Today’s song is firmly a top 20 all-time favorite ^^!
While I only have a modest collection of her music which includes 6 of her albums and most of these were purchased during my experimental J-Pop days, what immediately comes to mind the second that you hear the voice of the artist performing today’s all-time favorite J-Pop song is just how elegant and graceful it is and in this regard she’s part of quite an exclusive tier in J-Pop. Well …a good analogy I think would be to compare the aura of her voice to Barbra Streisand’s as it’s a strongly projected one that floats with a seemingly effortless flow. Every note and nuance so perfect and beautiful. Imai Miki debuted in the mid 80’s and luckily a lot of her back catalog was still available all those years ago with the earliest album that I was able to find of hers being from 1987, titled “Elfin.” Through the years her music has seamlessly adapted to the changes in style all the while that immaculate elegance has remained intact as her voice is that of an almost trademarked ability and is instantly a recognizable tone.
~My Imai Miki collection~
~Imai Miki “Piece of my wish” (live) mp3~
Her live performances resemble more of a “concert hall” experience and as a true test of her vocal ability she sounds equally amazing and perhaps even better live as she does in her recorded works. For this reason I’ve chosen to share a live performance of “PIECE OF MY WISH” versus the studio version. One thing that you’ll readily notice is just how quiet the audience is during the entire performance …think concert hall atmosphere! I can’t stress enough just how beautiful this song is so just imagine me going on and on and gushing about it more than I possibly have done before on this site! Well that’s probably difficult to imagine as the gush-o-meter has hit its peak many a times before…( um think Mr.Children~♥!) This song (also a drama theme song) is a perfect match for any relaxing evening when you really need to wind down or just would like some moving me~time music, enjoy! ＾ ＾。
The live version above is from her album “THANK YOU.”
~Today’s featured Imai Miki albums …”Thank You” & Premium Ivory~The Best Songs of all Time~.”
~“PIECE OF MY WISH” (live)~
And here’s another amazing live, this one in video form is from her recently released album titled “Premium Ivory~The Best Songs of all Time~.” And to reiterate, “Piece of my wish” is easily in my top 20 and without question one of the greatest ballads ever performed and written, and YES that’d be all-time~♥ for sure which definitely warrants this encore blog appearance for this song as it surely needs to make an appearance here as my new all-time favorite J-Pop songs series rolls along~.
PIECE OF MY WISH
Asa ga kuru made, naki tsuzuketa yoru mo
Arukidaseru chikara ni, kitto dekiru
I cried all night until morning came
I’ll surely find the strength to start walking (strength to continue)
Taiyou wa nobori, kokoro wo tsutsumu deshou
Yagate yami wa kanarazu, akete yuku kara…
The sun rises to conceal my heart
Surely soon the darkness will certainly go away
Doushite motto jibun ni, Sunao ni ikirenai no
Sonna omoi, to ikakenagara
Akiramenaide, subete ga kuzure sou ni natte mo
Shinjiteite Anata no koto wo
Why can’t you live more truthfully to youself?
Those kind of thoughts, you tell yourself
Don’t give up, even when it seems everything is falling apart
I’ll keep on believing in you
Hontou wa dare mo ga, negai wo kanaetai no
Dakedo umakuyukanai, toki mo aru wa
Even if you do things with the best of intentions
But sometimes it doesn’t go as planned
Kibou no kakera wo, te no hira ni natsumete
Ooki na yorokobi e to, kaete yukou
Holding on to the piece of my wish in the palm of my hands
Let’s change them into a wonderful joy
Ai suru hito ya, tomodachi ga, yuuki zukete kureru yo
Sonna kotoba, dakishimenagara,
Dakedo saigo no kotae wa hitori de mitsukeru no ne,
Meguri tsuzuku, ashita no tame ni
Loved ones and friends will give encourage you
I’m holding tight to those words embracing them
But the last question you have to face on your own, continue for tomorrow
Ame ni makenai, kimochi wo
Hono’o mo kuguri nukeru, sonna tsuyo sa,
Mochi tsuzuketai, sore demo itsuka
Subete ga kuzure sou ni natte mo
Shinjite ite anata no koto wo
shinjite ite hoshii anata no koto wo
My feelings (heart) are undefeated by the rain
And passes through the flame, the strength to go through those kinds of ordeals
I want to carry on but sometimes…
Even when everything seems to be going out of control
I will believe in you
I want to believe in you~.
