, more commonly known as Akeboshi, is a Japanese pop and folk

Folk music

Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....

 singer. He is mainly known for the song "Wind", which was used in the hit anime

Anime

is the Japanese abbreviated pronunciation of "animation". The definition sometimes changes depending on the context. In English-speaking countries, the term most commonly refers to Japanese animated cartoons....

 series Naruto

Naruto

is an ongoing Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Masashi Kishimoto. The plot tells the story of Naruto Uzumaki, an adolescent ninja who constantly searches for recognition and aspires to become the Hokage, the ninja in his village who is acknowledged as the leader and the strongest of...

. His surname means "bright star," while his given name means "fine man."

Akeboshi was born on July 1, 1978 in Yokohama

Yokohama

is the capital city of Kanagawa Prefecture and the second largest city in Japan by population after Tokyo and most populous municipality of Japan. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of Tokyo, in the Kantō region of the main island of Honshu...

. He learned to play the piano when he was three years old, later learning to play the guitar. He studied music in Liverpool

Liverpool

Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...

, and his time there has heavily influenced his music. Before his major debut, he produced two of the songs on Matsu Takako's fourth album, A piece of life.

Akeboshi

Akeboshi's debut album, Akeboshi, was released on June 22, 2005 on Epic Records

Epic Records

Epic Records is an American record label, owned by Sony Music Entertainment. Though it was originally conceived as a jazz imprint, it has since expanded to represent various genres. L.A...

 Japan.

1. "Wind"
2. "Night and day"
3. "Hey there"
4. "No wish"
7. "A nine days' wonder"
8. "White reply"
9. "Faerie punks"
10. "Morning high"
11. "Tall boy"
12. "The audience"
14. (Bonus Track)

Most of these tracks are taken from the mini-albums, with some re-recorded in slightly different arrangements.

Meet Along the Way

Akeboshi's second album, "Meet Along the Way", was released on November 7, 2007 on the Epic Records

Epic Records

Epic Records is an American record label, owned by Sony Music Entertainment. Though it was originally conceived as a jazz imprint, it has since expanded to represent various genres. L.A...

 label in Japan. The simultaneously released limited edition contains a CD with the songs "Rusty Lance," "Yellow Moon," and "Along The Line."

1. "Sky In The Pond"
2. "The Cliff"
3. "Yellow Bird"
4. "Broken bridge"
5. "Seeds"
6. "shadow of the wind"
7. "Green eyes"
8. "Village Stone"
9. "Mercury is rising"
10. "Diamond Dust"
11. "coille gan crann"
12. "Close my door"

Roundabout

Akeboshi's third album, "Roundabout", was released on June 11, 2008 on the Epic Records

Epic Records

Epic Records is an American record label, owned by Sony Music Entertainment. Though it was originally conceived as a jazz imprint, it has since expanded to represent various genres. L.A...

 label in Japan. Called a "complete selection album," it contains no new songs, but does feature previously unreleased live versions of several of his best hits. The simultaneously released limited edition contains a DVD with a collection of his music videos, as well as a documentary of the time he spent in England recording "Meet Along the Way."

1. "Leaf on Leaf"
2. "Sky in the pond"
3. "One step behind the door"
4. "Along the Line"
5. "Peruna"
6. "Yellow Moon"
7. "Rusty lance"
8. "Sounds"
9. "Hey There" (Live)
10. "Seeds" (Live)
11. "Wind" (Live)
12. "A Nine Days' Wonder" (Live)

Stoned town

Stoned town was released August 8, 2002.

1. "Wind"
2. "Akikaze no Uta" (Song of the Autumn Wind)
3. "No wish"
4. "Haikyo no Sofa" (Sofa in a Ruin)

White reply

White reply was released June 18, 2003. A limited edition version was released on May 13, 2003. It contained an extra song, called "Not real".

1. "Tall boy"
2. "Morning high"
3. "White reply"
4. "Money"

Faerie punks

Faerie punks was released March 10, 2004.

1. "Hey there"
2. "Night and day"
4. "Faerie punks"

Rusty lance

Rusty lance was released October 19, 2005.

1. "Rusty lance"
2. "Sounds"
3. "Writing over the sign"

Yellow Moon

Yellow Moon

Yellow Moon (Akeboshi album)

Yellow Moon is the fourth EP and sixth album released by Japanese pop and folk artist Akeboshi. Sony Music Entertainment Japan released the EP on April 19, 2006; Sony later released it in America under the Epic Records label. The album's title track "Yellow Moon" garnered fame as the thirteenth...

was released April 19, 2006.
The title track was used for the thirteenth Naruto

Naruto

is an ongoing Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Masashi Kishimoto. The plot tells the story of Naruto Uzumaki, an adolescent ninja who constantly searches for recognition and aspires to become the Hokage, the ninja in his village who is acknowledged as the leader and the strongest of...

 ending theme.

1. "Yellow Moon (edit)"
2. "Peruna"
3. "One step behind the door"
5. "Yellow Moon"
6. "Deep end"

Colorful Drops

"Colorful Drops" was released on August 22, 2007. "Along the Line" is the theme for the movie White Mexico.

1. "Along the Line"
2. "leaf on leaf"
4. "Quiet Garden"

Work with Matsu Takako

Matsu Takako's single, Toki no Fune, released September 2004, contains two songs composed by Akeboshi. The title track is another version of "A nine days' wonder", though the lyrics are different and there are some small changes to the melody. The song was used in the drama RUNAWAY, which is a remake of the movie The Fugitive

The Fugitive (1993 film)

The Fugitive is a 1993 American thriller film based on the television series of the same name. The film was directed by Andrew Davis and stars Harrison Ford and Tommy Lee Jones. The film was one of the few movies associated with a television series to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best...

. The single also contains a cover of "White reply".

External links

• Akeboshi's Wind Clip with lyrics
• Akeboshi's official website
• Information about Akeboshi (English)
• A concert report
• Another concert report
• XA Music