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Late Singer Origa Gets Final Single Release in Japan
posted on by Rafael Antonio Pineda
Bellwood Records released late singer/songwriter Origa's final single "My Way" on Wednesday in Japan. The single contains the single's title track "My Way," as well as "Freedom," a track by COLDFEET's Watusi, with whom Origa had frequently collaborated. X Japan and Luna Sea guitarist Sugizo wrote a dedication on the single's wraparound jacket band. The single retails for 1,111 yen (about US$9).
Origa had been working on the song "My Way" since the summer of 2014, recording the basic track in Canada, with the strings section overdubbed in Japan. She had finished recording the vocals and production on the track in Germany. The song was set to be the theme song for a Space Pirate Captain Harlock-themed game machine, and 3D CG portrayals of Captain Harlock characters adorn the single's cover art.
Gemmatika Records released Origa's last two albums last October. all about ORIGA 1994-2014 is a two-disc greatest hits album. Lost and Found includes unreleased tracks Origa worked on in 2013, and arrangements of Russian folk songs.
Origa passed away in January 2015 due to lung cancer at 44 years old.
Russian-born Origa first came to Japan in 1991 on a home-stay program, and made her major debut in Japan in 1995 under the EMI Music Japan label. She performed theme songs for Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex 2nd GIG, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex: Solid State Society, Fantastic Children, and Princess Arete. She also performed the hymn singing voice for the character Kanon in Gust and Koei Tecmo Games' Ar nosurge PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita video game, which shipped in Japan in 2014.
Source: Anime! Anime!
