Coda [Import]

Ryuichi Sakamoto | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (May 24, 1994)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Import
• Label: Mvp Japan
• ASIN: B0000073JA
• Also Available in: Vinyl
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #258,884 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence

2. Batavia

3. Germination

4. A Hearty Breakfast

5. Before the War

6. The Seed Adn the Sower

7. A Brief Encounter

8. Ride Ride Ride

9. The Fight

10. Dismissed!/Assembly

11. Beyond Reason

12. Sowing the Seed

13. Last Regrets

14. The Seed

15. Japan

16. Coda

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence"--Collect the Whole Set, September 5, 2002

By 

A. Rue (Kansas City, KS USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Coda (Audio CD)

Ryuichi Sakamoto is not only a composer, but an arranger. I must own six versions of the "Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence/Forbidden Colours" theme alone. This fondness for arranging and rearranging has perhaps reached it's pinnacle with his soundtrack release "Henkaku no Seiki," which has seven versions of a single theme for various instruments--very sweet.

I bought "Coda" when I was craving more piano music from Ryuichi Sakamoto and was already familiar with his brilliant electronic score for the film "Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence." And that kind of fan is precisely who this album is for. Although "Coda" is certainly no "Back to the Basics." Most of the piano arrangements (due to the physical restricitions of the instrument, of course) I find a little over-simplified, and do sound like music arranged for the piano rather than written for it. Not to mention anything of the album's length, bonus tracks included. But keep in mind this album was originally released with a sheet music booklet, obviously recorded for and meant to be enjoyed by pianists. Be that as it may, this album still gets five stars because, damn it, the music of "Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence" is just that good.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars STATELY, BEAUTIFUL, December 22, 2000

By 

L. S. Slaughter "silvanus" (Chapel Hill, NC) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Coda (Audio CD)

I much prefer this LP to the synthetic "Mr Lawrence" score on Virgin released in '83. Sakamoto's acoustic piano is just darn lovely, and the simplicity of the compositions shines through better than it does with synths and sequencers. Gosh, this is expensive, but if you're an avid Sakamoto or film music fan, I suppose it is worth it. The version of the title theme here (Cut 1) is, actually, worth the price of admission.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Sakamoto at piano, good music, but too brief, February 4, 2001

By 

D. W WISELY "chiffandfipple" (Birmingham, AL USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Coda (Audio CD)

This CD consists of Sakamoto playing the music from "Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence" on piano, plus a couple of bonus tracks. It's a nice addition to the collection of fans of his film music. However, it should be noted that this CD is on 35 minutes long. Given the possibilities of the CD media, I found this disappointing.