Together for a brief three years and just one album, Sugar Babe has become somewhat of a legend in Japanese pop music circles. Featuring a pre-solo debut Tatsuro Yamashita (vocals, guitar, keyboards) and Taeko Onuki (vocals), and produced by Yamashita and Eiichi Otaki (guitarist/vocalist for Happy End), Sugar Babe played melodic, well-crafted tunes heavily influenced by American pop. The group made its live performance debut in 1973 at the farewell concert for the band Happy End, with a tight set showcasing the members' strong musicianship and defined by vocal tradeoffs between Yamashita and Onuki, strong arrangements, and exquisite songcraft. Sugar Babe's lone album, Songs, produced and engineered by Otaki, was release in 1975 as the flagship release of Otaki's Niagara label. Songs channeled Yamashita's worshipful obsession with American pop from the '0s and '0s and soul music. While sales of the record were marginal, in retrospect it can be said that Songs was at least partially responsible for launching the fertile pop music scene that exploded in Japan through the '70s. From the funky, soul-laced euphoria of "Show" to the Isley Brothers influenced "Down Town", which became the group's signature tune, the record showed a band that was on top of its game. While the band broke up in 1976, due in part to the bankruptcy of their record label, both Yamashita and Onuki went on to have long and successful careers, and remain active as artists. Songs was re-released in 1999 on the Planets label, rekindling interest in the band and its music, and introducing it to a whole new generation of artists and music lovers. Even today, several decades after the dissolution of the band, their songs are a fixture on radio programs and in the sets of cover bands across the country.
過ぎ去りし日々 -60's Dream-
SUGAR BABE Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
沈む街角で
鳴り響く ウェディングベル
耳を押さえても 心が痛むだけ
涙がこぼれそう
今 心に甦る
二人だけの出来事
魔法さえ信じた あの16の夏
綺麗だったよ君は
昨日よりも今日を
生きて来たはずなのに
僕の中に 今も残ってる
過ぎ去りし日々
帰って来やしない
見果てぬ夢なのさ
夢を見てるだけ
見てるだけ
見てるだけさ
昨日よりも今日を
生きて来たはずなのに
僕の中に 今も残ってる
過ぎ去りし日々
帰って来やしない
見果てぬ夢なのさ
夢を見てるだけ
見てるだけ
見てるだけさ
The lyrics of SUGAR BABE's song 過ぎ去りし日々 -60's Dream- describe the feelings of reminiscence and longing for a past love that remain with the song's protagonist. The setting is the present day, with a cloudy sky and the sound of wedding bells ringing on a street corner. The singer's heart aches as memories of a past summer with their ex-lover flood back. They remember the magic of the time, and how they believed in spells and enchantment. The singer laments the fact that, although they should have moved on, thoughts of their past love still linger in their heart.
The lyrics of the chorus repeat the idea that, despite the passing of time, the memories and dreams of the past stay with the singer. The dreams they have are unfulfilled, and they are left only with their memories.
Overall, the song is a poignant reflection on the bittersweet nature of nostalgia and unrequited love, with lyrics that beautifully capture the emotions of the song's protagonist.
Line by Line Meaning
今 この曇った空に
In this cloudy sky right now
沈む街角で
At a street corner where the sun is setting
鳴り響く ウェディングベル
Wedding bells ringing aloud
耳を押さえても 心が痛むだけ
Even if I cover my ears, my heart is still in pain
涙がこぼれそう
Tears are about to fall
今 心に甦る
Now, I remember in my heart
二人だけの出来事
An event that happened just between the two of us
魔法さえ信じた あの16の夏
In that magical summer when we were 16 and believed in anything
綺麗だったよ君は
You were beautiful
昨日よりも今日を
Today, more so than yesterday
生きて来たはずなのに
I should have lived through it
僕の中に 今も残ってる
It still remains in me
過ぎ去りし日々
The past days that have gone by
帰って来やしない
They will never come back
見果てぬ夢なのさ
It was an unfulfilled dream
夢を見てるだけ
I'm just dreaming
見てるだけ
Just watching
見てるだけさ
Only able to watch
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: 銀次 伊藤
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@sallyk3166
声が少し若いだけであまり変わってない‼️
すごーい‼️
@kamakura1117
(;^_^A～若気の至り、、、
@MrRubber17
上手いですね！！
@cosmotiger2011
以前より動画を見させていただいてます、コニーと申します。この音源をきいてついテンション上がって書き込みました！（笑）私は新潟に住みながら、まだso niceさんのライブを見れてません。早く生で聞きたいです。あとオリジナルCD購入したいのですが...
@kamakura1117
ありがとうございます(^_^;)、、、当時、必死になってsugar babeをコピーしてました。今でもやりたい１曲です、、、いずれもう一回(´∀｀)
@kamakura1117
ｺﾆーさんありがとうございます、新潟ですか～現在、一部メンバー変更にて新潟ジャズストリートのため、必死に練習してます(~_~;)今回は、オリジナルとsugar babeﾒｲﾝでやりますので、ぜひいらしてください。7/17 古町5番町アーケード無料会場、2時から3時半です。あと7/30に亀田のカフェアリナで、、多分４０分ステージかな～そちらもよろしくお願いします。あと、CDですが、東日本支援チャリティ用のオムニバスCDを、ジャズスト会場にて、募金頂いた方に配布しようかと考えてますので～新曲入れられたらいいのですが、、、がんばります。それでは～ありがとうございました。