I've been a fan of Japanese popular music for 40 years, and have managed to collect a lot of material during that time. So I decided I wanted to talk about Showa Era music with like-minded fans. My particular era is the 70s and 80s (thus the "kayo kyoku"). The plus part includes a number of songs and artists from the last 30 years and also the early kayo. So, let's talk about New Music, aidoru, City Pop and enka.
Credits
I would like to give credit where credit is due. Videos are from YouTube and other sources such as NicoNico while Oricon rankings and other information are translated from the Japanese Wikipedia unless noted.
Listening to "Travelin' Heart", I thought of this as a resort tune reminiscent of the Fifth Dimension's"Up Up and Away" when right in the middle of the song, the chorus of "Up Up and Away" popped up! Through Tomofumi Suzuki's（鈴木智文）meticulous production and Noda's（野田幹子）classy vocals, this is a refreshing song to the ears and it's reminiscent of the resort pop at the time of her debut which had a fresh impression even in the 1990s.
The above comes from "Disc Collection Japanese City Pop Revised" (2020).
Yes, once again, we have Kayo Grace Kyoku tripping the light fantastic at the good ol' disco somewhere probably in Tokyo.
Speaking of disco, Rocket Brown let me know about this tune by vocal group The Gospellers（ゴスペラーズ）several weeks ago. "Fly Me to the Disco Ball" is the group's 49th single from February 2017. Despite the title, it doesn't have a single disco bone in its arrangement, and in fact, I think it's a rather elegant and inspiring soul tune. Written and composed by Gospellers singer Yuuji Sakai（酒井雄二）with a co-composing credit given to Shoichiro Hirata（平田祥一郎）, the J-Wiki writeup on the song noted Sakai's comments that "Fly Me to the Disco Ball" is reflecting the human desire to fly in spite of being bound by gravity.
The music video certainly has folks in the late evening trying to slip their earthly bounds and reach for the stars...or the disco ball. Or maybe that's simply the booze talking. Regardless, "Fly Me to the Disco Ball" made it to No. 14 on Oricon and can also be found on The Gospellers' No. 5-ranking"Soul Renaissance", their 15th album which was released a month following the single.
The song was also used as the theme for the amusement park Yomiuri Land's"Jewellumination"（ジュエルミネーション） display.
The above is Chikuzen Sato's（佐藤竹善）first foray into his "Cornerstones" set of solo albums which first came out in 1995, so if he's going to be releasing another one next year, the lead singer behind Sing Like Talking will be celebrating his 30th anniversary with his pet project of cover tunes. Unfortunately at this point, I only have his first one.
His eighth album from the series, "radio JAOR ～Cornerstones 8～" was released back in October 2022. I was able to find this one track which is a cover of Junichi Inagaki's（稲垣潤一）1982 debut single"Ame no Regret"(Rainy Regret) which was written by Reiko Yukawa（湯川れい子）and composed by Off-Course member Kazuhiko Matsuo（松尾一彦）.
The arrangement isn't all that different from the Inagaki original (and I just posted something about him yesterday) aside from some steelier synthesizers, and I think Sato may have tried to emulate Inagaki's delivery to a fault. I've been accustomed to the laidback crooning of Inagaki but Sato is one singer who I've known and admired for his boppier and soulful vocals so to hear him fairly drone out that first verse was a tad jarring, I have to admit. However by the end, it was the good ol' Sato making himself heard again. The album, by the way, reached No. 22 on Oricon.
If I'm not mistaken, the above shot is from one of the Sumida River ferries heading from Asakusa down to Odaiba in Tokyo Bay. Always putting up those condo buildings there.
Let's go further into Urban Contemporary Friday on KKP with "For a Week Story" by the pop duo sister act Milk with Ritsuko and Rie Miyajima（宮島律子・宮島理恵）. This was the first track on their 1987 album"Milk" and it was the A-side for the "For a Week Story" EP which also contained the previous song I posted, "Manazashi ni I feel so love"（視線にI feel so love）.
"For a Week Story" starts the vibe off for Milk's album and it takes off on a cool but also calm and collected strut down the street...kinda like Slow Jack Swing rather than New Jack Swing. I like the boogie beat and the beefy saxophone that accompanies the ladies on their night on the town. Rie Miyajima was in charge of words and music here.
Hello again. This is J-Canuck and continuing on from Part 1 of a translation I'm doing for Toshikazu Kanazawa's（金澤寿和）liner notes from Tohoku Shinkansen's（東北新幹線）"Thru Traffic" album from 1982, I'm providing Part 2 which will begin the original 2007 liner notes when the classic City Pop release was put onto CD for the very first time. This part mostly covers the history of Etsuko Yamakawa（山川恵津子）and Hiroshi Narumi（鳴海寛）up to the point where they met at the Yamaha Music Foundation.
Tohoku Shinkansen’s genesis can be attributed to the Yamaha Music Foundation known for its Popular Song Contest (abbreviated as Pop Con). The first one of the duo to enter Yamaha was Etsuko Yamakawa, born in Kyoto, growing up with classical music and majoring in vocal music at university. During elementary school, Yamakawa listened to Group Sounds music and then also got into Western pop hits. From an early age, she was able to learn music by ear and played it on instruments like the piano. From high school, she aimed for a career in music and even participated in Pop Con at the recommendation of a friend, but it was from that point that she preferred to be an arranger rather than a performer.
