Saburo Tokito -- Kawa no Nagare wo Daite Nemuritai (川の流れを抱いて眠りたい）

Another one of my early exposures to kayo kyoku came through this song which means "I Want to Embrace the River's Flow and Sleep", released in 1981 as the theme song for a TV drama. The star of the drama and the singer for the theme are one and the same, Saburo Tokito (時任三郎）, a tall cool actor who seems to be currently playing calm, cool and collected upper echelon staff. He was seen as a top officer representing the Japan Coast Guard in the TV/movie series "Umizaru"(海猿...Sea Monkeys) a couple of years ago.

"Kawa no Nagare" was his debut as a singer. It's a crooning manly ballad which Tokito sings with plenty of emotion on his sleeve. You could just imagine him walking down the highway with a guitar on his back as the song is playing. For some reason, whenever I hear the song, it reminds me of Michael Johnson's AOR hit "Bluer Than Blue" in 1978. I've also thrown it in here as a comparison.

The single also appeared on Tokito's debut album, "Tooku de Boogie ga Kikoeru"(遠くでBoogieが聴こえる....I Can Hear a Boogie Far Away) released in 1981.