{"id":2422,"date":"2013-07-01T05:16:58","date_gmt":"2013-07-01T05:16:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/?p=2422"},"modified":"2026-05-12T12:49:04","modified_gmt":"2026-05-12T19:49:04","slug":"242","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/242\/","title":{"rendered":"<em>Farewell to Yamato<\/em> Discography"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-880 alt=\"0808icon\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/wp-content\/uploads\/0808icon.JPG\" width=\"216\" height=\"90\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"cosmo-teaser\">The music of <em>Farewell to Yamato<\/em> was the only way fans could relive the film at home, and it perfectly delivered the same emotional impact felt in a theater. This body of work left no doubt that Japan&#8217;s music industry had changed forever, not just in anime but for the mainstream as well. Here is a complete record of its releases.<\/p>\n<div style=\"clear: both;\"><\/div>\n<p><!--more--><!--noteaser--><\/p>\n<p><span class='image-left'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music3still.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/span><\/p>\n<p>After digesting the amazing music of the first <em>Yamato<\/em> story, fans&#8217; expectations were sky-high when they walked into theatres for <em>Farewell to Yamato<\/em> in August 1978. When the movie hit its climax with the appearance of Zordar&#8217;s colossal Dreadnought, all eyes moved to Kodai on the bridge of <em>Yamato.<\/em> He listened to the advice of a ghostly Captain Okita and then turned to address the four crewmembers who remained to listen. Behind him rose the strains of a Miyagawa composition called <em>The Scarlet Scarf.<\/em> <\/p>\n<p>For fans in the audience, it was a sublime moment. This song had been heard as the closing title on every episode of the TV series, and near the end of the movie version. Its simple progression of notes had absorbed and stored up all the emotions associated with the first story, and now they came pouring out again. Only someone with a heart of stone could have made it through that experience with dry eyes.<\/p>\n<p>Such was the power of Hiroshi Miyagawa&#8217;s swan song for <em>Space Battleship Yamato.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><span class='image-right'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music3Miyagawa.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/span><\/p>\n<p>After the movie premiere, Office Academy published a deluxe hardcover book covering all aspects of the production. In it, Miyagawa said the following:<\/p>\n<p><em>For my music career, I found the previous work as satisfying as climbing to the top of a big mountain. But this time, thinking about <\/em>Yamato<em>&#8216;s devoted fans all over Japan, I often felt a pressure of responsibility that almost crushed me. The music for this work was born as a result of such struggles, so I can say with confidence that it will live up to the fans&#8217; expectations. Through my music, I hope the listeners can feel the main theme of the film&#8211;love between a man and a woman, the love of human beings, and the love of the entire Universe.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Out of a desire to keep the <em>&#8220;Yamato<\/em> Sound&#8221; diverse and progressive, Miyagawa had written a new theme for the Comet Empire that would be performed on a massive pipe organ. The use of this grand instrument was inspired by Disney&#8217;s <em>20,000 Leagues Under the Sea,<\/em> in which Captain Nemo plays it to great effect. The Comet Empire theme was performed in the Beethoven Hall of the Musashino Academy of Music, partially by Miyagawa&#8217;s son Akira. The session was recorded by Atsushi Tashiro apart from the main orchestra, and it emerged as a favorite moment for both he and Miyagawa.<\/p>\n<p>Another first for <em>Farewell<\/em> was the fact that its music was recorded in stereo, but it could only be heard that way on LP since Japanese cinemas at the time were only equipped with monaural speaker systems. Such inventions as Dolby Stereo were still over the horizon. The first chance anyone had to experience the story itself in stereo was by listening to Nippon Columbia&#8217;s drama LP. Another opportunity would not come up until the advent of home video.<\/p>\n<p>Read more about the recording sessions <a href='https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/758'>here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<div class='clear'>\n<p><span class='image-right'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music3a.