It's odd to think that the theme tune to an award-winning Japanese TV-drama miniseries has become the bestselling signature-song of a (real) boy band from South London. The Japanese, like the Russians (and in fact most of the rest of the World), are obviously less paedophobic than we are in this country, and the boys themselves have been a huge hit over there. (Back in Blighty most people have probably never heard of them.)
On the other hand 'Far Away' was written specifically for them and their voices. It's not actually in Japanese (it's in English and Latin). Arguably it belongs to them as much as to anyone. It's the first thing I ever knowingly heard them sing, so I think of it as their "breakthrough" piece.
It was also judged sufficiently good for them actually to sing it at a Papal Mass in New York last year. (Actually I don't know whether to laugh or cry at that, considering it was probably the only even vaguely tasteful thing on the menu.)
It is very sweet.
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