Length 43:03 Release date 21 June 1985 Label PONY | Producer 長岡和弘 | |
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Released June 21, 1985 (1985-06-21) AXIA(1985) The Special Series Saito Yuki(1985) Similar Chime, YUKI’S BRAND 25th Spe, Yuki’s MUSEUM, POETIC Live 1986 | ||
Axia (アクシア, Akushia, usually stylized AXIA) is the debut studio album from Yuki Saito, released on June 21, 1985 by Canyon Records. It reached #6 on the Oricon charts, and has been repackaged and rereleased twice. It contains six original songs and four which had previously been released as singles.
Contents
History
Axia was released on LP and cassette on June 21, 1985 by Canyon Records. The album was released two weeks later on CD on July 5, 1985. The album collects four songs released previously as singles as well as six additional songs. It reached #3 on the Oricon charts and sold 287,000 copies.
"Sotsugyō" (卒業, lit. "Graduation"), released as a single with "Seishun" (青春, lit. "Youth"), reached #6 on the Oricon charts, and #6 on The Best Ten chart. "Sotsugyō" was composed by Kyōhei Tsutsumi, arranged by Satoshi Takebe, with lyrics by Takashi Matsumoto. It was used as the theme song for the first Sukeban Deka television drama series, in which Saito also starred as the main character, Saki.
The B-side, Seishun (青春, lit. Youth), was composed by Tsutsumi, arranged by Masataka Matsutoya, with lyrics by Matsumoto. "Seishun" was used in commercials for the home video release of the Fuji TV 1985 drama series Yakyū-kyō no Uta (野球狂の詩) in which Saito starred.
"Shiroi Honō" (白い炎, lit. "White Blaze") was released as a single with "Shabon-iro no Natsu" (石鹸＜シャボン＞色の夏, lit. "Soap Bubble-colored Summer"), reaching #5 on the Oricon charts and #10 on The Best Ten chart. "Shiroi Honō" had lyrics by Yukinojō Mori, with the music composed by Kōji Tamaki and arranged by Takebe. "Shabon-iro no Natsu" also has lyrics by Mori, and was composed by Toshio Kamei and arranged by Takebe.
"Axia: Kanashii Kotori" (AXIA 〜かなしいことり〜, Akushia: Kanashii Kotori, lit. "Axia: Sorrowful Little Bird") was used in commercials for the Axia brand of cassette tapes from Fujifilm in Japan. Natsuo Giniro composed the song and wrote the lyrics, and Takebe arranged the music.
Axia has been rereleased twice since the original release in 1985. It was released as a "Gold CD" on March 21, 1989 (catalog #D35A-0476), and in a special paper jacket packaging and remastered high quality (or "HQ") CD on August 5, 2009 (catalog #PCCA-50132).
Track listing
LP (catalog #C28A0416, released June 21, 1985)
Cassette (catalog #28P6438, released June 21, 1985)
CD (catalog #D32A-0096, released July 5, 1985)
Gold CD (catalog #D35A-0476, released March 21, 1989)
HQ CD (catalog #PCCA-50132, released August 5, 2009)
Songs
卒業4:44
石鹸色の夏4:13
青春3:50