Though formed in 1995, the band Nona Reeves (ノーナ・リーヴス) really sounds like they belong in the late 70's. Comprised of Gota Nishidera (西寺郷太), Kensuke Okuda (奥田健介) and Shigeru Komatsu (小松シゲル), the trio officially debuted in 1996 through an independent label Under Flower Records before going major with Warner Music Japan the following year. I've heard people refer to them as the Japanese Jackson 5, but then again, the leader and the vocalist Nishidera was part of the MJ mania back in the day. He was also the one who wrote and composed this addictive funky tune with a touch of disco, "Stop Me", which became the band's fourth single in November 1999. If you listen to it without the video, you might think he sounds hip and stylish, but once you open your eyes, all the cheesiness just blinds you. These guys have a long history of not taking themselves too seriously. Having a soft spot for nice bass and horns lines, I obviously ate this one up and even bought the album it's included on, "Friday Night".
Apparently the band's name is a mishmash between the first name of Marvin Gaye's daughter Nona Gaye and the surname of Martha Reeves from the classic group Martha and the Vandellas. According to J-Wiki, the members liked the sound of African-American women's names so they adapted some from a couple they were fans of.
Nona Reeves is still going strong into the third decade of their career. Their latest album is "Pop Station", which was released in March 2013. Not much disco these days though.
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| Source: amazon.jp |
Now, this is fine wake-up music! I'd never heard of Nona Reeves before but listening to "Stop Me", I think their early stuff might be something that I can enjoy since my formative years were in the disco era. Reminds me somewhat of Original Love.
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