| Sometime Samurai | ||
|---|---|---|
| ||
| Promotional single by Kylie Minogue featuring Towa Tei | ||
| From the album Flash | ||
| Released | 2 March 2005 | |
| Recorded | 1996; Sangenjaya, Setagaya, Japan (Demo) 2003; London, England (Vocal re-recording) | |
| Format |
| |
| Genre | House | |
| Length | 3:39 | |
| Label |
| |
| Writer(s) |
| |
| Producer(s) |
| |
| Kylie Minogue singles chronology | ||
|
|
|
| Music Video | ||
| ||
"Sometime Samurai" is a song written and performed by Japanese music producer Towa Tei and Kylie Minogue for Tei's album Flash (2005). It was originally recorded as a demo alongside "GBI (German Bold Italic)" in 1996, but remained unreleased for eight years until Kylie had the opportunity to re-record her vocals in 2003. Before its inclusion on Flash, the song has been mentioned on Kylie book Kylie: La La La. The song, written about Kylie's then boyfriend, photographer Stéphane Sednaoui.
The song was released in Japan as a radio promotional single to promote the release of Flash and since has become one of Tei's most successful songs on radio in Japan, reaching the top ten on the Tokio Hot 100 radio chart. A music video was also made for the song, but did not feature Kylie because she was busy touring her Showgirl: The Greatest Hits Tour.
Background and composition
In 1996, coming back to a studio in Sangenjaya, Setagaya, Japan after going for drinks, Towa Tei received a hand-written fax that had "a picture of some sort" on it that said: "Music with you! Kylie. Call Me". She then came to perform in Japan and met Tei, they tried to make some songs for her album at Sangenjaya. The outputs from the session were "GBI (German Bold Italic)" and a demo of "Sometime Samurai" with Chisato Moritaka's drums part was already being included. "GBI" was later released as a single in 1997, while the other had been left without completion.
Kylie especially liked "Sometime Samurai", but her record company didn't get it, and it was ignored. By the time Tei was working on his fifth studio album Flash in late 2003, Kylie contacted Tei for the first time in years, she said: "I can't get over that song either. I should be able to sing it better now, so I'd like to re-record it. Can you come to London?" The song was finally completed in London and was later included on Tei's album.
Dan Grunebaum from Japanese English-language magazine Metropolis described the track: "[It] is about as kitschy as they come, with the lithesome Minogue burbling over a four-to-the-floor house beat and elastic, sampled sitars."
Release
UK release plans for "Sometime Samurai" had to be cancelled after Kylie’s breast cancer diagnosis; in Japan the single never made it to full release either for the same reasons, and remained as a radio only promo single where it became a quite noticeable radio hit, a video was also made, but it doesn’t show Kylie or Towa Tei.
Live performances
Though never properly performed, "Sometime Samurai" was used in the 'Naughty Manga Girl' section of KylieX2008 as a video interlude, preceding a performance of "Come into My World". The video showed Kylie dressed as a Geisha dancing amongst flowers; the video also interpolated parts of "German Bold Italic".
Lyrics
Man of the moment, possibly all time
Sing to me your lullaby-y-y-y
Sometime Samurai
Man of the moment, possibly all time
Sing to me your lullaby-y-y-y
Sometime Samurai
Sometime Samurai
Sometime Samurai
Sometime Samurai (sometime)
Sometime Samurai (sing to me, yeah)
Mmm Mmm my ocean and swimming at high tide
Softly you protect me, tender touch of you
Floating in your shadow
I'm like a leaf up on the water
Cradled by your greatness
Safe now in your arms
Ooo Mmm Mmm in my treetop I'm wearing such a smile
Cooly you caress me
I purr next to you
Longing for nothing but more of this
You are my dreamtime
Wisely when you guide me
Lovely in your lights
I'm feeling just a little dizzy
Do you think I can sit down for a while?
Man of the moment, possibly all time
Sing to me your lullaby-y-y-y
Sometime Samurai
Sometime Samurai
|