Service (album)
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (June 2015) |
| Service | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | December 14, 1983 | |||
| Recorded | September – October 1983 | |||
| Studio | Alfa Studio “A”, Shibaura, Minato, Tokyo | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 50:44 30:18 (original EU pressing) | |||
| Label | Alfa | |||
| Producer | YMO | |||
| Yellow Magic Orchestra chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from Service | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |    [1] |
| Analog Planet | 7/10[2] |
Service is the seventh studio album by Yellow Magic Orchestra, released on December 14, 1983. The band dissolved the following year after a world tour, but would later reform in 1993 for a one-off reunion album, Technodon. Like ×∞Multiplies, it contains a mixture of YMO songs and comedy sketches performed by Super Eccentric Theater, or S.E.T. The first Dutch/German edition of the album shortened the sketches to ten-second interludes, effectively cutting the album's length in half. In 1999, the album was remastered under Hosono's supervision with new liner notes provided by lyricist Peter Barakan.
Service features "You've Got to Help Yourself", which was previously featured in instrumental form on the previous album, Naughty Boys Instrumental. The 2nd "S.E.T." track featured Casiopea's song "Time Limit" from their album Mint Jams. "以心電信" more accurately transliterates to "Telegraph from the heart".
Track listing
[edit]| No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Limbo" | Yukihiro Takahashi, Haruomi Hosono, Peter Barakan | Takahashi, Hosono | 3:21 |
| 2. | "S.E.T." | 4:21 | ||
| 3. | "The Madmen[4]" | Hosono, Barakan | Hosono | 4:40 |
| 4. | "S.E.T.[5]" | 1:23 | ||
| 5. | "Chinese Whispers" | Takahashi, Barakan | Takahashi | 4:27 |
| 6. | "S.E.T." | 4:16 | ||
| 7. | "You've Got to Help Yourself" (以心電信 Ishin Denshin) | Hosono, Barakan | Ryuichi Sakamoto, Takahashi | 4:45 |
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "S.E.T.+YMO" | 5:53 | ||
| 2. | "Shadows on the Ground" | Sakamoto, Takahashi, Barakan | Sakamoto, Takahashi | 4:20 |
| 3. | "S.E.T." | 3:25 | ||
| 4. | "See-Through" | Barakan | YMO | 3:36 |
| 5. | "S.E.T." | 4:09 | ||
| 6. | "Perspective" | Sakamoto, Barakan | Sakamoto | 5:12 |
| 7. | "S.E.T." | 0:46 |
Personnel
[edit]Yellow Magic Orchestra – arrangements, electronics, mixing engineers, producers
- Haruomi Hosono – bass guitar, synth bass, keyboards, vocals
- Ryuichi Sakamoto – keyboards, vocals
- Yukihiro Takahashi – vocals, electronic drums, cymbals, keyboards
Guest musicians
- Takeshii Fujii and Akihiko Yamazoe – technical assistance
- Peter Barakan – lyrics
- Yūji Miyake, Hisahiro Ogura, Osamu Hagihashi, Daisuke Yamazaki, Kōichi Nagata, Etsuyo Mitani, Keiko Ishii & Akemi Imamura – counterparts
Staff
- Mitsuo Koike – recording and mixing engineer
- Akitsugu Doi – assistant engineer
- Teppei Kasai (CBS/Sony Shinanomachi Studio) – mastering engineer
- Tsuguya Inoue – art director, painting
- Beans – design
Charts
[edit]| Year | Release | Chart | Peak position | Weeks | Sales |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | LP | Oricon LP Chart[6] | 5 | 15 | 93,000 |
| Cassette | Oricon CT Chart[6] | 16 | 12 | 43,000 | |
| 2022 | Album | Oricon Albums Chart[6] | 80 | 2 | 5,000 |
| Japan | 141,000 |
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e f g h Allmusic review
- ^ a b Lui, Malachi (20 August 2021). "Yellow Magic Orchestra: Explorations, Part 2 (1983-Present)". Analog Planet. Retrieved 5 March 2025.
- ^ Stout, Andrew (24 June 2011). "Yellow Magic Orchestra on Kraftwerk and How to Write a Melody During a Cultural Revolution". SF Weekly. Retrieved 10 October 2022.
- ^ This song was inspired by Daijiro Morohoshi's comic Mud Men.
- ^ The introduction is "Time Limit" by Japanese jazz fusion band Casiopea.
- ^ a b c "Yellow Magic Orchestra" (in Japanese). Yamachan Land (Oricon archives). Archived from the original on November 11, 2007. Retrieved June 1, 2011.
