Sakai was also a very prolific songwriter. She had written all her own lyrics, and had released several books of poetry as well. She had also written songs for other artists, most notably, for JPOP groups Field of View, WANDS and DEEN. She also wrote the lyrics for and participated in the collaboration for the single "Hateshinai Yumewo" featuring JPOP groups ZARD, REV & WANDS. The single also featured famed Japanese baseball hero Shigeo Nagashima. Some of her singles have been used in Anime, such as Dragon Ball GT and Detective Conan. Sometimes, she would cover songs she's written for other artists like Field of View's "DAN DAN Kokoro Hikareteku" or Teresa Teng's "Anata to tomo ni ikite yuku".
ZARD was also known for being mysterious. This is partially because her record label does not release too much personal information on their artists, and also because she did not make that many personal appearances. She had rarely appeared on any live TV music programs (eg. Asahi TV's Music Station, Fuji TV's Hey Hey Hey Music Champ), which the main public relations tool for the record industry in Japan, since 1993 or do any public appearances. Her first concert was in 1999, which was held on a cruise ship for a mere 600 people in her fan club (300 entries x2 among 2 million concert ticket requests). Her first real concert tour, "what a beautiful moment tour", was held in 2004, 13 years after her debut. Almost every single concert was sold out at the time. The tour ended up having 10 concerts spanning 4 months from March to July 2004, with a final concert held in the famed Budokan.
ZARD was one of the most successful female singers in the 1990s, with her record sales being #1 for female singers, and #3 for overall total, just behind the groups B'z and Mr. Children. She has had 11 singles reach the #1 spot on the Oricon Singles Charts, and 9 albums reach the #1 spot on the Oricon Album Charts.
She will have released 42 singles 11 albums and 5 best albums as of 10 May 2006
She passed away on May 27, 2007 in Keio University Hospital. She was put in the hospital in June 2006 after discovering she had cervical cancer. In April 2007, the cancer had moved to her lungs, delaying her stay in the hospital. According to the hospital, she would take daily walks every morning, during her walk on May 26, 2007, she accidentally fell from the stairs and was discovered at around 5 a.m. She was sent to the emergency room, but unfortunately passed away. She had planned to release a new album in the fall, as well as her first live tour in three years to show her fans that she's fighting strong against her illnesses. Her company sincerely thanks her fans for the sixteen years of support and wishes that she can live forever in the hearts of the fans. She was 40 years old.
Singles
'Good-bye My Loneliness' (10 February 1991)
'Fushigine' (25 June 1991)
'Mou Sagasanai' (6 November 1991)
'Nemurenai Yoru wo Daite' (5 August 1992)
'IN MY ARMS TONIGHT' (9 September 1992)
'Makenaide' (27 January 1993)
'Kimi ga Inai' (21 April 1993)
'Yureru Omoi' (19 May 1993)
'Mou Sukoshi Ato Sukoshi...' (4 September 1993)
'Kitto Wasurenai' (3 November 1993)
'Kono Ai ni Oyogitsukaretemo' (2 February 1994)
'Konna ni Soba ni Irunoni' (8 August 1994)
'Anata wo Kanjiteitai' (24 December 1994)
'Just believe in love' (1 February 1995)
'Ai ga Mienai' (5 June 1995)
'Sayonara ha Ima mo Kono Mune ni Imasu' (28 August 1995)
'Mai Furendo' (8 January 1996)
'Kokoro wo Hiraite' (6 May 1996)
'Don't you see!' (6 January 1997) (Closing Theme to Dragon Ball GT.)
