I've been a fan of Japanese popular music for 40 years, and have managed to collect a lot of material during that time. So I decided I wanted to talk about Showa Era music with like-minded fans. My particular era is the 70s and 80s (thus the "kayo kyoku"). The plus part includes a number of songs and artists from the last 30 years and also the early kayo. So, let's talk about New Music, aidoru, City Pop and enka.
Credits
I would like to give credit where credit is due. Videos are from YouTube and other sources such as NicoNico while Oricon rankings and other information are translated from the Japanese Wikipedia unless noted.
Saturday, April 29, 2017
TUBE -- Ano Natsu wo Sagashite （あの夏を探して）
Still only the end of April but hey, summer is around the corner, I guess, and today the weather has been quite scrumptious. Therefore, why not throw another TUBE song on the barbie?
TUBE=Summer....a very simple equation. And so, to add another variable in there, here is their 22nd single, "Ano Natsu wo Sagashite" (Search for That Summer) from July 1995. Written by vocalist Nobuteru Maeda（前田亘輝）and composed by guitarist Michiya Haruhata（春畑道哉）, there's really not that much to add to it aside from the fact that it is one of their usual grand and celebratory paeans to the hot season. One would think that the single adorned a Pocari Sweat ad but actually it was the theme song for a Fuji-TV drama based on a manga, "Hyaku Oku no Otoko"（100億の男...The 10 Billion Man）, and nope, it isn't the Japanese version of the 1970s sci-fi TV series "The Six Million Dollar Man" but a show about some poor sap who got saddled with a 10-billion-yen debt. Methinks that the guy would need the Six Million Dollar Man for protection from creditors.
"Ano Natsu wo Sagashite" was another big hit for TUBE. It peaked at No. 2 on Oricon going Platinum while becoming the 98th-ranked single for 1995. I heard it covered quite a lot on TV as well, notably through the old series on NTV's "Yoru mo Hippare"（夜もヒッパレ）on Saturday nights. The above video features the late great Kiyohiko Ozaki（尾崎紀世彦）giving his version of the TUBE song.
I have never tried actively to find TUBE's songs to listen to but everything I know from them is super good. Ano natsu wo sagashite has relaxing, and much slower tempo than others from them I've heard. Thanks for introducing another great song to me. I can always find something nice when stopping by here. :)
Hi, May. I hope this summer has been treating you well.
Actually, I don't know whether this message will get over to you but I wanted to see if you would be interested in participating in a little whimsical project that I have in mind.
I was thinking of starting up a new category in the Labels section on the right which would be called "The First". Along with my fellow contributors, I was hoping that veteran commenters such as yourself would be willing to write articles about the song or songs that got them into Japanese pop music in the first place. This is totally voluntary so if you don't have the time or energy, you don't have to join in. However, if you are interested, you can contact me via the Contact Form at the upper-right of the blog for further details. Take care!
I finally got this message lol (and yes, I go back to TUBE every summer I think). I would love to join the project. As you may tell, I'm not native English speaker but I would try my best. I will contact you later (if you still want to do the project) :)
Good to hear from you again. And no problems, you can still provide your article on The First. Just contact me by the form and I will let you in on the details. Hope to hear from you soon!
I have never tried actively to find TUBE's songs to listen to but everything I know from them is super good. Ano natsu wo sagashite has relaxing, and much slower tempo than others from them I've heard. Thanks for introducing another great song to me. I can always find something nice when stopping by here. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks very much, May. Always happy to oblige. TUBE is always nice to have around especially with the warm season coming.
DeleteHi, May. I hope this summer has been treating you well.
DeleteActually, I don't know whether this message will get over to you but I wanted to see if you would be interested in participating in a little whimsical project that I have in mind.
I was thinking of starting up a new category in the Labels section on the right which would be called "The First". Along with my fellow contributors, I was hoping that veteran commenters such as yourself would be willing to write articles about the song or songs that got them into Japanese pop music in the first place. This is totally voluntary so if you don't have the time or energy, you don't have to join in. However, if you are interested, you can contact me via the Contact Form at the upper-right of the blog for further details. Take care!
Hi J-Canuck,
DeleteI finally got this message lol (and yes, I go back to TUBE every summer I think). I would love to join the project. As you may tell, I'm not native English speaker but I would try my best. I will contact you later (if you still want to do the project) :)
Hi, May.
DeleteGood to hear from you again. And no problems, you can still provide your article on The First. Just contact me by the form and I will let you in on the details. Hope to hear from you soon!