While attending university in Tokyo, Yamakawa managed to get a part-time job at the Yamaha Music Foundation. At first, she was doing office work and serving tea while getting to know the staff in the Creative Work section in the company, also known as the Lab. It was there that she met the big-time arrangers such as Mitsuo Hagita（萩田光雄）, Motoki Funayama（船山基紀）and Osamu Totsuka（戸塚修）. As she was doing her routine tasks, she would sneak a peek at the scores they had written, and little by little, she would pick up on their methods and techniques. Before long, she would get involved with the popular radio show “Cocky Pop” sponsored by Yamaha and that is where she first met Hiroshi Narumi. Narumi had still been a high school student at the time but his innate talents had already been recognized and it was one of his compositions that had been used as the theme song for the radio show. She eventually got a copy of his demo tape and his transcriptions.
“This guy’s amazing for a high school kid!” she said.
On Narumi’s homemade tape, he had recorded his own overdubbed chorus onto his performance by piano. And when she listened to the sound of his beautiful music, there were these complex chords everywhere that she had never heard before. That was the first step for the two of them.
Narumi’s roots were in Beethoven. Furthermore, for three years from kindergarten to Grade 1 of elementary school, he listened only to the master’s “Moonlight Sonata” everyday without fail as if he were a boy possessed, a feat which astonished everyone. But it was this singular experience that nurtured his amazing ear and well-honed sensitivity. His piano playing was described by his elder brother as something by a child prodigy, and it’s said that Hiroshi memorized his brother’s own piano playing completely by ear. And when his brother started taking up guitar in Grade 3, Hiroshi also somehow began picking it up as well; while he was copying what he saw on televised guitar lessons, he was able to play the instrument in no time flat. In junior high school, Hiroshi was turned onto the pop music of Bread, Carpenters, Burt Bacharach, and The Fifth Dimension. Soon after that, his interest spread to Philadelphia Soul, Stevie Wonder and Al Green, and then on radio, he started listening to Sonia Rosa and as he unraveled the riddle behind her mysterious attraction, he came across Joao Gilberto. While his friends got into raunchy rock, he preferred soft pop and soul. He analyzed the skillfulness of the chord progressions and the precision of their arrangements and then embedded them into his own music over time. Then for his original compositions, he did the dubbing over and over by himself at home for his demo tape over many days. Narumi is widely recognized as a guitarist, but he himself believes he’s adept at both guitar and piano. Whenever he went to the piano after getting worked up, the agitation and his soul tended to cool down.
I caught this Goro Noguchi（野口五郎）single on an episode of "Yoru no Hit Studio"（夜のヒットスタジオ）a few weeks ago. To be honest, I didn't pay too much attention to it when he sang it on stage, but listening to the original recorded version paid some more dividends to me.
"Musashino Shijin" (The Poet of Musashino) was Noguchi's 22nd single from January 1977. Written by Takashi Matsumoto（松本隆）, composed by Noguchi's older brother Hiroshi Sato（佐藤寛...not to be confused with the late City Pop keyboardist and singer） and arranged by Kyohei Tsutsumi（筒美京平）, it starts out for a few seconds sounding like a rock tune but then slides into something more wistful and perhaps approaching the feeling of a City Pop song. Actually, the story of the song was based on Inokashira Park which straddles the districts of Musashino and Mitaka in Tokyo, so I guess with that in mind and along with that funky beat, perhaps it can be a City Pop song. Noguchi was heading in that direction anyways.
Strangely enough though, according to the J-Wiki article on "Musashino Shijin", Matsumoto's lyrics actually refer to Musashino Park located in another area of Tokyo. I can only gather that the name of Musashino sounded better to Matsumoto than Inokashira. Regardless, his lyrics refer to the titular poet as a young man who began, experienced and ended a love affair around the park, and he's rather dramatically dressing it up as a song, poem or scene from a movie. Quite the drama king, isn't he?
"Musashino Shijin" made it all the way up to No. 2 on Oricon, eventually becoming the 33rd-ranked single of 1977. The video below shows Inokashira Park in all of its glory. I only went there once myself during my days in Tokyo. I'm sure that the park is always buzzing with people during cherry blossom season.
I've often called crooning drummer and singer Junichi Inagaki（稲垣潤一）one of the princes of City Pop all these years, and he definitely has the flair for the urban contemporary.
However, I've also realized that Inagaki, through listening to his music, also has a love for the pop inspired from the 1950s and 1960s. I think one example is his "Memory Flickers", the penultimate track from his April 1989 album"Heart & Soul". The No. 1-ranking release has been labeled a City Pop album but "Memory Flickers" feels more like an homage to those earlier decades although the music seems to have been filtered as well through contemporary arrangements and synths.
Written by Masao Urino（売野雅勇）, those opening notes of "Memory Flickers" resemble the notes in the intro of Anri's（杏里）classic "Kanashimi ga Tomaranai" (悲しみがとまらない）, and perhaps this shouldn't be surprising since both songs were composed by the one-and-only Tetsuji Hayashi（林哲司）. Beyond those introductory bars though, Hayashi's arrangements take us through a mix of thrumming keyboards and what sounds like some Motown spice. Urino's lyrics talk about a man reminiscing about a love triangle years or decades ago in which he was one of the corners competing against one male corner for the hand of a female corner. Not sure who won but I get the feeling that the main man is feeling rather bittersweet about the experience. In any case, "Heart & Soul" ended 1989 as the 47th-ranked album.
Welcome to another weekly Reminiscings of Youth article, and indeed, I was one of probably billions of people who managed to catch the real trailer for "Deadpool & Wolverine" a few days ago. Yep, it certainly was interesting alright; I only hope that the movie actually lives up to the hype. I've been burned by trailers from both the Marvel and DC universes recently since a few of their recent movies were somewhat less than what the trailers had been promising.
In any event, pop culture fans have been going ga-ga over the trailer and as a result of one song being used in there, they've also apparently been flocking to Madonna's"Like a Prayer" which was the Material Girl's title track from her March 1989 album. It isn't even one of my favourite Madonna songs but it fits unusually well in "Deadpool & Wolverine" for some reason and not just because one of the two anti-heroes dubbed himself Marvel Jesus (which I truly hope he is for the MCEU).
