Anzen Chitai -- V (Harmony, Side 2)

 

In a way, I guess, the whole thing about the Anzen Chitai（安全地帯）"V" album writeups has taken about a decade to complete if I include the very first KKP article that I wrote on the original multi-LP December 1986 album by Koji Tamaki（玉置浩二）and his band back in July 2012. But, practically speaking, I only decided to do a "clean-up" on "V" from last July following that first article and then individual articles on various tracks within the album. 

And so, we've come to the final side of that multi-LP, Side 2 of "Harmony", following Side 1 back in February. Sure enough, I have already covered the first and final tracks on that side, the bromantic "Natsu no Owari no Harmony" (夏の終わりのハーモニー）and the Tamaki epic "To Me" (on that first KKP article) respectively, so it's just three more tracks to take a look at, all of which provide some more of that pop, rock and blues that have populated the rest of the records.

Following that brotherly duet involving Tamaki and Yosui Inoue（井上陽水）on "Natsu no Owari no Harmony", things shift dramatically to the sly and sinewy and maybe even slightly creepy "Tenshi no Akubi"（天使のあくび...An Angel's Yawn）. A combination of a plucky guitar and some weirdly stringy synthesizers embellish the singer's covetous vocals about an angel that he sees at another café table looking rather ennui-laden. I'm unsure whether Tamaki's character is planning to make a move on her or simply enjoy being the voyeur.

Track 3 is "Moetsukiru made"（燃えつきるまで...Until It All Burns） which also has its dark and tempting undertones like "Tenshi no Akubi" but it gets back to the familiar and uptempo Anzen Chitai sound. Still, Tamaki seems to be the handsome spider trying to lure the pretty fly into something very dangerous in the web. It's one of the most familiar tracks on the entire album for me, and I've always liked the coda with the percussion and the synths smacking away as if it's acting like a "Stay tuned..." card following a particularly suspense-filled episode.

"Moetsukiru made" shifts suddenly into "Yume ni nare"（夢になれ...Become the Dream）, and the slow-burning tension explodes into what sounds like an exciting escape into freedom via the freeway. Tamaki and company including the horn section go into Soar mode as Goro Matsui's（松井五郎）lyrics describe a man taking a woman he loves out for the biggest night on the town and yet she isn't quite aware of his feelings. She's simply happy to dance the night away. Hope he doesn't have to use the Platinum card.

I just had to include the concert footage of "Yume ni nare". Not sure whether any of the women in the audience threw their undergarments at Tamaki a la Tom Jones, although I think that would be considered horribly unhygienic in Japan

Of course, the finale of "To Me" (which is also included in the final video above) brings the entirety of "V" to a big end with the arrangement and the singer's near tear-rending vocals. With a simple "Arigato", Tamaki has indeed left the house. Similarly, I will finish "V" here. Just to remind folks, the LP was at No. 1 for two weeks straight and became the 7th-ranked album of 1987.