I was asked by Discussion of the Week as to what my favorite anime song was. Adam, this is about as hard as that time you asked me to name my favorite all-time character. As a musician, I could go on and on about Yoko Kanno, Makoto Yoshimori, Michiru Oshimi, the one and only Joe Hisaishi... but I won't. Instead, when you asked me my favorite character, I said Arséne Lupin III, for good reason. I'll stick to my guns, thank you very much.
If I did have to limit it to only a single franchise, my personal choice for best songs would be those of the Lupin III franchise, mostly attributed to Takeo Yamashita and Yuji Ohno. Most have this great funk feel to them that you don't hear nowadays. The soundtrack to a grand heist that today's masterminds wouldn't think of in an instant. The noise you hear when tearing down the highway in your getaway car. The soft and luscious embrace of the most beautiful woman in the world. This is the definition of what Lupin is as a character and a series. So gather 'round, ye children, as I reminisce on some of my favorite music of all time.
It all started with the classic Theme from '71.
To me, this is the anime opening that changed it all. Prior to this, openings required little attention to detail to be solid. Even the classic Speed Racer opening, which predates Lupin III by roughly four years, is rather tiresome and soft when analyzed. In this opening, everything feels sharp, clean-cut, dangerous, exotic. Everything that was necessary for openings was here and it still remains a favorite of mine.
After the series ended, the franchise had a cooldown period. In that time, Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata left TMS Entertainment to found Studio Ghibli, the director's chair was vacant and thus constantly changed with Series II, and Yuji Ohno replaced Yamashita as the composer. So, how good was Yuji Ohno?
Good enough to give Lupin III his official theme, the Theme from '78.
While I maintain the '71 theme is the best, '78 has everything Lupin III should be. Car chases, female choruses, bullet holes, typewriter font, explosions, Fujiko having a boxing glove in her...I still don't get that one. Plus, that sexy, sexy synth effect. Waw Waw indeed. I know why this theme song is so great. It is a funk standard, and trust me, I now know funk. This semester, my jazz band leader said any funk we did should be done right. And he knew how to do it right. If he ever heard this, he'd shed manly tears as to how "filthy" this song is at times.
If you wish, here is the extended version, now in High quality.
As the second series progressed, the studio executives of back then saw fit to give Lupin his second movie. The Castle of Cagliostro was the directorial debut of Hayao Miyazaki. However, his main collaborator, Adam's prime example, and my nickname's namesake Joe Hisaishi would not be present. Miyazaki called in the big guns by using Yuji Ohno, who presented him with a soundtrack for it's time and for all the ages to come.
We start with Fire Treasure, the movie's main theme.
To me, when I saw The Castle of Cagliostro, I always thought this was the last Lupin adventure by in-universe chronology. Sure, he looked his youngest in this film, but I always thought this was his last hurrah, his final curtain call before he would inevitably begin to deteriorate. He had to go back and fix the mess he had made in Cagliostro, admitting to his sins of the past. "Fire Treasure" conveys beautifully the one word I could use to describe this film. "Lush". It is atmosphere. It is looking back on a long road. It is all of Europe's charm in one song. It is definitive green jacket Lupin.
However, some of you completely forgot about "Fire Treasure" once you heard the Theme from '80.
Wait, this sounds familiar.
Yep. THE most famous car chase in anime and the soundtrack just so happens to be the vibraphonic orchestration of Ohno. Hot. Damn.
I'm just going to let the music speak for itself because...Hot. DAMN.
Actually, no. I'm not a copout. I can do this. "Theme from '80" is much like "Fire Treasure" in the way it is definitive green jacket. Try to throw that in a red jacket series and it don't fly. Strange considering how it technically is the "Theme from '78". It's panache, it's style. It's vivace! From the cavernous stages of a Parisian nightclub to a smokey bar jukebox in Ginza, Toyko to an upscale casino in Dubai to the highest respect of the American academia jazz snobs. This. Is. Jazz.
Before we leave the second series behind in the dust, let's take a look at the second opening. With a few redesigns and Fujiko suddenly becoming a blonde bombshell, the themes would also take a change as they added genuine lyrics for the first time. The result was Theme from '78 (second opening)
The next opening would return to non lyrical roots. Here is Theme from '78 (third opening)
Visually, the opening also changed radically, now appearing comic book-esque. It's pretty sexy stuff and would mark the end of an era of Miyazaki's involvement in the Lupin franchise as he directed the finale along with the abandonment of funk for a while.
