椎名林檎 (Shiina Ringo, also sometimes spelled "Sheena Ringo" or "Shéna Ringö")… Read Full Bio ↴椎名林檎 (Shiina Ringo, also sometimes spelled "Sheena Ringo" or "Shéna Ringö"), born November 25, 1978 in Saitama and raised in Fukuoka, is a Japanese singer, songwriter, guitarist, and pianist. Her family name is Shiina (椎名) and she chose to perform as Ringo instead of her birth name Yumiko (裕美子) because - as a shy child - her cheeks would blush red like an apple (the fruit being 'ringo' in Japanese).

After quitting school to enter a musical contest, Shiina was quickly signed to EMI, then promptly left Japan to avoid the trappings of contract work. After returning, she quickly released a series of singles and albums, all self-penned (a relative rarity for Japanese pop artists), and all meeting with great success on the Japanese charts. A hiatus to start a family followed, itself followed (after a divorce) by both a new album and a new side project, the band 東京事変. (Tokyo Jihen - or Tokyo Incidents)

After more success with the band, Shiina returned to a solo career in 2006 as the Music Director for the film 「さくらん」(Sakuran), quickly taking the number one slot on the Oricon charts with the album Heisei Fuuzoku released in tandem with a major soundtrack project. Following was a B-sides album which peaked quickly at the number one Oricon slot. In the years proceeding this, she spent most of her time dedicated to Tokyo Jihen occasionally revisiting her solo work.

Despite being involved in the main Japanese pop scene, Shiina has created a niche for herself based on a much wider musical range than most artists. Where most pop singers develop a basic sound based on contemporary pop aesthetics and throwaway lyrical matter, Shiina builds on a base of jazz, rock, Motown, and even French chanson equally well (the chanson works especially well with her trademark nasal delivery), infusing her projects with a very different aesthetic, and gaining a fan base separate from the core constituents of the Japanese pop apparatus.

Despite the release of album 三毒史 (trivisa-itihasa) in 2019, released after a myriad of singles being majorly included in aforementioned work. In 2020, Ringo and band Tokyo Jihen turned their backs to their past, doing a major reunion, with the drop of a few projects, such as sixth studio album 音楽.

Discography

Singles

幸福論 (Koufukuron)（1998）
歌舞伎町の女王（1998）
ここでキスして。 (Koko de kisu shite)（1999）
本能（1999）
幸福論（1999）
ギブス (Gibs)（2000）
罪と罰（2000）
真夜中は純潔（2001）
絶頂集（2000）
茎（STEM）～大名遊ビ編～（2003）
りんごのうた (Ringo no Uta)（2003）
この世の限り (Kono Yo no Kagiri) (2007） (With Saitou Neko and her brother Shiina Junpei)
ありあまる富 (Ariamaru Tomi)（2009）
カーネーション (Carnation)（2011）
自由へ道連 (Traveling Companion to Freedom) (2012)
いろはにほへと (Les Couleurs Chantent) (2013)
孤独のあかつき (The Solitude of Dawn) (2013)
NIPPON (2014)
至上の人生 (A Life Supreme) (2015)
最果てが見たい (2015)
長く短い祭 (2015)
神様、仏様 (2015)
ジユーダム (2016)
目抜き通り (2017)
獣ゆく細道 (2018)

Albums

無罪モラトリアム (Muzai Moratorium) (1999)
勝訴ストリップ (Shouso Strip)（2000)
加爾基精液栗ノ花（Karuki Za-men Kuri no Hana）(2003)
平成風俗 (Heisei Fuuzoku) (2007) (with Neiko Sato)
三文ゴシップ (Sanmon Gossip) (2009)
日出処 (Hi Izuru Tokoro) (2014)
三毒史 (trivisa-itihasa) (2019)

Covers Album

唄ひ手冥利～其ノ壱～ (Utaitemyori Sonoichi)（2002）
逆輸入～港湾局～ (Reimports Vol.1) (2014)
逆輸入〜航空局〜 (Reimport Vol.2 -Civil Bureau Aviation) (2017)

Compilations

私と放電 (Me & Electric Discharge) (2008) - (B-Sides)
ニュートンの林檎 (Apple of Universal Gravity) (2019) - (Overview)

Gamble
椎名林檎 Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

あなたはそっと微笑ってくれるから
明くる朝とうに泣き止んで居るのさ

此の小さな轍に
「アナタ呼吸ヲシテ居ル」

蝉が喚いて夏の到来を知る
其の都度何故か羨んで居るのさ

此の戦地で尽きたら
「何カシラヘノ服従」

帰る場所など何処に在りましょう
動じ過ぎたもう疲れた
愛すべき人は何処に居ましょう
都合の良い答えは知っているけど

中目黒駅のホームに立って居たら
誰かが急に背を押したんだ本当さ

此の勝負に負けたら
「生キテユク資格モ無イ」

飼い馴らされた猫の眼で
鳴いてみようかやってみようか
愛すべき人は何処に居ましょう
予定の調和なんて容易だけど

声を出せばどなたかみえましょう
真実がないもう歩けない
灰になれば皆喜びましょう
愛していたよ軽率だね

帰る場所など何処に在りましょう
動じ過ぎたもう疲れた

愛すべき人は何処に居ましょう
都合の良い答えは知っているけど知っているけど

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to 椎名林檎's song "Gamble" express a sense of restlessness and uncertainty about the future. The opening lines describe a sense of comfort found in someone's smile, which has helped the singer to stop crying. However, as the song progresses, the singer expresses a growing unease about their place in the world. They wonder where they will go if they die on the battlefield and question if they even have the qualifications to survive. The longing for a return to a simpler time is expressed in a desire to be like a cicada, which announces the arrival of summer every year. The singer also questions where their loved ones are and wonders if the convenient answers they have are really true.

The recurring theme in this song seems to be a sense of being lost and searching for meaning. The singer feels uncertain about where they belong and what their purpose is. They describe feeling tired, both physically and emotionally, and wishing for a sense of harmony and stability in their life. The chorus emphasizes the search for loved ones and a sense of home, despite knowing that the easy answers are not always truthful.

Overall, "Gamble" by 椎名林檎 is a poignant reflection on the uncertainties of life and the desire for a sense of purpose and belonging.

Line by Line Meaning

あなたはそっと微笑ってくれるから
You smile gently at me, and that's why I stopped crying a long time ago.

明くる朝とうに泣き止んで居るのさ
I've already stopped crying for tomorrow morning.

此の小さな轍に「アナタ呼吸ヲシテ居ル」
In this small rut, I breathe because you're here.

蝉が喚いて夏の到来を知る
The cicadas cry to herald the arrival of summer.

其の都度何故か羨んで居るのさ
But every time I somehow find myself envious.

此の戦地で尽きたら「何カシラヘノ服従」
If I die on this battlefield, I'll submit to the unknown.

帰る場所など何処に在りましょう
Where should I go back home to?

動じ過ぎたもう疲れた
I've been shaken too much, and I'm already tired.

愛すべき人は何処に居ましょう
Where is the person I love?

都合の良い答えは知っているけど
I know the convenient answer.