SOLITARY FRIEND
(Music & Lyrics : Nikki Matsumoto)
Dreaming like an angel with the wings
Howling just like some of weary beasts
Seeing without knowing why
But I feel just like a king
Strong but weak, this foolish saint
A clown inside the bright shade
You can always laugh at me without reason why
Don’t you know you’re weighing on your spell
You’re no stranger at night
But a solitary friend
Find me, I am near and far away
Feel me deep inside your dying soul
Take me to your paradise
Now you’re seeing who you really are
I am made of grain of sand
You can always break me
I’m riding high and low, going back and moving on
Spin around and ‘round and ‘round
Mmm….a solitary friend
Strong but weak, this foolish saint
A clown inside the bright shade
You can always laugh at me without reason why
Don’t you know you’re weighing on your spell
You’re no stranger at night
But a solitary friend
And I feel just like a king
Well I know you may never find me here
A solitary friend
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Nikki's Note :
A man. An individual. We are forever alone. We can never understand what
is on other’s mind. We can guess but there is no way what we understand
other’s mind completely. So we try to hang on to the fantasy that we do.
That we are friends. There is no reason to fantasize it. We only need to
understand our only friend is yourself. A solitary friend. |
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JAPANESE TRANSLATION
(Soon to be completed) |
THE PARALLEL
(Music & Lyrics : Nikki Matsumoto)
Reason for this cause and strife, I’d say
Losing a hold of clarity
An ordinary mind
Misleading knowledge
We surf on the sonic waves
Sail and drift in space
And trail the king of spades
Caught in the odds we feel
Bringer of fortune and strength
Draws the lines of grades
As all of us are guided to this parallel
Waiting for this moment, so they say
We’re on the edge of sanity
How wrong and how absurd
Army to salvage
We surf on the sonic waves
Sail and drift in space
It’s all uncertainty
Fooling us day to day
Illusion has brought us to see
The castles in the air
As all of us are guided to this parallel
We surf on the sonic waves
Sail and drift in space
And trail the king of spades
Caught in the odds we feel
Bringer of fortune and strength
Draws the lines of grades
As all of us are guided to this parallel
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Nikki's Note :
The parallel is the two lines that never cross over each other. It is the
reflection of our society. When I wrote this song, I was thinking of the
2 religions that set us apart. Christianity and Muslim. The world is split
between them. The song is also a criticism of the 21st century life style.
It's all uncertainty fooling us day to day…
The twin towers that used to stand as parallel are gone.
The song ends with amazing violin and shamisen dual solo. An European and
Japanese instruments played together. This is also a parallel that was
not imaginable. |
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JAPANESE TRANSLATION
(Soon to be completed) |
GUARDIAN OF THE SEA
(Music & Lyrics : Nikki Matsumoto)
There I was in the middle of the stumpy road
Rain never seemed to stop, I heard the thunder roll
Oh oh oh, then she comes like ocean breeze
Charm and the spell she whispers softly in the air
And the stars fall, the moon breaks up the sky
Waving her hand of credo, somewhat vincible
Riding a cloud in haze, guardian of the sea
Oh oh oh here she comes like ocean breeze
Charm and the spell she whispers softly in the air
Wait is over, we’ll dance the night away yeah yeah yeah yeah
La la la la la la la, la la la la la x2
Oh oh oh, then she comes like ocean breeze
Charm and the spell she whispers softly in the air
And the stars fall, the moon breaks up the sky
La la la la la la la, la la la la la x2
Oh oh oh here she comes like ocean breeze
Charm and the spell she whispers softly in the air
Wait is over, we’ll dance the night away yeah yeah yeah yeah
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Nikki's Note :
Unlike the 2 religions mentioned, we believe our gods are nature itself.
We sing and dance with gods and pray for good days. We don’t go to heaven
or hell. It strikes us as nature's call.
We are afraid that nature gives us a hardship. This time in 2011, we have
learned the hard lesson again. The guardian of the sea went mad.. |
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JAPANESE TRANSLATION
(Soon to be completed) |
OCEAN
(Music & Lyrics : Nikki Matsumoto)
Oh oh oh, Oh oh oh, Oh oh oh, Oh oh oh oh oh oh
Day to day, I have stood by the ocean
Yesterday and today
Oh the waves of the sea, how they grieve
Singing along with my heart beat
Sail away, now my boat of the ages
Cast away and away
I’m alone in the land, born to roam
And it’s calling again in my sleep
Life is a journey and life is a drif
Wander the darkness to home, home
So I lay here alone by the stream
Dream about all the past
You were there now you’re gone from the haven
And I know that I don’t belong here
Life is a journey and life is a quest
Wander the darkness to home, home
Oh oh oh, Oh oh oh, Oh oh oh, Oh oh oh oh oh oh
Day to day, I have stood by the ocean
Yesterday and today
Oh the waves of the sea, how they grieve
And I know that I don’t belong here
Belong here, don’t belong here here uh uh
Oh oh oh, Oh oh oh, Oh oh oh, Oh oh oh oh oh oh
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Nikki's Note :
This song was supposed to be about a fisherman who lost his family while
he was out in the ocean. Japanese fishermen sometimes spend days out in
the water. As a vegetarian and lover of Sushi, I wanted to pay a tribute
to fishermen. But all these fishermen in the northern Japan were struck
by the incredible Tsunami.
I realized that the song has more meaning to it now. It is just so mind boggling that I receive this CD 3 hours before the quake hit. And this particular song was being played at the moment..
Life is a journey and life is a drift. Wander the darkness to home..home.
