Spectrum -- In The Space（イン・ザ・スペース）

 

Well, I gotta say that when Spectrum（スペクトラム）goes out in uniform, they really go out of their way. I'm not sure whether they were inspired directly by George Clinton and Parliament-Funkadelic or Earth Wind & Fire, but perhaps this might be one of the first instances of cosplay. 

In any case, their second single "In The Space" came out in November 1979, just three months after their debut single "Tomato Ippatsu"（トマト・イッパツ）had been released. Speaking about Earth Wind & Fire, according to their J-Wiki file, with the arrival of "In The Space", Spectrum actually was criticized by some of the more unimpressed listeners for being a poor imitation of EW&F, probably because of the performance style and the high-flying falsetto of trumpeter/vocalist Ichiro Nitta（新田一郎）.

However, it was also said in the article that it felt like that there was actually a bigger influence instead from the band Chicago and the Brecker Brothers rather than EW&F, with Nitta himself declaring that listening to the first track "Introduction" on Chicago's first album "Chicago Transit Authority" (1969) had changed his life. Watching the video above of Spectrum performing "In The Space" and hearing the recorded version a few times now, I don't really have any particular issues against the band or the song although I can naturally hear the influences, whether it be EW&F, Chicago or the Brecker Brothers. And certainly, the folks in the audience didn't mind and neither have the commenters. As with "Tomato Ippatsu", "In The Space" was written by Yasuhito Miyashita（宮下康仁）and composed/arranged by Spectrum.

The other benefit of coming across "In The Space", however indirectly, was also being able to listen to the earliest version of Chicago through "Introduction" since my own introduction to the famous band was through their 1980s pop balladry with Peter Cetera. Quite a different time and sound.