I still remember the fact that the video for "Like a Prayer" got a worldwide prime-time premiere on television as it dragged a lot of controversy behind it. It even got admonished by the Vatican and other religious organizations for some of the images although today, people would probably be shrugging about what all the tumult was about back then. And yet, the song hit No. 1 in many countries. In fact, it would be easier to list the nations where it didn't peak at No. 1...which included Japan where it only went as high as No. 30. 1989 was the year when I went overseas on the JET Programme and I don't really recall much news on "Like a Prayer" in the remaining half of the year when I was residing in Gunma Prefecture.
NHK's "Uta Con"（うたコン）had their final broadcast before going on a multi-week hiatus during Golden Week. Now, the annual spate of holidays ranging from the last days of April into the first days of May doesn't begin for a few more days yet, but I figured that I can still provide a few of the songs that got into their "Uta no Tabi"（歌の旅...Song Vacation） theme segment yesterday along with throwing in one of my own choices.
As it stands right now, though, with the Japanese currency plummeting down to 155 yen to the dollar, perhaps there won't be as much tourism from Japan to overseas destinations this Golden Week although Americans, Canadians and other people will be more than happy to fly over to Japan for the next little while. Maybe that's why some of the songs from "Uta no Tabi" were most definitely domestic. In any case, here are the selections.
The last time I was up in a Ferris wheel, it was the gigantic one in Minato Mirai 21 right by Yokohama Bay at night. Unfortunately, I wasn't good with heights (and I'm still not good now) and there was a gale blowing through the entire structure so I was fairly losing it. Fortunately, my bodily functions held...barely.
So, you can imagine that there is nothing romantic that courses through my body and soul when it comes to Ferris wheels. Of course though, that doesn't mean that some of you out there don't feel the same way I do. Perhaps you have those feelings of l'amour 😎as your capsule reaches the height of the ride. That's what "Kanransha no Monologue ~ spring mix" (Ferris Wheel Monologue) must be about. This was the coupling song for festa mode's third single"Play Back part III" released in March 1994.
Written by Rie Yamamoto（山本理恵）and composed by festa mode keyboardist Hitoshi Kudo（工藤仁志）, it's a mellow tune that brings in hints of 90s City Pop, Shibuya-kei and jazz although overall, I will consider it a really nice and steady pop song. The creaminess of "Kanransha no Monologue" is further enriched by the backing chorus harmonies. Moreover, I couldn't help but hear a bit of "Mayonaka no Door ~ Stay With Me"（真夜中のドアー）in the verses as well.
I first found out about festa mode several years ago in 2018 when I posted about their song "Kaze to Tabi Shiyou"（風と旅しよう）, so it's nice to bring them back once more. By the way, the original version of "Kanransha no Monologue" can also be found in the trio's first album"Festa Mode I" from September 1993. I should also give credit where credit is due...I discovered this song through a City Pop compilation by relatively new YouTuber City Pop Industries who came onto the platform back in January. Welcome aboard!
Ahh...good ol' Tower Records in Shibuya...oh, how I miss the old place. A few days ago, Canada and the United States celebrated their Record Store Day and I'm pretty sure a lot of the vinyl hounds were more than happy to do their flipping of the LPs in search of aural gold.
I just mentioned the band Tweedees in the previous article regarding the latest by CHiLi GiRL so I thought it was time to get another song by this pop and Shibuya-kei-focused duo onto KKP. The last time I devoted time and space to bassist Reiji Okii（沖井礼二）and vocalist Natsumi Kiyoura（清浦夏実）was back in 2022 for their 2018 "Hanataba to Jiryoku"（花束と磁力）. Well, actually, I've opted to put up two of their songs from opposite ends of their career thus far.
The first one is their first single"KLING! KLANG!" from January 2015. Having nothing to do with the Klingons in the pilot episode of "Star Trek: Enterprise", the onomatopoeia reflected in the title is really the wonderful cacophony of music as Kiyoura sings about the joy of listening to one's favourite songs. It's the first time that I've seen Tweedees in a music video and for some reason, I have the impression that Kiyoura could have been the second coming of Mariya Takeuchi（竹内まりや）but that is solely me. In fashion and in music, it's some pleasant Shibuya-kei.
From their most recent album in December 2022, "World Record", I give you their last track "Hello Hello". A short and sweet song, the lyrics were written by Kiyoura while Okii took care of the melody and arrangement. More of an adorable sing-songy pop tune, the vocalist invites the listener to join her on a voyage outside of the stifling confines of one's own room and explore the world. Y'know, I mentioned Record Store Day at the top...perhaps "Hello Hello" could be the fine theme for Library Day.
One point of trivia that I discovered about Kiyoura in her J-Wiki file is that her ancestor from a century previously, Count Keigo Kiyoura（清浦奎吾）, happened to be the Prime Minister of Japan in 1924.
Near the end of summer last year, I posted up an article regarding the singer-songwriter and shamisen player CHiLi GiRL and her song "Tokai no Mori"（都会の森）, a 2022 single combining some of the old and the new via Neo-City Pop and late 80s/early 90s urban contemporary. The song was a part of a Cunimondo Takiguchi series of CD compilations.
Well, I'm happy to say that CHiLi GiRL is still chill and continuing on with her music. In fact, her latest single "Secret Secret" came out only last month. However, instead of it being a blend of City Pop from today and yesteryear, I think the peppy "Secret Secret" has more to do with a version of Shibuya-kei from what I've heard although the music video is very much of the cityscape. According to the "Tokyo's Coolest Sound"website, Reiji Okii（沖井礼二）of the Cymbals and Tweedees has given the song his seal of approval.
