Kingo Hamada -- N.Y. City Marathon

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Well, if you're looking for a City Pop song that has anything to do with one of New York City's biggest sporting events, this is your lucky day! Personally, the last time I was in anything like a marathon was more than forty years ago when I attempted the half-marathon at the Toronto Zoo in 1982, several months after this single had been released, and I ended up taking one of the longest baths that I've ever had hours later.

But enough about misery. "N.Y. City Marathon" was Hamada's 4th single from November 1981 and it was written by Chinfa Kan（康珍化）while Hamada himself composed the tune. Those first several seconds had me wondering if I was going to get some Rolling Stones raunch but then also hearing that Fender Rhodes and Hamada's creamy vocals reassured me that City Pop's arrival was as inevitable as that winning runner across the finish line. And while he sings about life in the Big Apple, we get that Billy Joel piano chugging followed by a sweeping and romantic pre-chorus and then a grand trumpet solo. Just like a trip through Manhattan, a little bit of everything comes flying our way in this song.

"N.Y. City Marathon" is also the first track on Hamada's 3rd album "Feel the Night" from November 1981 as well, and so it shares track space with the jazz torch ballad "Jazz Singer" and the cool and sinewy Steely Dan-esque "Run Thru The Night".