Matsubara was born November 28, 1959[2] in Kishiwada, Osaka in Japan. She spent her childhood in Hiraoka Town, Nishi-ku, Sakai, Osaka.
She grew up in a family of four, including a father, a mother and a younger sister. Her father was a board member of a hospital and her mother was a jazz singer who had sung with the Japanese jazz band and comedy group Crazy Cats. Matsubara started learning the piano at the age of three and later became familiar with jazz. As a child, she went to Sakai city's Hiraoka Elementary School and then in 1972, entered Poole Gakuin Junior High School. Around this time Matsubara became interested in rock music and joined the rock band "Kurei". In 1975 she started in Poole Gakuin High School and became active as a keyboard player of the band "Yoshinoya Band". They would play songs at a live house called Takutaku located in Kyoto. Matsubara was described as an excellent student and was expected by many around her to attend college, but at that time she had already made plans to pursue her dream of becoming a singer. In 1977, when she was still in high school, Matsubara went to Tokyo alone at the age of 17 to make her debut as a singer. The Japanese pianist Yuzuru Sera found her playing music and singing in various places in Kantō such as in the live music venue Birdland located in Roppongi, Tokyo.
Matsubara started her career in 1979 and is known from hit songs such as her debut and immediate breakthrough "Mayonaka no Door (Stay with Me)" which has been covered by numerous artists,[5][6][7][8] including Akina Nakamori.[9] The song was ranked 28th on the Oricon Chart,[10] and according to that chart sold 104,000 copies and 300,000 copies announced by Canyon records. Some of her other known songs were "Neat na gogo san-ji (ニートな午後3時)" and "The Winner" among others.
After the release of the song "Neat na gogo san-ji" Matsubara became a well-known singer during that time. She was offered by many to perform in college festivals, concerts and so on. The song even gained a feature in a commercial of the famous Japanese multinational personal care company Shiseido, only less than two years after her debut.[3]
Miki Matsubara received a number of artist awards.[1] Amidst her career, she formed her own band called Dr. Woo.[3] Matsubara also had some international work with Motown jazz fusion group Dr. Strut in Los Angeles (becoming a backing band in the album recordings for "Cupid" and "Myself"), Tokyo and Osaka (Hall concerts), later releasing a jazz cover album entitled "BLUE EYES". In that album she covered some famous jazz songs like "Love for sale", she also covered the soft rock song "You've Got A Friend" originally written and sung by Carole King.[11]
Her vocal range was that of a mezzo-soprano.
During her music career she released 8 singles, and 12 albums. Despite her work being mainly domestic, outside of Japan she was also known for her work as an anime singer and songwriter, singing the opening and ending songs to anime such as Dirty Pair: Project Eden, although recently with the popularization of city pop her other work has gained overseas fans as well.[12] While singing theme songs for the anime Gu Gu Ganmo, she performed under the name Suzie Matsubara (スージー・松原). Matsubara's song "THE WINNER" was used as the opening for the Gundam OVA-series Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memory.
From the 1990's forwards she especially worked on anime soundtracks and music for commercials. Matsubara composed songs for a couple of anime, some of her most known musical compositions were for the anime series Gundam. Matsubara composed songs for several singers, like Hitomi Mieno, but her most notable works were likely with the singer and actress Mariko Kouda, whom Matsubara composed multiple songs to. Kouda's song "Ame no chi special (雨のちスペシャル)", which Matsubara composed, was featured in the five-minute music television and radio series Minna no Uta as a music video in 1997. It attracted a lot of attention and ranked 28th place in the Oricon chart. The song was repeatedly rebroadcast until 2004.
At the end of 2000, Matsubara sent an email to those around her, including her company and the members of Dr. Woo, stating that she could not continue her music career and that she would not be reachable after the message went out. She stopped all music activities and disappeared from the spotlight altogether. In 2001, it was revealed that Matsubara's actions were prompted by a late-stage cancer diagnosis she had received at the time, after which she subsequently began treatment. Matsubara spent her final years battling her illness.
After being told by her doctor that she only had three months left to live, Matsubara died on October 7, 2004, at age 44 due to complications from uterine cervix cancer. Her death was announced to the public two months later.
Aitsu No Brown Shoes
Miki Matsubara Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
日曜なのに どこへもいけず
ポーチの片隅 ほこりまみれ
なんだか とても かわいそうみたい
ふてくされてる ブラウンシューズ
わかる感じよ 本当にあいつ
あきっぽいのね あたまにきちゃう
こんな古い靴だって
みがけばステキに光る
愛だって みがかなきゃ
ただの恋 かんたんな事なのに
あいつわかっちゃいない
シュッ シュッ シュワワ うでをまくって
シュッ シュッ シュワワ くつずみぬって
シュッ シュッ シュワワ ブラシかけたら
シュッ シュッ シュワワ ピッカピカ
とても大きな ブラウンシューズ
聞きなれた足音 今もまってるの
おもいで あるいた ブラウンシューズ
タバコけすのは 右のつまさき
ひとつとばしで のぼるかいだん
どこでもいつも はしゃいでいたっけ
じかんかけたそれだけに
はいてりゃくせさえなじむわ
愛だって つづけなきゃ
ただの恋気づいてもいい頃よ
あいつわかっちゃいない
シュッ シュッ シュワワ うでをまくって
シュッ シュッ シュワワ くつずみぬって
シュッ シュッ シュワワ ブラシかけたら
シュッ シュッ シュワワ ピッカピカ
とても大きな ブラウンシューズ
聞きなれた足音 今もまってるの
わたしとあなたの ブラウンシューズ
わたしとあなたの ブラウンシューズ
The lyrics to Miki Matsubara's "Aitsu no Brown Shoes" describe a pair of forgotten brown shoes that are covered in dust and considered pitiful. The singer says that the shoes belong to someone who is feeling sulky and prone to quitting things, evidenced by the fact that they left and never came back. Despite this, the singer sees potential in the old shoes and believes that they could shine beautifully if they were polished. The shoes hold memories of fun times and happy moments, and the singer wishes that the person who owns them could understand the value of love and not just settle for simple things like casual relationships.
