"Kimi ga Iru Kara" (君がいるから, "Because You're Here") is a song recorded by Japanese singer Sayuri Sugawara as her second single. The single was released on December 2, 2009, by For Life Music. "Kimi ga Iru Kara" serves as the theme song for the Japanese release of Final Fantasy XIII,[1] while the B-side "Eternal Love", is also used in the game as an insert song.[2] The other B-side, "Christmas Again", samples a piece of Franz Liszt's work.[3]
| "Kimi ga Iru Kara" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Sayuri Sugawara | ||||
| from the album First Story | ||||
| B-side |
| |||
| Released | December 2, 2009 | |||
| Recorded | 2009 | |||
| Genre | Pop | |||
| Length | 5:54 | |||
| Label | For Life Music | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Sayuri Sugawara, Yukino Nakajima | |||
| Sayuri Sugawara singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Lyrics | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Kimi ga Iru Kara" (君がいるから "Because You Are Here") | Sayuri Sugawara, Yukino Nakajima | 5:54 |
| 2. | "Eternal Love" | S. Sugawara, Y. Nakajima | 4:35 |
| 3. | "Christmas Again" | Kazuki Matsumoto | 4:34 |
| 4. | "Kimi ga Iru Kara (Instrumental)" (君がいるから (Instrumental)) | S. Sugawara, Y. Nakajima | 5:53 |
| 5. | "Eternal Love (Instrumental)" | S. Sugawara, Y. Nakajima | 4:35 |
| 6. | "Christmas Again (Instrumental)" | K. Matsumoto | 4:31 |
Live performances
editAt a Final Fantasy event held on November 29, 2009, Sugawara was present and performed both "Kimi ga Iru Kara" and "Eternal Love" in front of 2,000 people.[4] Sugawara also performed "Kimi ga Iru Kara" on the December 6 episode of Music Japan.[4]
Reception
editCritical reception
editThe single received poor reviews from critics. Gann of RPGFan called it "vanilla" and said that the single, especially the headline track, was over-produced and uninteresting. While he did not mind "Eternal Love" as much, he still felt that the CD was his least favorite Final Fantasy theme single.[3] Square Enix Music Online had similar opinions of the release, calling it "bland". They felt that while "Kimi ga Iru Kara" was better than "My Hands" and "Eternal Love", the single was still disappointing in both the context of Final Fantasy singles and of Sugawara's previous discography.[5]
Chart performance
editOn the Oricon single chart, "Kimi ga Iru Kara" peaked at number 11.[6] The single charted for 11 weeks and is currently her best-selling single, with 36,400 copies sold.[6][7] The digital version of the song was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of Japan.[8]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "「FF XIII」テーマソングがロングヒット、菅原紗由理1stアルバム発売決定". Livedoor News (in Japanese). December 18, 2009. Retrieved June 16, 2010.
- ^ "菅原紗由理が歌う「FFXIII」主題歌＆挿入歌が音源化". Livedoor News (in Japanese). Natalie. November 12, 2009. Archived from the original on March 28, 2012. Retrieved June 16, 2010.
- ^ a b Gann, Patrick (December 12, 2009). "Sayuri Sugawara - Because You're Here". RPGFan. Archived from the original on December 30, 2009. Retrieved May 31, 2010.
- ^ a b "菅原紗由理、「FF XIII」発売記念イベントでサプライズライブ". Livedoor News (in Japanese). November 30, 2009. Retrieved June 16, 2010.
- ^ Solarblade. "Final Fantasy XIII: Kimi ga Iru Kara - Sayuri Sugawara :: Review by Solarblade". Square Enix Music Online. Retrieved June 14, 2010.
- ^ a b 菅原紗由理のシングル売り上げランキング. Oricon Style (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved June 16, 2010.
- ^ Note: Can only be viewed by subscribed users. "オリコンランキング情報サービス「you大樹」 君がいるから". Oricon (in Japanese). Retrieved June 16, 2010.
- ^ レコード協会調べ 1月度有料音楽配信認定 ＜略称：1月度認定＞ (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan. Retrieved June 16, 2010.