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/span><\/p>\n<h3><em>The Rival<\/em> b\/w <em>Teresa Forever<\/em><\/h3>\n<p><em>45rpm single, 7\/25\/1978<br \/>\nNippon Columbia, CK-515<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Following the lead of their last single <em>(Starsha, Thoughts Among the Stars)<\/em>, the music staff wrote two more &#8220;image songs&#8221; to commemorate the new film. As before, they were featured in the <em>Farewell<\/em> radio drama, which was broadcast shortly before the August 4 movie premiere. <em>The Rival<\/em> was sort of lost in time when its B side, <em>Teresa Forever,<\/em> rose to prominence as the end theme of <em>Yamato 2,<\/em> but once heard it is unforgettable. The song can be interpreted as Kodai&#8217;s dream-image of his nemesis, Dessler. Like <em>The Scarlet Scarf,<\/em> its meaning was clearer to older listeners. <em>Teresa Forever<\/em> took on a more personal viewpoint when transplanted to <em>Yamato 2,<\/em> where it came to symbolize her romance with Shima [Venture].<\/p>\n<div style='clear:both' \/>\n<div style='width:400px; margin-right: 0px; float: left'>\n<h3>The Rival<\/h3>\n<p><em>Lyrics: Yu Aku<\/p>\n<p>Music: Hiroshi Miyagawa<br \/>\nVocal: Isao Sasaki<\/em><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times,Georgia,serif;\">Two men are haunted<br \/>\nConnected by a thread that cannot be cut<br \/>\nThey turn away, but cannot live<br \/>\nCall out, but to no avail<br \/>\nThe connection between us<br \/>\nIt was our fate to fight each other<br \/>\nI saw a samurai in the flames<br \/>\nDessler, it was you<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times,Georgia,serif;\">We had to meet<br \/>\nEach with the heavy burden of life<br \/>\nI point my finger and name my enemy<br \/>\nMy heart burns hotly<br \/>\nWe cannot change, even a little<br \/>\nWe should drink to each other<br \/>\nI saw a samurai in the flames<br \/>\nDessler, it was you<\/p>\n<p><a href='https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/364a'>Click here<\/a> for an alternate translation\n<\/div>\n<div style='width:400px; margin-right: 0px; float: left'>\n<h3>Teresa Forever<\/h3>\n<p><em>Lyrics: Yu Aku<br \/>\nMusic: Hiroshi Miyagawa<br \/>\nVocals: Isao Sasaki and Feeling Free<\/em><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times,Georgia,serif;\">Teresa, you are among the distant stars<br \/>\nTeresa, I offer my prayer of love<br \/>\nThe starry glow of your skin<br \/>\nTurns to love in a person&#8217;s heart<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times,Georgia,serif;\">A smile spreads across their face<br \/>\nAlong with the veil of night<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times,Georgia,serif;\">Teresa, an eternal smile<br \/>\nTeresa, an eternal smile<br \/>\nTeresa, crying from a distant light<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times,Georgia,serif;\">I lay my palm against my chest<br \/>\nSpeaking words of love<br \/>\nA shining from behind my eyes<br \/>\nA sunken treasure of love<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times,Georgia,serif;\">Teresa, an eternal smile<br \/>\nTeresa, an eternal smile<\/font><\/p>\n<p><a href='https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/364a'>Click here<\/a> for an alternate translation\n<\/div>\n<p align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music3a1.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p>These songs can be found on the following albums (see other discographies for data):<\/p>\n<p>Above: Theme Song &#038; BGM Collection, Main Title &#038; Hit Song Collection, <em>Best 4<\/em> EP, Terebi Manga Best Collection EP with <em>New Voyage<\/em> tracks, Isao Sasaki Best 24.<\/p>\n<p>Below: Isao Sasaki New Hit Best 16, Isao Sasaki\/Of the Man, Music Encyclopedia of Leiji Matsumoto 1999, Eternal Edition File No. 4, No. 10 and The Best II.<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music3a2.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<div class='clear'>\n<p><span class='image-right'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music3b.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/span><\/p>\n<h3><em>From Yamato With Love<\/em><\/h3>\n<p><em>45rpm single, 8\/1\/1978<br \/>\nPolydor Records, DR-6235<\/em><\/p>\n<p>In another experiment to enrich the <em>&#8216;Yamato<\/em> Sound,&#8217; Yoshinobu Nishizaki hired Kenji Sawada, one of Japan&#8217;s hottest pop singers at the time, to perform the end theme for <em>Farewell.