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Eyes on Me (Faye Wong song)

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Wikipedia article




"'Eyes on Me'" is a pop ballad performed by Hong Kong singer Faye Wong as a love theme for the video game 'Final Fantasy VIII'. The music was composed by Nobuo Uematsu with English lyrics by Kako Someya.

Single



The song was released as a CD single in Japan on February 24, 1999. The B-side was a ballad, "Red Beans" , composed by Jim Lau with Mandarin lyrics by Lin Xi. The Japanese title for it was . It had been included in Faye Wong's 1998 album 'Sing and Play', along with a Cantonese version "Repayment" , and was popular in its own right.

Upon the song's release in Japan, it placed number one on the Western music charts for 19 consecutive weeks, and generated lifetime sales of over 500,000 copies. placing it as the best-selling video game music disc ever released in Japan until the release of "Hikari" by Utada Hikaru for 'Kingdom Hearts'. In 2000, it was the first song in video game history to win an award at the 14th Annual Japan Gold Disc Awards, where it won "Song of the Year (Western Music)".[http://www.riaj.or.jp/e/data/gdisc/2000.html Japan Gold Disc Award 2000]

The song was popular among the video game community in the Western world, and brought Faye Wong to the attention of many who were not previously familiar with her music.[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/music/4177006.stm The changing musical tastes of China], BBC News, 23 August 2005. Retrieved 10 May 2011. In 2017, Brian Ashcraft from 'Kotaku' described "Eyes on Me" as one of the most iconic songs of the 'Final Fantasy' franchise, as well as one of the most commercially successful singles associated with the video game industry.

"Eyes on Me" was re-released a 18cm vinyl record on November 3, 2017.

Theme song in the game



Near the end of the production of 'Final Fantasy VII', the developers suggested to use a singer, but abandoned the idea due to a lack of reasoning based on the game's theme and storyline. However, Nobuo Uematsu thought a ballad would closely relate to the theme and characters of 'Final Fantasy VIII'. This resulted in the game's developers sharing "countless" artists, eventually deciding on Faye Wong, a Chinese vocalist. Uematsu claims "her voice and mood seem to match my image of the song exactly", and that her ethnicity "fits the international image of Final Fantasy". After negotiations were made, "Eyes on Me" was recorded in Hong Kong with an orchestra.Maeda, Yoshitake (1999). Final Fantasy VIII Original Soundtrack (Limited Edition). DigiCube. 'IGN' claimed that she was reportedly paid $1 million US dollars for her work.

The lyrics, written in imperfect English, unveil the hopes of a night club singer for romance with a member of her audience:

:'I kind of liked it your way'

:'How you shyly placed your eyes on me;'

:'Oh, did you ever know

:'That I had mine on you?'

Within 'Final Fantasy VIII', the song is written by Julia Heartilly, a pianist who is a love interest of Laguna Loire.'Raine:' "Then the first song she released was 'Eyes On Me'?" / 'Laguna:' "H-How does the song go?" / 'Raine:' "You don't know?" / 'Laguna:' "Well, you never let me hear it!" / 'Raine:' "I didn't think you listened to music. The song's about being in love... I really like it." ('Final Fantasy VIII') It is heard repeatedly throughout the game in various incarnations as an instrumental piece, including a version entitled 'Julia'. Its full version is heard during a pivotal moment between Squall Leonhart and Rinoa Heartillythe main protagonistson board the 'Ragnarok'. It is played once more during the game's ending.

Other versions



A happy hardcore remix was recorded for the 2000 'Dancemania' compilation 'Speed 4'.,Discogs, [http://www.discogs.com/Various-Dancemania-Speed-4/release/1167307 Dancemania Speed 4] and on the first greatest hits compilation of the 'Dancemania Speed' series.Discogs, [http://www.discogs.com/Various-Dancemania-Speed-Best-2001-Hyper-Nonstop-Megamix/release/1920673 Dancemania Speed Best 2001 Hyper Nonstop Megamix] There is another dance remix of the song made by Almighty, later included on the Japanese release of Wong's 2000 album 'Fable', Dancemania X5,Discogs, [http://www.discogs.com/Various-Dancemania-X5/release/1868227 Dancemania X5] and Dancemania Diamond Complete Edition (Millennium Hits Collection)Discogs, [http://www.discogs.com/Various-Dancemania-Diamond-Complete-Edition-Millennium-Hits-Collection/release/3657121 Dancemania Diamond Complete Edition (Millennium Hits Collection)]

In 2004, a Japanese version sung by Manami Kiyota titled with lyrics by Kazushige Nojima was included on 'Final Fantasy Song Book: Mahoroba'.[http://www.universal-music.co.jp/mahoroba/index.html Mahoroba track list] , Universal Music

The original song was also covered by Angela Aki for release on her 2006 single "'Kokoro no Senshi'", with minor grammatical changes. In an Excite Japan interview, Aki reports composer Nobuo Uematsu as saying her version 'shed light on "Eyes on Me"'.

Covers by Kanon[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GqhOIXB9LSg 'Eyes on Me' by Kanon] on YouTube and Susan Calloway[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uM13yq6sbow&feature=player_detailpage#t=563s 'Eyes on Me' by Susan Calloway] on YouTube were also made; these singers also collaborated with Nobuo Uematsu on 'The Last Story' and 'Final Fantasy XIV' respectively.

The singer MayBee covered a Korean language version of the song.[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rb0TOVExMXg 'Eyes on Me' by MayBee] on YouTube

Charts



Certifications



See also



*Music of Final Fantasy VIII

References




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