Eyes on Me (Faye Wong song)
Encyclopedia
"Eyes on Me" is a pop
ballad performed by Chinese diva Faye Wong
as a love theme
for the video game Final Fantasy VIII
. The song's lyrics, written in somewhat imperfect English by Kako Someya, unveil the hopes of a night club singer for romance with a member of her audience.
in Japan. It was the first song in video game history to win an award at the 14th Annual Japan Gold Disc Award
s, where it won "Song of the Year (Western Music)" in 2000.
It sold over 500,000 copies, placing it as the best-selling video game music disc ever released in Japan until the release of "Hikari
" by Utada Hikaru
for Kingdom Hearts
.
The B-side was a ballad, "Red Bean" , written by Jim Lau with Mandarin lyrics by Lin Xi. The Japanese title for it was . It had been included in Faye Wong's 1998 album Scenic Tour
, along with a Cantonese version "Repayment", and was popular in its own right.
The song was popular among gamer
s in the West, and brought Faye Wong to the attention of many who were not previously familiar with her music.
/happy hardcore
remix was recorded for the 2000 Dancemania
compilation Speed 4
. This remix was later included on the Japanese release of Wong's 2000 album Fable
, and on the first greatest hits compilation
of the Dancemania Speed series.
In 2004, a Japanese-language version entitled with lyrics by Kazushige Nojima
was included on Final Fantasy Song Book: Mahoroba.
Ailyn
(then recording as An Ling) chose it as the title track of her 2005 album Eyes On Me.
The song was also covered by Angela Aki
for release on her 2006 single "Kokoro no Senshi
", with minor grammatical changes. In an Excite
Japan interview, Aki reports composer Nobuo Uematsu
as saying her version 'shed light on "Eyes on Me"'.
In 2010, the Italian metal band Ancient Bards covered the song for the Japanese release of their album Alliance of the Kings.
Popular music
Popular music belongs to any of a number of musical genres "having wide appeal" and is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. It stands in contrast to both art music and traditional music, which are typically disseminated academically or orally to smaller, local...
ballad performed by Chinese diva Faye Wong
Faye Wong
Faye Wong is a highly successful and influential Chinese singer-songwriter and actress who is usually referred to as a diva . Early in her career she briefly used the stage name Shirley Wong . Born in Beijing, she moved to Hong Kong in 1987 and rose to stardom in the early 1990s by singing...
as a love theme
Theme music
Theme music is a piece that is often written specifically for a radio program, television program, video game or movie, and usually played during the title sequence and/or end credits...
for the video game Final Fantasy VIII
Final Fantasy VIII
is a role-playing video game released for the PlayStation in 1999 and for Windows-based personal computers in 2000. It was developed and published by Square as the Final Fantasy series' eighth title, removing magic point-based spell-casting and the first title to consistently use realistically...
. The song's lyrics, written in somewhat imperfect English by Kako Someya, unveil the hopes of a night club singer for romance with a member of her audience.
Single
The song was released as a CD singleCD single
A CD single is a music single in the form of a standard size Compact Disc, not to be confused with the 3-inch CD single, which uses a smaller form factor. The format was introduced in the mid-1980s, but did not gain its place in the market until the early 1990s...
in Japan. It was the first song in video game history to win an award at the 14th Annual Japan Gold Disc Award
Japan Gold Disc Award
The Japan Gold Disc Awards for Music sales in the Recording Industry Association of Japan, is major music awards held annually in Japan also released as a CD.- List of the Artists of the Year :************...
s, where it won "Song of the Year (Western Music)" in 2000.
It sold over 500,000 copies, placing it as the best-selling video game music disc ever released in Japan until the release of "Hikari
Hikari (song)
is Hikaru Utada's 10th Japanese-language single , and is also her 3rd single on the Deep River album. Its release date was March 20, 2002...
" by Utada Hikaru
Utada Hikaru
, known by her stage name Utada in America and Europe, is a Japanese-American singer, song writer, arranger, and producer. Since the release of her Japanese debut album First Love, which went on to become the best-selling album in Oricon history, Utada has had three of her Japanese studio albums...
for Kingdom Hearts
Kingdom Hearts
is an action role-playing game developed and published by Square in 2002 for the PlayStation 2 video game console. The first game in the Kingdom Hearts series, it is the result of a collaboration between Square Enix and The Walt Disney Company. The game combines characters and settings from Disney...
.
