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.

All The Bones Are White
矢野顕子 Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

会いたいなあの人に
わたしを愛してくれたあの人に
いつの日かまた会える
だきよせた私の肩に風が止まる
なんでもできると思ってたあの頃
どんなにゆるしてもらったか
今わかる
つれないねこの思い

本当に会いたい時はこころの中

なんにも成しとげられない
なにひとつ
こんなにも罪深い
わたしたちのこころ
つれないねこの思い

本当に会いたい時はこころの中
いつの日かまた会える時だきしめて

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to "All The Bones Are White" by 矢野顕子 express a longing for a past love. The singer expresses a desire to see and be loved by that person again someday. They reminisce about a time when they believed they could do anything and were forgiven for their mistakes. However, the present feeling of longing is described as cold and distant. The singer admits that when they truly want to see that person, they can only find solace in their heart.

The lyrics suggest a sense of regret and nostalgia for a lost love. The phrase "all the bones are white" metaphorically represents the remnants and memories of the relationship. The mention of the wind stopping on the singer's shoulders conveys a moment of stillness and reflection, perhaps highlighting a moment of realization about the depth of their affection.

In the following verse, the lyrics shift to convey a sense of helplessness and guilt. The singer feels incapable of achieving anything and perceives their hearts as burdened with sin. Despite the intense longing and emotional distance, they hold onto the hope of meeting again someday and embrace that eventual reunion.

Overall, "All The Bones Are White" captures the complex emotions of longing, regret, and hope in the context of a past love.

Line by Line Meaning

会いたいなあの人に
I want to see that person, whom I long for

わたしを愛してくれたあの人に
To that person who loved me

いつの日かまた会える
Someday, we will meet again

だきよせた私の肩に風が止まる
The wind stops on my embraced shoulders

なんでもできると思ってたあの頃
In those days, I believed I could do anything

どんなにゆるしてもらったか
How much forgiveness I received

今わかる
I understand now

つれないねこの思い
It's cold, these feelings

本当に会いたい時はこころの中
Truly, in times I want to meet, it's within my heart

なんにも成しとげられない
Nothing can be accomplished