Departures (song)

"Departures" (ディパーチャーズ, Dipāchāzu) is the fourth single by Japanese band Globe. Written by Tetsuya Komuro, the single was released on January 1, 1996, by Avex Globe.^[1][2]

"Departures"
Single by Globe
from the album Globe
Language	Japanese English
Released	January 1, 1996 (1996-01-01)
Genre	J-pop dance-pop
Length	5:15
Label	Avex Globe
Songwriter(s)	Tetsuya Komuro
Producer(s)	Tetsuya Komuro
Globe singles chronology
"Sweet Pain" (1995) "Departures" (1996) "Freedom" (1996)
Music videos
"Departures" on YouTube

Background and release

"Departures" was written by Komuro as a tie-in for JR East's "JR Ski Ski" campaign of 1996. The jacket photo was taken at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles.

The single became Globe's second No. 1 on Oricon's weekly chart.^[3][4] It went on to become the second best-selling single in Japan in 1996^[5] and it is the 15th best-selling physical single in Japan, having sold a total of 2.288 million copies.^[6][7][8]

Music video

To celebrate the band's 20th anniversary, a new music video for "Departures" was released on May 3, 2016 as part of the "Music Video Drama Project." Directed by Shogo Yabuuchi and starring Ayaka Miyoshi, the video's theme is "breaking away from tragedy caused by love". In the video, Miyoshi plays a grief-stricken woman who exits a train and climbs a snowy mountain with a rifle in hand. Overwhelmed by her sadness, she fires her rifle in the air twice.^[9]

Track listing

8cm CD single

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Departures" (Radio Edit)	5:15
2.	"Departures" (Extended Mix)	6:48
3.	"Departures" (Instrumental)	5:15

All tracks are written by Tetsuya Komuro

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (1996)	Peak position
Oricon Weekly Singles Chart[10]	1

Year-end charts

Chart (1996)	Peak position
Oricon Year-End Chart[10]	2

Certification

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Japan (RIAJ)[8]	2× Million	2,000,000^
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Cover versions

• Demon Kogure covered the song on his 2009 album Girls' Rock: Tiara.
• Spontania covered the song on their self-titled 2010 album.
• AAA covered the song on their 2011 album Buzz Communication.
• Diana Garnet covered the song on her 2013 cover album Cover Girl
• Tomomi Kahara covered the song on her 2014 cover album Memories: Kahara Covers.
• Ms.OOJA covered the song on her 2014 cover album Woman 2: Love Song Covers.
• Hyde covered the song on the 2015 Globe tribute album #Globe20th: Special Cover Best.
• Desurabbits covered the song on their 2016 compilation album Exa Idol Complex: Super Duper!
• Raise A Suilen covered the song from Bang Dream.

References

1. "globe / ディパーチャーズ [廃盤]". CDJournal. Retrieved 2021-08-19.
2. "DEPARTURES | globe". Mora. Retrieved 2021-08-19.
3. "DEPARTURES | globe". Oricon. Retrieved 2021-08-19.
4. "Japan #1 DISKS by Oricon Hot Singles". hbr3.sakura.ne.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved 2016-09-27.
5. "オリコンCDシングル年間売上ランキング 1996年". amigo.lovepop.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved 2016-09-27.
6. "歴代シングルランキング TOP246". musictvprogram.com (in Japanese). Retrieved 2016-09-27.
7. "globe(シングル)". Yamachan Land (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 2011-05-24. Retrieved 2021-08-19.
8. "Japanese certifications – globe – DEPARTURES" (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan. Retrieved 2021-08-19. Select 1996年2月 on the drop-down menu
9. "globe、代表曲「DEPARTURES」MVを20年越し制作 三吉彩花が涙の熱演". Oricon. Retrieved 2021-01-11.
10. 1968-1997 オリコン チャート・ブック (in Japanese). Tokyo: Oricon. 1997. ISBN 4871310418.

External links

• Official website
• "Departures" at MusicBrainz (list of releases)
• "Departures" at Discogs