The B-side was a ballad, "Red Bean" , written by Jim Lau with Mandarin lyrics by Lin Xi. The Japanese title for it was . It had been included in Faye Wong's 1998 album Scenic Tour
Scenic Tour (Faye Wong album)
Scenic Tour is an 1998 album by Beijing-based C-pop singer Faye Wong. It includes 10 tracks in Mandarin, with 3 bonus Cantonese tracks.Scenic Tour is also the first Chinese album recorded in HDCD techniques...
, along with a Cantonese version "Repayment", and was popular in its own right.
Theme song in the game
Within Final Fantasy VIII, the song is written by Julia Heartilly, a pianist who is the love interest of Laguna Loire. It is heard repeatedly throughout the game in various incarnations as an instrumental piece, including a version entitled Julia. Its full version is heard during a moment between Squall Leonhart and Rinoa Heartilly—the main protagonists—onboard the Ragnarok. It is played once more during the game's ending.The song was popular among gamer
Gamer
Historically, the term "gamer" usually referred to someone who played role-playing games and wargames. Since they became very popular, the term has included players of video games...
s in the West, and brought Faye Wong to the attention of many who were not previously familiar with her music.
Other versions
An uptempo eurodanceEurodance
Eurodance is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in the late 1980s or early 1990s primarily in Europe. It combines many elements from House, Techno, Hi-NRG and especially Italo-Disco...
/happy hardcore
Happy hardcore
Happy hardcore, also known as happycore, is a genre of music typified by a very fast tempo , often coupled with solo vocals and sentimental lyrics. Its characteristically 4/4 beat "happy" sound distinguishes it from most other forms of hardcore techno, which tend to be "darker". It is typically in...
remix was recorded for the 2000 Dancemania
Dancemania
Dancemania is a series of remix compilation albums by i-DANCE. The series deals primarily with dance music, especially eurodance. Despite its tracks have been made by various musicians from all over the world mainly from the European continent, the albums have been released exclusively in Japan.The...
compilation Speed 4
Dancemania Speed
Dancemania Speed is a sub-series of Toshiba EMI's Dancemania compilation series. This series features faster, further remixed versions of recordings from previously released Dancemania albums or faster remixed covers of various famous songs...
. This remix was later included on the Japanese release of Wong's 2000 album Fable
Fable (album)
Fable is a 2000 album by Beijing-based C-pop singer Faye Wong.The album is structured into 3 basic parts. The first five tracks deal with certain aspects of Buddhism and fairy tales, especially that of Cinderella. The next three are radio-friendly pop songs...
, and on the first greatest hits compilation
Dancemania Speed Best 2001
Dancemania Speed Best 2001 Hyper Nonstop Megamix, or simply Dancemania Speed Best 2001, is a greatest hits compilation album of Dancemanias Speed series, released by EMI Music Japan in 2000...
of the Dancemania Speed series.
In 2004, a Japanese-language version entitled with lyrics by Kazushige Nojima
Kazushige Nojima
is a Japanese game scenario writer and is the founder of Stellavista Ltd.. He is best known for writing parts of Square Enix's Final Fantasy video game series—namely Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VIII, Final Fantasy X, Final Fantasy X-2—and the Kingdom Hearts series...
was included on Final Fantasy Song Book: Mahoroba.
Ailyn
Ailyn
Pilar Giménez García is a Spanish singer, known as Ailyn. She is the female vocalist of the gothic metal band Sirenia.-Musical start:...
(then recording as An Ling) chose it as the title track of her 2005 album Eyes On Me.
The song was also covered by Angela Aki
Angela Aki
, born Kiyomi Angela Aki on September 15, 1977, is a Japanese pop singer-songwriter, guitarist and pianist from Itano, Tokushima, Japan.-Early life:...
for release on her 2006 single "Kokoro no Senshi
Kokoro no Senshi
is the second single by Japanese singer Angela Aki. It was released on January 18, 2006, reached number 9 on the Oricon Daily Charts, and number 13 on the Weekly Chart...
", with minor grammatical changes. In an Excite
Excite
Excite is a collection of Internet sites and services owned by IAC Search & Media, which is a subsidiary of InterActive Corporation . Launched in 1994, it is an online service offering a variety of content, including an Internet portal, a search engine, a web-based email, instant messaging, stock...
Japan interview, Aki reports composer Nobuo Uematsu
Nobuo Uematsu
is a Japanese video game composer, best known for scoring the majority of titles in the Final Fantasy series. He is considered as one of the most famous and respected composers in the video game community...
as saying her version 'shed light on "Eyes on Me"'.
In 2010, the Italian metal band Ancient Bards covered the song for the Japanese release of their album Alliance of the Kings.
External links
- Singable Chinese version at zompist.com (American linguist's site)