The thing about “Country Roads” is that it’s not West Virginia Denver really yearns for, it’s “the place I belong.” Denver, who lived in Colorado most of his life, isn’t even from West Virginia. In that way, it speaks strongly to the emotional core of “Country Roads”. Shizuku’s translation is about finding courage and belonging, following a personal destiny, even in the face of failure, rejection, and growing up. In the case of Whisper of the Heart, it’s not a specific place that Shizuku longs for, it’s a specific feeling. Other artists sing it word-for-word, even when it’s translated into other languages. Some covers choose to adapt the lyrics to their own experiences - Hawaiian singer Israel Kamakawiwo’ole rewrote the song to be about West Mākaha, while reggae band Toot and the Maytals changed it to West Jamaica. The song has been covered by more than 150 different artists in 19 different languages. The lyrics are tailored to West Virginia, but the nostalgic longing for home that Denver imbues into the song is universal. “Country Roads” is one of John Denver’s most popular songs. But the way writer Hayao Miyazaki and director Yoshifumi Kondô use the song in the story speaks to a deeper understanding of “Country Roads” than the lyrics about West Virginia geography might suggest. Her efforts to communicate the song’s poetry weaves in with the movie’s overarching theme of Shizuku trying to find herself during a tricky stage of adolescence.Īt first glance, it’s a bit funny that a song so specifically about Appalachia fits so beautifully in Whisper of the Heart. Shizuku knows she can’t just literally translate it - after all, they live in urban Tokyo - so after penning a joke translation called “Concrete Roads,” she struggles with trying to convey the specific feeling that “Country Roads” conjures. Junior-high student Shizuku, an aspiring writer, is asked by her choir friends to translate the song because they want to sing it at an upcoming graduation performance. The song doesn’t just set the tone for the opening montage, it also plays an integral part in the movie’s storyline. Yet as the opening sequence of Studio Ghibli’s Whisper of the Heart rolls, with its sweeping nightscape scenes of urban Japan, Olivia Newton-John croons about the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Shenandoah River. Olivia Newton-John’s cover of the John Denver staple “Take Me Home, Country Roads” isn’t the most likely soundtrack for the opening scene of a soft animated slice-of-life movie about growing up in Tokyo.

To celebrate the arrival of the Japanese animation house’s library on digital and streaming services, we’re surveying the studio’s history, impact, and biggest themes. May 25-30 is Studio Ghibli Week at Polygon.

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