Dear Reader:
Uematsu wants the Super Mario Bros. theme to be Japan's national anthem
A portion of a 1up interview with Nobuo Uematsu…
NU: I think there are a lot of talented composers these days compared to when we started back in the day. But if I were to name just one person then it would be [Koji] Kondo-san and his beats and music in Super Mario, just his upbeat tempos. I’m sure everyone in the world — no borderlines or age limit — everyone in the world who’s come across Super Mario’s music will never forget that melody. And his character himself in person — I just saw him a couple of days ago in Osaka, but every time I see him, his music and his personality and his characteristics are just one big package. It’s him and his music. Just being very relaxed and fun and upbeat and no ulterior motives, no lies. There’s nothing that’s not him that’s in his music. His style is purely translated into the music he creates.
And I think Super Mario music from Super Mario games, and also the music in the Dragon Quest series when they first hit it big, sort of stepped up the level for game music in Japanese gaming culture, so I think a lot of people who came across that were surprised that music can have so much impact in a game and that a lot of people started showing more and more interest in game music after those two came out. I know I said one person, but if I were to name another person, it would be [Dragon Quest composer, Koichi] Sugiyama-san.
“I think there are a lot of talented composers these days compared to when we started back in the day. But if I were to name just one person [I respect] then it would be [Super Mario composer] Koji Kondo.”
-Uematsu on his contemporaries
I think that the Super Mario song should be the national anthem for Japan. [Hums the death refrain] So when someone wins a gold medal at the Olympics, a Japanese athlete, the flag should go up with the theme song. Shoop!