Swallowtail Butterfly (Ai no Uta)
"Swallowtail Butterfly (Ai no Uta)" (あいのうた, Suwarōteiru Batafurai Ai no Uta, "Love Song") is a song by Chara, released under the name Yen Town Band.[1] It was the lead single from Montage, a concept album released for the Shunji Iwai film Swallowtail Butterfly that also starred Chara. This song was used as the theme song for the film.
| "Swallowtail Butterfly (Ai no Uta)" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Yen Town Band (Chara) | ||||
| from the album Montage | ||||
| B-side | "Mama's Alright" | |||
| Released | July 22, 1996 | |||
| Genre | J-pop | |||
| Length | 4:49 | |||
| Label | Sony Music Japan | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Chara, Shunji Iwai, Takeshi Kobayashi, Takayo Nagasawa, Bryan Burton-Lewis | |||
| Producer(s) | Takeshi Kobayashi | |||
| Yen Town Band (Chara) singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
The single debuted at #31 on Oricon's singles charts. Two months later, after the release of the film and album, the single managed to reach #1.[2]
The song was written by Takeshi Kobayashi, in collaboration with Chara and film director Shunji Iwai.
Music video
The music video begins with a long panning shot over a cityscape. It then shows Chara against a farm windmill. It then switches to a junkyard, where Chara and several other people are filtering through rubbish. They eventually find a working piano, which they bring back on the back of a pickup truck. Chara plays the piano as the car drives off. This scene is interspersed with scenes from the movie.
Track listing
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Arranger | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Swallowtail Butterfly (Ai no Uta)" | Shunji Iwai, Takeshi Kobayashi, Chara | Takeshi Kobayashi | Takeshi Kobayashi | 4:49 |
| 2. | "Mama's Alright" | Takeshi Kobayashi, Takayo Nagasawa, Bryan Burton-Lewis | Takeshi Kobayashi | Takeshi Kobayashi | 4:11 |
Chart rankings
| Charts (1996) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Oricon weekly singles[3] | 1 |
| Oricon yearly singles[4] | 26 |
| Charts (2010) | Peak position |
RIAJ Digital Track Chart Top 100[5]
|
40 |
RIAJ Digital Track Chart Top 100[6]
|
45 |
Sales
| Chart | Amount |
|---|---|
| Oricon physical sales[4] | 878,000 |
Cover versions
- Cinnabom (2007, compilation album Sound of Kula)
- Hiromi Hirata (as Makoto Kikuchi) (2007, album The Idolmaster Master Artist 04)
- Yoshihiko Kai (2007, album 10 Stories)
- Kumi Koda (2010, album Eternity: Love & Songs)
- Scott Murphy (from Allister) (2008, album Guilty Pleasures II)
- Moumoon (2010, EP Spark)
- My Little Lover (2001, album Singles). Released as a self-cover (Takeshi Kobayashi was, at the time, a member of My Little Lover.) A music video was released.
- Ayano Tsuji (2004, album Cover Girl)
- Nagi Yanagi (2013, album Euaru)
- Kana Hanazawa (2019, anime Afterlost)
References
- "Sony Music Online Japan : Yen Town Band : Swallowtail Butterfly～あいのうた～". Retrieved 2009-11-08.
- "Swallowtail Butterfly~あいのうた~". Retrieved 2009-11-07.
- "Ｓｗａｌｌｏｗｔａｉｌ Ｂｕｔｔｅｒｆｌｙ～あいのうた～ - ＹＥＮ ＴＯＷＮ ＢＡＮＤ／ オリコンランキング情報サービス「you大樹」" (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved 2010-10-20.
- "オリコンランキング情報サービス「you大樹」". Oricon. Retrieved 2010-10-22. (subscription only)
- "レコード協会調べ 2010年07月07日～2010年07月13日 ＜略称：レコ協チャート（「着うたフル(R)」）＞" (in Japanese). RIAJ. 2009-07-16. Archived from the original on 2012-03-11. Retrieved 2010-10-20.
- "レコード協会調べ 2010年10月13日～2010年10月19日 ＜略称：レコ協チャート（「着うたフル(R)」）＞" (in Japanese). RIAJ. 2009-10-22. Archived from the original on 2012-03-11. Retrieved 2010-10-20.