Akeboshi

Infobox Musical artist
Name = Yoshio Akeboshi

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Img_size = 150
Background = solo_singer
Years_active = 2003–present
Born = Yokohama, Japan
Genre = J-pop, Folk
Occupation = Singer, songwriter, musician
Label = Epic Records Japan
Associated_acts = Matsu Takako
URL = [http://www.akeboshi.com/ www.akeboshi.com]

nihongo|Yoshio Akeboshi|明星嘉男|"Akeboshi Yoshio", more commonly known as Akeboshi, is a Japanese pop and folk singer. He is mainly known for the song "Wind" , which was used as the ending theme to the anime "Naruto" for the first twenty-five episodes.

Akeboshi was born on July 1, 1978 in Yokohama. He learned to play the piano when he was thirteen years old, later learning to play the guitar. He studied music in Liverpool, and his time there has heavily influenced his music. Before his major debut, he produced two of the songs on Matsu Takako's fourth album, "a piece of life".

Akeboshi's songs are mainly sung in Japanese, but there are some notable songs that are sung in English, such as "Night and day", "Money", and "Wind". Another thing of note about Akeboshi's music is that he rarely uses the basic 4/4 time signature. "Wind" and "Kamisama no Shitauchi" for example, are both written in 5/4.

Albums

Akeboshi

Akeboshi's debut album, "Akeboshi", was released on June 22, 2005 on Epic Records Japan.

# "Wind"
# "Night and day"
# "Hey there"
# "No wish"
#
#
# "A nine days' wonder"
# "White reply"
# "Faerie punks"
# "Morning high"
# "Tall boy"
# "The audience"
#

Most of these tracks are taken from the mini-albums, with some re-recorded in slightly different arrangements.

Meet Along the Way

Akeboshi's second album, "Meet Along the Way", was released on November 7, 2007 on the Epic Records label in Japan. The simultaneously released limited edition contains a CD with the songs "Rusty Lance," "Yellow Moon," and "Along The Line."

# "Sky In The Pond"
# "The Cliff"
# "Yellow bird"
# "Broken bridge"
# "Seeds"
# "shadow of the wind"
# "Green eyes"
# "Village Stone"
# "Mercury is rising"
# "Diamond Dust"
# "coille gan crann"
# "Close my door"
#

Roundabout

Akeboshi's third album, "Roundabout", was released on June 11, 2008 on the Epic Records label in Japan. Called a "complete selection album," it contains no new songs, but does contain previously unreleased live versions of several of his best hits. The simultaneously released limited edition contains a DVD with a collection of his music videos, as well as a documentary of the time he spent in England recording "Meet Along the Way."

# "leaf on leaf"
# "Sky in the pond"
# "One step behind the door"
# "Along the Line"
# "Peruna"
# "Yellow Moon"
# "Rusty lance"
# "Sounds"
# "Hey There" (Live)
# "Seeds" (Live)
# "Wind" (Live)
# "A Nine Days' Wonder" (Live)

Mini-albums

So far, Akeboshi has released five mini-albums and one single, "Rusty lance".

toned town

"Stoned town" was released August 8, 2002.

# "Wind"
#
# "No wish"
#

White reply

"White reply" was released June 18, 2003. A limited edition version was released on May 13, 2003. It contained an extra song, called "Not real".

# "Tall boy"
# "Morning high"
# "White reply"
# "Money"

Faerie punks

"Faerie punks" was released March 10, 2004.

# "Hey there"
# "Night and day"
#
# "Faerie punks"

Yellow moon

"Yellow moon" was released April 19, 2006. The title track was used for the thirteenth Naruto ending theme.

# "Yellow moon (edit)"
# "Peruna"
# "One step behind the door"
#
# "Yellow moon"
# "Deep end"

Rusty lance

"Rusty lance" was released October 19, 2005.

# "Rusty lance"
# "Sounds"
# "Writing over the sign"

Colorful Drops

"Colorful Drops" is was released on August 22, 2007. "Along the Line" is the theme for the movie White Mexico.

# "Along the Line"
# "leaf on leaf"
#
# "Quiet Garden"

Work with Matsu Takako

Matsu Takako's single, "Toki no Fune", released September 2004, contains two songs composed by Akeboshi. The title track is another version of "A nine days' wonder", though the lyrics are different and there are some small changes to the melody. The song was used in the drama RUNAWAY, which is a remake of the movie "The Fugitive". The single also contains a cover of "White reply".

External links

* [http://www.akeboshi.com/ Akeboshi's official website]
* [http://www.jmignited.com/akeboshi.php Information about Akeboshi (English)]
* [http://www.shift.jp.org/085/dotmov/11.16/ A concert report]
* [http://www.pia.co.jp/musicdream/live/vol9.html Another concert report]
* [http://www.xa-music.tk/ XA Music]