Akiko Yano is a Japanese pop and jazz musician.

Her music is by tur… Read Full Bio ↴Akiko Yano is a Japanese pop and jazz musician.

Her music is by turns playful, heartfelt, melodic, ornate, and disarmingly simple, reflecting a love of music in all its forms and colors. She handles moody new wave, virtuosic fusion, traditional jazz ballads, straightahead pop, and singer-songwriter folk songs with equal aplomb.

Though she's recorded with many of the 20th century's greatest pop and jazz musicians, her primarily Japanese-language albums have kept her music below the radar of most English-language listeners. She's recorded with, among many others, Pat Metheny, Lyle Mays, members of Little Feat, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Haruomi Hosono, David Sylvian, Mick Karn, Kenji Omura, Jeff Bova, Yukihiro Takahashi, Charlie Haden, Peter Erskine, Anthony Jackson, David Rhodes, the band Quruli, and her son Futa Sakamoto.

Beyond her solo work, Yano has recorded with Thomas Dolby, Yngwie Malmsteen, The Chieftains, The Hammonds, Jamaaladeen Tacuma, Kazumi Watanabe, The Boom, Tetsuro Kashibuchi, and Ryuichi Sakamoto. She appeared on the recording "Snowflake" reading a children's story in Japanese with Peter Gabriel reading in English and music by Akira Inoue and David Rhodes accompanying both.

花のように
矢野顕子 Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

つくってねわたしのために
たいせつな気持ち受けとるポケット
あげたいなあなたのために
どんなかなしみもふきとるハンカチ
閉じていた心をのぞけば
春の陽を待ちわびている

花のように香り高く

花のようにほほえむ
花のように色とりどり
わたしの中に愛があふれる愛があふれる

ききたいなあなたのうたを
冷えきった心あたためるミルク
あけてみてドアのむこうに
思いもかけない大きなプレゼント
しょんぼりとたたずむ昨日に
春の陽はもうすぐそこまで

花のように香り高く
花のようにほほえむ
花のように色とりどり
わたしの中に愛があふれる愛があふれる

閉じていた心をのぞけば
春の陽をまちわびている

花のように香り高く
花のようにほほえむ

花のように色とりどり
わたしの中に愛があふれる愛があふれる

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of "花のように" by 矢野顕子 speak about the nature of love and how it can come in many forms. The first stanza says "make something for me, a pocket to hold precious feelings, I want to give you something too, a handkerchief to wipe away any sadness." These two lines talk about the exchange of emotions in a relationship, the mutual care and support that partners give to each other.

The second verse continues with "I want to hear your song, warm my cold heart with milk, open the door to find a surprising gift, and see the sun waiting for me beyond yesterday's sadness." These lines are about finding joy and new experiences in life and how they can help lift one's spirits.

The chorus "like a flower, fragrant and smiling, colorful, love overflows in me" emphasizes that love is like a flower, it blossoms and brings beauty, it fills us up with joy and contentment.

Overall, the song speaks to the power of love and how it can help us overcome sadness and darkness, like the sun breaking through after a long winter.

Line by Line Meaning

つくってねわたしのために
Make it for me, please

たいせつな気持ち受けとるポケット
My pocket receives valuable emotions

あげたいなあなたのために
I want to give it to you

どんなかなしみもふきとるハンカチ
A handkerchief to wipe away any sadness

閉じていた心をのぞけば
If you look inside my closed heart

春の陽を待ちわびている
You'll find it waiting for the spring sun

花のように香り高く
Like a flower, fragrant

花のようにほほえむ
Like a flower, smiling

花のように色とりどり
Like a flower, colorful

わたしの中に愛があふれる愛があふれる
Love is overflowing inside me

ききたいなあなたのうたを
I want to hear your song