| First Love | ||||
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| Studio album by Hikaru Utada | ||||
| Released | March 10, 1999 | |||
| Recorded | August-November 1998 | |||
| Genre | J-Pop, R&B | |||
| Length | 54:37 | |||
| Label | EMI Music Japan | |||
| Producer | Akira Miyake, Teruzane Sking, Hikaru Utada | |||
| Hikaru Utada chronology | ||||
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| Singles from First Love | ||||
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First Love is the official debut album by Hikaru Utada, released on March 10, 1999.
First Love is the best-selling album in Japanese music history. It sold over 7.65 million (estimated by Oricon),[1][2][3] or 8.53 million (estimated by RIAJ[4]) copies in Japan alone. It is also the only record certified 8× Million (32× Platinum) by RIAJ.[5]
It sold over 2 million in its debut week,[6] and topped Oricon album chart for 6 weeks.
Contents |
Track listing
All songs were written by Hikaru Utada, except for a line "I see a red door and I want it painted black" from "Amai Wana: Paint It, Black".("Paint It, Black" is written by Mick Jagger & Keith Richards of The Rolling Stones). The song "Never Let Go" features the same beat used in "Take Him Back" by Monica, and was originally used in Sting's "Shape of My Heart". Hikaru said that Monica so inspired her with her R&B that she decided to use that beat.
| # | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Automatic: Album Edit" | 5:28 |
| 2. | "Movin' on Without You" | 4:38 |
| 3. | "In My Room" | 4:19 |
| 4. | "First Love" | 4:17 |
| 5. | "Amai Wana: Paint It, Black (甘いワナ ～Paint It, Black; Sweet Trap: Paint It, Black)" | 5:02 |
| 6. | "Time Will Tell" | 5:27 |
| 7. | "Never Let Go" | 3:57 |
| 8. | "B&C: Album Version" | 4:20 |
| 9. | "Another Chance" | 5:22 |
| 10. | "Interlude" | 0:17 |
| 11. | "Give Me a Reason" | 6:28 |
| 12. | "Automatic: Johnny Vicious Remix" | 4:54 |
Remixes and Covers
"Interlude" was produced into a song called "Kotoba ni Naranai Kimochi" on Utada's Distance album.
Singles
The single "First Love" is released after the album's release, considered a recut single.
| Date | Title | Peak position | Weeks | Sales |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 December 1998 | 08cm - "Automatic/Time Will Tell" | 4 | 23 | 772,080 |
| 12cm - "Automatic/Time Will Tell" | 2 | 23 | 1,290,700 | |
| February 17, 1999 | 08cm - "Movin' on Without You" | 5 | 12 | 346,820 |
| 12cm - "Movin' on Without You" | 1 | 13 | 879,760 | |
| 28 April 1999 | 08cm - "First Love" | 6 - Recut | 19 | 303,430 |
| 12cm - "First Love" | 2 - Recut | 13 | 500,890 |
Charts
First Love - Oricon Sales Chart (Japan & Taiwan)
| Release | Chart | Peak Position | Debut Sales | Sales Total | Worldwide Sales | Chart Run |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March 10, 1999 | Oricon Daily Albums Chart | 1 | ||||
| Oricon Weekly Albums Chart | 1 | 2,026,870 | 7,650,215 | 10,056,000 | 84 | |
| Oricon Yearly Albums Chart | 1 | |||||
| Best-Selling Albums in Japanese History | 1 |
Personnel
All Japanese names are in Western order (given name before family name).
- Hikaru Utada (vocals)
- Anthony Jimenez Corton (secret Love,additional chorus)
- Akira Nishihira (arrangement, keyboards & programming)
- Kei Kawano (arrangement, additional keyboards)
- Shinichiro Murayama (arrangement, keyboards & programming)
- Toshiyuki Mori (arrangement, keyboards & programming)
- Jun Isomura (arrangement)
- Tsuyoshi Kon (guitar)
- Yoshiaki Kusaka (guitar)
- Hironori Akiyama (guitar)
- Yuji Toriyama (guitar)
- Masayoshi Furukawa (guitar)
- Yuichiro Honda (guitar)
- Yuichiro Goto (strings)
- Jullian Hernandez (additional chorus)
- Nobuhiko Nakayama (synthesizer programming)
- Takahiro Iida (synthesizer programming)
- Masayuki Momo (synthesizer programming)
- Taka & Speedy (rhythm arrangement, rhythm programming)
- Akira Miyake (producer)
- Teruzane Sking Utada (producer)
- Hidenobu Okita (director)
- Masaaki Ugajin (all vocals' recording)
- Masaaki Ugajin, Masashi Kudo, Seiji Motoyama, Takehiko Kamata, Bob Allecca, Mike Brown (back track recording)
- Hotoda Goh (mixing)
- Ted Jensen (mastering)
References
- ^ 宇多田ヒカル-ORICON STYLE
- ^ http://www.oricon.co.jp/news/confidence/24700/
- ^ List of million-selling CD albums in Japan
- ^ RIAJ: Turbulent and challenging 10 years of software industry - Rapidly changing recording industry
- ^ RIAJ: The History of Recording industry
- ^ ORICON STYLE - Weekly album chart : 4th week of March 1999
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