<\/em> Along with his star power, Sawada (who went by the stage-name &#8216;Julie&#8217;) brought his own record label and his own composer into the mix, which created some tension in the ranks.<\/p>\n<p>Hiroshi Miyagawa submitted four compositions to Nishizaki for the song, but in the end he went with one written by Sawada&#8217;s personal composer, Katsuo Ono. It was the one and only time a Miyagawa piece had been rejected in favor of another&#8217;s, but the decision accomplished its goal. The song received substantial radio airplay that helped raise the prestige of both <em>Farewell to Yamato<\/em> and anime music in general.<\/p>\n<p>Fans first heard the song in a very emotional state at the end of movie, so it naturally evokes strong emotions even years later. It was later covered by Isao Sasaki in order to provide Nippon Columbia with clear copyright to release it themselves. In the meantime, a spoken-word version by Yoshinobu Nishizaki himself was recorded for the end of the <em>Farewell<\/em> drama album. The B-side of this single was an original Sawada tune that had nothing to do with <em>Yamato,<\/em> either thematically or stylistically.<\/p>\n<div style='width:390px; margin-right: 0px; float: left'>\n<h3>From Yamato With Love<\/h3>\n<p><em>Lyrics: Yu Aku<br \/>\nMusic: Katsuo Ono<br \/>\nVocals: Kenji Sawada<\/em><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times,Georgia,serif;\">If she is more gentle than a flower<br \/>\nIf she is more beautiful than the stars<br \/>\nYou will willingly die<br \/>\nto reach out and protect her<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times,Georgia,serif;\">\u2028You have reflected upon this\u2028<br \/>\nAnd act willingly for the benefit\u2028<br \/>\nof the one you love<br \/>\nYou speak as if this all this were so<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times,Georgia,serif;\">If there is something I must tell you<br \/>\nThen perhaps that is all for now<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div style='width:390px; margin-right: 0px; float: right'>\n<span style=\"font-family: Times,Georgia,serif;\">Let\u2019s not say goodbye now<br \/>\nLet\u2019s not say goodbye now<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times,Georgia,serif;\">Some day a song will return to her lips\u2028<br \/>\nSome day love will return to her heart<br \/>\nYou spread your arms in an embrace<br \/>\nand proved your love<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times,Georgia,serif;\">Though tomorrow seems distant\u2028<br \/>You act willingly for the benefit\u2028of the one you love<br \/>\nYou speak as if this all this were so<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times,Georgia,serif;\">If there is something I must tell you<br \/>\nThen perhaps that is all for now<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times,Georgia,serif;\">Let\u2019s not say goodbye now\u2028<br \/>Let\u2019s not say goodbye now<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div style='clear:both' \/>\n<p><span class='image-right'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music3still1.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><br \/>\n<em>Yoshinobu Nishizaki &#038; Kenji Sawada at the recording session\/1978 sheet music<\/em><\/span><\/br><\/p>\n<p><\/br><br \/>\n<a href='https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/364a'>Click here<\/a> for an alternate translation<\/p>\n<p>Watch a live performance from 1991 <a href='http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=zzbH59KBV6Q'>here<\/a> and another from 1999 <a href='http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=T7NTheKVCzM'>here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><\/br><\/br><\/br><\/br><\/p>\n<p>This song can be found on the following albums (see other discographies for data):<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music3b1.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p><em>Farewell to Yamato<\/em> Drama LP &#038; Complete Drama Cassette, Main Title Hit Song Collection, Song Collection CD, 4-song EP with <em>Be Forever<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/apr26\/242Sawada.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Kenji Sawada albums: Now For the Glorious Banquet (1978), Royal Straight Flush (1979). Katuo Ono&#8217;s demo version was released on <em>Phantom Melody<\/em> Vol. 1 (2003)<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music3b2.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Leiji Matsumoto World of SF Roman, Isao Sasaki\/Of the Man, Music Encyclopedia of Leiji Matsumoto 1999, Eternal Edition File No. 10 &#8216;The Best,&#8217; and &#8216;The Best II.