nikala wrote about singer-songwriter Seishiro Kusunose（楠瀬誠志郎）a few years ago for his 1990 song "Eien no Yakusoku"（永遠の約束...Eternal Promises）. Unfortunately, the video with the original song has been taken down (although I've put up a cover version). To be honest, I forgot how the fellow sounded after listening to the video but my impression is that he has come up with some solid polished pop.
(excerpt only)
Earlier today, I found this compilation of City Pop songs that have been appearing like squirrels in my neighbourhood on YouTube over the past several months. And when I checked out the first song, it turned out to be a Kusunose track from his first album "Takarajima"（宝島...Treasure Island）from April 1986. Now, the uploader for the compilation tagged the song as "Shizuka na Gogo" (also on the same album) but listening to a cover version of that song elsewhere on YouTube, I realized that there was a mixup of sorts judging by the lyrics. So, the song is actually "Miss You". (Unfortunately, the video got taken down almost as quickly as it was put up but I was able to replace it at least with a 30-second excerpt.)
If memory serves me correctly, "Eien no Yakusoku" from 1990 was pretty City Pop in its original form. Well, "Miss You" from four years earlier also definitely has that vibe but with a bit of something extra...something dreamier. Yep, Kusunose wrote and composed the song about getting in that car alone and driving on the highway while thinking about a loved one....perhaps permanently or temporarily parted.
Kusunose has got quite the voice and he certainly can weave quite an arrangement. That particular synthesizer and the backing vocals stand out. In fact, that first yell of what sounded like "HARD TIME" in the song knocked my neck back when I heard it for the first time.
The singer is still active today and he released his latest album, "Let's Sweet Groove", in the last few months although it hasn't been mentioned in his J-Wiki entry but his new website has got it. As well, nikala has already written a bit of his bio in her article.
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