"Hisaishi!" you cry. "I thought there was another lyrical opening before the second opening! Why haven't you shown us that?"
What, you this mean this?
Sorry if this just so happens to be your favorite opening because to me, this is lazy. This is the third opening to the first series, which I did not mention previously on purpose. Let's count the cardinal sins, shall we? Singer is not putting any semblance of effort into his work. Check. Barely lyrical but it counts because there is the slightest variation. Check. Instrumentation not nearly as impressive. Check. THEY. REUSE. ANIMATION. Check. I can point to a frame and say, "Yeah. That's the episode where Lupin gets shot with a tranquilizer by Zenigata and is put on death row. That was awesome. I should be watching that instead of this."
Speaking of things that shouldn't have happened, here's an opening called Sexy Adventure.
Sorry you had to see that. That was Lupin III Part III, otherwise known as the pink jacket series. In my opinion, Lupin is goofy. Lupin is funny. Lupin is not chewing gum. There is only so much you can do with this weird animation. For character designs, Lupin and Zenigata look...fine. Jigen actually makes the transition nicely, considering his character is really angular while maintaining some rubber. Goemon and Fujiko...what happened to you? Gone is Goemon's stoic bushido stare, replaced with a light-heart look. Gone is Fujiko's status as anime's pin-up girl, taking a back seat in the sex appeal race to someone like April O'Neill from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, who would arrive three years later. When your show has this little realism in character designs, either you're really experimenting for the time, you're in today's animation world, or you're doing something wrong.
As for the song, someone found the Hall & Oates collection and decided to speed it up. Either that, or Lupin predated the DuckTales theme by ten years. That's all I think about, for some reason. You know what, someone do that. Take "Sexy Adventure" and put it to the DuckTales opening credits. See how that turns out. This does not feel like Lupin. At all. Gundam? Yes. Sailor Moon? Yes. South Park's "Let's Fighting Love" scene? Why not. Lupin deserves jazz, funk, disco. Something with a punch. Not...80's synthpop. Granted, the song itself is alright when not associated with the legendary thief. So, not a fan. Are we clear? Sweet.
From then on, Lupin was reserved to movies and TV specials, which came out on a regular basis. The only song of any real importance I can recall is Theme from '97, as heard in the TV special "Walther P-38". All I can say is that funk returned for the time and they brought along James Bond.
In 2012, Lupin the III came back in a big way with the fourth TV series, The Woman Called Fujiko Mine. After twenty-five years, fans saw Lupin in his natural habitat of a full series. It served as the official prequel to the Lupin story and was the best anime last year. It was not light, but dark. It was not sexy, but sexual. It was not flighty, but determined. It was Monkey Punch Lupin the way it was meant to be.
Then there's the opening, New Wuthering Heights.
Gone is the funk. Gone is the disco. This Lupin isn't here for a quick thrill or a cheap trick. This is cold, steely vengeance, Fujiko Mine style. The version I have posted is the original extended version, composed by Naruyoshi Kikuchi and Pepe Tormento Azcarar. Here's the official opening but a small warning. Gratuitous amounts of nudity included. New Wuthering Heights (TV Size). This opening was the best opening last year. No contest.
I'll do you one further. "New Wuthering Heights" is the best Lupin the III theme since the original. Again, no contest. With a deviation this strong, people looked up and noticed immediately. A cold dark night with the rain driving and howling. An old man wishes one last request and his cab driver can only force the horse so quickly. They make it just in time, running up the stairs of a dimly lit mansion. As the men around him look upon their master, he collapses on the stairs. He gives a wave off. What he has to say is more important than a bed. Specific instructions are given to his most trustworthy. His grandson is awoken by the storm. As he stares into the dying eyes of his favorite person, one last instruction is given only to him and it is the most important. The man breathes his last as the thunder clamors. Cut to the soft lights of a Spanish bar entwined with a rich cigar's smoke as old friends play a round of pool over their frequented drinks while the band plays a grooving loop and a señorita delivers a heartfelt plea.
That is the embodiment of the song. The fans of this show and I liked what we saw and cheered for more. Lupin is back, baby. and he ain't never leaving us.
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Who knows what Lupin will do next musically? Only time will tell. Thanks for reading and I'll see you on Sunday with the news.
~ Hisaishi