&#8217;<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<div class='clear'>\n<p align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music3c1.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span class='image-left'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music3c2.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/span><\/p>\n<h3><em>Farewell to Space Battleship Yamato, Soldiers of Love<\/em><\/h3>\n<p><em>Symphonic album, 8\/1\/1978<br \/>\nNippon Columbia, LP: CQ-7011 Cassette: CAK-662<\/em><\/p>\n<p>A worthy successor to <em>Symphonic Suite Yamato,<\/em> this album was a true masterpiece. Fans who had attended the <a href='https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/253'>Symphonic Concert tour<\/a> in July had already heard most of it, but this would have only intensified their desire to hear it again. Its most striking tracks were the Comet Empire and <em>Andromeda<\/em> themes, but other favorites included a trilogy written for Dessler and a track titled <em>Great Love<\/em> which accompanied <em>Yamato<\/em>&#8216;s disappearance into space at the end of the film. Yet another highlight was a gorgeous instrumental rendition of the end song, <em>From Yamato With Love.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Some of Japan&#8217;s top musicians participated in the recording, such as trumpeter Akira Miyashita, drummer Shuichi Murakami, and pianist Kentaro Haneda. The album was recorded in stereo, separate from the movie soundtrack, which would only be heard monophonically in theatres. BGM, by its nature, is usually structured for minimalism so as not to compete with dialogue and sound effects. Rearranging it for a symphonic performance allowed for a richer version that was not tied down to the pace of onscreen drama. In this way, the music could live up to its full potential. That said, two pieces from the album were actually used in the film, <em>White Comet<\/em> and <em>Gatlantis.<\/em> <\/p>\n<p><span class='image-left'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music3still2.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/span><\/p>\n<p>Hiroshi Miyagawa&#8217;s liner notes:<\/p>\n<p><em>The previous tunes for <\/em>Space Battleship Yamato<em> became familiar during the TV broadcast 4 years ago, and because they followed the story, the arrangements were fairly set in stone. However, since this time we&#8217;ll be using all new music for the movie, the audience won&#8217;t be familiar with it.<\/p>\n<p>Unlike the serialized TV format, a movie is usually seen only once. If you happen to see it two or three times, then that&#8217;s a different story. But if you only see it once, the music doesn&#8217;t usually stay with you afterward. This is why the musical score was simplified, in order to make it easier to remember. <\/p>\n<p>Yet it also needed its own personality. New characters are introduced this time, including the Comet Empire and Teresa. And even though Dessler appeared in the previous story, he didn&#8217;t have his own theme yet. The themes for Dessler and the White Comet were the most challenging to create. Those two scores needed to leave a lasting impact, and if I could accomplish that, I&#8217;d be satisfied as a composer.<\/p>\n<p>I wanted everybody to become intimately involved with the score. I hope the new tunes have an unforgettable melody that will move one&#8217;s heart.<\/em><\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music3c3.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Like the first symphonic suite, this album was released on CD in 1985 (far left\/Nippon Columbia, 32C35-7530) and reissued in 1995 (center\/Nippon Columbia, COCC-12228). A remastered version was released in the 2004 <a href='https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/89'>Eternal Edition Premium<\/a> box set (Columbia Music Entertainment, COCX-33021). Oddly, a picture in the liner notes was changed after the original LP release. Notes for the track titled <em>Andromeda<\/em> were accompanied by a still of the <em>Andromeda<\/em> at first. For some reason, the CD edition substituted a still of the EDF battleship.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<div class='clear'>\n<p align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music3d.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span class='image-right'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music3d3.