Never quite imagined singer-actress Arisa Mizuki（観月ありさ）as being part of the City Pop crowd. However, I found her song in a 1990s City Pop compilation the other day, and I was lucky enough to find a YouTube video which had it on its own.
"Pitter Patter" is the penultimate track on Mizuki's 4th album "Cute" from July 1995. I'm not sure whether I would categorize it as a City Pop tune per se but it does have that nice rhythm of 1970s rubbery soul. That is thanks to lyricist and composer Royal Mirror Ball, otherwise known as Hokkaido songwriter and producer Hiroshi Matsui（松井寛）. I do like his addition of that rich piano playing in there.
The expression "pitter patter" usually has me thinking of toddlers and babies making their way about on the floor, but in this case, "Pitter Patter" is all about a cynical man who no longer thinks of himself as one of the good guys in romance until a chance meeting with one lady changes things 180 degrees. Perhaps the title is hinting at an eventual future of a bigger family.
For a moment I thought your text was about Mikiko Noda's "Cute" and was very confused. Both album's covers feature the same typography and general "idea", I guess, and they were released just a couple of years apart. I wonder if there's something else in common (Noda's one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8gx3oOBccM).
ReplyDeleteHello, Souza. This could go into the category of "Things that make me go Hmmmm....". They are three years apart with Noda's "Cute" having been released in 1992 and produced by at least a few members of Moonriders. It's also likely that the aforementioned Royal Mirror Ball had taken care of Mizuki's "Cute" but not 100% sure about that one.
ReplyDeleteBTW, thanks for letting me know about Noda's "Cute". That first track is great!