"Endless sorrow" is the 22nd single

Single (music)

In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...

 released by Ayumi Hamasaki

Ayumi Hamasaki

is a Japanese singer-songwriter, record producer, model, lyricist, and actress. Also called "Ayu" by her fans, Hamasaki has been dubbed the "Empress of Pop" because of her popularity and widespread influence in Japan and throughout Asia. Born and raised in Fukuoka, she moved to Tokyo at fourteen to...

 on May 16, 2001. It is also found on her I am... album. The version featured on the single is vastly different from "Endless sorrow (gone with the wind version)", featured on the album; the album version with a generally more mellow, calmer sound. The single version features dramatic strings, piano, and rock

Rock music

Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...

 leanings. The album version also contains a hidden track, "Flower Garden", with several minutes separating "Endless Sorrow" and the hidden track.

Commercial endorsements

The original version of "Endless Sorrow" was the theme song of the Japanese drama "Mukashi no otoko" that was broadcast on TBS. The "Kirai Natsu Ayu Mix" of "Vogue" was used in commercial for a Kose Visee mascara featuring Hamasaki herself.

PV

The PV of Endless Sorrow depicts a young boy living in a society in which speaking was prohibited by law. The boy, however, climbs a tower, meeting a man (presumably a priest

Priest

A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...

 because of his clothing) and a one-winged angel

Angel

Angels are mythical beings often depicted as messengers of God in the Hebrew and Christian Bibles along with the Quran. The English word angel is derived from the Greek ἄγγελος, a translation of in the Hebrew Bible ; a similar term, ملائكة , is used in the Qur'an...

 who looks exactly like the boy. Apart from shots of the cover of the Endless Sorrow single, Hamasaki does not appear in the original version of the PV, but in a later version, Hamasaki appears at the end of the video in a trench coat and fedora, and picks up the feather dropped by the boy.

Track listing

1. "Endless Sorrow"
2. "Vogue" (Kirari Natsu Ayu Mix)
3. "Endless Sorrow" (Natural Green Dub Mix)
4. "Endless Sorrow" (Nicely Nice Skyblue remix)
5. "Never Ever" (Dub's Uncategorized Mix 001)
6. "Endless Sorrow" (Ram's Advance Mix)
7. "Endless Sorrow" (Brent Mini's gothic mix)
8. "Endless Sorrow" (Liquid Heart Mix)
9. "Endless Sorrow" (Juicy Ariyama Mix)
10. "Endless Sorrow" (Instrumental)

Live performances

• July 1, 2001 - CountDown TV - Endless sorrow and Unite!
  Unite!
  "Unite!" is the twenty-third single by Ayumi Hamasaki, released on July 11, 2001. It is her sixth single released in Germany.Unlike most of her other A-sides and some of her B-sides, Unite! has no PV...
  
  
• December 2, 2001 - Digital Dream Live - Endless sorrow and Evolution
  Evolution (song)
  "Evolution" is the 20th single released by Ayumi Hamasaki. It was released January 31, 2001. Her second single to be composed by herself , it sold over 500,000 copies in its first week at debuted at #1 on the charts. "Evolution" is Hamasaki's highest selling single until 2002's "H" in the 21st...
  
  

Charts

Oricon Sales Chart (Japan)

Release	Chart	Peak Position	First Week Sales	Sales Total	Chart Run
16 May 2001	Oricon Daily Singles Chart	1
	Oricon Weekly Singles Chart	1	430,220	768,510	11
	Oricon Yearly Singles Chart	14

• RIAJ certification: 3x Platinum

External links

• Endless sorrow information at Avex Network
  Avex Trax
  , listed in the Tokyo Stock Exchange as 7860 and abbreviated as AGHD, is the holding company for a group of entertainment-related subsidiaries based in Japan...
  
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• Endless sorrow information at Oricon
  Oricon
  , established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan. It started as , which was founded by Sōkō Koike in November 1967 and became known for its music charts. Oricon Inc...
  
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