Hiroshi Takano -- Besten Dank（ベステン ダンク）

Hiroshi Takano's（高野寛）5th single "Besten Dank" isn't quite as catchy as his previous song, "Niji no Miyako e"（虹の都へ）which for a certain generation probably meant hitting the ski slopes in short order. Still, it's not too bad.

I think one reason is the arrangement for Takano's creation which is so 90s J-Pop that all sorts of nostalgia popped in my head such as my two years in Gunma Prefecture and all those videos that I caught on "MTV Japan" while living there. Plus, his lyrics about getting through all of the obstacles to reach that goal (or lady) are nice to hear during a currently uncertain time. Takano even gives a shoutout to that metropolis of rainbows, the translation of that previous single's title. My other observation is that some of his melody reminds me of another sunshine-y song, "I Can See Clearly Now" by Johnny Nash.

Released in October 1990, "Besten Dank" reached No. 3 on Oricon and was the 73rd-ranked song of the year. It's also been included in Takano's 4th album "Awakening" which peaked at No. 8. As for the meaning of the title, it's apparently German for "Thank You Very Much".