Their first major label release, wonder style, was released in 1995, and produced in London, United Kingdom, by Chris Brown, who previously engineered albums and tracks for Radiohead and Pink Floyd. Their breakthrough album, however, was 1998's Gear Blues which sold more than 500,000 copies, a huge number in the Japanese recording industry. Gear Blues was released in the United States in 2000 by Alive Records, but the band's success in that country never reached the level that they had in Japan, although they had moderate success in Europe. With the release of Gear Blues, the band stopped using lowercase letters in their name, and became known as THEE MICHELLE GUN ELEPHANT, with capitalized letters. The band announced that they would break up on October 11, 2003, after their Last Heaven tour of Japan.
After breaking up, the members have all continued activities in other bands. Chiba Yusuke recorded two albums and several smaller releases while in ROSSO, and has participated in projects of smaller scale, such as Midnight Bankrobbers, RAVEN and THE MIDWEST VIKINGS. In 2006, he and drummer Kuhara Kazuyuki got together again and formed The Birthday. As for the other TMGE members, bassist Ueno Koji was part of the three-piece rock band Radio Caroline for several years before suspending activities in 2009, and helped record the HIATUS' album Trash We'd Love. While not as active after the breakup as some of the other members, guitarist Abe Futoshi has among other things appeared in a band called KOOLOGI.
On July 22nd, 2009, it was announced on the band's official homepage that Abe Futoshi had passed away due to an acute epidural hematoma, a condition often caused by a blow to the side of the head. Abe was 43 years old.
Members:
Chiba Yusuke (チバユウスケ) – Vocal, guitar
Abe Futoshi (アベフトシ) – Guitar
Ueno Koji (ウエノコウジ) – Bass
Kuhara Kazuyuki (クハラカズユキ) – Drums
Official Webpages:
http://www.rockin-blues.com/
http://www.universal-music.co.jp/tmge/
http://columbia.jp/~michelle/
GT400
Thee Michelle Gun Elephant Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
青っぽい夜明け近く
そいつ またがるんだ
駆け抜いた 荒野に咲いた
サボテンの毒バリで
俺は死ぬのさ
I WANT THE MOTORCYCLE
そいつ またがるんだ
400の黒いやつで
トンネルは続くのさ
どっかいっちまえばいい
OH YEAH A HA HA OH YEAH
I WANT THE MOTORCYCLE
青っぽい夜明け近く
そいつ またがるんだ
ガソリンは残りわずか
銀行を襲うのさ
国境へ逃げるんだ
I WANT THE MOTORCYCLE
青っぽい夜明け近く
そいつ またがるんだ
400の黒いやつで
トンネルは続くのさ
どっかいっちまえばいい
OH YEAH A HA HA OH YEAH
I WANT THE MOTORCYCLE
青っぽい夜明け近く
そいつ またがるんだ
駆け抜いた 荒野に咲いた
サボテンの毒バリで
俺は死ぬのさ
I WANT THE MOTORCYCLE
青っぽい夜明け近く
そいつ またがるんだ
400の黒いやつで
トンネルは続くのさ
どっかいっちまえばいい
OH YEAH A HA HA OH YEAH
A HA HA
OH YEAH A HA HA OH YEAH
I WANT THE MOTORCYCLE
I WANT THE MOTORCYCLE
I WANT THE MOTORCYCLE
どっかいっちまえばいい
GT400 by THEE MICHELLE GUN ELEPHANT is a song about a strong desire for a motorcycle. The lyrics illustrate the singer's intense desire to ride the motorcycle, even at the cost of his own life. The first verse describes a dawn that is approaching, and the singer hops on a motorcycle to speed through the rough and wild countryside. He is willing to die by the venomous spikes of the blooming cactus.
The chorus repeats the key phrase of the song "I want the motorcycle", emphasizing the singer's single-minded desire to possess the two-wheeled machine. The second verse talks about the motorcycle's blackness and its ability to lead the singer through tunnels that never end. He wonders if he could just keep on going somewhere, even if he never returned.
The bridge speaks about a dwindling gasoline situation, yet the singer has a plan. He will rob a bank and flee to the country borders. In the end, the singer repeats his longing for the motorcycle, again insisting that he could go anywhere if he simply had it. Overall, the lyrics are simple and straightforward, expressing a desire so raw that it is almost primal.
Line by Line Meaning
I WANT THE MOTORCYCLE
The singer desires to have a motorcycle.
青っぽい夜明け近く そいつ またがるんだ
In the blue dawn that approaches, the singer will ride the motorcycle.
駆け抜いた 荒野に咲いた サボテンの毒バリで 俺は死ぬのさ
Riding through the deserted field, the singer will die from the poison of the blooming cactus.
400の黒いやつで トンネルは続くのさ どっかいっちまえばいい
Riding the black 400 motorcycle through the long tunnel, the artist can go wherever they want.
OH YEAH A HA HA OH YEAH
An energetic exclamation expressing the artist's excitement for riding the motorcycle.
Contributed by Kaitlyn G. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@user-ii2yc1tn3t
チバさん安らかに…ミッシェルと歩んできた青春時代最高に楽しかったぜ!🌟
@UsamiLapin
この頃のアベさん私服もスーツも最高にスタイリッシュだったな
高身長なのに猫背じゃないのも素晴らしかった
@user-ud2sn7wc7k
チバさんもアベさんも、素敵なロックをありがとう！これからも聴き続けます。これからも大好きです。
@user-id2cw3ni2n
七三分けのロックンローラーで、こんなにイカスやつはいない！
チバさん、アリガトウ
@user-kj1zm8fd9v
色褪せねーよなー。
ミシェルのおかげで、
当時のビジュアル系とかに
まったく興味なく良い青春過ごせたわ。
@user-nr8pr6qz4j
献花の会「Thanks!」で捧げられた一曲。そして私が初めてチバさんを知った曲。聴いた瞬間あまりのカッコ良さに一発で心持っていかれた。
正直まだチバさんの曲を聴くと哀しみが止まらない。LIVEが流行病で中止になって約三年間、チバさんに逢えなかったのも哀しみの理由。地方に住んでいる私にとってこの三年間はとても長かった。そろそろ逢えると待ち焦がれていたのだけど
…
もし何処かでチバさんに逢えたらこう言う「Thanks!」と。
@kita6944
チバさんも、このPVが遺作となった貴方にも改めて、素晴らしい作品をありがとう。どうか楽しく安らかな眠りでありますように。
@vivanonnon
初めて聴いたときから20年以上経つけど、今でもバイク乗る時、最初に脳内再生されるのはこの曲。しかも400の黒っぽいヤツ🔥
@ni5758
自分も同じです、20年以上経つけどバイクに乗ると頭の中で流れ始めます。400の黒っぽいやつに乗り換えようかなw
@vivanonnon
@@ni5758 👍👍👍🔥⚡