I remember when I first heard "Omoide ga Ippai" (Full of Memories) by the folk-pop duo H2O on an episode of "Sounds of Japan" on CHIN-FM decades ago. Not having known about its status as the first ending theme for the 1983 anime "Miyuki"（みゆき）, I found it a splendid wistful ballad. Years later, the 3rd-year homeroom teachers of the school that I had taught during my time on the JET Programme sang the song for the soon-to-be graduates. Not a dry eye in the room. And I've learned that "Omoide ga Ippai" has been a stalwart song for Japanese graduations.
Well, commenter Brian Mitchell asked me earlier about some of the cover versions and not surprisingly, considering how beloved and sentimental "Omoide ga Ippai" has become since the early 1980s, the list of singers who have given their own versions of the ballad reads like a Santa Claus list. At Brian's request, I went over three of those covers.
The first one here is by actress and singer Mikuni Shimokawa（下川みくに）, and although she's only had one role as an anime seiyuu, she often sings her fair share of anison. But in this case, she did cover "Omoide ga Ippai" via her December 2003 "Review ~ Shimokawa Mikuni Seishun Anison Cover Album"（Review 〜下川みくに青春アニソンカバーアルバム〜）. Her take is an even breezier and languid take on the anison classic.
MINMI is a singer that I have mentioned on KKP before when she collaborated with m-flo for the dance hall-friendly "Lotta Love". However, she's regularly a reggae singer and that's the genre which is powering her cover of "Omoide ga Ippai" which is a track on her August 2011 album "The Heart Song Collection" which is filled with tunes that she enjoyed as a teenager.
Nao Toyama（東山奈央）is a seiyuu and singer who's shown up on the blog a number of times in the past and she sings "Omoide ga Ippai" for the second in the series of anime character albums for the anime "Kami Nomi zo Shiru Sekai"（神のみぞ知るセカイ...The World God Only Knows） which was released in 2014. Under her character of Kanon Nakagawa（中川かのん）, she sings the song under a shoegaze and pop arrangement.
Hey J-Canuck, thanks a lot for fulfilling my request! I noticed that in this post you’ve covered these covers of “Omoide ga Ippai” chronologically, showcasing how the song has evolved or been reimagined over the years. A while back, I stumbled upon what I think is an AI-generated disco version of “Omoide ga Ippai,” which made me wonder if there are other covers of this ever-popular song out there and to my delight I discovered that there were quite a few interesting covers out there. Years ago I purchased 「MEMORIES ～わたしの青春ソング～CD5枚組BOX マイ・メモリーズ 青春ソング 名曲集｜昭和・平成 洋楽＆邦楽 ヒット｜CD5枚組 コンピレーション」I discovered "Omoide ga Ippai" on CD 4 of the set. When, first heard this song I had no idea that it was a so called 'Anime' song but it did sound kind of like a 1980's soft rock love song/ballad. I think I had actually heard "Omoide ga Ippai"before I acquired the CD compilation, but I did not know the title of the song nor, for the matter, the band that sang it.
ReplyDeleteHello, Brian and my pleasure on the article. I think even for this song, there is quite the rabbit hole to navigate. Although H2O never quite achieved superstar status, the duo probably still has some very dedicated fans and their magnum opus "Omoide ga Ippai" is still a tune that has remained in many memories.
DeleteOH! I just discovered that back in 2010, Hitomi Shimatani also covered 「想い出がいっぱい」and it was released on her album: "男歌 II〜20世紀ノスタルジア〜 ". It is a lot more mellow than the other covers; maybe it is like a kind of slow jazz. Like the type of music that might be in the background while you are drinking a cocktail in a swanky pub.
ReplyDelete