Akihiko Matsumoto -- CX

 

This was kinda of a sudden decision for tonight but I just listened to the video a few minutes ago and I also realized that this year is the 25th anniversary of the debut of Fuji-TV's long-running cop franchise "Odoru Dai Sosasen"（踊る大捜査線）. It was a pretty landmark series when it debuted in January 1997 since previous Japanese dramas regarding policemen had tended to have plenty of hard-bitten detectives shooting off their guns all over the place when in reality, if one patrolling policeman even fired off one shot that missed, it would most likely make the top of the news cycle for at least a couple of days.

If I'm not mistaken, I read that the producers behind "Odoru Dai Sosasen" wanted to make a cop comedy-drama that wasn't about blasting away with weaponry. In fact, gunshots were exceedingly rare to non-existent all throughout the series, specials and motion pictures. Nope, the guys at the Bayside Precinct tended to deal with territorial issues and political obstacles in the way of good honest policing.

(31:56)

Back in the early days of the blog, I did write about the soundtrack of "Odoru Dai Sosasen". As I've pointed out in the past, a good soundtrack and composer are like the 10th man on a baseball team when it comes to any drama on TV or movie. The music enhances but doesn't overpower the scenes or the characters. Plus, the tracks are memorable in their own right. I think that Akihiko Matsumoto（松本晃彦）, the man behind the score for the original 1997 series created and gathered together quite the eclectic pieces of music for this particular soundtrack which is why I bought it and two other soundtracks.

One track that I hadn't included was "CX". In the 2013 article for the soundtrack, I included the techno version of "CX" since that was the one on the CD, and that was fun in itself. However, I'd never mentioned about the original and grand orchestral version that also popped up frequently during the various parts of the franchise. It is the main theme for the Tokyo police and is done like a march to commemorate the daily lives of those who have opted to serve and protect the populace. Not sure, but I believe if anyone ever tried to hum "CX", most folks would happily blurt out "Odoru Dai Sosasen" as often they would if they heard the opening theme of "Rhythm and Police".

I was tickled pink with nostalgia when I discovered that "CX" and "Rhythm and Police" have been used as the station chimes for Tokyo Teleport Station near Fuji-TV headquarters in Odaiba where "Odoru Dai Sosasen" was filmed. I just want to march off the subway and up the stairs outside.😁