A special feature on Mariya Takeuchi’s best songs: a must-hear collection of masterpieces for both longtime fans and first-time listeners.

Single AgainTakeuchi Mariya

This song tenderly expresses the feelings of a woman who cannot let go of her love for the man she parted with.

Surely everyone has hummed it at least once.

To a flowing melody, sing gently of that lost, unplaceable love.

Summer MontageTakeuchi Mariya

This song is Mariya Takeuchi’s self-cover of a track she originally wrote for Mitsuki Takahata.

Takahata’s clear, soaring voice is wonderful, but when Mariya sings it, it somehow takes on a different feel—imbued with a calm, mature allure and a touch of sensuality.

It’s fascinating how that changes the impression.

Lovely HolidayTakeuchi Mariya

Thanks to being featured in a Christmas commercial for KFC, this classic song is so well-known that you could say there’s no one who hasn’t heard its chorus.

Mariya Takeuchi’s gentle, warm voice feels like that of a parent throwing a Christmas party for their child, and it fills you with a sense of calm.

Ivory CoastTakeuchi Mariya

Mariya Takeuchi Ivory Coast (English)

If anything, her husband Tatsuro Yamashita is more of a summer artist, but when she sings with themes of summer and the seaside, it turns into a soothing song like this.

The arrangement is calm, so it’s something you’ll want to listen to leisurely when you’re tired from the heat.

Everyone is alone.Takeuchi Mariya

Everyone Is Alone (Subtitled Version)

In November 2006, a song provided to Takako Matsu.

In 2007, it was self-covered on the album “Denim.” The song centers on the theme of kindness and warmth that arise precisely from loneliness, and both the original and the self-cover have a refreshing feel.

Let’s Go Home ~My Sweet Home~Takeuchi Mariya

Mariya Takeuchi “Let’s Go Home (My Sweet Home)”

A single released from the 1992 album Quiet Life.

Since it was also used as a TV drama theme song and in commercials, many people probably picked it up and learned it naturally.

Its lyrics may resonate even more now than they did back when our days were so busy.

It’s a song you can sing along to while recalling those dramas and commercials—and one that really gets the crowd going.

An unexpected giftTakeuchi Mariya

A Sudden Gift (Taeko Onuki / Mariya Takeuchi) Cover

Mariya Takeuchi’s “Totsuzen no Okurimono” is included on the album “BEGINNING.” It has become hard to find in CD shops, and it seems easier to obtain it online through sites like Amazon.

It is a cover song by Taeko Onuki.