TENDRE -- crave

 

These days, I don't really have cravings of any particular food anymore. If I can eat something, I will do so, and if I can't, well, that's the way it goes. But I don't go into a fetal position if I can no longer have a certain dish. Back in my Japan days, I had something like what the above photo is showing: a bowl of beef stir-fried with bean sprouts and garlic, all doused in ponzu. Goes great with rice, and I probably haven't had it in over a decade. C'est dommage!

The one other thing about cravings is that it made for a good conversation starter in my old English classes. One reason is that a lot of my students hadn't known what a craving was. When I explained it to them, I asked for what they craved in food and drink. The usual responses came in the form of comfort food such as hamburgers, chips and stuff. When I was younger, my big craving was for Chip Star (the Japanese equivalent of Pringles).

Well, I should get to a song. This is "crave" by singer-songwriter TENDRE (pronounced "tender") and it's a track on his December 2017 debut EP "Red Focus". I actually found the song in some YouTube Neo-City Pop compilation but hoping to find it by itself on the platform, I did hit pay dirt. TENDRE is also a multi-instrumentalist which includes the trumpet, piano and baritone saxophone, so I wouldn't be surprised if he handled all of the instruments here. It's a groovalicious treat for me with the keyboards, sax, bass and other instruments strutting their stuff on the streets of Tokyo. His harmonies also enhance the overall effect and remind me a bit of Sing Like Talking's Chikuzen Sato（佐藤竹善）.

TENDRE is actually Taro Kawahara（河原太朗）from Kanagawa Prefecture, and he comes from a music-oriented family. For instance, his father is jazz bassist Hideo Kawahara（河原秀夫）, and his mother is jazz singer Atsuko Kawahara（河原厚子）, so unsurprisingly, music rubbed off on young TENDRE and he was already handling those different instruments by the time he was in junior high school. In 2009, he formed the band ampel but was also working as a recording engineer and producer at the same time. According to J-Wiki, since 2018, he's released 7 digital download singles, 2 EPs including "Red Focus" and 2 full albums.