Taking a little turn down memory lane, I recall there was nothing more I ever wanted than ASKA's SCENE II (and to a lesser extent, SCENE) album for it contained some of my favourite songs. But ironically, while I was able to get most of his albums, the former was the one and only one that was completely out of my reach as what was available were only exorbitantly-priced, used antiques on Amazon. I was never able to get it and I got to say that that stung. Eventually, I did more or less... okay, mostly forget about this gripe when the aforementioned fellows popped up. And then the remix versions of SCENE II and SCENE, came out late this year. ASKA, my dear sir, I waited 7 years for this.
It went without saying that I got both the moment I heard the summaries of the albums on YouTube. Unlike what I had initially thought and much to my relief, these remixes weren't complete make-overs of these classics but are instead modern face-lifts. My perennial favourites like "Kaze no Sumu Machi" (風の住む町) and "Soshu Yakyoku" (蘇州夜曲) sounded fantastic with fuller arrangements, and those new to me like "Yume Haruka" (夢はるか) were just as atmospheric. But the one that struck a chord in me was "Hajimari wa Itsumo Ame". (J-Canuck had written a piece on this tune way back in 2013, so you can check out his views on it here too.)
Man, I used to love this video so much.
Just like "On Your Mark", this rainy ballad ASKA is most known for was one of the earliest foundations in my love for Japanese music and the singer-songwriter himself. And it always brings back a bittersweet memory: On my first trip to Japan when I was 7, I was ill and the cold of late autumn/early winter made me miserable. But before things went downhill completely, I was able to enjoy the sea of red maple leaves from the Kiyomizu temple in Kyoto. This scene became synonymous with "Hajimari wa Itsumo Ame" as I heard it while looking back at pictures of Kiyomizu after the trip. As usual, I had no idea what I was listening to, but I liked it. Reminiscing about it now, I find that the warmth and softness of ASKA's voice and the strings fit the brilliant red and orange of the maple trees to a T in spite of the lack of rain.
Since this tune is strongly associated with a fond childhood memory and its significance in my taste in music, hearing how much more rich and smooth its arrangement became in this SCENE II remix was quite something. It made me feel that the wait was worth it.
Well, anyway, I know it's been 12 days into 2019 already, but I would like to wish all you readers and contributors a Happy New Year! I hope this year goes by smoother than 2018 did.
Hello, Noelle, and Happy New Year to you as well.
ReplyDeleteYup, it's been almost 30 years since "Hajimari" came out but it's still a winner. And to think, I found out about it as a Panasonic stereo commercial song. I wouldn't be surprised if it were still used as something to be played at wedding receptions (Aska's recent problems aside).
Definitely hoping that 2019 comes out better as well.