome your fear and help others to do the same.

You are happy… when you see a flower and are thankful for the blessing.

You love … when your own pain does not blind you to the pain of others.

You are wise … when you know the limits of your wisdom.

You are true… when you admit there are times you fool yourself.

You are alive … when tomorrow’s hope means more to you than yesterday’s mistake.

You are growing … when you know that you are, but not what you are becoming.

You are free … when you are in control of yourself but do not wish to control others.

You are honorable … when you find your honor is to honor others.

You are generous … when you can give as sweetly as you take.

You are humble… when you do not know how humble you are.

You are beautiful … when you don’t need a mirror to tell you.

You are rich … when you never need more than you have.

You are you … when you are at peace with who you are not.”