Sylvian & Sakamoto release the beautiful Bamboo Houses & Bamboo Music!

David Sylvian & Ryuichi Sakamoto 1982

Introduction

On July 23, 1982, the single and maxi single of David Sylvian and Ryuichi Sakamoto’s Bamboo Houses and Bamboo Music were released. For me, still one of the very best (maxi)single releases of all time.

Collaboration

The first time David Sylvian and Ryuichi Sakamoto worked together was in 1980, when Sakamoto played keyboards on Taking Islands In Africa, coming off the Japan album Gentlemen Take Polaroids.

March 1982

On March 4, 1982, Japan performed at the British music show Old Grey Whistle Test and played two songs: Ghosts, which had recently been released as a single and would turn out to be an unexpected hit, and Cantonese Boy. Immediately following the performance, Ryuichi Sakamoto and David Sylvian entered the studio to make and record some music together. Locale: Genetic Sound Studios in Reading, England.

At that time both men were still part of their respective groups, David Sylvian of Japan, which would announce their split later that same year, and Ryuichi Sakamoto of the influential Yellow Magic Orchestra (YMO), which would go on an extended break in 1984.

It was the first time for Sylvian and Sakamoto to work together and making new music. It didn’t take long for Bamboo Houses to materialize, but they both weren’t convinced it was A-side material and kept on working. Since Sakamoto could only take out a day or 6 from his busy schedule, Sylvian remained working on the recordings and riffs with producer Steve Nye.

Japan drummer Steve Jansen also collaborated on the recordings and added drums and percussion, in the way only Jansen was able to do (which is a huge compliment).

Even though Sylvian initially wasn’t 100% pleased with the end result, particularly about the way the music came together (Sylvian had to work for an additional couple of weeks after the initial recordings), both Bamboo Houses and Bamboo Music were a perfect indication of what Sylvian and Sakamoto were capable of together: complex, dynamic and original music, based on ingenious rhythms. The synthesizer’s influence and use was huge, the only analog instruments were marimba and drums. Despite the electronics, the songs possessed a real and clear ‘feel’, in contrast to the cold sounding Japan album Tin Drum, which had come out some six months before.

Sylvian & Sakamoto – Bamboo Houses / Bamboo Music (maxi-single)

Rating

When I bought the 12-inch at the time I was in complete awe. The rhythms were impressive, the vocals and melodies beautiful and warm, and the overall feel was innovative and original.

The richness of the ideas is astounding and made me long for more.

The single reached the 30th position on the English charts.

Lyrics

Bamboo Houses

All the buildings I have loved
Are barely standing
All the children too young and thin
Sing bamboo music

© 1982 David Sylvian and Ryuichi Sakamoto

Bamboo Music

I walk through open fields
Where children sing
Bamboo music
A song for life itself
Play to win
In bamboo music

We work – working harder still
Down where life begins
From here to heaven
We fight – fighting harder still
Down where life begins
From here to heaven

Building bamboo houses by the million
Lighting fires that only burn inside
Singing bamboo music by the million
Fighting for our lives

I walk through open fields
Where children sing
Bamboo music
A glimpse of life itself
Of sun and steel
In bamboo music

We work – working harder still
Down where life begins
From here to heaven
We fight – fighting harder still
Down where life begins
From here to heaven

Building bamboo houses by the million
Lighting fires that only burn inside
Singing bamboo music by the million
Fighting for our lives

© 1982 David Sylvian and Ryuichi Sakamoto

Sylvian & Sakamoto – Bamboo Houses / Bamboo Music – Ad

Songs

Songs written by David Sylvian and Ryuichi Sakamoto.

• Bamboo Houses
• Bamboo Music

Musicians

• Ryuichi Sakamoto – keyboards, programming, MC4, marimba, spoken text op Bamboo Houses
• David Sylvian – keyboards, programming, vocals
• Steve Jansen – (electronic) percussion

Production

• Ryuichi Sakamoto – producer
• David Sylvian – producer, mix, cover design & layout
• Steve Nye – producer, sound engineer, mix

Both songs were released on a so-called double A-side single and maxi-single. On the maxi-single both songs lasted around 1 minute longer. A video was shot for the song Bamboo Music, in which Sylvian, Sakamoto and Jansen appeared.

A remix of Bamboo Houses was released on the David Sylvian compilation Everything And Nothing in 2000 and both songs were released in 2012 on the second Sylvian compilation A Victim Of Stars 1982–2012. On April 18, 2015, the single Bamboo Houses / Bamboo Music was re-released as a limited edition of 1,000 copies as part of Record Store Day, in a brand new cover.

Sylvian & Sakamoto – Bamboo Houses / Bamboo Music – Labels (maxi-single)

Further collaborations

David Sylvian and Ryuichi Sakamoto would regularly work together in the future:

• In 1983 they wrote Forbidden Colours, the title song for the movie Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence, in which Sakamoto also acted, together with David Bowie. Forbidden Colours is probably the most well-known of the Sylvian/Sakamoto collaborations and was a hit in 1983.
• In 1984 David Sylvian released his solo debut album Brilliant Trees. Sakamoto contributed to the album.
• In 1985 they composed Steel Cathedrals, which was meant as a soundtrack to a movie by Sylvian and Yasayuki Yamaguchi. The song was released on David Sylvian’s 1985 album Alchemy: An Index Of Possibilities.
• In 1989 Sakamoto arranged many songs and played keyboard on nearly all songs of David Sylvian’s album Secrets Of The Beehive.
• In 1992 Sylvian collaborated on the Sakamoto single Heartbeat. during its recording Sylvian met Ingrid Chavez, a former member of Prince‘s inner circle. They married the same year, would have two daughters, and eventually divorced in 2003.
• On the 1999 Sylvian album Dead Bees On A Cake Sakamoto collaborated on 7 of the 14 songs.
• In 2001 Sakamoto was involved with No More Landmine, an international initiative to raise awareness about disposing of landmines. For a single, Zero Landmine, Sakamoto asked Sylvian to write a simple, tender lyric. The single contained several performances of the song, on one of which Sylvian sang the song, accompanied by Sakamoto on piano.
• In 2003 they worked together on the EP World Citizen.

In closing

What do you think of the David Sylvian and Ryuichi Sakamoto collaboration(s), and of Bamboo Houses / Bamboo Music? Let me know!

Video/Spotify
This story contains an accompanying video. Click on the following link to see it: Video: Sylvian & Sakamoto release the beautiful Bamboo Houses & Bamboo Music!. The A Pop Life playlist on Spotify has been updated as well.