Japan’s next prime minister, Yukio Hatoyama, may be trying to change the tone of his country’s politics, but it is the tunes he released two decades ago that have struck a chord with online fans.
His pop ballad single “Take Heart — Fly, Dove of Peace,” a 1988 vinyl recorded shortly after Hatoyama was first elected to parliament, recently sold for some ¥35,000 (NT$12,400) on the Internet, a Japanese tabloid reported.
The title is a play on his name, which includes the word “dove,” which can also sound like the Japanese pronunciation of the English word “heart.”
The 62-year-old, who led his Democratic Party of Japan to a crushing victory over the ruling Liberal Democratic Party last week, is to be sworn in as prime minister on Sept. 16.
The producer of the record, a 65-year-old dentist from northern Hokkaido island, home of Hatoyama’s constituency, said he was surprised at the online auction site bidding war that broke out after the record started at 1,000 yen.
“I never imagined that there would be a day when this tune would come into the spotlight,” Teruaki Asanuma was quoted as saying by Kyodo News.
The dentist said he wrote the song at Hatoyama’s request, and that 100 copies were distributed, mostly to supporters in his political group.
Hatoyama had originally wanted to sing a traditional Japanese tune, but Asanuma recommended a lighter pop style reflecting Hatoyama’s “urban flair.”
Hatoyama was “quite accustomed to singing,” Asanuma reportedly said.
(AFP)
日本新任首相鳩山由紀夫也許正試圖改變日本的政治調性，不過真正在網路上引起廣泛共鳴的，其實是他二十年前發行的一張唱片。
一九八八年，鳩山首次當選國會議員後不久，就自己錄製了一張黑膠唱片，收錄流行抒情單曲「任心飛翔，和平鴿」。據日本小報報導，最近這張唱片在網路上以三萬五千日圓（新台幣一萬兩千四百元）的價格賣出。
歌名取他名字玩文字遊戲，其中的「dove」意思就是「鳩」，而「heart」的日文發音又類似鳩（hato）。
這位六十二歲的日本民主黨黨魁，上週帶領民主黨以壓倒性勝利擊敗執政的自民黨，並將於九月十六日宣誓就職。
這張唱片的製作人是北海道北部（也就是鳩山當初出身的選區）的一位牙醫，現年六十五歲。他表示看到拍賣網上的競標價格從一千日圓開始飆漲，感到很驚訝。
日本共同通信社引述淺沼晃明的話：「我從來沒有想過這首歌會有翻紅的一天。」
他說當初是應鳩山的請求寫這首歌，然後壓製了一百張送人，受贈者多半是他政治圈的支持者。
鳩山本來想演唱日本傳統歌謠，但淺沼推薦他嘗試輕快的流行曲風，好反映他的「都會特質」。
報導指出，淺沼說鳩山「還蠻會唱歌的」。（法新社╱翻譯：袁星塵）
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