I've been a fan of Japanese popular music for 40 years, and have managed to collect a lot of material during that time. So I decided I wanted to talk about Showa Era music with like-minded fans. My particular era is the 70s and 80s (thus the "kayo kyoku"). The plus part includes a number of songs and artists from the last 30 years and also the early kayo. So, let's talk about New Music, aidoru, City Pop and enka.
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.
Friday, May 29, 2020
Tomoko Kuwae -- WHOSE WHO
Over the decades, there have been some singers who have been seen as one-hit wonders such as Saburo Tokito（時任三郎）for the comic vitamin-drink hit, "Yuuki no Shirushi"（勇気のしるし）and Akiko Kobayashi（小林明子）for "Fall in Love". However, even if that particular song has been the only thing that has gained them fame and fortune, their die-hard fans (and that includes me for both Tokito and Kobayashi) know that that they've continued to provide some fine music for years.
That can also apply to singer Tomoko Kuwae（桑江知子）. Whenever she has appeared on TV, it is to almost always sing "Watashi no Heart wa Stop Motion"（私のハートはストップモーション）, her only hit and first single in 1979. It's a light and breezy kayo that can open up all of those nostalgia pores like heat in a sauna. Of course, that song has already been given its due here on "Kayo Kyoku Plus", and some years after that, I was able to cover a 1990 song by her called "Tasogare wo Wine ni Somete"（黄昏をワインに染めて）which is an example of those lush ballads that I often heard at that time last century.
Song No. 3 in the Kuwae file is "WHOSE WHO", a song whose title could potentially strike terror in grammar teachers😏, but still has me in its thrall as a nice funky City Pop number. Originally released as a track on her 1983 album, "Tomoko 1 I Can't Wait", I was able to first hear it as a part of "Light Mellow ~ Moment" recently. Lyrics are by Arisu Sato（佐藤ありす）as Kuwae sings about a woman realizing that a complicated love triangle is on the verge of forming, and the funk is provided by singer-songwriter Tatsushi Umegaki（梅垣達志）. Incidentally, I love that particular synth that comes in between Kuwae's vocals; I've heard it before in other City Pop songs, probably Junko Yagami's（八神純子）contributions, and I will dub that particular sound Cool Steel.😎
Kuwae has that appealing vocal quality which balances between light and rich, so I'm a tad surprised that she wasn't able to garner any more big hits on the scale of "Watashi no Heart wa Stop Motion". But as I said before, her supporters know what's what and who's who.
Thanks to the internet I had the opportunity to listen to Tomoko Kuwae's songs. As you said, anyone who has tried to listen to other albums knows that her work has many other hits besides "Watashi no Heart wa Stop Motion". I'm a young Brazilian who knows who's who hahaha
Hello, Leonardo and thanks for your comments. Although I used to use the term "one-hit wonder", I now realize that a lot of these singers, despite only having that one Top 10 song, do have faithful fans who like other examples of their discographies.
Thanks to the internet I had the opportunity to listen to Tomoko Kuwae's songs. As you said, anyone who has tried to listen to other albums knows that her work has many other hits besides "Watashi no Heart wa Stop Motion".
ReplyDeleteI'm a young Brazilian who knows who's who hahaha
Hello, Leonardo and thanks for your comments. Although I used to use the term "one-hit wonder", I now realize that a lot of these singers, despite only having that one Top 10 song, do have faithful fans who like other examples of their discographies.
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