Together When...

"Together When..."
Single by Ayumi Hamasaki
from the album Guilty
Released	December 5, 2007 (Japan)
Format	Digital Download
Recorded	November 2007
Genre	Pop
Label	Avex Trax
Writer(s)	Ayumi Hamasaki (lyrics) Kunio Tago (music)
Producer(s)	Max Matsuura
Ayumi Hamasaki singles chronology
"Talkin' 2 Myself" (2007) "Together When..." (2007) "Mirrorcle World" (2008)

"Together When..." is the first digital and forty-third overall single released by Japanese pop singer Ayumi Hamasaki. The song was distributed in late November (earlier than its official release date) as a ringtone.

The song has been certified by the RIAJ as being downloaded more than 750,000 times as a paid ringtone, and more than 250,000 times as a paid download to cellphones, receiving triple platinum and platinum certifications respectively.^[1][2]

Music video

Hamasaki in the music video for "Together When...".

The music video for "Together When..." was directed by Takahide Ishii and is set in a European-like setting. In the beginning there is a taxi driver and a quarreling couple leaving the taxi. The taxi driver, slightly upset about the tiny tip, watches around as the music starts and sees a woman dresses in a brown trenchcoat (Ayumi) sitting on a bench, smiling. As he follows her sight, he notices a crowd surrounding a puppeteer and two marionettes, male and female, dressed in black, performing a play called 'Happy Life!' on a tiny stage.

The scenery changes to a blue wasteland in the second verse and we see a couple, all dressed in black, walking towards and passing each other without a glance, only stopping when there's some distance between them. The woman in brown is shown again singing the chourus, while the couple in the blue wasteland stands motionless, until the woman in black (Hamasaki) tries to turn to face the man, but before she can, there are snippets of the pupeteer and his marionettes shown again.

As the third verse starts, the man in black vanishes. In the little town, the pupeteer sells his male marionette to a young boy, while the female marionette sits in a corner of the little stage. In the blue wasteland, it starts to storm as the woman in black looks around. A storm starts, and in the real world, too. The crowd and the pupeteer run away looking for shelter, leaving the female marionette behind. As the storm gets worse a truck drives by and as it passes the little stage the female marionette falls to the floor, shattering into pieces.

The chorus starts again and the woman in black seams to fall to the ground, but is stopped through threads, as she turns into a marionette. The taxi driver waiting for customers, looks at the woman in brown again, while she starts to cry, watching the broken marionette lying on the floor. As the chorus starts, the woman in the brown trenchcoat sings the song again, still crying and once she sings the last notes, she stands up walking over to the taxi, where the taxi driver opens the door and smiles at her.

Track listing

1. "Together When..."
2. "Together When..." (Instrumental)

Television performances

Ayumi promoted Together When... by live performances on the following networks:

Chart procession and succession

Notes and references