Raccoon
Fox Brigade
- Pronouns
- He/Him
Many weeks ago now I said that a thread about one of my favorite musicians was forthcoming, but it is only now that I have sat down to write it. This prolonged waiting period came not from a place of arrogance about my writing, but rather the daunting task of imparting a life and its work into a forum thread. Organizationally, I expect this thread to suffer from the magnitude of what I hope to express. Rather than attempting in vain to tame this thread, I instead intend to succumb to its overwhelming potential and communicate as much as I can.
Ryuichi Sakamoto is one of the most influential musicians alive today. As a member of the groundbreaking trio YMO he provided several of the lush compositions that separated the group from its contemporaries, many ranging in musicality from austere to unlistenable. In addition to this, he created a wonderful discography of solo works and scoring credits.
Above is his first solo credited album, Thousand Knives. It is an eclectic work with a pioneering sound, and its opening title track is one of my favorite compositions across its YMO and piano versions. His 1980 album B-2 Unit has been recognized for its impact on techno and hip hop, while 1984's Illustrated Musical Encyclopedia remains my personal favorite.
His career is so broad as to be difficult to summarize, so I will overlook a great deal. He scored the critically acclaimed Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence and starred in it alongside David Bowie. As for video games, he created the SEGA Dreamcast startup sound, and both composed for and was creatively involved in the creation of Love-de-lic's L.O.L: Lack Of Love. Additionally, the character known in the west as Phoenix Wright is named Ryuichi Naruhodo in his honor and its trial theme inspired by "Thousand Knives."
As an aside, I feel as though the rain theme from Pikmin 3 sounds a bit like the bridge section of the track embedded below. Let me know if you hear a similarity and agree.
Finally, I'd like to touch briefly on why I am writing this thread. Several months ago I learned that Sakamoto has stage 4 cancer. I knew then that if he were to pass away I would write some sort of tribute thread, but decided to instead celebrate his life. This fall an album of covers of his works by various artists will be released in commemoration of his 70th birthday. Below is a funk-oriented reimagining of "Thousand Knives" by Thundercat.
Thank you all for reading this disaster of a thread. I wish that I had done justice to this wonderful artist, but at this point I wanted to write something brief to share my respect for him with all of you. I hope that this thread fosters some discussion among my fellow Sakamoto devotees and introduces a lifetime of incredible creation to those unfamiliar.
Ryuichi Sakamoto is one of the most influential musicians alive today. As a member of the groundbreaking trio YMO he provided several of the lush compositions that separated the group from its contemporaries, many ranging in musicality from austere to unlistenable. In addition to this, he created a wonderful discography of solo works and scoring credits.
Above is his first solo credited album, Thousand Knives. It is an eclectic work with a pioneering sound, and its opening title track is one of my favorite compositions across its YMO and piano versions. His 1980 album B-2 Unit has been recognized for its impact on techno and hip hop, while 1984's Illustrated Musical Encyclopedia remains my personal favorite.
His career is so broad as to be difficult to summarize, so I will overlook a great deal. He scored the critically acclaimed Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence and starred in it alongside David Bowie. As for video games, he created the SEGA Dreamcast startup sound, and both composed for and was creatively involved in the creation of Love-de-lic's L.O.L: Lack Of Love. Additionally, the character known in the west as Phoenix Wright is named Ryuichi Naruhodo in his honor and its trial theme inspired by "Thousand Knives."
As an aside, I feel as though the rain theme from Pikmin 3 sounds a bit like the bridge section of the track embedded below. Let me know if you hear a similarity and agree.
Finally, I'd like to touch briefly on why I am writing this thread. Several months ago I learned that Sakamoto has stage 4 cancer. I knew then that if he were to pass away I would write some sort of tribute thread, but decided to instead celebrate his life. This fall an album of covers of his works by various artists will be released in commemoration of his 70th birthday. Below is a funk-oriented reimagining of "Thousand Knives" by Thundercat.
Thank you all for reading this disaster of a thread. I wish that I had done justice to this wonderful artist, but at this point I wanted to write something brief to share my respect for him with all of you. I hope that this thread fosters some discussion among my fellow Sakamoto devotees and introduces a lifetime of incredible creation to those unfamiliar.
