Yasuhiro Yamane -- Get Along Together ~ Ai wo Okuritai kara（愛を贈りたいから）

When I was coming around to write about this ballad, I noticed that I no longer hear love songs by individual singers anymore.... or at least, those that become hits. So, there's a rather thick layer of nostalgia when I hear one of those odes from way back.

Well, then. Welcome to "Kayo Kyoku Plus", Yasuhiro Yamane（山根康広）! Feel free to pick up your inaugural jacket and complementary bowl of soup. All joking aside, Yamane has been a 1990s name that I've heard now and then for years, but I never really got to listen to him. However, when I took the above photo of that ad for Yamane's "Get Along Together" in an ancient issue of "Myojo"（明星）the other day, I figured that it was about time to shine a light on him.

Debuting in January 1993 with "Get Along Together", according to the J-Wiki write-up, the Osaka-born singer-songwriter had originally created the song in about a week back in the winter of 1991 for a friend who was about to get married. It apparently got down to the wire as he finally completed the song right on the eve of his friend's nuptials. That original version made it up to No. 12 on Oricon...not a bad start at all for a new singer.

But then, Yamane decided to re-release "Get Along Together" as his 2nd single later that year in September with an additional subtitle "Ai wo Okuritai kara" (Because I Want to Send You My Love). It's this version that I am providing today.

Y'know...listening to "Get Along Together", yep, I could feel that J-Pop balladry of the 1990s through Yamane's heartfelt vocals, the rich keyboards and that guitar solo. And from his lyrics, I could see how he had originally created them for his friend; it's basically a humble confession of love from an admittedly far-from-perfect person and hoping for love in return.

This second single version of "Get Along Together" broke into the Top 10, peaking at No. 5. Eventually, it became the 45th-ranked single for 1993, and then it sold 1.5 million copies by summer 1994. As well, it earned Yamane a Best New Artist prize at the Japan Record Awards that year, and although it took another year, the singer was able to get onto the Kohaku Utagassen for 1994 to sing his magnum opus.

Although it didn't say so on the J-Wiki article, I took a closer look at the photograph and discovered that the ballad also became the ending theme for TV Asahi's "Tonight" late-night interview/variety program. I simply went "Naruhodo" since it seems that program was usually providing some dramatic ballads as their good-night tunes. Chikaco Sawada's（沢田知可子）"Aitai"（会いたい）was an earlier example.