As I mentioned in my first posting on UA, "Rhythm" was the first of her singles that I'd bought years ago. But I soon also came across her 4th single, "Jounetsu"(Passion), which was her breakthrough hit from June 1996. Where "Rhythm" was mellow and groovy, "Jounetsu"was cool and funky. I just love the original single version with her husky vocals and the backing horn section (like the album version from "11" less so), and also the official video which seems to emulate some experimental filming from the 60s. The song was written by UA and composed by Hirofumi Asamoto （朝本浩文）.
This YouTube video is of her 15th anniversary concert in Tokyo in 2010. "Jounetsu" was her first Top 20 hit, peaking at No. 18 and and spending a total of nearly 6 months on the Oricon charts. Eventually, the single would sell a little over 230,000 copies. With this song and "Rhythm" coming out in 1996, I think UA really stood out as one of the first female Japanese singers to bring over contemporary R&B.
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