'Kimi ni Aitakunattara...' (26 February 1997)
'Kaze ga Torinukeru Machi he' (2 July 1997)
'Eien' (20 August 1997)
'My Baby Grand -Nukumori ga Hoshikute-' (3 December 1997)
'Iki mo Dekinai' (4 March 1998)
'Unmei no Ruretto Mawashite' (17 September 1998)
'Atarashi Doa -Fuyu no Himawari-' (2 December 1998)
'GOOD DAY' (2 December 1998)
'MIND GAMES' (7 April 1999)
'Sekai ha Kitto Mirai no Naka' (16 June 1999)
'Itaikurai Kimi ga Afureteiruyo' (14 October 1999)
'Kono Namida Hoshi ni Nare' (1 December 1999)
'Get U're Dream' (6 September 2000)
'promised you' (15 November 2000)
'Sawayakana Kimi no Kimochi' (22 May 2002)
'Asu wo Yumemite' (9 April 2003)
'Hitomi Tojite' (9 July 2003)
'Motto Chikakude Kimi no Yokogao Miteitai' (12 November 2003)
'Kakegae no Naimono' (23 June 2004)
'Kyou wa yukkuri hanasou' (24 November 2004)
'Hoshi no Kagayaki yo/ Natsu wo matsu SEIRU no You ni' (20 April 2005)
'Kanashii Hodou Anata ga Suki/ Karatto Ikou!' (8 March 2006)
'Heart ni Hi wo Tsukete' (10 May 2006)
'Glorious Mind' (12 December 2007)
'Tsubasa wo hirogete/ Ai wa kurayami no naka de' (9 April 2008)
Albums
Good-bye My Loneliness (27 March 1991)
Mou Sagasanai (25 December 1991)
HOLD ME (2 September 1992)
Yureru Omoi (10 July 1993)
OH MY LOVE (4 June 1994)
forever you (10 March 1995)
TODAY IS ANOTHER DAY (8 July 1996)
ZARD BLEND -SUN & STONE- (23 April 1997)
Eien (17 February 1999)
ZARD BEST The Single Collection -Kiseki- (28 May 1999)
ZARD BEST -Requested Memorial- (15 September 1999)
ZARD Cruising & Live (26 January 2000)
Toki no Tsubasa (15 February 2001)
ZARD BLEND II -LEAF & SNOW- (21 November 2001)
Tomatteita Tokei ga Ima Ugokidasita (28 January 2004)
Kimi to no Distance (7 September 2005)
Golden Best -15th Anniversary- (25 October 2006)
ZARD Request Best -beautiful memory- (23 January 2008)
Last Good-bye
ZARD Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Deatta toki no you ni waratte ite hoshii
Boku wa sono hosoi kata dakishimete kiduita yo
Kimi wa sukoshizutsu mukuchi ni natte itta ne
Hitori dake no jikan wo isogashiku ikite iru
Dare ni mo ie nai nayami wo otagai hanashita ne
Ano hi no boku wa tada...
Dakedo kaera nai rainy blue
Asu no koto wa dare nimo wakara nai
Just remember the Last Good-bye
Hitotsu otona ni naru to hitotsu uso ga fuete iku
Tomodachi datta nara umakuiku aida datta no ka
Hitori no hito wo zutto suki de iru no wa muzukashii yo
Ima mo boku wa aoi yume ni shiga mitsuiteru
Dareka wo gomakasete mo jibunjishin wa damase nai
Tachidomaru to subete ga kiete shimai sou de...
Mitsumeru yori atsuku Last Good-bye
Tsumetai hoshizora no shita
Naze hanarete shimau to lonely heart
Kimi no egao ga sonna ni mabushii no ka
Just remember the Last Good-bye
Sono kimi no hitomi ni Last Good-bye
Wagamama mo suteki datta yo
Kagayaku mirai ni get' go away
Nee daremo machigatte inai yo
Just remember the Last Good-bye
Just remember the Last Good-bye
The song "Last Good-bye" by ZARD is a ballad about parting ways with someone you love. The singer is realizing that everything that made them sad when they met their loved one has gone away, but now that they must say goodbye, they wish they could go back to that same happiness. The first stanza seems to say that everything that made a person sad will disappear when they say goodbye to someone. They hope for the person they are saying goodbye to to smile as much as when they first met them. The singer is symbolically showing that they have learned that life is short and happiness is fleeting, so they want the person they will lose to be happy in the memories they have shared together.
