The Blood That Moves the Body
by a-ha

Album: Stay On These Roads (1988)
Charted: 25
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Written about kamikaze suicides, Chris Martin of Coldplay has cited this as an inspiration when he first began writing songs.
  • According to Merriam-Webster online dictionary, "kamikaze" is a "member of a Japanese air attack corps in World War II assigned to make a suicidal crash on a target (as a ship)." Since WWII, the word has been used to describe any person willing to sacrifice their own life to carry out an act of violence upon another.
  • It is widely thought the Japanese "invented" the act of kamikaze, and although the Japanese did devise the tactic used in WWII, it was not used by the Japanese before, nor has it been used since. Rather, the term "kamikaze" itself means "divine wind," and has a positive connotation for Japan, originating in the 13th Century when two storms devastated Mongolia's invading fleets - led by Genghis Khan - and protected Japan from invasion. >>
    Suggestion credit:
    Erick Overveen - Amsterdam, Netherlands
  • In Japan, this was used in a series of commercials to promote the makeup brand Gatsby.

Comments: 1

  • Darkdread from Magallanes, ChileRebel fighters in the Palestine or Afghanistan against the invading countries in their lands (Israel and the US) also deserve the name of Kamikazes.
see more comments

Editor's Picks

When Rock Belonged To Michelob

When Rock Belonged To MichelobSong Writing

Michelob commercials generated hits for Eric Clapton, Genesis and Steve Winwood in the '80s, even as some of these rockers were fighting alcoholism.

Mike Campbell

Mike CampbellSongwriter Interviews

Mike is lead guitarist with Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, and co-writer of classic songs like "Boys Of Summer," "Refugee" and "The Heart Of The Matter."

Protest Songs

Protest SongsMusic Quiz

How well do you know your protest songs (including the one that went to #1)?

Best Band Logos

Best Band LogosSong Writing

Queen, Phish and The Stones are among our picks for the best band logos. Here are their histories and a design analysis from an expert.

Michael Schenker

Michael SchenkerSongwriter Interviews

The Scorpions and UFO guitarist is also a very prolific songwriter - he explains how he writes with his various groups, and why he was so keen to get out of Germany and into England.

American Hits With Foreign Titles

American Hits With Foreign TitlesSong Writing

What are the biggest US hits with French, Spanish (not "Rico Suave"), Italian, Scottish, Greek, and Japanese titles?