Credits

I would like to give credit where credit is due. Videos are from YouTube and other sources such as NicoNico while Oricon rankings and other information are translated from the Japanese Wikipedia unless noted.

Wednesday, April 22, 2020

Akira Kurosawa & Los Primos -- Semete O-Namae wo(せめてお名前を)


There are a number of tropes when it comes to the old American sitcom. I think one would be the sidekick with the glib tongue who just can't seem to catch a break in romance. That was probably the case for Larry on "Three's Company" and maybe even Reuben Kincaid on "The Partridge Family". Another example is the joke-filled Ralph Malph on "Happy Days" (Potsie Weber, too, but I'll stick with Ralph).


I couldn't help but think of those guys when I heard "Semete O-Namae wo" (At Least, Give Me Your Name) by Mood Kayo group Akira Kurosawa & Los Primos黒沢明とロス・プリモス). This was their 28th single from February 1974, and the lyrics by Akira Ito(伊藤アキラ)relate the tale of a forlorn suitor who's hopelessly fallen for a seemingly unattainable lass.

The music by Koichi Morita(森田公一)is pure Mood Kayo with lots of solitary trumpet, strings, the chorus and the yearning vocals of the late Shoji Mori(森聖二). I can imagine Ralph, Larry or Reuben searching the streets and bars and alleys for that mystery woman of allure but never quite tracking her down as I listen to this one, although I'm well aware that it might be a stretch for a lot of you folks to fathom a traditional Japanese ballad while seeing American sitcom characters failing in love. Ah. Anyways, speaking of "The Partridge Family", would you get a load of those costumes at 1:52 of the video? The band must have put out an APB!

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