Yudai Suzuki -- Rainy Summer （レイニーサマー）

nikala, in her article on Akira Inoue's（井上鑑）album "Splash", brought up the topic of The New Wave Four or The City Pop Four consisting of Junichi Inagaki（稲垣潤一）, Yasuhiro Abe（安部恭弘）, Inoue and singer-songwriter Yudai Suzuki（鈴木雄大）. Both of us mentioned that of the quartet, Suzuki was the only one that we were completely in the dark about. Well, I decided to find shed some light on the man.

I came across what was supposedly his breakthrough hit, "Rainy Summer" from May 1983, his 4th single. Suzuki provided the lyrics while Shunichi Tokura（都倉俊一）provided the Latin-flavoured rhythm that was reminiscent of the early works of Junko Yagami（八神純子）. Tokura was also a major contributor of melodies for two of the biggest female acts of the 1970s, Momoe Yamaguchi（山口百恵）and Pink Lady. Listening to the ballad, the song has that late 70s/early 80s urban contemporary beat that would probably put Suzuki firmly in the City Pop vein more than New Wave, but I can't really be definitive on just one song. It is a pleasant tune, though, that had me thinking of some of the nice nighttime songs from kayo kyoku with that Latin and the thrumming bass line. It's time to see what else has been up with this man.

As for Suzuki himself, he was born in Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo back in 1959, and had already learned the piano and guitar by the time he reached high school. After joining a musical theatrical company as a member of the backup band, he made his debut as a singer in 1980 with "Gone The Summer".

The neighbourhood of Daimon in Tokyo.
More sunny fall than rainy summer, though