The song is not just about some forgotten footwear, but a metaphor for a neglected relationship. The shoes symbolize a connection that was once cherished but is now ignored and left to collect dust. The singer longs for the other person to understand the importance of investing time and effort into repairing the relationship, just like how the shoes need to be polished to shine again.
Overall, the lyrics to "Aitsu no Brown Shoes" emphasize the importance of valuing and maintaining strong relationships, rather than settling for something fleeting and unsatisfying.
Line by Line Meaning
あいつの忘れた ブラウンシューズ
Forgotten brown shoes of that person
日曜なのに どこへもいけず
Unable to go anywhere on Sunday
ポーチの片隅 ほこりまみれ
Covered in dust in a corner of the porch
なんだか とても かわいそうみたい
Seems very pitiful for some reason
ふてくされてる ブラウンシューズ
Sulky brown shoes
わかる感じよ 本当にあいつ
Can feel it, that it really belongs to that person
あきっぽいのね あたまにきちゃう
Gets bored easily, that's just how they are
いったきり 帰ってきやしない
Will never come back after leaving just once
こんな古い靴だって
Even these old shoes
みがけばステキに光る
Will shine beautifully if polished
愛だって みがかなきゃ
Love, too, won't shine without polishing
ただの恋 かんたんな事なのに
It's just love, something simple
あいつわかっちゃいない
But that person just doesn't seem to understand
シュッ シュッ シュワワ うでをまくって
Swipe, swipe, swish - rolling up the sleeves
シュッ シュッ シュワワ くつずみぬって
Brush, brush, swish - polishing the shoes
シュッ シュッ シュワワ ブラシかけたら
Brush, brush, swish - brushing the shoes
シュッ シュッ シュワワ ピッカピカ
Swipe, swipe, swish - shining brightly
とても大きな ブラウンシューズ
Very large brown shoes
聞きなれた足音 今もまってるの
Still waiting for the footsteps that were once familiar
おもいで あるいた ブラウンシューズ
Brown shoes that walked through memories
タバコけすのは 右のつまさき
Stubbing out cigarettes on the right toes
ひとつとばしで のぼるかいだん
Climbing stairs in one leap
どこでもいつも はしゃいでいたっけ
Always frolicking around anywhere
じかんかけたそれだけに
Invested so much time into them
はいてりゃくせさえなじむわ
Even the fit has become so comfortable
愛だって つづけなきゃ
Love, too, must be continued
ただの恋気づいてもいい頃よ
When you realize it's just a simple love
あいつわかっちゃいない
But that person just doesn't seem to understand
わたしとあなたの ブラウンシューズ
Brown shoes for you and me
わたしとあなたの ブラウンシューズ
Brown shoes for you and me
Contributed by Levi A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@luluiswari
Aitsu no wasureta brown shoes
Nichi you na no ni doko e mo ikezu
Pouchi no katasumi hokori ni mamire
Nanda ka totemo kawaisou mitai
Futekusare teru brown shoes
Wakaru kanji yo hontouni aitsu
Akippoi no ne atama ni ki chau
Ittakiri kaette kiyashinai
Kon'na furui kutsu datte
Migakeba suteki ni hikaru
Ai datte migaka nakya
Tada no koi kantan'na koto na no ni
Aitsu wakatcha inai
Shusshusshuwawa ude o makutte
Shusshusshuwawa kutsuzumi nutte
Shusshusshuwawa burashi kaketara
Shusshusshuwawa pikkapika
Totemo ookina brown shoes
Kikinareta ashioto
Ima mo matteru no
Omoide aruita brown shoes
Tabako kesu no wa migi notsu masaki
Hitotsu tobashi de noboru kaidan
Doko demo itsumo hashaide itakke
Jikan kaketa sore dake ni
Hai teri yakuse sae najimu wa
Ai datte tsudzuke nakya
Tada no koi kidzuite mo ii koro yo
Aitsu wakatcha inai
Shusshusshuwawa ude o makutte
Shusshusshuwawa kutsuzumi nutte
Shusshusshuwawa burashi kaketara
Shusshusshuwawa pikkapika
Totemo ookina brown shoes
Kikinareta ashioto
Ima mo matteru no
Watashi to anata no brown shoes
Watashi to anata no brown shoes
@elpollochocobo948
This song is so underrated :(
@elpollochocobo948
@Darkmere Please as if you could hit those notes. Also there's other reasons than just " she didn't put enough effort into it" Like the algorithm not working.
@lexitnute1306
@El Pollo Chocobo it means she sung it effortlessly and it sounds so good
@pineapplepizza9340
This song is so fire. I wonder why the version on Spotify is different
@marissaculver9421
yeah, it's a bit different for some reason, they both slap still
@tramphan9650
Omg true, this version is like that soft, full of live sister of the spotify song hahahaha 🥺🥺
@Helogs05
wait i have to hear that shit
@jeiku5041
Simple, that's the album version, this is the single version.
@felipegoncalvespereira3683
Que voz linda!
@entptokki
omg, her voice!!!