Mothra's Song

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"Mothra's Song"
The cover of the 1978 single release of "Mothra's Song" and "Daughters of Infant Island"
Composed by Yuji Koseki
Arranged by Hiroshi TakadaGvM;
Toshiyuki WatanabeRoM1-3;
Michiru OshimaGMMG;
Bear McCrearyGKotM
Lyrics by "Koji Yuji" (Tomoyuki Tanaka, Shinichi Sekizawa, Ishiro Honda); Yoshiko Miura (Japanese)GvM[1]
Performed by ShowaEmi Ito & Yumi Ito
Heisei: Sayaka Osawa &
Keiko ImamuraGvM;
Megumi Kobayashi &
Sayaka YamaguchiRoM1-2;
Megumi Kobayashi &
Misato TateRoM3
Millennium: Chihiro Otsuka & Masami Nagasawa
Performed in Mothra, Mothra vs. Godzilla,
Godzilla vs. Mothra,
Rebirth of Mothra,
Rebirth of Mothra 2,
Rebirth of Mothra 3,
Godzilla: Tokyo SOS,
Godzilla: King of the Monsters,
Chibi Godzilla Raids Again
Sung for Mothra, Mothra Leo
This page is about the song originally composed by Yuji Koseki for the film Mothra. For the song of the same name composed by Masaru Sato for Ebirah, Horror of the Deep, see "Mothra's Song" (Ebirah, Horror of the Deep).

"Mothra's Song" (モスラの歌 or モスラの唄[2],   Mosura no Uta) is a song composed by Yuji Koseki for the 1961 Toho film Mothra. It was initially performed by the musical duo The Peanuts, comprised of sisters Emi and Yumi Ito, who portrayed the Shobijin in the film. The Peanuts reprised the role in Mothra vs. Godzilla, in which they also performed the song. The song was later performed by Sayaka Osawa and Keiko Imamura in Godzilla vs. Mothra, Megumi Kobayashi and Sayaka Yamaguchi in Rebirth of Mothra, Rebirth of Mothra 2, and along with Misato Tate in Rebirth of Mothra 3, and Chihiro Otsuka and Masami Nagasawa in Godzilla: Tokyo SOS. The song is also included in the soundtrack for Godzilla: King of the Monsters, with a choir version that was excluded from the film. A different version of Mothra's song was composed by Masaru Sato for the 1966 film Ebirah, Horror of the Deep, and performed by Pair Bambi. A spin on "Mothra's Song" entitled "Fly On, Mothra" was also recorded by Sachiko Matsumura in 1971. Though numerous songs have been performed by the Shobijin in Mothra's films over the years, none are as recurring as "Mothra's Song," which is typically sung in order to summon Mothra to the fairies' aid.

"Mothra's Song" has only received a standalone release twice. The original version was released to 7" vinyl as a single by King Records in May of 1978, with "Daughters of Infant Island" as a B-side. An alternate version of Osawa and Imamura's rendition with two additional Japanese verses that are not heard in Godzilla vs. Mothra was released on a mini CD by EMI Music on November 4, 1992 as a promotional single for that movie, with their recording of "Sacred Springs" as its B-side.

Lyrics

The song's lyrics are widely believed to have originated from the Indonesian language, and approximated to Japanese pronunciations. The lyrics were originally credited to "Koji Yuki," a joint pen name of producer Tomoyuki Tanaka, screenwriter Shinichi Sekizawa, and director Ishiro Honda. In the end credits of Godzilla vs. Mothra and the Rebirth of Mothra trilogy, Tanaka, Sekizawa, and Honda are simply credited by their real names. The katakana transcription of the lyrics was written by Mothra assistant director Hiroshi Haryu.

The katakana lyrics are relayed inconsistently by different sources. This ranges from simple changes in spacing to discrepancies of entire syllables. Listed below are five such variations, along with their romaji.

"Mothra's Song" 1978 single release "Mothra's Song" 1992 single release
& Godzilla vs. Mothra theater program
Godzilla vs. Mothra SCW &
Godzilla: Tokyo SOS SCW
Rebirth of Mothra SCW Rebirth of Mothra 2 SCW
Japanese Japanese[1] Japanese[3][2] Japanese[4] Japanese[5]

モスラヤ モスラ
ドゥンガン カサクヤン
インドゥムウ
ルスト ウィラードア
ハンバ ハンバムヤン
ランダバン ウンラダン
トゥンジュカンラー
カサクヤーンム

モスラヤ モスラ
ドゥンガン カサクヤン
インドウ ムウ
ルスト ウィラードア
ハンバ ハンバムヤン
ランダバン ウンラダン
トゥンジュンカンラー
カサクヤーンム

