Omni Sight Seeing

omni Sight Seeing
Studio album by
Haruomi Hosono
ReleasedJuly 21, 1989 (1989-07-21)
Recorded1988–1989, Tokyo and Paris
Studio
Various
    • Magnet Studio
    • D.M.S.
    • Alfa Studio A
    • Artisti Palace
    • Nichion Studio
GenreAmbient, electronica, world
LanguageJapanese, English, French, Arabic
LabelEpic
ProducerHaruomi Hosono

Omni Sight Seeing is a 1989 album by Haruomi Hosono.

Background and recording

This was their first studio album in four years since their last album, "Endless Talking", and their first release since moving to EPIC/SONY RECORDS.

This work was the result of sessions and collaborations with Arabian musicians, with an inclination towards the 'world music' that was gaining attention at the time.

Track listing

All tracks are written by Haruomi Hosono, except where noted

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Esashi" (江差)traditional1:50
2."Andadura" 6:23
3."Orgone Box" 6:05
4."Ohenro-san" (お遍路さん) (instrumental) 2:44
5."Caravan"Irving Mills, Juan Tizol, Duke Ellington4:16
6."Retort" 3:33
7."Laugh-Gas"Hosono, Amina Ben Mustapha, Tomoko Nunoi11:27
8."Korendor" (instrumental) 5:27
9."Pleocene"Hosono, Keiko Hida6:12

Music description

  1. ESASHI
    • The title Esashi is taken from Esashi Oiwake.
    • Hosono was watching NHK Nodo Jiman in 1988 and could not forget the song Esashi Oiwake sung by then 14-year-old Kimura Kasumi from HokkaidoEsashi Town, so he sought her out and recorded it a cappella.[1]
  2. ANDADURA
    • The genre is "Arab music".
    • The vocalists are the Arab singer Amina ("Amina Ben Mustapha" in the liner notes)[1] and Hosono.
  3. 'ORGONE BOX'
  4. OHENRO-SAN
    • The title Ohenro refers to Ohenro.
    • It contains some of the songs used in Human Promise, directed by Yoshishige Yoshida.
  5. CARAVAN
    • Hosono himself says: "A compilation of quotations, a ghost band of ghost musicians"; the names Les Paul and Duke Ellington are credited, but this is a simulation, not an actual performance and recording.
  6. RETORT
    • The lyrics are included on the lyric card, but the singer himself explains, "I can't sing it very well, so I'm hoping someone will record a song version of it for me one day." He explains,.[2]
    • A song version self-cover was included as "Retort - Vu Ja De ver." (M11) on his album Vu Jà Dé, released in 2017.
  7. LAUGH-GAS
    • The lyrics are in French and the song is sung by "Amina Ben Mustapha".[2]
  8. KORENDOR
    • Image of "a deranged alien playing piano in the Japanese countryside", according to the man himself.
  9. 'PLEOCENE'
    • The song PLEOCENE is a development of the song PLEOCINE, which was used in the film Night on the Galactic Railroad released in 1985.
    • The vocals are sung by Hosono and Moro Fukuzawa.

Personnel

References

  1. ^ a b from the liner
  2. ^ a b From the liner