Gekijō

"Gekijō"

Single by Shizuka Kudo

from the album Dress

Released

November 7, 1996

Format

Mini CD single

Genre

Length

4:39

Label

Pony Canyon

Songwriter(s)

Miyuki Nakajima

Producer(s)

Miyuki Nakajima
Ichizō Seo

Shizuka Kudo singles chronology

"Yū"
(1996)

"Gekijō"
(1996)

"A.S.A.P."
(1997)

Dress track listing

"Binetsu"
(5)

"Gekijō"
(6)

"Tatoeba"
(7)

Audio sample

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"Gekijō" (激情（げきじょう）, lit. "Passion") is a song recorded by Japanese singer Shizuka Kudo, from her twelfth studio album, Dress. It was released by Pony Canyon as the album's lead single on November 7, 1996. It is the theme song of the CX television series Yuzurenai Yoru, starring Kudo herself. "Gekijō" was written by Miyuki Nakajima specifically for the drama; after reading the script, Kudo immediately thought of Nakajima for the soundtrack and sought to have her write the theme song. Nakajima's lyrics invoke the series' title, which loosely translates to "Unyielding Night".

"Gekijō" marks the first collaboration between Kudo and Nakajima since "Dōkoku", and the first song Nakajima has written for Kudo on which she is credited for both the lyrics and the music. It is composed in the key of G minor and set to a tempo of 120 beats per minute. Kudo's vocals span from G₃ to C₅. Nakajima produced the song with her long-time collaborator Ichizō Seo. Lyrically, the song deals with the theme of infidelity. Nakajima writes about a protagonist having to face adversity in love because her lover is romantically committed to someone else. The narrator laments having to cause others pain and ponders where succumbing to passion will lead her.

Nakajima received acclaim for the sorrowful and typically Japanese tone of her lyrics and melody. Kudo's vocal performance was praised for its firmness.

In 1997, Nakajima covered the song in concert while touring for the album Paradise Cafe. In 2014, Momoiro Clover Z performed the song with Kudo on the CX variety show Shin Dōmoto Kyōdai. That same year, Tomomi Kahara performed "Gekijō" in duet with Kudo on the CX music show Atashi no Ongaku. In 2017, Tomokazu Seki recorded a cover of the song for the tribute album, Shizuka Kudo Tribute.

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Wikipedia