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/span><\/p>\n<h3><em>Farewell to Yamato<\/em><\/h3>\n<p><em>Sonorama Ace Puppy Series &#8220;Sonosheet&#8221;, 9\/1978<br \/>\nAsahi Sonorama, APQ-6004<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Though Sonorama&#8217;s association with the saga would last all the way to the end, this was to be its last <em>Yamato<\/em> music release. Like the very first Sonosheet, one side contained two songs (the <em>Yamato<\/em> Theme and <em>Teresa Forever)<\/em> and the other contained a drama track titled <em>Yamato Hasshin! [Yamato Launch].<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Sonosheets would continue to appear in Sonorama&#8217;s children&#8217;s books (shown at right), but the disappearance of it as a separate form of merchandising was something of a touchstone. Thanks in large part to the wide appeal of other music releases, it was well understood that <em>Yamato<\/em> could no longer marginalized as children&#8217;s entertainment.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<div class='clear'>\n<p align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music3e1.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<h3><em>Farewell to Yamato, Soldiers of Love<\/em><\/h3>\n<p><em>Drama album 10\/10\/1978<br \/>\nNippon Columbia, LP: CS-7077~8 Cassette: CHY-501~2<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Though it was the first double-length <em>Yamato<\/em> release, the <em>Farewell<\/em> drama album was still only about half as long as the movie. This probably didn&#8217;t discourage many fans, though, especially considering it was the first opportunity anyone would have to hear the story in stereo. The next opportunity was five years away, when Victor released the <a href='https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/227'>movie on VHD<\/a> with an upgraded stereo soundtrack in 1983.<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music3e2.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Contained inside the foldout sleeve was a 12-page color storybook, the second largest collection of images that a fan could buy at the time. The first was in a &#8216;Roadshow&#8217; special magazine published by Shueisha about a month earlier. But more would soon be on the way. Many more. In fact, <em>Farewell<\/em> would go on to become the subject of more publishing than any other film or series during the production years. An unexpected bonus at the end of this album was a spoken-word rendition of <em>From Yamato With Love<\/em> by none other than Yoshinobu Nishizaki.<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/jan25\/242dramacass.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music3l.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p>This album was released once on CD (above) from Nippon Columbia in 1995 (COCC-12478~79).<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug25\/242posters.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Posters given away in stores with purchase. Left: symphonic album poster. Right: drama album poster.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<div class='clear'>\n<p align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music3p.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<h3><em>From Yamato With Love<\/em> b\/w <em>The Rival<\/em><\/h3>\n<p><em>TV Manga Series Space Action Spectacle<br \/>\n45 rpm single, 10\/21\/1978<br \/>\nElec Records, EE1004<\/em><\/p>\n<p>This oddball release was typical of smaller record labels at the time, a pair of songs licensed from separate publishers (in this case, Nippon Columbia and Polydor) with no extra money spent to license official artwork for the packaging. The songs are properly credited to their creators, but no vocalist is named, which would indicate that they are almost certainly cover versions. The market for products like this would actually intensify in later years, when they would evolve into tribute or nostalgia albums. Click <a href='https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/240'>here<\/a> to view a gallery of such albums, all of which contain covers of the <em>Yamato<\/em> Theme.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<div class='clear'>\n<p><span class='image-right'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music3f.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/span><\/p>\n<h3><em>Space Battleship Yamato<\/em> Best 4<\/h3>\n<p><em>33-1\/3 rpm EP, 12\/25\/1978<br \/>\nNippon Columbia, CH-75<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Capping off their single most successful year to date, Nippon Columbia collected all four of Isao Sasaki&#8217;s <em>Yamato<\/em> songs onto this one disc: The <em>Yamato<\/em> theme, <em>Teresa Forever, The Rival,<\/em> and <em>The Scarlet Scarf.