As much as I love new forms of City Pop coming aboard, Shibuya-kei in the 2020s is not a bad proposition either.
It's been six months since the NHK morning serial drama "Boogie Woogie"（ブギウギ）made its presence known on weekday mornings along with its jazzy theme "Happy Boogie"（ハッピー☆ブギ）. It even had the main actress Shuri（趣里）behind the mike as well belting the song out.
But of course, with half a year going by, a new drama has come out this month called "Tora ni Tsubasa"（虎に翼...The Tiger and Her Wings） starring Sairi Ito（ 伊藤沙莉）as a young woman in the 1930s punching through every obstacle to become a lawyer in Japan's male-centric society. As with "Boogie Woogie", the main actress also has a role in the opening but instead of singing us into every episode, she does a bit of dancing with some other ladies.
And what they're all dancing to is the irresistible pop theme song, "Sayo--nara Mata Itsuka!" (Good--bye and See You Again!) by singer-songwriter Kenshi Yonezu（米津玄師）. The anarchy at the local A&W in the music video aside (our neighbourhood had its own issues in the past but I don't think even the old A&W was ever in that rough a shape), the song has got some nice punch and flow, and I like the addition of the strings. It all ends rather abruptly though but if Yonezu thought it was fine, then it's fine me with me as well.
I also learned that Ito is skilled in dancing so her choreography in the opening credits of "Tora ni Tsubasa" only gives a sliver of what she's probably capable of. Something a little clearer can be seen below. If I'm not mistaken, Ito is in front in the black T-shirt and red hat.
I was mentioning yesterday that I had discovered Harumi Miyako's（都はるみ）1982 single"Tokyo Serenade"（東京セレナーデ）while we were watching an enka compilation video on YouTube. Well, that wasn't the only revelation.
I also came across this kayo kyoku for the first time, too. "Nandemo nai wa" (It's Nothing) was the B-side to Mari Sono's（園まり）23rd single from May 1966"Yasashii Ame"（やさしい雨...A Gentle Rain）. Delivered in an appropriately coquettish fashion by the singer, Kazumi Yasui's（安井かずみ） lyrics illustrate a young lady's unspoken words of love to her boyfriend despite the big lug asking what she's keeping close to the chest. Hiroshi Miyagawa（宮川泰）was the composer and arranger for this happy-go-lucky ditty.
Not sure when this cover version of "Nandemo nai wa" was released by Mood Kayo groupHiroshi Wada & Mahina Stars（和田弘とマヒナスターズ）but judging from the similarity of the arrangement, it probably wasn't too long after the Sono original. Actually, this was the first version that my family saw and heard on YouTube yesterday which led me to the original. Speaking of Yasui, it's been a little over thirty years ago that the Yokohama lyricist passed away in March 1994. Just to indicate her length and breadth of experience, Zuzu was also responsible for the words behind Mariya Takeuchi's（竹内まりや）"Fushigi na Peach Pie"（不思議なピーチ・パイ）and Mari Iijima's（飯島真理）"Ai Oboeteimasuka?"（愛・おぼえていますか）.
Oh, Hachi, why do you look so awkward? I say that as if I'm any less awkward when having my photo taken.
Horerutte kouiu koto ka yo
I was recently on another trip to Fukushima. I was game on doing some travelling during my now-ended spring break. I knew it had to be Fukushima again, and I knew it wasn't going to be solely for R&R. And so, I travelled back into the mountains of the Aizu region, to the small town of Bange (会津坂下) for the third time in six years to do some data collection at the Kasuga Hachiro Omoide-kan (春日八郎おもいで館) for my thesis.
I knew that I had to make contact with Hachi's museum for something like this eventually because it's essentially one of the Hachi info mines. My professor also urged me to build bridges with the museum as well - at the minimum, find out if they're willing to help. And so, I decided that Spring break would be the time to get serious and do so. But, truth be told, I was horribly nervous because I didn't know what to expect. I'd never done fieldwork of this scale and in a more or less official institution before, even if I'd visited the place multiple times. I worried about whether they would agree to the request of this foreign student. I worried about what I'll be allowed to see after I made that harrowing phone call to the Aizu-Bange tourism board to ask for permission, even after they essentially gave the green light. I worried about what I may need to bring to show I'm there for "official" business. I just worried a lot.
But.
The thing that kept me going was the drive to do a paper worthy for Hachi's centenary. Or, at least, try to do it with the means I can. And going to the museum was one of those means. Fieldwork is part and parcel of research, but I just found it bonkers that my fangirling has brought me to that point. Never would I have imagined that my next visit to the Kasuga museum was for this reason. This reminds me of one of my go-to Hachi tunes, "Inochi Tsubunure". It's one I like a lot, but I've been listening to it with greater frequency because of my recent circumstances.
Aitaitte kouiu koto ka yo
For some background, "Inochi Tsubunure" was released in the album "Nekketsu no Utagoe" (熱血の歌声) from 1972. I believe this was Hachi's first fully original album in a long time, and he worked with many musicians whom he'd never worked with before to create what I would consider kayo of various styles, including folk and Mood Kayo. Since it was his 20th anniversary and he would be considered a veteran in the business, this move was perhaps a way to show that he can keep up with the times and show his musical prowess. I said the album's songs are kayo, but the album's liner notes considers all the works inside as "enka". This could be due to the newly-formed enka genre's (finally made official in 1970) emergent popularity in the early 1970s, and a way to associate Hachi, a veteran of significant status, with this new genre. I have some reservations about the "all enka" thing, but that's really not important here.
