The Tunnels (とんねるず, Tonneruzu) are an owarai duo with a long history compos… Read Full Bio ↴The Tunnels (とんねるず, Tonneruzu) are an owarai duo with a long history composed of Tokyo born Takaaki Ishibashi (石橋貴明, Ishibashi Takaaki) and Noritake Kinashi (木梨憲武, Kinashi Noritake). Both of them attended Teikyō High School (帝京高等学校) where Ishibashi, the taller of the two, participated in baseball, and Kinashi participated in soccer.

They originated not as a manzai duo, so much as an ippatsu gag and monomane act. During the early 80's, they became immensely popular with young Japanese audiences, appearing in several television shows, but their popularity exploded with their show The Tunnels' Thanks to Everyone (とんねるずのみなさんのおかげです, Tonneruzu no minasan no okage desu). Many times they absorbed more than 30% of nationwide television viewers, a great feat for any television show. They then turned their attention to creating music, spawning a string of hit singles that also generated massive sales and attention.

They created many words and expressions that resonated with the youth of Japan included such as moto-kare (元カレ) and moto-kano (元カノ), which are abbreviations meaning "ex-boyfriend" and "ex-girlfriend". Both phrases are still in popular use today. Also, their tendency to use inside jokes that only the show's staff would understand and laugh at created a sur-like response from the audience, inciting nervous laughter from a confused audience, while the staff laughed loudly on-mike.

Interest in the group quickly mellowed in 1990, as Tunnels took a half year vacation from the show, and U-tchan Nan-chan suddenly replaced them. They returned later saying "We are sorry to have laid the burden on U-tchan Nan-chan," but were never really accepted back by the public. As groups such as Downtown and U-tchan Nan-chan become more and more popular with young audiences, Tunnels changed their focus to talk and interview-related shows.

大きなお世話サマー
とんねるず Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

ヒュルルヒュルルアハハー
ヒュルルヒュルルアハハー
ヒュルルヒュルルアハハー
夏の風が笑ってる
誰よりも長い髪誰よりも白い肌
守ってあげたいと海に誓うのさ
狂った果実は危険な恋の味
口づけ交わせば時間は止まるよ

真夏に不似合いな
恋人と呼ばれても
大きな大きなお世話サマー
ヒュルルヒュルルアハハー
ヒュルルヒュルルアハハー
ヒュルルヒュルルアハハー
夏の風が笑ってる

白いプカシェル二人のイニシャル
波がさらってく想い出残して
ひと夏の恋だから
ウソでも燃えつきたい
大きな大きなお世話サマー
ヒュルルヒュルルアハハー
ヒュルルヒュルルアハハー
ヒュルルヒュルルアハハー
夏の風が笑ってる
夏に騙されて失うモノがある
大きな大きなお世話サマー
ヒュルルヒュルルアハハー
ヒュルルヒュルルアハハー
ヒュルルヒュルルアハハー
夏の風が笑ってる
ヒュルルヒュルルアハハー
ヒュルルヒュルルアハハー

ヒュルルヒュルルアハハー
大きなお世話サマー

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of the song “大きなお世話サマー” by とんねるず describe a summer romance which is deemed to be big and full of drama. The lyrics are very playful and upbeat, featuring a catchy melody that is reminiscent of 80’s pop music. The first verse describes the singer’s ideal love interest, with long hair and white skin. The singer swears their love by the sea, and believes that a kiss with this person would make time stop. The chorus emphasizes the nature of the romance, with the singer being called a “big meddlesome summer” lover who is out of place in the hot season.

In the second verse, the singer reminisces about the love they shared with their past partner. They recall writing their initials on a white seashell, only for the memories to be swept away by the waves. The bridge emphasizes the fleeting nature of summer romance, and encourages the singer to burn out brightly even if their love is fake. The chorus is repeated again, and the song ends with a playful repetition of the “Hyrul hyrul ahaha” refrain.

Overall, the song is a lighthearted and nostalgic homage to summer romances, emphasizing the fleeting and sometimes bittersweet nature of young love.

Line by Line Meaning

ヒュルルヒュルルアハハー
Instrumental

夏の風が笑ってる
The wind of the summer is laughing

誰よりも長い髪誰よりも白い肌
Hair longer than anyone, skin whiter than anyone

守ってあげたいと海に誓うのさ
I vow to protect you and give you my all to the sea

狂った果実は危険な恋の味
The taste of crazy fruit is the danger of love

口づけ交わせば時間は止まるよ
If we share a kiss, time will stop

真夏に不似合いな恋人と呼ばれても
Even if we are called an odd couple in the middle of summer

大きな大きなお世話サマー
Big big Summer of caring

白いプカシェル二人のイニシャル
White puka shells with our initials

波がさらってく想い出残して
Carrying away memories with the receding waves