Big Wave is a 1984 album by Tatsuro Yamashita, recorded as the soundtrack to the surf film Big Wave directed by Walter McConnelly. It reached No. 2 on the Oricon LP chart and sold more than 450,000 copies.[1]
Background
The film opened on 25 May 1984 and the album followed on 20 June.[1] Yamashita’s writing and production on the record are heavily indebted to Brian Wilson: side one holds original songs with English lyrics by Alan O’Day, while side two is mostly made up of Beach Boys covers.[1] Yamashita, who does not speak English, learned the English lyrics phonetically.[1]
Songs
“The Theme from Big Wave” first aired on NHK-FM in January 1983 as “Mahou wo Oshiete”, sung by Taeko Onuki, who wrote its Japanese lyrics.[1] “I Love You” had been used in Suntory television advertising from 1983, and “Your Eyes” and “Jody” had already appeared with Japanese lyrics on For You (1982) and Melodies (1983).[1] Harry Nilsson’s “This Could Be the Night”, which Yamashita had covered on Go Ahead!, was re-recorded for the album.[1][2]
Release
The album peaked at No. 2 on both the Oricon LP and cassette album charts, spending 19 weeks on the chart, and finished 15th on Oricon’s 1984 year-end album ranking.[1]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| Side A | |||
| 1. | “The Theme from Big Wave” | Alan O’Day / Tatsuro Yamashita | 3:40 |
| 2. | “Jody” | Alan O’Day / Tatsuro Yamashita | 3:51 |
| 3. | “Only with You” | Alan O’Day / Tatsuro Yamashita | 3:43 |
| 4. | “Magic Ways” | Alan O’Day / Tatsuro Yamashita | 4:49 |
| 5. | “Your Eyes” | Alan O’Day / Tatsuro Yamashita | 3:14 |
| 6. | “I Love You… (Part II)” | Alan O’Day / Tatsuro Yamashita | 2:06 |
| Side B | |||
| 7. | “Girls on the Beach”Brian Wilson, Mike Love | 2:45 | |
| 8. | “Please Let Me Wonder”Brian Wilson, Mike Love | 3:09 | |
| 9. | “Darlin’”Brian Wilson, Mike Love | 3:29 | |
| 10. | “Guess I’m Dumb”Brian Wilson, Russ Titelman | 3:15 | |
| 11. | “This Could Be the Night”Harry Nilsson | 4:03 | |
| 12. | “I Love You… (Part I)” | Tatsuro Yamashita | 2:08 |
Side two is mostly covers; writers given in the notes column.
References
- “Big Wave (Tatsuro Yamashita album)”. Wikipedia. Retrieved 11 October 2026.
- “Go Ahead! (Tatsuro Yamashita album)”. Wikipedia. Retrieved 11 October 2026.
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