By the late 1980s, Hiromi Iwasaki（岩崎宏美）wasn't exactly hitting the top of the charts anymore but she could still provide some wonderfully sung music. Case in point: her 44th single from May 1988 "Kikoetekuru Rhapsody" (I Can Hear A Rhapsody).
Apparently, this single didn't chart at all but this was still pure Iwasaki loveliness with that delicate voice of hers wafting through a morning-friendly contemporary-sounding (for that time) arrangement. Considering some other similarly-sounding arrangements for other songs, I could have easily imagined "Kikoetekuru Rhapsody" being the theme song for a late-night documentary series (well, late night is technically morning). However, there was nothing on J-Wiki to show that it had ever been some sort of TV tie-up song. In any case, the ballad was also a track on her 19th album from July 1988, "Me too". Singer-songwriter Kingo Hamada（濱田金吾）composed the song while Shinnosuke Uesugi（上杉伸之助）took care of the lyrics.
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ReplyDeleteI suppose she was a bit busy at the time, playing in Les Mis from early June through to the end of August. Lea Salonga used to be emotionally exhausted after every performance of Fantine, unwinding by playing videogames that were as far removed from the role as possible (Halo IIRC).
DeleteI think probably at that point in her career, it was no longer just about the singing. Along with "Les Miserables", I knew that she was also in a fairly famous trendy drama on TV so perhaps she was being stretched in all directions.
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DeleteHi, Kenji.
DeleteYeah, that was the drama I was thinking about. I didn't see the entire thing but, if I have the right drama, I think I saw her character of Miki tearfully giving her goodbyes on some boat...and I think she was actually working on it!
Is it the one at the end of this clip? It's 4:50 in.
Deletehttp://www.dailymotion.com/video/x3blzfo
Incidentally, on the related sidebar there's a clip of Yuki Saito rehearsing "A Heart Full of Love" from Les Mis.
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xh5cx2_%E6%96%89%E8%97%A4%E7%94%B1%E8%B2%B4in%E3%81%8A%E3%81%97%E3%82%83%E3%82%8C-part002_shortfilms
Hi there.
DeleteYep, that's the clip exactly with her giving the salute from the boat.
A request for help. Someone on the webs has a bootleg of a 1997 performance of Les Mis with Hiromi as Fantine, and he's willing to send it to a Japanese address. I don't live in Japan, but would it be possible for one of our contributors who do to get it sent to them? My email addy is jim laker three at gee mail dot com, replacing with numbers, symbols and letters as appropriate. If J Canuck can reach me there ten I'd like to send a few urls as well.
ReplyDeleteHi there. It's J-Canuck.
DeleteI'm sorry to disappoint you but I'm afraid none of us live in Japan now. I moved back in 2011 so I don't have any residency in the country. But I hope you can find someone to help you out.