When it comes to listening to Aska's solo album, "Scene II", I have to admit that this ballad carries an even bigger impact for me than its more well-known trackmate, "Hajimari wa Itsumo Ame" （はじまりはいつも雨）. I mean, just watching the video with Aska and Hiromi Iwasaki（岩崎宏美） doing this duet had some electrical impulses streaking up my back.
It was written and composed by Aska for the album which came out in June 1991 but was never released as its own single. Somehow, having the tender-but-different voices of him and Iwasaki (who was known as Hiromi Masuda at the time due to her first marriage) together made for a wonderful blend for "Love Is Alive". The first impression I got from the ballad was "Which 80s Hollywood coming-of-age movie did this get onto?" It just sounded like something that would've been perfect for Peter Cetera (former lead vocal for the band Chicago) and Marilyn Martin (who sang "Separate Lives" with Phil Collins in 1985).
According to the J-Wiki article for "Scene II", Aska had always been a big fan of Iwasaki and didn't imagine anyone else but her to sing it with. Writing a song to attract a woman.... interesting concept.
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