Ai No Corrida (I-No-No-Ko-ree-da) by Quincy Jones

Album: The Dude (1981)

Charted: 14 28

License This Song

lyrics

Songfacts®:

Quincy Jones was widely known for producing and writing songs for other artists, but this is one of the songs he performed on as well as produced - he played synthesizer and sang backup. The odd title, "Ai No Corrida," was taken from the Japanese film In The Realm Of The Senses, and was in fact the original title of the film. In spite of Jones' immense songwriting ability, he didn't write this one - it was written and originally released by the British funk/New Wave musician Chaz Jankel, who wrote the song with Kenny Young and originally recorded it on his 1980 self-titled album.
Before writing this song, Chaz Jankel worked with Ian Dury & the Blockheads. His version of the song met with little success, but Quincy Jones saw its potential and turned it into a hit.
Charles May, who went by the name Dune, sang lead on this track. Patti Austin sang backup, Herbie Hancock played electric piano, and Louis Johnson of The Brothers Johnson played bass.
"Corrida" is Spanish for bullfight, but the meaning of the title roughly translates to "don't run away."
Other versions of this song were recorded by The Nylons, Laura More and Uniting Nations. The version by Uniting Nations reached #18 in the UK in 2005.

Comments: 8

Helge from OsloI don’t think that the word "bullfight" has anything to do with the title of the song. As mentioned in other comments, the songs title is taken from the japanese film "Ai no Korrida", that just happens to look like the spanish word "corrida".
Deez from Yo Mama ;)bro everyone in the comments be saying that ai no corida is a sexual song- Bruh i listen to that thinking it was so cool funk song- i mean come on- way to ruin a song for some little 15 year old.
Thomas from NashvilleThe title of the song was taken from the French-Japanese film In the Realm of the Senses, originally titled Ai no Korida, and means "Corrida of love" in Japanese. The erotic art film, directed by Nagisa Oshima, was a fictionalized and sexually explicit treatment of an incident from 1930s Japan. It generated great controversy during its original release; it was intended for mainstream wide release, but it contained scenes of unsimulated sexual activity between the actors.

-- Wikipedia
Roberto from Matamoros, MéxicoA bullfight is a "corrida de toros" in Spanish, but just as it happens with many words, it has some other meanings. In some Spanish-speaking countries, "corrida" is slang for "ejaculation", although is also used (as slang, of course) as synonym for "orgasm". So, "Ai No Corrida" would not mean "Bullfight of Love" but "Orgasm of Love" or "Ejaculation of Love". I think that makes more sense, but that's just my opinion.
Almightyshux from New YorkAi is love in Japanese. The Japanese particle No is a possessive. So Love's Bullfight or as stated previously The Bullfight Of Love.
Chris from Nagoya, JapanThe movie was based on the life of Sada Abe, a prostitute in the mid1930's who strangled her lover to death while making love, then cut off his private parts and ran off with them. The movie featured unsimulated sex scenes.
Chelle from Charlotte, NcActually, while the word corrida is spanish for bullfight, the title itself is not Spanish. The title was taken from a Japanese film that came out in the mid-late 70s. The film is called "Realm of the Senses", but its alternate title translates to "bullfight of love". the meaning of the title must be metaphoric/metaphysical, which would make sense considering the content of the song.
If you look up realm of the senses, in the realm of the senses, or l'empire de sens on wikipedia, they'll show you the movie poster. Look for the large kanji prin at the bottom-center of the poster image. :-)
Mark from Kitakyushu,Greatest song ever.

see more comments

More Songfacts:

Theme From ShaftIsaac Hayes

When "Theme From Shaft" won an Oscar in 1972, Isaac Hayes became the first African American to win in the Best Song category.

Ain't NobodyRufus & Chaka Khan

"Ain't Nobody" by Rufus & Chaka Khan was one of the first big hits to use a sequencer, which is how that distinctive keyboard loop was created. The song almost landed on Michael Jackson's Thriller album, but the group decided to keep it.

Gangnam StylePsy

The K-pop hit "Gangnam Style" became the most-viewed video in YouTube history months after it was released in 2012, a title it held until "See You Again" by Wiz Khalifa overtook it in 2017.

Feel It StillPortugal. The Man

"Feel It Still" by Portugal. The Man deals with lead singer John Gourley becoming a "rebel just for kicks" after having a daughter and settling down. "It's hard to be a punk when you're thinking about your baby daughter at home," he says.