Marina Watanabe -- Shifuukei（私風景）

I don't see former aidoru Marina Watanabe（渡辺満里奈）all that much on TV anymore unfortunately, except for the odd appearance on a panel for some talk show or variety program, but at one point almost 30 years ago, I could see her readily on commercials and especially on the old Tunnels' Thursday night show on Fuji-TV.

Therefore, it's always nice when I can hear her material on YouTube. It seems as if not too long after graduating from the Onyanko Club（おニャン子クラブ）in the late 1980s, she also graduated from her aidoru days, period, and went straight on to pop music.

Certainly when I listen to the adorable yet mature "Shifuukei" (My View) , I don't really hear a teenybopper. The song was a track on her December 1989 album "Two of Us", and although Christmas is not directly named in Arihiro Nakata's（中田有博）lyrics, there are enough hints in there (along with the release date) to illustrate that Marina seems to be finding her way in the city around the Yuletide, thanks to mentions of snow, winter wear, and parties. Plus, I can't help but feel that the light and breezy music by Tomoko Ozawa（大沢明子）seems really suitable for a J-Pop Xmas walk. Incidentally, the song was arranged by Etsuko Yamakawa（山川恵津子）. She and Watanabe collaborated on a number of other tunes together, and one can be heard on my article on Yamakawa's various works.

As for "Two of Us", that album peaked at No. 26 on Oricon.