<\/em> It was only a footnote for Sasaki, however, since Columbia had already turned his anime compilation LPs into a yearly event. <\/p>\n<p>His <em>Yamato<\/em> songs had already appeared on three in a row (below, left to right): <\/p>\n<p>Isao Sasaki\/TV Main Title Theme Song Action (1976)<br \/>\nIsao Sasaki\/The Scarlet Scarf (1977)<br \/>\nIsao Sasaki\/Best 24 (1978)<\/p>\n<p><span class='image-left'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music242fix.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/br><\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music3g1.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span class='image-right'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music3g2.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/span><\/p>\n<h3><em>Yamato: I Adore the Eternity of Love<\/em><\/h3>\n<p><em>&#8216;New Disco Arrange&#8217; album 12\/1978<br \/>\nPolydor Records, LP: MR-3162 Cassette: Unknown<\/em><\/p>\n<p>And now for something completely different. The first <em>Symphonic Suite<\/em> had demonstrated how flexible Miyagawa&#8217;s original score was, slipping easily into other genres and enriching its tonal vocabulary. Polydor&#8217;s second (and last) <em>Yamato<\/em> release pushed that idea to groovy lengths with an all-disco album that sampled from both <em>Space Battleship Yamato<\/em> and <em>Farewell<\/em> in bootie-shaking 120 beat-per-minute dance grooves. Listen <a href='https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=RKhO0Hv9PQg'>here<\/a>!<\/p>\n<p>Over the entire span of <em>Yamato<\/em> music, it probably scored more firsts than any other release. It was the first cover album, the first dance album, the first proof of Miyagawa&#8217;s musical fluency, the first commercial score that was re-purposed as BGM (three of its tracks would be used in the <em>Yamato 2<\/em> series), and the appearance of Yoshinobu Nishizaki on the promotional banner (called an &#8216;Obi&#8217;) was the first time a producer&#8217;s image was applied as a selling point. (The album was such a radical departure, Polydor probably felt it necessary to reassure fans that it was fully sanctioned by the &#8216;home office.&#8217;) To sweeten the deal, a strip of 35mm film frames was included as a bonus insert (below right).<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music3g3.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Hiroshi Miyagawa&#8217;s liner notes:<\/p>\n<p><em>I must confess that this album was very difficult to make. Because the themes of the <\/em>Yamato <em>movies are the love of humanity and of space, I didn&#8217;t want to make something that had a simple pop tune melody. And arranging that to disco was really difficult. Disco has a rhythm that&#8217;s made for dancing.<\/p>\n<p>However, limiting yourself to a particular format is foolish, since music should have freedom of expression. You can&#8217;t make great music by saying that &#8220;pop music is this way,&#8221; and &#8220;jazz needs to be that way,&#8221; or &#8220;disco needs to be like this.&#8221; Constraining yourself to this rigid formatting leads to boredom, and listening to music made this way is a sad and excruciating experience. By breaking the mold of the genre you can enjoy the sound that comes from a freedom of expression.<\/p>\n<p>I took on the challenge of creating <\/em>Disco Yamato<em> only to learn later how difficult it would be. I found it very frustrating, trying to arrange all of these popular tunes, like <\/em>The Scarlet Scarf<em> or <\/em>Teresa&#8217;s Sigh<em> or <\/em>Dessler&#8217;s Theme<em> into a disco beat without compromising too much of their original nature. Then there was the tune, <\/em>Yuki&#8217;s Fate<em> that just didn&#8217;t make it as a disco track. However, dancing to the soft tempo on the record isn&#8217;t a bad thing either.<\/p>\n<p><span class='image-right'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/oct11\/MiyagawaVacationCD.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/span><\/p>\n<p>So, how was the result? We&#8217;ll have to leave that to each individual&#8217;s preference. I&#8217;m pretty sure that those who feel it was all a wasted effort will not buy this album. And that&#8217;s fine by me, since I&#8217;m sure there are also those who will have fun with this new experience. Even if only one person likes it, that&#8217;s good enough for me. I&#8217;ll also be pleased if somebody who has never watched <\/em>Yamato <em>picks up this album. At any rate, I&#8217;d like the fans to dance to the music as if they were Kodai and Yuki.