Mariko Fuji -- Chikashitsu no Party（地下室のパーティー）

The first time that I saw the title "Chikashitsu no Party" (Basement Party) as performed by actress/singer Mariko Fuji（藤真利子）, I received some rather bad vibes in terms of the implications of that location. Yes, I realized that a lot of my friends when we were all younger had parties in house basements that all seemed to have that mandatory pool table, bar and couch. However, I couldn't help but go "Hmmmm...".

Listening to this ballad, though, the red alert was almost instantly canceled. "Chikashitsu no Party" is something along the lines of classy Fashion Pop/City Pop with Fuji singing ironically and sadly about being in this underground cafe with no windows all alone as she muses about the lost guy. And I was actually in a Renoir cafe in Tokyo which was indeed an establishment in the basement with no windows...and lots of cigarette smoke.

With the bluesy sax and mellow keyboards in there, images are conjured up of sighing most dramatically while nursing a drink for a few hours in the big rainy city. Singer-songwriter Satoshi Kishida（岸田智史）wrote and composed this track on Fuji's 2nd album "Romantic Game"（浪漫幻夢）from March 1981. He actually found fame for his "Kimi no Asa"（君の朝）back in 1979 which kinda goes to show that trend back then of folk singers finding their inner urban contemporary music.

Not sure if I will ever be able to enter those high rooftop hotel bars, one of those venues that I often associate with City Pop, but when it comes to cafes, underground or otherwise...heck, I spent half of my life in Japan in those places.