The second stanza speaks to the difficulty of losing someone you love. You now have to live alone and the singer tells of how they exchanged their troubles with their partner. However, now they will have to face these issues alone. In the last two stanzas, the singer reflects on how they used to be friends and how being in love is more difficult. Loving someone who is now gone is even more difficult. They are left with a sad and cold feeling, as if they are looking up at the night sky. They do not understand why they have to be apart from the person they love, and their memories are too bright and shiny to forget. They end the ballad reflecting on how selfish they were in wanting to keep their partner all to themselves.
Overall, "Last Good-bye" is a powerful ballad that speaks to the pain and difficulties of losing someone you love. The singer realizes how short life is and wishes for their loved one to smile even as they are parting ways. They will always cherish those memories, that will be forever tied to their heart.
Line by Line Meaning
Kimi wo kanashi maseteru mono wa subete kieru yo
Anything that saddens you will disappear completely
Deatta toki no you ni waratte ite hoshii
I want you to smile like the day we met
Boku wa sono hosoi kata dakishimete kiduita yo
I realized how thin your shoulders were as I held you tight
Kimi wa sukoshizutsu mukuchi ni natte itta ne
You became more and more silent over time
Hitori dake no jikan wo isogashiku ikite iru
I keep myself busy with alone time
Dare ni mo ie nai nayami wo otagai hanashita ne
We talked to each other about problems we couldn't speak of to anyone else
Aisuru yori tsuyoku Last Good-bye
Farewell stronger than love
Ano hi no boku wa tada...
The me of that day was just...
Dakedo kaera nai rainy blue
But there's no going back to those rainy blues
Asu no koto wa dare nimo wakara nai
No one knows what will happen tomorrow
Just remember the Last Good-bye
Just remember the farewell
Hitotsu otona ni naru to hitotsu uso ga fuete iku
As one becomes an adult, one more lie is added
Tomodachi datta nara umakuiku aida datta no ka
If we were just friends, was it all going smoothly?
Hitori no hito wo zutto suki de iru no wa muzukashii yo
Loving someone who is alone all the time is difficult
Ima mo boku wa aoi yume ni shiga mitsuiteru
Even now, I'm still chasing after a blue dream
Dareka wo gomakasete mo jibunjishin wa damase nai
Even if someone tricks me, I can't blame myself
Tachidomaru to subete ga kiete shimai sou de...
If I stop, it all seems to disappear...
Mitsumeru yori atsuku Last Good-bye
Farewell that burns hotter than staring at you
Tsumetai hoshizora no shita
Underneath the cold starry sky
Naze hanarete shimau to lonely heart
Why does separation lead to a lonely heart?
Kimi no egao ga sonna ni mabushii no ka
Why is your smile so radiant?
Sono kimi no hitomi ni Last Good-bye
Farewell in your eyes
Wagamama mo suteki datta yo
Even my selfishness was lovely
Kagayaku mirai ni get' go away
Get' go away to a shining future
Nee daremo machigatte inai yo
Hey, no one's wrong
Just remember the Last Good-bye
Just remember the farewell
Contributed by Violet S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
J K
ありがとうございます。F.O.Vの95年発売当時から好きでした。当時は自分は小学生で、作詞が誰とかそういったのに全く興味がなく後に坂井泉水さん作詞ということを知りました。また坂井泉水さんご本人が歌ってるのもその後に知りました。このバージョンも好きです。少しでも多くの人がこの切ない素敵な曲も聞いてもらえうようにと思います。
田中薫
同世代のようです！field of viewの大ファンですが、このZARDカバーだけは、viewの曲よりこっちが好きです！
西村守
ザードも恋多き人だったのだなあ。どうもありがとうございました。
古賀要
この曲あるユーチユウバーさんが好きな曲と言っていました
3069 zaurusu
君は秀逸だよ。作詞:坂井泉水 君は優秀
Primebeef
かけがえのない
M B
何でだろう、この歌を聴くと
涙が出てくる。DEENへ
提供した歌は、やっぱり
坂井泉水らしさがある
今、元気でいたら、どんな歌を
歌って居たのだろうか
どんな人へ提供して居たのだろう？
田中薫
この曲はfield of viewへの提供曲ですが