Sumiko Yamagata -- TODAY

 

I guess that this song from Sumiko Yamagata's（やまがたすみこ）1977 album "FLYING" must have taken its sweet time growing on me since I hadn't included it in my article on the album back in 2018 and it hadn't gotten its own article until...well, today.

And so, today is time for "TODAY" as I exercise my right for Dad Joke Wednesdays. Whatever reason it was that I held back on writing about this track from "FLYING" has been nullified and the tune is now quite catchy. It was written by Takashi Matsumoto（松本隆）and composed by Hiroshi Sato（佐藤博）, and it has this intro which sounds quite cheerful and encouraging with a slight reggae hop. Then there is the instrumental bridge with the twangy guitar that comes across like something that Matsumoto's old bandmate from Happy End（はっぴいえんど）, bassist Haruomi Hosono（細野晴臣）, would concoct for his Tiki bar music with Tin Pan Alley（ティン・パン・アレー）back around the same time. But near the end, there is the muskrat-sounding keyboard riff which struck me as being quintessentially Sato.

Keeping in line with kayo traditions, the happy-go-lucky melody underlies Matsumoto's lyrics of a woman just going through her sad daily rut of a routine at the company. She would like to break out of it, but it doesn't look like that's going to be happening too soon whether it be today, tomorrow or the day after that. Can't complain about the music, though, and for that matter, Yamagata's dreamy and almost woozy delivery. "Hello, Miss Gloomy" indeed!