The Real Folk Blues is a song recorded by the Seatbelts. It is sung by Mai Yamane and is the ending song for almost every session of Cowboy Bebop except for Jupiter Jazz Part 2 and The Real Folk Blues Part 2, which have Space Lion and Blue as ending songs respectively. This song was included on the mini-album Vitaminless as the opening track, and although "The Real Folk Blues" is sung in English at the beginning of each chorus, it is one of the very few song to be sung entirely in Japanese.
Lyrics were written by Yuho Iwasato, with music and arrangement done by Yoko Kanno. The song itself is in the key of F# Minor.
The song shares its name with a compilation album of the music of American Blues singer and musician Muddy Waters, often cited as the "father of modern Chicago Blues."
Japanese lyrics[]
aishiteta to nageku niwa
amarinimo toki wa sugite shimatta
mada kokoro no hokorobi wo
iyasenu mama kaze ga fuiteru
hitotsu no me de asu wo mite
hitotsu no me de kinou wo mitsumeteru
kimi no ai no yurikago de
mou ichido yasurakani nemuretara
kawaita hitomi de dareka naite kure
The real folk blues
honto no kanashimi ga shiritai dake
doro no kawa ni tsukatta
jinsei mo waruku wa nai
ichido kiri de owaru nara
kibou ni michita zetsubou to
wana ga shikakerareteru kono chansu
nani ga yokute warui no ka
koin no omote to ura mitaida
doredake ikireba iyasareru no darou
The real folk blues
honto no yorokobiga shiritai dake
hikaru mono no subete ga
ougon towa kagiranai
The real folk blues
honto no kanashimi ga shiritai dake
doro no kawa ni tsukatta
jinsei mo waruku wa nai
ichido kiri de owaru nara
English-translational lyrics[]
Too much time has passed by to
Lament that we were deeply in love
The wind keeps blowing, while my heart
Cannot heal all the tears in it
Watching tomorrow with one eye
While keeping the other on yesterday
If only I could peacefully sleep
In the cradle of your love, again
Someone, cry for me with parched eyes
The real folk blues
I only want to know what true sadness is
Sitting in muddy water
Isn't such a bad life
If it ends after the first time
Despair filled with hope
And this chance with a trap set
What's right or wrong?
It's like two sides of a coin
How long must I live till I'm healed
The real folk blues
I only want to know what true happiness is
All that glitters is not gold
The real folk blues
I only want to know what true sadness is
Sitting in muddy water
Isn't such a bad life
If it ends after the first time
Trivia[]
- Much like the last two sessions, this song takes its title from a series of blues compilation albums released between 1965 and 1967 by Chess Records and distributed by MCA Records.
- An alternative rendition of this song titled See You Space Cowboy was heard in the final session of the anime "The Real Folk Blues (Part 2)".