Yuko Kanai -- Morning Air

 

Ah, yes...that is a photo of my first full day back in Tokyo on November 4th 2017. I took the shot of the R&B Hotel in Otsuka. If I'm not mistaken, I was just taking a morning stroll around the area after having the complementary breakfast in the hotel. Certainly it was nice being back in the old city again.

Just the thing for me to put up an article on singer-songwriter Yuko Kanai's（金井夕子）"Morning Air" from her 2nd album "invitation" which came out in June 1979. The entirety of Side A was taken care of by the miracle tandem of lyricist Takashi Matsumoto and composer Kyohei Tsutsumi（松本隆・筒美京平）, and "Morning Air" is Track 2 of that side with veteran arranger Mitsuo Hagita（萩田光雄）working with the songwriters to provide some mature and sophisticated Resort Pop sensibilities to their contributions.

Sure enough, "Morning Air" feels like that refreshing walk around the hotel in the cool early morning although Matsumoto's lyrics describe a couple enjoying breakfast consisting of Tibetan tea and rye toast (quite the combination!) before having their own stroll in the neighbourhood. It's all very soothing to listen to, especially during these tense times. There were also quite a few known names helping out in the recording booth such as saxophonist Jake H. Concepcion and guitarist Masaki Matsubara（松原正樹）.

Now, I'm not sure whether Matsumoto and Kanai were referring to Tibetan Butter Tea, but have a look at how its made.