"Inochi Tsubunure" has an upbeat, slightly jazzy Mood Kayo melody with an element of rock, which was brought to you by Yuji Konishi (小西悠史). Writing the words that resonate with me was Gougo Hotomi (保富康午). From what I gather, our protagonist falls absolutely head over heels for one of the patrons at a bar he visits. At least from my perspective, the protagonist is older and is rather jaded/disenchanted by life until that faithful meeting. The resultant rush of feelings, both sweet and sour, reinvigorates him and he's once again filled with life. I'm not exactly sure how to translate the title without it sounding odd. A direct translation based on my ability is "Soaked/Dripping with Life", but with taking Hotomi's lyrics into consideration, perhaps something like "Bursting with/Full of Life" sounds a bit better.
So this is what is at the end of the rainbow
Turns out, my research trip wasn't as scary as I thought it'd be. I was provided with what I requested: Almost 3 decades worth of old fan club magazine archives. I was taken care of by the museum caretaker Ito-san, who recognised me and knew it was my third time there. She did her best to find me more materials I might find useful, including bringing her own copy of a now out-of-stock posthumous fan club book, and tried to make me at home by plying me with snacks as I worked. I say worked, but if I got a 100 yen for every time I got distracted by a silly candid shot of Hachi in those fanzines, I'd be able to buy his 20 disc album set containing all his singles ever released. Every time my eyes crossed from skimming through the resources, I'd get up to look at the museum displays. The line between fan and academic, while already blurred for me, completely disappeared for those few hours. It was a very strange sensation, but one I will never forget.
Having found useful nuggets of information, I would consider this research trip a success. I greatly appreciate the museum for allowing me to do so and providing me with so much, as well for Ito-san's hospitality. It's given me greater resolve to do what I can to make a good - decent - readable Hachi thesis, and a tiny bit more confidence to pursue this path further. And you could say that it's reinvigorated my fangirling for Hachi.
Horerutte kouiu koto kayo (So this is what it's like to be in love)
Kono yo wa hitori ano(hito) dake (In this world there is only (him))
Sonna baka janakatta hazu ga (I shouldn't be this stupid)
Baka wo shouchi de moete iru (But I know I am, and I'm fired up)
Atsuichi de inochi inochi tsubunure (Passion coursing through my veins, I'm bursting with life)
Man, the more I think about what I'm trying to do and have been doing, the more this song speaks to me.
The personal early reviews on Jme thus far have been that there's been a slight dearth of kayo programming with NHK's "Hayauta"（はやウタ）and "Shin BS Nihon no Uta"（新・BS日本のうた）not really showing up on the schedule. I'm perhaps not that surprised about the latter since that show is coming from NHK's satellite service and so may not have been licensed or whatnot for Jme.
However, I have tried to fill in the big gap by occasionally bringing in the YouTube videos involving enka and/or Mood Kayo songs, and there are plenty of those to go around thankfully. One nice thing about this is that I've been able to encounter songs that I had yet to see performed on shows like "Uta Con"（うたコン）. Case in point: Harumi Miyako's（都はるみ）"Tokyo Serenade", her 86th single from April 1982.
Yup, I saw this being performed by Miyako this morning on one of those enka compilation videos, and the music by Asei Kobayashi（小林亜星）under Hiroshi Takada's（高田弘）arrangement rather brings in some of that sumptuousness of Tokyo nightlife among the corporate execs back in those high-flying 1980s. There is some of it which seems to refer to Frank Nagai and Kazuko Matsuo's（フランク永井・松尾和子）classic Mood Kayo"Tokyo Nightclub"（東京ナイトクラブ）but again Takada's flair with tying it all together also incorporates some of that urbane pop although I wouldn't classify "Tokyo Serenade" a City Pop tune. But I can say that it can qualify as a New Adult Music number.
Takashi Taka's（たかたかし）lyrics certainly talks up a typical Mood Kayo scenario as a couple gets ready for a night of hubba-hubba, and of course, the genre loves to describe the love affair, illicit or otherwise. "Tokyo Serenade" peaked at No. 39 on Oricon. I have to admit that among all the appearances of Miyako throughout the decades of her long and successful career, I've found her time in front of the camera in those early 1980s as the most attractive. There's just something about her straight shoulder-length hair and her makeup back then.
I only read it on the Yahoo Japan news blotter last night just as I was about to call it a night, but unfortunately singer and actor Mitsuo Sagawa（佐川満男）passed away on April 12th at the age of 84 due to a disease called cholecystitis.
Sagawa's career as a singer began in 1960 with his debut single"Futari no Namikimichi"（二人の並木道...A Boulevard for Us） but perhaps his most defining song came several years later with "Ima wa Shiawase kai"（今は幸せかい）from 1968. Songwriter Taiji Nakamura（中村泰士）, who passed away in 2020, had provided words and music for Sagawa's big hit, and he also composed this October 1970 single, "Wakare no Toki ga Kita" (The Time Has Come to Say Goodbye) with Yu Aku（阿久悠）as the lyricist.
Beginning with this near-Bacharach pop melody, "Wakare no Toki ga Kita" then blends into a languid and satisfied soul kayo. I couldn't find the lyrics online but I'm hoping that the song itself is about the ending of a happy date and not a permanent end to a relationship. Of course, with last night's news, the song title will now take on an even more poignant presence. My condolences to Sagawa's family, friends and fans and especially to singer Yukari Ito（伊東ゆかり）who had once been married to him.
Yes, I do realize that Urban Contemporary Friday was yesterday but I just can't help but put this one up tonight. After the Blogger technical kerfuffle earlier this afternoon, I think I want to post up something especially fun.
