(I Miss The) Tokyo Skyline

Album: Rewind The Film (2013)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Nicky Wire's lyrics for this song are about the band being completely seduced by Tokyo. He told The Quietus: "I think we all were when we first went there and we did the 'Motorcycle Emptiness' video, it's the first place we ever got a gold disc. I'll never forget, we turned up at the airport at six in the morning and there were hundreds of people, we all looked behind us because we thought The Black Crowes were there or something. We realised they were all waiting for us, and thought, 'Fu--ing hell!' It was such an indelible scar. It's the most alien culture I've ever been to, in a good way, and I've loved the feeling of safety. Whenever we go back there's a special bond."
  • Vocalist James Dean Bradfield described this track to NME as having a "fragility, but it's not mournful or dampened."
  • Here are three more songs that were inspired by the Japanese city:

    "Tokyo Melody" by Helmut Zacharias.

    "Elephant Song" by Enemy.

    "Paris, Tokyo" by Lupe Fiasco.

    Pedant's corner: Actually, Tokyo isn't officially a city. In 1943 Tokyo Metropolis was formed from the merger of the former Tokyo Prefecture and the city of Tokyo. Since then, Tokyo has been commonly referred to as a "metropolitan prefecture."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

TV Theme Songs

TV Theme SongsFact or Fiction

Was a Beatles song a TV theme? And who came up with those Fresh Prince and Sopranos songs?

Director Nick Morris ("The Final Countdown")

Director Nick Morris ("The Final Countdown")Song Writing

Nick made some of the biggest videos on MTV, including "The Final Countdown," "Heaven" and "Don't Know What You Got (Till It's Gone)."

Richie Wise (Kiss producer, Dust)

Richie Wise (Kiss producer, Dust)Songwriter Interviews

Richie talks about producing the first two Kiss albums, recording "Brother Louie," and the newfound appreciation of his rock band, Dust.

Taylor Dayne

Taylor DayneSongwriter Interviews

Taylor talks about "The Machine" - the hits, the videos and Clive Davis.

Let Me Be Your Teddy Bear: Teddy Bears and Teddy Boys in Songs

Let Me Be Your Teddy Bear: Teddy Bears and Teddy Boys in SongsSong Writing

Elvis, Little Richard and Cheryl Cole have all sung about Teddy Bears, but there is also a terrifying Teddy song from 1932 and a touching trucker Teddy tune from 1976.

Early Days of MTV

Early Days of MTVFact or Fiction

If you can recall the days when MTV played videos, you know that there are lots of stories to tell. See if you can spot the real ones.