モスラヤ モスラ
ドゥンガン カサクヤン
インドゥムウ
ルスト ウィラードァ
ハンバ ハンバムヤン
ランダ バンウンラダン
トゥンジュカンラー
カサクヤーンム

モスラヤ モスラ
ドゥンガン カサクヤン
インドゥ ムー
ルスト ウィラード ア
ハムバ ハムバームヤ
ランダ バンウンラダン
トゥンジュ カンラー
カサクヤーンム

モスラヤ モスラ
ドゥンガン カサクヤン
インドゥ ムー
ルスト ウィラード ア
ハムバ ハムバームヤ
ランダ バンウンラダン
トンジュ カンラー
カサクヤーンム

Romaji Romaji Romaji Romaji Romaji

Mosuraya Mosura
Dungan kasakuyan
Indumū
Rusuto wirādoa
Hanba hanbamuyan
Randaban unradan
Tunjukanrā
Kasakuyānmu

Mosuraya Mosura
Dungan kasakuyan
Indō mū
Rusuto wirādoa
Hanba hanbamuyan
Randaban unradan
Tunjunkanrā
Kasakuyānmu

Mosuraya Mosura
Dungan kasakuyan
Indumū
Rusuto wirādwa
Hanba hanbamuyan
Randa banunradan
Tunjukanrā
Kasakuyānmu

Mosuraya Mosura
Dungan kasakuyan
Indu mū
Rusuto wirādo a
Hamuba hamubāmuya
Randa banunradan
Tunju kanrā
Kasakuyānmu

Mosuraya Mosura
Dungan kasakuyan
Indu mū
Rusuto wirādo a
Hamuba hamubāmuya
Randa banunradan
Tonju kanrā
Kasakuyānmu

Below are the Indonesian lyrics upon which the song is thought to be based, along with Japanese and English translations.

Indonesian[6] Japanese[6] English

Mothra, ya, Mothra
Dengan kesaktian Indukmu
Restuilah do'a hambamu yang rendah
Bangunlah dan
Tunjukkanlah Kasaktianmu

モスラよ、モスラ
あなたの母の神秘力で
あなたの賤しきしもべの祈りをかなえたまえ
さあ、起き上がり、
その神秘の力をお示しください

Mothra, o Mothra
Through thy magical life energy
Accept the prayers of thy humble servants
Arise and
Show us your magic power

Godzilla vs. Mothra

Though only the first verse is used in Godzilla vs. Mothra, two additional verses were written in Japanese by Yoshiko Miura.[1] These additional Japanese verses exclusively appear in the promotional single version of the song. They are presented below as they appear in the film's theater program, along with their romaji and an English translation.

Japanese[1] Romaji English

モスラや モスラ
救けてよと 呼べば
時を越えて
海を越えて
波のように
やって来る
守り神

モスラやモスラ
優しささえ 忘れ
荒れ果てた
人の心祈りながら
歌いたい
愛の歌

Mosura ya Mosura
Tasuketeyo to yobeba
Toki o koete
Umi o koete
Nami no yō ni
Yattekiru
Mamorigami

Mosura ya Mosura
Yasashi sasase wasure
Arehateta
Hito no kokoro inori nagara
Utaitai
Ai no uta

Mothra, oh Mothra
If we were to call for help
Across time
Across the sea
Like a wave
You'd come
Our guardian angel

Mothra, oh Mothra
Of forgotten kindness
And ruined spirits
We pray for the people's spirit
As we sing
This song of love

Filmography

Videos

"Mothra's Song" from Mothra
"Mothra's Song" from Godzilla vs. Mothra
"Mothra's Song" from Rebirth of Mothra
"Mothra's Song" from Rebirth of Mothra 2
"Mothra's Song" from Rebirth of Mothra 3
"Mothra's Song" from Godzilla: Tokyo SOS
"Mothra's Song" music video
for Godzilla: Tokyo SOS
"Mothra's Song" from
Godzilla: King of the Monsters
"Mothra's Song" with choir from
Godzilla: King of the Monsters

Trivia

  • The English subtitles on Sony's Blu-ray release of Godzilla vs. Mothra erroneously translate the Indonesian first verse of "Mothra's Song" using the lyrics to the Japanese second verse, which is not heard in the movie.

See also

References

This is a list of references for Mothra's Song. These citations are used to identify the reliable sources on which this article is based. These references appear inside articles in the form of superscript numbers, which look like this: [1]

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Toho 1992, p. 13
  2. 2.0 2.1 Matsui 2004, p. 57
  3. Sagami 2014, p. 57.
  4. Takashima 2014, p. 45.
  5. Kawamata 2014, p. 36.
  6. 6.0 6.1 "インドネシア語のトリビア". Niigata University Institute of Education and Student Affairs. Retrieved 18 May 2022.

Bibliography

Comments

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