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Shown at right: a 1999 CD by Hiroshi Miyagawa and friends titled <em>Vacation of Love<\/em> from the U-Records label. It included some of the maestro&#8217;s early pop hits, lounge standards such as <em>Fly Me to the Moon<\/em> and&#8211;surprising all expectations&#8211;a cover of the the <em>Yamato<\/em> theme from <em>I Adore the Eternity of Love<\/em>. The structure of the song is the same, but the rearrangement with non-disco instruments gives it a far longer shelf life. Prior to 2012, this was the only place that music could be found on CD.<\/p>\n<p><em>Addendum<\/em><\/p>\n<p>New information surfaced in later years that shed some extra light on Polydor as a publisher of <em>Yamato<\/em> music when all other releases came from Nippon Columbia. The most obvious point of reference was the hiring of Kenji Sawada to perform the end title song, <em>From Yamato With Love<\/em>. Since he had signed with Polydor, that song had to be released on Polydor. (Columbia could only release a cover version by Isao Sasaki.) In the negotiations to get Kenji Sawada on board, apparently Nishizaki had to barter a swap; he would get Sawada if Polydor got a <em>Yamato<\/em> LP in return.<\/p>\n<p>One rumor says it was to be an LP version of the Symphonic Concert that was performed live in the summer of 1978, but rights issues (probably with Columbia) got in the way. Therefore, the other option was to create something new, which led to the &#8220;Disco LP.&#8221; Further negotiations would have been needed to use tracks from the album in <em>Yamato 2<\/em>, but details on that are elusive. It&#8217;s possible Nishizaki just plugged them in on his own accord, but we may never know for sure.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<div class='clear'>\n<p align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music3h1.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<h3><em>Space Battleship Yamato<\/em> Theme song and BGM Collection<\/h3>\n<p><span class=\"image-right\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug25\/242themeposter.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/span><\/p>\n<p><em>Compilation album, 2\/1979<br \/>\nTokuma Shoten, FL1001~2 <\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>At Right: poster given away in stores with purchase.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>After the strides made by Polydor, fans wondered what else might arise from another label besides Nippon Columbia, and they got their answer just two months later. Released by the Tokuma Publishing Company, this unique album featured a grab-bag of songs and instrumentals on the middle-ground hybrid format of 8&#8243; flexidiscs, a grade up from the standard &#8216;phonosheets.&#8217; <\/p>\n<p>Tokuma had struck gold by this time with the debut of their monthly <em>Animage<\/em> magazine in July 1978. Their first two issues had both carried <em>Farewell<\/em> cover stories, establishing a strong relationship with <em>Yamato<\/em> right out of the starting gate; strong enough to do an end-run around music publishing rights, apparently, since many of the tracks on this release were licensed by Nippon Columbia.<\/p>\n<p>Disc 1 was largely given over to songs, which included three in &#8216;karaoke&#8217; form: <em>From Yamato With Love, The Rival,<\/em> and <em>The Scarlet Scarf.<\/em> (The first two of which have never been re-released.) The second disc was entirely new: 10 minutes per side of coveted BGM tracks from the TV series and <em>Farewell<\/em> that were previously unreleased. It was the first indicator that fans didn&#8217;t care if they were monaural recordings. All they wanted was the pure sound. Fortunately, Nippon Columbia was paying attention.<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music3h2.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<div class='clear'>\n<p align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music3i1.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<h3><em>Farewell to Yamato<\/em> Final Complete Edition<\/h3>\n<p><em>Drama recording, 9\/21\/1982<br \/>\nNippon Columbia, CWY-519~20<\/em><\/p>\n<p>1982 was the penultimate year for merchandising, with <em>Final Yamato<\/em> looming just over the horizon. It was the last chance for experimentation, and Nippon Columbia outdid themselves with a rush of inventive releases. This dual-cassette drama recording of <em>Farewell to Yamato<\/em> was one of them, containing the entire unedited sound-mix of the movie on extended-length cassettes. Since Polydor still held the rights to Kenji Sawada&#8217;s recording of <em>From Yamato With Love,<\/em> the Isao Sasaki cover version was used here instead.