Saori Yuki -- Kono Mama ga Ii no（このままがいいの）

Usually when I categorize a song in Labels, it's no surprise to have one or two genres listed in there, but on occasion, I do have three genres listed. And that's often but not always because I'm letting the song dance around my head trying to settle on a genre, but as it turns out, I can't really definitively resolve the categorization angst. It's not really angst though since I think such songs are even more intriguing.

I found another song that describes what I'm talking about, and it's good because I haven't had veteran Saori Yuki（由紀さおり）on KKP in a good while. Of course, Yuki will always be known for her late 1960s number, "Yoake no Scat"（夜明けのスキャット）, but I've come across this single, her 42nd from May 1984, "Kono Mama ga Ii no" (Good The Way It Is) that has her exploring something a bit more than kayo kyoku.

From my impression of Yuki, I always thought that she would be an ideal ambassador for the genres of jazz and bossa nova, and sure enough, with "Kono Mama ga Ii no", that latter genre comes out nice and classy with that pristine high-toned voice of hers. However, my so-called "dilemma" has had me wondering whether there's also something in the song that evokes the urban contemporary setting of City Pop and even Mood Kayo from a certain balcony on the Riviera. In the end, I just went "Oh, the heck with it", and slapped all three genres down.

My compliments to New J Channel's radio since that's how I first heard it and going way back, allow me to thank lyricist Rieko Zanma（残間里江子）and composer Toshiyuki Kimori（木森敏之）. According to Zanma's J-Wiki bio, she's now actually a producer of publishing and cultural events.