It looks like one of the premium City Pop songs to be absolutely adored and devoured by a lot of people inside and outside of Japan, Miki Matsubara's（松原みき）"Mayonaka no Door"（真夜中のドアー）, aka "Stay With Me", has become the gift that has kept on giving. The list of cover versions on the J-Wiki article for the 1979 hit is beginning to appear like an annual Kohaku Utagassen lineup. A few years ago, I even wrote on Yuko Imai's（今井優子）funk n' groove n' sophisticated poptake on the song which she released as part of her 2016 album"Sweetest Voice", a few years before "Stay With Me" exploded onto the international scene.
A couple of slaps on the head later earlier this month made me realize that Tokimeki Records isn't a recording company. It is the name of a music unit which started up in 2019 that specializes in cover songs originally done by singers from the 1980s and 1990s. The group immediately sprinted out of the gate with their cover of that other City Pop hit "Plastic Love" in August 2019. But then a few years later, in June 2021, Tokimeki Records brought singer Hikari (one of a number of singers who have contributed to the unit's projects) on board to record their version of "Stay With Me". And it's another barn burning banger of a cover with a bit more of a dance club flavour infused into the original arrangement by Tetsuji Hayashi（林哲司）.
Well, by this point on Saturday night, I would have already had my two articles up on "Kayo Kyoku Plus" and perhaps watching the NHL playoffs or doing something else. But weirdly, earlier this afternoon, for some reason, Blogger had a technical issue which didn't allow me to edit or create new postings, so I was left wondering whether after doing twelve years of KKP and the years of the earlier blog while I had been living in Japan actually filled up all the space I could within the platform. However, I think an email with a screenshot sent to the Blogger administrators took care of things, so I'm back here now.
What I had been planning to post and what I am posting right now is something different from singer-songwriter and English teacher CHAKA (aka Mami Yasunori). Of course, fans including me remember her as the vocalist for the quirky 80s technopop duo PSY-S. With her partner Masaya Matsuura（松浦雅也）, they came up with some great songs that had more hooks than a fisherman's tackle box.
However, once PSY-S' day was done in the early 1990s, I knew that CHAKA had gone the jazz route as part of her musical odyssey, but I only found out about this album and the opening track just a few short months ago. Her 1999 "I Found Love" begins with "Call Me ~ Oboeteite Hoshii" (I Want You To Remember Me), a tenderhearted piano pop ballad fronted by the familiar and sweet vocals of CHAKA. The arrangement was handled by keyboardist Satoru Shionoya（塩谷哲）, formerly of Japanese salsa band extraordinaire Orquesta De La Luz and an artist who has helped other singers such as Chikuzen Sato（佐藤竹善）. Basically, Shionoya is one of the few names that I see in the details of a song that would immediately get my attention., and he's done it once again here.
"Call Me" could be tear-inducing. I haven't gone into CHAKA's lyrics but the tone of the ballad is reminiscent of a woman whose relationship with another has unfortunately ended but she still pines for her now-former significant other and asks kindly that she be contacted again once in a while. It's rather ironic that I had been planning to go with this song even before the Blogger issue occurred since I felt just like the title. Anyways, thank you Blogger for resolving the problem.
"Todokanu Omoi"(Unreachable Feelings) is the most urban track within "Variety" which reveals a variety of expressions song by song. On top of that, Mariya Takeuchi（竹内まりや）has established herself as someone who has made songs on adultery into everyday parlance, but this time around, the song isn't so mundane, so can it be enjoyed purely as a pop song? Chuck Findley's flugelhorn solo is exquisite which raises the level of urbanity here.
The above comes from "Disc Collection Japanese City Pop Revised" (2020).
Hello. J-Canuck here. Here I thought that I had completed taking care of the entirety of "Variety" over the years of KKP, but in actual fact, there are still a few remaining tracks that I haven't covered including this one, "Todokanu Omoi". But I've been in situations like this on Yutaka Kimura Speaks before so it's no real problem.
To be honest, I still think this track's fellow track mate, "Plastic Love", is the most urban tune. Maybe his referral to the fooling around in Mariya's lyrics gives "Todokanu Omoi" that city edge although I think affairs can absolutely exist out in the countryside. Regardless, the main rhythm in the song is something that I do remember and it feels unsurprisingly very Tatsuro（山下達郎）. There is a certain melancholy feeling imbued as a woman is called over to some place by a man who may be her paramour in sin. Perhaps the place is his apartment or even a remote stockroom in the company where they work. Will they carry out the affair or will both avert the potential cliff and return to their normal relationships?
I found this in the "Japanese City Pop Masterpieces 100" list at the back of Yutaka Kimura's "Japanese City Pop" book as No. 60, so its time in the weekly Friday lineup on KKP will come in several weeks; this week, we're looking at No. 54.
Toshinobu Kubota（久保田利伸）has been known to me for years since my time on the JET Programme, but I have to admit that this is the first time that I've encountered "Natsu no Shigosen"(Summer Meridian). Well, better late than never as they say, but I'm still rather kicking myself that I've had to discover it this far into the 21st century. Well, better late than nev--never mind!😠
Coming from Kubota's 6th album released in July 1992, "Neptune", "Natsu no Shigosen" is a wonderfully hypnotic soul song that was written by Masumi Kawamura（川村真澄）and composed by the singer himself. Cooing a story of a man glimpsing a lovely young lady on the beach but only admiring from afar, he realizes that he may have lost an opportunity but he is still grateful even for the sight of the lass that is now permanently in his mind. I do love the summery sunset setup of the music and wish that someday, the original recorded version of "Natsu no Shigosen" will make its way onto YouTube, although I'm plenty impressed with Kubota's concert version.
As for "Neptune", the album peaked at No. 3 on Oricon and sold about 480,000 copies.