<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music3i2.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<div class='clear'>\n<p align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music3m1.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span class='image-right'><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music3m2.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/span><\/p>\n<h3><em>Farewell to Yamato<\/em> Eternal Edition<br \/>File No. 2 and 3<\/h3>\n<p><em>2-CD set, 11\/1\/2000<br \/>\nColumbia Records, COCX-31154~5<\/em><\/p>\n<p>The long-awaited complete score was finally released a full 22 years after the movie, generously spread across two CDs in the definitive Eternal Edition set. The entire soundtrack was reconstructed with a mixture of stereo tracks composed for the film and monaural tracks that were originally sampled from the first TV series. Bonus tracks on the second disc featured the live <em>Yamato<\/em> performances from Columbia&#8217;s 1978 <em>World of Hiroshi Miyagawa<\/em> LP. Read more about that album <a href='https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/253'>here.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Click <a href='https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/73'>here<\/a> to read about the Eternal Edition series.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<div class='clear'>\n<p align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/mar13\/75809.JPG\" border=0 \/><\/p>\n<h3><em>Yamato<\/em> Sound Almanac Series, 1978-II <em>Farewell to Yamato<\/em> Music Collection<\/h3>\n<p><em>CD, 9\/19\/12<br \/>\nNippon Columbia, COCX-37385<\/em><\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/mar13\/75811.JPG\" border=0 \/><\/p>\n<h3><em>Yamato<\/em> Sound Almanac Series, 1978-III <em>Farewell to Yamato<\/em> BGM Collection<\/h3>\n<p><em>CD, 9\/19\/12<br \/>\nNippon Columbia, COCX-37386<\/em><\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/mar13\/75813.JPG\" border=0 \/><\/p>\n<h3><em>Yamato<\/em> Sound Almanac Series, 1978-IV <em>Space Battleship Yamato<\/em> New Disco Arrange<\/h3>\n<p><em>CD, 9\/19\/12<br \/>\nNippon Columbia, COCX-37387<\/em><\/p>\n<p>The Sound Almanac series was an ambitious 2-year project (2012-2014) to reissue the entire <em>Yamato<\/em> catalog on 30 discs, all remastered to &#8220;Blu-spec CD&#8221; quality and brimming with bonus tracks. Extensive new liner notes introduced classic <em>Yamato<\/em> music to new fans brought in by <em>Yamato 2199<\/em> and also contained plenty of previously-unknown trivia for the veterans.<\/p>\n<p>The Music Collection album was a reissue of the symphonic album, the BGM Collection was a reissue of the material on the Eternal Edition discs, and the <em>New Disco Arrange<\/em> disc was the historic first release of <em>I Adore the Eternity of Love<\/em> on CD.<\/p>\n<p>Read all about the series and find liner notes <a href='https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/758'>here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<div class='clear'>\n<p><a href='https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/243'>Continue to the <em>Yamato 2<\/em> Discography<\/a><\/p>\n<p><em>Bonus Gallery:<\/em> Advertising from Columbia and Polydor.<\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/sep24\/Columbia78banner.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p align=\"center\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault-images\/aug08\/music3n.JPG\" border=\"0\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Special thanks to superfan Steve Harrison for research assistance.<\/p>\n<p><\/br><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[64],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2422","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-music-video-farewell-to-yamato"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2422","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2422"}],"version-history":[{"count":44,"href":"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2422\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":44052,"href":"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2422\/revisions\/44052"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2422"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2422"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ourstarblazers.com\/vault\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2422"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}