Almost a year ago, I added Gloria Gaynor's disco anthem "I Will Survive" onto the Reminiscings of Youth series. Starting from hearing it on those K-Tel disco compilation album commercials, it gradually entered my head in its entirety.
Little did I know at the time that there were Japanese covers done of "I Will Survive", both released in May 1979 under the same title of "Koi no Survival" (Survival of Love). Yoko Aso's（麻生よう子）cover was given Japanese lyrics by Konosuke Fuji（藤公之介）over the original melody by Freddie Perren and Dino Fekaris. The arrangement by Toshiyuki Kimori（木森敏之）seems to have mixed in a good dollop of kayo kyoku into the disco so that at points, I was wondering whether "Koi no Survival" was heading into country music territory. Aso certainly gives a lot of brio into her performance which got the single a No. 43 ranking on Oricon. Strangely enough, the B-side has the same song but with different lyrics also provided by Fuji.
Another singer with a lot of oomph in his voice is Akira Fuse（布施明）and he also provided that for his own cover of "I Will Survive" also under the same Japanese title. However, Fuse himself wrote the lyrics for his take with Tetsuji Hayashi（林哲司）arranging things into something closer to the Gaynor disco original. I also appreciate the sharp horns in there. Fuse's version reached No. 13 on Oricon and ended up as the 63rd-ranked single of the year.
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