モーニングBerryz48...the morning after..... "Always wear protection before reading…(^q^)." 
Nice.
Slightly off topic. Comparison to Barbara Streisand? I’m not a fan of Barbara Streisand. Music biographer Michael Fienstein said it best. (paraphrasing) She is a great singer, hits all the notes, but just does not understand the words that she is singing. His peeve was that she put all the wrong emphasis on the words in George & Ira Gershwin songs. Making the songs lose their emotional impact, which is the way I always felt about her. I think I liked her movie roles more than any of her songs.
Re: “notice just how quiet the audience is”
Yes, through most of my concert going experiences, when there was the sound of so many yahoos smashing beer bottles. Ex. Black Oak Arkansas 1976
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Really is a gorgeous song~♡ isn’t it! I’m so Miki’s voice is amongst the most elegant and yet powerful. Her long time husband actually has written and produced for her and he’s this well established rock musician… so it’s an interesting dynamic to say the least as Imai Miki, you’d never really associate her with the rock genre so much
.
Your Barbara Streisand reveal is most interesting and for here I was trying to make some comparison to a Western artist, as they both have such command with their vocals she just came to mind. You just made me want to re-listen to Streisand’s singing again with this new thought in mind, very intrigued now! My father used to play her albums when I was little and then years later I was like hey I totally know these songs!! Imai Miki performs amazing concerts, just a little taste here… her voice is so perfect! ^^
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I think that BS is Ok for her modern ones. There was that Oscar winner she wrote with Paul Williams, which is her at the top of her game. She should stay away from Tin-Pan-Alley- Berlin-Gershwin-Porter-Rogers&Hart though. No. No …
Plus I never get invited to any of those celebrity parties of hers.
Your last few posts have given me a lot to listen to. I’m going to dedicate an area of my office computer for a window, just for your posts. The MB wing … dows … or something.
: )
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Love that we can converse freely about music without any hangups =), your musical interests and knowledge are broad so it’s equally refreshing. Don’t think I’d ever be worthy to attend such a party but can you imagine the conversations there?! I love her songs in the vein of “Evergreen” and “The way we were”… and the occasional show tune. Here, ‘Piece of my wish” always moves me emotionally whenever I hear it ^^*
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Joke from Steve Martin’s “The Jerk”
Bernadette Peters (sobbing): Today I heard a song on the radio. It reminded me so much of of the way we were.
Steve Martin: What song was it?
BP (crying): “The Way We Were”
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Haha I looked up the movie and you’re amazing to recall dialogue in an instant! =) And it is such a lovely song~♡. I know Steve Martin from “Father of the Bride” ..really cute and funny movie ^^.
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One more Babs comment:
True Story…
When I was in 1st grade we each got to bring in a record from home to share with the class. Each kid would get a chance to play their record and talk about it.
I brought in the musical soundtrack LP of Barbs movie “Hello Dolly”. Ha.
Gosh, I was a f-a-b-u-l-o-u-s First grader.
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Woah! That was quite advanced listening for a first grader!! It speaks to your early found genius! ^^ Gosh your teacher and classmates must’ve been impressed or maybe your classmates were very much caught off guard. =)
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“piece of my wish” is a great one. Never heard a live performance before. I’m no singer, but I suspect that it’s hard to sing. Lots of rapid jumps in pitch.
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I so agree Rikki, the vocal control and range Imai Miki possesses is elite! I love how the music arrangements are distinctly different between these two live performances, and when you listen through headphones they’re both pretty breathtaking ^^.
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