Casiopea -- Looking Up

 

I had a cousin and her children tell me that they had recently returned from a Caribbean cruise a few weeks ago, something that my family has done in the past. Considering some of the encroaching glumness in the weather up here in Canada, I wouldn't be surprised if most Canadians have already made their reservations to flee to the sunnier climes down south from Fort Lauderdale and beyond. 

Well, I certainly can't afford a cruise right now but perhaps I can live vicariously through audio, and one vehicle for that would be the first track on fusion band Casiopea's April 1983 album "Photographs". "Looking Up" hopefully hints at that meaning of things looking up and it sure sounds like it. We first get some fast-moving boogie led by some champagne-and-caviar keyboards as if some folks are racing toward the port and their ship to heavenly fun for a week. Looks like "Looking Up" was also meant to be a good ol' jam session with the electric guitar then taking over for a bit. The passengers are on board and the tempo decreases just a tad as it feels like the cruise has begun and everyone is celebrating with a welcome drink aboard some sophistication. But then, the speed picks up once more as the ship goes further seabound. 

Dang! That's a lot of stuff going on musically for a track that lasts a medium-length tune of not even four minutes and a half. My compliments to composer and band leader Issei Noro（野呂一生）for the ride.