Posting Kana Hanazawa's（花澤香菜）"Time Machine wa Totsuzen ni"（タイムマシーンは突然に）last weekend and realizing that the good folks of Milk Talk were responsible for words and music, I figured that it was time to get another song by the duo themselves up onto KKP.
Last summer in August 2023, the neo-nostalgic electro-boogie Milk Talk collaborated with Tokyo-based electronic artist Vantage on their own tune. And I kinda figured that Milk Talk and Vantage would work together at some point; both acts seem to groove on the same level which is why I put up the latter's "Sunday Lonely Night" last November. Anyways, their love child is "Million Miles Away", a love affair redemption set to the analogy of a long-haul flight. I'm no fan of long-haul flights myself although I have to take them to reach Japan from Toronto; usually I go for the quickie divorce as soon as I hit Haneda.
However, it looks like the old-fashioned VHS-ish video with Milk Talk and Vantage has a much more positive ending. Plus, I really like that 80s City Pop vibe in the music with a touch of Tatsuro Yamashita（山下達郎）and Ginger Root in the arrangement, although rather than boogie, there's more boppy funk in there.
Veteran singer Mieko Hirota（弘田三枝子）, who passed away in the summer of 2020 at the age of 73, was someone who tried out her fair share of genres including kayo kyoku, jazz and City Pop. It was only in the last couple of weeks that I discovered that she had also hooked onto the revival of 1950s and 1960s pop arrangements in Japanese popular culture of the late 1970s and early 1980s, and that was through one of her last singles "Mr. Shadow" from September 1980.
According to her discography on J-Wiki,"Mr. Shadow" was her 61st of 66 singles and it was her first new single in over three years and after that, she wouldn't release another single until 1983, "Ai no Nokori ga"（愛のNOKORIGA）. "Mr. Shadow" was written by Ikuko Okado（おかどいくこ）and composed by Erika Takagi（高木エリカ）with Kei Wakakusa（若草恵）as the arranger who came up with the old-style 50s pop twist albeit with a touch of synthesizer added. It may have been a homecoming of sorts for Hirota since her career had begun at the dawn of the 1960s when that particular music style was popular.
The B-side, "Body Talk", also by Okado and Takagi, takes things more into the also-popular City Pop territory under the arrangement of Mitsuo Hagita（萩田光雄）. It's some good ol' jazz and disco, and Hirota has that Cleo Laine vibe in her vocals (including some scatting) as she sounds quite slinky and kittenish. Seeing an image of the original 45", I noticed that Makoto Matsushita（松下誠）had taken care of the chorus arrangement. I know that the list of musicians doesn't usually show up on a 45" liner sheet but I would love to know who was twiddling professionally on the guitar there. Maybe it's Matsushita but I don't know if that's usually his style.
I'm starting off this week's edition of Urban Contemporary Friday on "Kayo Kyoku Plus" with something a little unusual. A few years ago, City Pop podcaster Rocket Brown had asked me some questions about certain passages within the liner notes of the wonderful 1982 City Pop album "Thru Traffic" by the duo Tohoku Shinkansen（東北新幹線）consisting of songwriter Etsuko Yamakawa（山川恵津子）and the late great guitarist Hiromi Narumi（鳴海寛）. Yamakawa and Narumi and their one-and-only "Thru Traffic" are a fine example of what can happen when something miraculous and wonderful emerges from the unexpected.
The last time I wrote about Narumi was last September when I posted an article on the digital album, "Around the Thru Traffic", from June 2022 which was a tribute to the guitarist who had passed away in 2015. Last week, I threw "Thru Traffic" into the CD player, lied down in bed and listened to those 40-or-so minutes of pure audio pleasure for a City Pop and J-AOR-loving guy like me. Remembering some of the translation I did for Rocket Brown at that point, I then decided "Why not provide the translation of the whole kit-and-kaboodle for everyone on KKP?". Plus, if I'm not mistaken, the notes also include the reason for the unusual naming of Yamakawa and Narumi's duo.
My copy of "Thru Traffic" is the 2017 remaster in the conventional plastic case. Music journalist Toshikazu Kanazawa（金澤寿和）, the man who was also behind the "Light Mellow" series of CDs in the 2010s, not only included the original 2007 commentary and interview with Tohoku Shinkansen from the first version of the "Thru Traffic" CD which had then been sold in a cardboard jacket, but the first few paragraphs in the 2017 notes consisted of new insights in the two years since Narumi's death in 2015. For Part 1, which will begin below the video of "Summer Touches You", I will provide the translation for those first paragraphs from 2017 and then in the weeks to follow, I'll add on the 2015 translations.
Of course, some of you may have already taken a shot at translating the liner notes yourselves and may come across errors and omissions in my work. If that is the case, please let me know and I'll do my best in correcting them. But that's enough from me since I will now hand it over to Mr. Kanazawa.
It's been two years since the brains behind Tohoku Shinkansen, Hiroshi Narumi, suddenly passed away in 2015. For that reason, much of his music that had not been released for a long time has suddenly appeared as if a dam had burst, something that I’ve witnessed with mixed feelings. Works by someone of his innate musical artisanship bring about the sad reality that people are drawn to his death, making me feel a little helpless. However, when it comes to this one and only album by Tohoku Shinkansen, that’s a topic for another day. I think this new CD reissue of this “unknown miracle masterpiece” is simply something to be celebrated. As for the first-ever CD issue (in cardboard sleeve) in 2007, both Narumi and his partner Etsuko Yamakawa had been extremely thrilled and I was able to receive a great amount of cooperation from them.