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JAPANESE TRANSLATION
(Soon to be completed) |
DRIFT
(Music & Lyrics : Nikki Matsumoto)
Sound of my heartbeat
A stream in my veins
Oh I am here, I am caught in this feeling
A life full of ravings
It’s taking its toll while I seek the glimpse of home
A nightfall I’ve been to
Hiding away from the light
The harder it seems, the closer it feels on the line
One day I’ll read all the signs shown to me
No one to drag me away from within
A drift then will seize all the pains of searching in vain
A flame, trifling starlight
It’s only a life that I know that burns to an end
Frightened I’m never
But what will I see in the dark
Knowing the state of mind that is deeper than sea
One day you’ll see all the signs close to me
The key that will unlock the door, the cell within
A drift then will seize all your pride
One day I’ll read all the signs
No one to drag me away
A drift then will seize all the pains of searching in vain
Searching in vain
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Nikki's Note :
So the drift continues. This song is more hopeful than the previous one.
The children who survived the disaster have mental wounds. I hope this
song can ease them. |
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JAPANESE TRANSLATION
(Soon to be completed) |
VISION LED ON
(Music & Lyrics : Nikki Matsumoto)
Drawing near, a feeling of cold embrace
Voices heard, a tone in dismay
Lord I’m in fear
And the stars may fall from grace oh oh
Well can you hear the man scream, he’s right beside you
One place he had in his mind
He’d seen it all, the madness in you
One day he waved the world good-bye
Vision led on, if you were here with us today
Would you feel the weight of the world on your shoulders
If you were here with us today, ah ah ah
Bring on the power of
Man within a man, song without a rhyme
I know that I was a slave
I gave it all and I’ll go on giving all I can
Until I wave the world good-bye
So if you're standing in the back at the theater of pain
Don't play with madness and lies
Insanity, the world is so wrong
Someone controlling your lives
Vision led on, if you were here with us today
Would you feel the weight of the world on your shoulders
If you were here with us today, ah ah ah
Vision led on, if you were here with us today
Would you feel the weight of the world on your shoulders
If you were here with us today, ah ah ah
Vision led on, if you were here with us today, ah ah ah
Vision led on, if you were here with us today
Would you feel the weight of the world on your shoulders
If you were here with us today, ah ah ah
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Nikki's Note :
I wrote this song on December 8th, 2005, It was the 25th anniversary of
John Lennon's death and it was important for me to do this.
On December 8th, 2010, I made the video of it. I and some of band members went to Budokan where Yoko and Japanese musicians
were playing Lennon's songs.
On that day, CNN and BBC were spreading the news of WikiLeaks as the problem
of the world. And yes, the world is STILL so wrong |
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JAPANESE TRANSLATION
(Soon to be completed) |
THE LORE
(Music: Nao Tsuchida & Nikki Matsumoto
Lyrics: Nikki Matsumoto)
In the land of innocence
Our fortune was to be told
Blazing stars fading from above
And breaking the dead of night
Fables hailed and the children cried
In the shadow where silence would scream
Night and day from fathers to brothers
Whisper and sigh and the warmth of touch
Heaven shed tears and they fall on the faces of joy
All the fables made the children smile
In the shadow their darkness prevailed
Day to day from mothers to sisters
Whisper and sigh and the warmth of touch
Heaven shed tears and they fall on the faces of joy
Now hear the calling when you feel the breeze
Revive the heart and soul of the lore
Hear the calling when you feel the breeze
Revive the heart and soul of the lore
Hear the calling when you feel the breeze
Revive the heart and soul of the lore
La la la la la la la la lo, La la la la la la la la lo
La la la la la la la la lo, La la la la la la la la lo
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Nikki's Note :
The song is about the people of ancient times who lived in caves. Without
electricity and any technology of today, they had a very simple life. Everyday,
they would look at the sky and count the stars. The sky was the heaven.
The rain was the tears from it.
We have come all the way. We have come to conquer the earth, or have we?
We have forgotten to give respect to the nature. And the nature strikes
back as soon as we forget. The lore is to be remembered.
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JAPANESE TRANSLATION
(Soon to be completed) |
DEAR MY FRIEND
(Music & Lyrics : Nikki Matsumoto)
Do you recall how we stood by the wind
And all of the jokes, all of the things we said
And if you count on me, I will take you to see
When the times were so good
We couldn’t make of what we had
And here we are once again
Dear my friend, we will be as young as we met
Close as we were oh oh
Lonely friend, you’ve been here
To see how it’d turn out to be
How long we’d tried
So don’t ask me where I have been for all these years
To the darkness and light, I had roamed oh
Well I missed out a few
And something went out from my head
It’s all clear to me after all
Dear my friend, we will be as young as we met
Close as we were oh oh
Funny friend, you’ve been here
To see how it’d turn out to be
How long we’d tried
Dear my friend, we will be as young as we met
Close as we were oh oh
Lonely friend, you’ve been here
To see how it’d turn out to be
How long we’d tried
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Nikki's Note :
This is a personal one. I used to be on a hard rock band when I was 18.
Then I left Tokyo to LA. I had not seen any of the guys I used to play
with, but some miracle happened. I and my old drummer from this band ran
into each other after 25 years after not seeing each other. This is not
going to happen in the age of e-mails and SNS.
So I wrote this song for the long lost friendship and he played drums. So this album starts with a concept of self relationship and ends with happy reunion. I am still very hopeful about the future. |
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JAPANESE TRANSLATION
(Soon to be completed) |
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