Kiyomi Suzuki -- Yoake no Starlight（夜明けのスタライト）

I had been hoping that it would happen, but alas it didn't. I'm talking about the just-announced lineup for NHK's 70th Kohaku Utagassen at the end of next month, and unfortunately the White team doesn't have Masayuki Suzuki（鈴木雅之）with Rikka Ihara（伊原六花）and their "Love Dramatic"（ラブ・ドラマティック）. Maybe NHK never considered them or Martin may have politely declined NHK's invitation but we won't be having some of that cool soul from him this year, unfortunately. C'est la vie.

Therefore, just to soften the blow a bit, I'm putting up this soulful ballad by Suzuki's elder sister, Kiyomi Suzuki（鈴木聖美）, "Yoake no Starlight" (Sunrise Starlight) which was her 3rd single from September 1988. I'm not sure whether it had originally been recorded as a solo by Kiyomi but I do love the duet between the Suzuki siblings above. The Deities of Love Songs, indeed...

Written by Fumiko Okada（岡田冨美子）and composed by Harutoshi Noda（野田晴稔）, I wouldn't mind seeing more collaborations between Kiyomi and Masayuki. It's just the thing to cool down with on a Tuesday evening. I can only imagine that New Year's Day get-togethers with the Suzuki family must be something else.