Afterwards in 2014, just before the analog boom arrived, “Thru Traffic” was given an analog reissue. Undergoing a limited release, even through reservation, almost all of the LPs were sold out and regrettably, very few of them made it to stores. On top of that, the 7-inch single “Summer Touches You/Up and Down”, which had only been produced as a promotional record back in 1982, was made commercially available with new artwork for the first time which also garnered a lot of praise. It was soon after that when Narumi died. His treasured music was then gradually brought all together and released in series under the Narumin Music label. Actually, at the same time that “Thru Traffic” was reissued once more in 2017, Narumi’s early music collection “Boku wa Shi Tsukuri” (I am a Poet) featuring the man’s genius in full display from 1975 to 1978, and Junko Yagami’s（八神純子）backing band Melting Pot featuring Hiroshi Narumi’s“Live at Egg-Man+” were also put on sale. Especially in Melting Pot’s live record, the popular song “Summer Touches You”, which was performed by them at Yagami's own concert, is included, so you may want to check that one out.
Now, without further ado, I would like to present this revised commentary from ten years previously when the first CD version of “Thru Traffic” came out including an interview with Narumi and Yamakawa which will now have some added poignancy.
Man, am I glad that I got to see NHK's morning talk show "Asaichi"（あさイチ）today. Usually, I don't stick around to watch the Friday morning version because it has their Premium Talk segment which usually focuses on actors and actresses, and I've never been much for the Japanese thespian element. However, the guests this time around was Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra（東京スカパラダイスオーケストラ）...all nine of them filled up the set and kinda intimidated the hosts with their charisma...and of course, their music. From the old-fashioned faxes that were probably flooding the floor to the Twitter tweets, today's episode definitely got everyone up and at 'em and the morning was unusually wild with the music of Ska-Para.
Personally, my thrill was seeing Original Love himself, Takao Tajima（田島貴男）, make a rare TV guest appearance on "Asaichi" to perform his 2001 collaboration with Ska-Para, "Mekureta Orange"(めくれたオレンジ).
One of the many other songs that perked up "Asaichi" was the title track from the band's 20th original album, "Paradise Has NO BORDER" from March 2017. Composed by NARGO, the ska is of course in there but it also starts out with a bit of salsa and then mixes it with a comely layer of surf rock. It's the type of song that will get everyone bopping about on the dance floor.
Even this song originally had some collaboration, too, with none other than popular pop ichthyologist Sakana-kun（さかなクン...Mr. Fish） helping out in the brief music video with another bass saxophone. No idea how those two got together but "Paradise Has NO BORDER" was used for a Kirin commercial starring them.
I was trying to search for a photo of my old Ichikawa apartment balcony with the washing machine outside, but I couldn't track it down. Therefore, I opted to have Kayo Grace Kyoku take the baton and give us one of her shots of her doing the laundry. Her place is so much more stylish.
Now, if the name Erika Ikuta（生田絵梨花）rings a bell, you're either a fan of Nogizaka 46（乃木坂46）of which she had been a member or you were into the whole "Beat de Tohi"（ビートDEトーヒ）thing last year. Well, she appeared on "Uta Con"（うたコン）a couple of days ago to perform her debut digital single "Laundry" which I believe was released last month. With words and music provided by Ikuta and Junji Ishiwatari also helping out in the lyrics department, "Laundry" was apparently inspired by some music entering Ikuta's head as she was staring at the washing machine one time.
There's a lot of simple and clean fun listening to "Laundry" which is nice, light and airy...just like the scent coming off the clothes line after a wash. I do like the addition of jazz in there and I get reminded of some of the flair of singer-songwriter aiko when I listen to this. Her debut album, "capriccioso", was released about a week ago.
In the last several months, I realized that I'm once again a late bloomer. All these years, these YouTube videos of the Australian morning show "Today" have been showing up and it's amazing how loose these fellows are in terms of their humour and laidback manner. It's gotten to the point that I frankly know these broadcasters by their first names now: Lisa, Georgie, Sylvia, Ben, Steve, Brooke, Ally among others, and of course, the heart of the show, Karl. I can honestly say that there is no one like Karl in any of the morning shows that I've seen in Canada or the United States. Just for the record, the first "Today" video I caught was the infamous "Pussy! Get out of my pants." one.
When I was but a wee lad, geography wasn't particularly my forte and I kept wondering about nations such as Australia and Austria and what the big difference was between them. And it was quite interesting when I found out about the switch in seasons and the Coriolis force and that magnificent accent down under. Well, guess what? This week's Reminiscings of Youth article will be on "Down Under" by Australian band Men At Work.
I remembered Men At Work and their hit song "Down Under" as closer to being a mid-1980s tune so it was a surprise to get a memory check and realize that it was actually released in November 1981 as an official single, some time after first getting onto vinyl as a B-side to a 1980 release. Of course, back then my vocabulary for music was embryonic at best so I had just treated it as a catchy quirky pop number with a flute, years before I read on Wikipedia that it's been categorized as New Wave, reggae, pop rock and pub rock. Vocalist Colin Hay and lead guitarist Ron Strykert came up with the melody with Hay also providing the lyrics. I didn't pay too much attention to the lyrics being more of a melody man but there was plenty of Aussie terminology in there. For example, what I'd thought was "...and gave me a a bite of his sandwich" was "...and gave me a Vegemite sandwich". I wouldn't have my first taste of Vegemite for many years afterwards in Japan, and to be honest, I actually prefer Vegemite over natto (sorry, Japan).
"Down Under" was up and over on the charts and in a number of nations including Australia, Canada and America, it hit No. 1. Though the song and the weird music video didn't give me any concrete insight into the country at the time, it did provide a bridge to Paul Hogan and his popular commercials regarding Australia.
Speaking of Aussie slang, I have to admit that I never knew that completely innocuous terms here in Canada such as "Dutch oven" and "muff" could elicit wails of laughter down under.
Anyways, what else was coming out as singles in Japan in November 1981?
