Murakamis Songlist

Cruising through the  night. well, this describes the situation very well. Cruising in the streets of Tokio our protagonist in Tanz mit dem Schafsmann (dance, dance dance, ダンス･ダンス･ダンス dansu dansu dansu) is very thankful that he has got someone to join his music. someone to talk to where he finds himself back in younger years.
After leaving the north of Japan back to his hometown. He gets to know the little 13 yrs old Yuki (called snow) much better. than he was thinking about the first time he saw here sitting all alone in the holtelbar of the Dolphin were he stayed for serval days.
The two lonesome - the teenager and the midlife crisis man - were listen to a lot of
different songs. One of them is Reach out, I’ll be there from The Four Tops (1966). That was the first song on an old oldie-mixtape the little girl graped right after they get into his car after dinner. On the way to Akasaka
Reach out, I’ll be there was listed #1-single in october 1966 in the US (2 weeks) and UK (3 weeks). Here you can see Levi Stubbs, Lawrence Payton, Obie Benson, and Duke Fakir) perform live on a tv-show: Ed Sullivan’s “Really Big Shew”.
a really great song just to sing with the loud. This song is mentioned on page 140 (german edition).

How could that happen? Today i present the first woman in the long list of muscians in Haruki Murakamis novels: Brenda Lee (born in DEz 1944) with her title All Alone Am I from 1963. Litte Miss Dynamite has a clear and  sweet voice within.
On his way to the airport to fly back to Tokio Narita from the northern part of Japan our protagonist from Tanz mit dem Schafsmann (dance, dance dance, ダンス･ダンス･ダンス dansu dansu dansu) reminds himself how many stupid songtext he learned in his boyhood. On the way to the airport he’s thinkh of “What a good bandname is ‘Talking Heads’?” and that he thinks the little girl Yuki (snow in english) is not very polite because she didn’t offer him a chewing gum (cf. page132 germaqn edtition) but had herself serval on their way.

Everybody knows him. The King of Pop. And, believe it or not, Haruki Murakami mentioned Michael Jackson in Tanz mit dem Schafsmann (dance, dance dance, ダンス･ダンス･ダンス dansu dansu dansu, g.e. 2002) from 1988. Just because of the start of the ticket sale today from Mr Jackson to his last concerts in London, i’m putting this great song here: Billie Jean (1982). On page 92 (g.e.) and a little bit later the protagonist arses around, sitting in the 26th floor in the hotelbar: He thinks he’s in ancient times, writing the story of Cleopatra and the old Egyptians in a new lovestory between Jodie-Foster-Cleopatra and an Actor (an old friend of his schooltime) and a colored prince (played by Michael) dancing the whole time to get his unfullfilled love. On page 96 he wants to hear Mr. Jackson singing Billie Jean (won two Grammys in 1984) some seconds before he meets ‘Sheepman’.
Actually i enjoyed that video very much: Plaing with the con, the mysteriuos man @ Ronald’s, the white leather shoes, the splitscreen. The Billie Jean story comes to a 2nd part in Smooth Criminal (1987) when Michael is dancing in a Corner-Bar, you’ll see the (wild) cats, dark wet streets as well.

In Afterdark (アフターダーク afutā dāku, 2005) Mari is sitting in a restaurant at the beginning of the story. Right after she met the guy with the sagbut case, he ate before rehearsal, talking to her and leaving, we can listen to Burt Bacharach (born in 1928) and the Sountrack from The April Fools (Darling, laß Dich scheiden) with Catherine Deneuve and Jack Lemmon. The story teller casually mentioned that song (here with a part from the film played on an old player listening to Lemmon and Deneuve first). It’s from 1969. Here in that Medley from 1967 you can listen to a lot good and well known songs Bacharach wrote over 40 yrs. ago and i guess you know them and their melody. In the german edition Bacharachs April Fools he is mentioned on p. 29, when Takahashi is ready to leave Denny’s.

This is the first song, not playing before Seventies. We reached the Eighties already. Yay. No one is dead, fortunatetly, but today we come to a milestone in music: The band  Human League. I just decided to put the song Human (was published in 1986 and was a #1-hit in the US) here. There is no special song mentioned and 1986 is not reaaly the time, where this scene is described.  But:  “Human, born to make mistakes” could be the slogan to the journalist, remembering his life in Tanz mit dem Schafsmann (dance, dance dance, ダンス･ダンス･ダンス dansu dansu dansu, g.e. 2002). He is telling us what a nice time he had with a girl, but she left. During one night, they played a song of Human League on the radio.

The Song from today comes again from Tanz mit dem Schafsmann (dance, dance dance, ダンス･ダンス･ダンス dansu dansu dansu, g.e. 2002) from 1988. On Page 136 (g.e.) the cool guy puts a tape into the player and listens to a lot of music - only Oldies and impresses Yuki (the girl with him) much. The Special at this part: All Songs are from dead artists. So is Bobb Darin (1936-1973). With Beyond the Sea from Jan. 1960 Darin is in a row of good musicians (read the story behind this song). This song is “very common romantic and gentleman-like” for Sixties. But nice.
(Sorry, but  i really didn’t read Murakami for a while, but had crazy Dr. Irarbu by my side)

Today we have a look on a very small passage in Tanz mit dem Schafsmann (dance, dance dance, ダンス･ダンス･ダンス dansu dansu dansu, g.e. 2002) from 1988. In a deliberately way the protagonist tells us, what he’s listening to on the radio while he’s unpacking his shopping-bag. He puts all the vegie in his fridge. Very mundane. Afterwards he goes to a cinema to watch Unrequited Love for the fourth time. (p. 154, g.e.) - what an antipode. “Who’s that man? Shaft! Right on!”
Here you can see the grand opening of the Shaft from 1971. Music by Isaac Hayes 08/1942–08/2008). I love the scene between 4:04 and 4:19 when Richard Roundtree crosses the street. Look in his eyes. He is damn cool. Btw: I think Hayes probably could have played that role.