Japan began playing glam rock, influenced by David Bowie, The New York Dolls and Motown. Japan debuted on record with 1978's Adolescent Sex and subsequently Obscure Alternatives, which both sold well in the nation of Japan, though nowhere else.
Their third album, 1979's Quiet Life, heralded a change in musical style from the earlier largely guitar based music to a more electronic sound, with more emphasis on Barbieri's synthesisers, Sylvian's svelte baritone style of singing, Karn's distinctive fretless bass sound, and Steve Jansen's odd-timbred percussion work.
Their following two albums, Gentlemen Take Polaroids (1980) and Tin Drum (1981) continued to expand their audience as the band refined its new sound and unintentionally became part of the early 1980s New Romantic movement. But Tin Drum would end up being their final album, as personality conflicts drove the band apart. Nevertheless, the album's unconventional single "Ghosts" reached #5 on the UK pop charts, followed by a re-release of "I Second That Emotion" that reached #9.
The band officially split up after a farewell tour in late 1982. The tour was posthumously released as an LP, "Oil on Canvas", in mid-1983.
Most of the original members of the band went on to work on other projects.
Mick Karn and Bauhaus frontman Peter Murphy formed the one-album project called Dali's Car and released the album The Waking Hour in 1984. He has released other solo works over the years.
Steve Jansen and Richard Barbieri released an album in 1987 under the moniker The Dolphin Brothers which garnered a little interest.
By far the most successful is David Sylvian, who has recorded several albums with noted performers. An attempted reunion in 1991 with the Rain Tree Crow project was short lived, producing only one album.
All members have collaborated on the other's solo work; notably the trio JKB (aka Jansen, Barbieri and Karn) have released several records. Jansen has continued to tour with his brother David Sylvian.
Karn died of cancer January 4, 2011.
. . . . Rhodesia
Japan Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Love utensils in the palm of her hand
Saluting supermarket majorettes
We understand
Oh muzak for digital clocks
Departmental stores, vacate no sound
Exchanging surgical appliances
On hired ground
And love blows through Rhodesia
And love blows through Rhodesia
Soldierettes marching in the parking lot
Bleach your body
Be proof to the fact
Moving out in all directions
And turning back
Oh, heartaches from Amsterdam
Masturbated over jilted bouquets
Approximation's counting on a freight line
We pull away
And love blows through Rhodesia
And love blows through Rhodesia
Oh, Nazis in full attack
Burning niggers in a cotton field
Service stations offer promises
And promises offer me
And love blows through Rhodesia
And love blows through Rhodesia
The lyrics of Japan's song "Rhodesia" are filled with obscure and surreal imagery that make it hard to peg the overall meaning of the song. However, it appears to be a critique of consumerism, war, and racism, all wrapped in a dreamlike, fragmented narrative. The opening lines describe someone standing outside on a kitchen floor holding utensils, as if preparing for a ritual. They then shift to the surreal image of "saluting supermarket majorettes," drawing attention to the way commercialism can turn everything, even military symbols of order and discipline, into kitsch.
The chorus, "And love blows through Rhodesia," provides a stark contrast to these images of superficiality and violence. The idea of love, typically associated with warmth, connection, and compassion, blowing through a place known for its colonial history and struggles with racism and segregation, feels hopeful and puzzling at the same time.
The second verse introduces more disturbing imagery, including "Nazis in full attack" and "burning niggers in a cotton field," both references to historical atrocities committed by racist regimes. Meanwhile, the lines "heartaches from Amsterdam" and "masturbated over jilted bouquets" suggest a personal dimension to the song's critique, perhaps pointing to the way consumerism and advertising can manipulate and commodify emotions.
Overall, "Rhodesia" is a song that resists straightforward interpretation, but its collage of surreal and provocative images invites listeners to engage with its themes of consumerism, war, and racism in a way that is both poetic and unsettling.
Line by Line Meaning
Standing outside on a kitchen floor
She is standing outside on the floor of a kitchen
Love utensils in the palm of her hand
She is holding utensils in her hand that she loves
Saluting supermarket majorettes
She is saluting majorettes in a supermarket
We understand
We comprehend the situation
Oh muzak for digital clocks
Oh, there is background music for digital clocks
Departmental stores, vacate no sound
Department stores are silent and empty
Exchanging surgical appliances
There is a trade of surgical equipment
On hired ground
This transaction is occurring on rented land
And love blows through Rhodesia
Love travels through Rhodesia
Soldierettes marching in the parking lot
Female soldiers are marching in the parking lot
Bleach your body
Cleanse your body with bleach
Be proof to the fact
Be evidence of the truth
Moving out in all directions
They are moving in various directions
And turning back
They turn around
Oh, heartaches from Amsterdam
Oh, the sorrow from Amsterdam
Masturbated over jilted bouquets
She pleasured herself over discarded flowers
Approximation's counting on a freight line
An approximation is being calculated on a shipping line
We pull away
We move further away
And love blows through Rhodesia
Love travels through Rhodesia
Oh, Nazis in full attack
Oh, the Nazis are attacking with full force
Burning niggers in a cotton field
They are burning black people in a cotton field
Service stations offer promises
Gas stations make promises
And promises offer me
And those promises appeal to me
And love blows through Rhodesia
Love travels through Rhodesia
Lyrics © OBO APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Stephen Tremm
Nazis in full attack etc. - maybe army radio communications or tv news report.
Stephen Tremm
Saluting supermarket majorettes, we understand - maybe a joke or pun on a supermarket chain called Majorette, or a big display of model cars made by the company Majorette (a real company) in a supermarket.
Bleach your body - what a black person would need to do to get equality.
Nazis in full attack etc. - Maybe army radio communications or a tv news report.