Minako Honda -- Temptation (誘惑)

Well, it’s no secret that Minako Honda (本田美奈子) wasn’t just a cute/pretty face. Honestly, she had an incredible voice and was a great singer/performer. She really brought some big guns to the aidoru world with the dramatic synthpop aidoru tune “Satsui no Vacance” (殺意のバカンス), her debut, which was released in April 1985. But it wasn’t until “Temptation”, released in September 1985, that Minako caused some true commotion. And I can see why, as “Temptation” is surely an interesting song in an aidoru’s catalogue. It’s the type of song Akina Nakamori (中森明菜) could have recorded and turned into one of her memorable hits, just like “SOLITUDE” or “Fin”, two of her laid-back masterpieces of the 80s.

But Minako herself did a great job with “Temptation”. The melody is mysterious and even sensual, in a strange way. The arrangement, built around a strong bass line and synths, just contributes to this foggy and funky feeling. Overall, it’s a very nice song and one of Minako’s best offerings during her aidoru days.

If Minako wasn’t so instable during her aidoru career, she could have maintained this style and grown as a singer with it. Her rock phase was really a turn-off if compared with the earlier synth pop tunes like "Satsui no Vacance", "Temptation" and "1986nen no Marilyn" (1986年のマリリン), or even the nice pop-rock ones like “CRAZY NIGHTS”, produced by Queen's guitarist Brian May. To be honest with Minako, though, she did grow as a singer, especially when she started doing her classical work during the 90s, but you know what I mean, she just needed a better artistic/musical direction sometimes.

“Temptation” reached #10 on the Oricon chart (source: wiki.jp), selling 184,000 copies (source: http://wagamamakorin.client.jp/saku-honda.html). A “[New Mix Version]” was later included in Minako’s first full album, “M’ Syndrome” (M'シンドローム), which reached #2 on the Oricon chart and sold 239,000 copies (source: http://wagamamakorin.client.jp/saku-minako.html). The album, which was released in November 1985, also became the #16 best-selling of 1986. Back to “Temptation”, it was written by Takashi Matsumoto (松本隆), composed by Kyouhei Tsutsumi (筒美京平), and arranged by Kazuo Otani (大谷和夫).