Happy Saturday...and no...not Merry Xmas. I realize that we are still 9 months away from another Yuletide celebration but yesterday I was listening to Scott's "Holly Jolly X'mas" podcast and the subject there was singer-songwriter Iruka's（イルカ）"Bohemia no Mori kara"（ボヘミアの森から...From The Bohemian Forest） from November 1977.
The thing about "Bohemia no Mori kara" is that it was Iruka's first Xmas-themed album and there is one song there that got my attention immediately. The track "Mama no O-sara" (Mom's Dishes) checks all of the boxes about the Xmas songs that I have liked in the past: it's jazzy, happy and it brings all of the wonderful memories of childhood during the Holiday season (I can smell the nutmeg and cinnamon right now). Written and composed by the singer, Iruka is happily celebrating the fact that not only does December contain Christmas but also her birthday (December 3rd) and that she always cherished a couple of theme plates of the season. Perhaps it's no surprise then that the room that I think about when this song is playing in my head is the kitchen.
Until Scott told me about the album, I'd had no idea that Iruka had even put out an Xmas album in 1977. That was the year that she also released the single "Ame no Monogatari"（雨の物語）, the very first Iruka song that I had ever heard and one of the tunes that made me realize that Japanese popular music was more than aidoru, enka and YMO. So, many thanks to Scott!🎄
I'm glad you liked it. It's a great album!
ReplyDelete