In 1969, Saori Yuki had a hit with "Yoake no Scat (Scat at dawn)", which sold 2 million units in two months, stayed at the top spot for 10 weeks and in the top ten for four months.

She quickly became a popular TV personality, appeared on a number of variety shows, and acted in several movies.

In 2009, she released her first original album since 1984, commemorating the 40th anniversary of her singing career as Saori Yuki.

A collaboration album with Pink Martini titled 1969 was released in November 2011[10] in more than 20 countries, and quickly gained popularity[11] in various places including the United States, Canada, Singapore and Greece.

She also appeared as guest soloist on Pink Martini's festive album, Joy to the World, singing the Japanese language version of "White Christmas".