TOTO - Africa 1982

　
　どうもAORとか西海岸の音楽にはあまり関心がなかったので、ＴＯＴＯというバンドのこの曲も全米トップとなっても関心なかったのだが、聞きかえしてみると妙に変拍子が心地よい。。

　この曲は最近Amazon Primeで観たMoonfallという映画の冒頭のシーンで登場する。Moonfallは文字通り月が地球に落ちてくるという奇想天外なストーリーなのだが、実際のストーリーはさらに奇想天外なもので、ネタバレになるので詳しく説明することは控えます。冒頭のシーンで宇宙船の船外活動をしている宇宙飛行士が口ずさむのがこのAfricaという曲なわけだ。"I bless the rains down in Africa" という歌詞を"I miss the rains down in Africa" と間違えて憶えてしまって笑い話となっているところで突然の恐怖が訪れることになる。

I hear the drums echoing tonight
But she hears only whispers of some quiet conversation
She's coming in, 12:30 flight
Her moonlit wings reflect the stars that guide me towards salvation
I stopped an old man along the way
Hoping to find some old forgotten words or ancient melodies
He turned to me as if to say
"Hurry, boy, it's waiting there for you"

It's gonna take the lot to drag me away from you
There's nothing that a hundred men or more could ever do
I bless the rains down in Africa
Gonna take some time to do the things we never had

The wild dogs cry out in the night
As they grow restless longing for some solitary company
I know that I must do what's right
As sure as Kilimanjaro rises like Olympus above the Serengeti
I seek to cure what's deep inside
Frightened of this thing that I've become

It's gonna take the lot to drag me away from you
There's nothing that a hundred men or more could ever do
I bless the rains down in Africa
Gonna take some time to do the things we never had

Hurry, boy, she's waiting there for you

It's gonna take the lot to drag me away from you
There's nothing that a hundred men or more could ever do
I bless the rains down in Africa
I bless the rains down in Africa
I bless the rains down in Africa
I bless the rains down in Africa
I bless the rains down in Africa
Gonna take some time to do the things we never had
　　
Moonlit = 月明りに照らされた
restless = 落ち着きのない

Toto - Africa (Official HD Video)