CHARA/HALCALI -- Yasashii Kimochi (やさしい気持ち)

As often as I have mentioned about the Tetsuya Komuro（小室哲哉）boom and Shibuya-kei happening during the 1990s, I also should state that J-Pop back then was also about a return to strumming guitar pop-rock. The late 1980s and early 1990s had their Eurobeat and synths (which I also liked) but it was nice when bands like Spitz and Mr. Children came in with their more organic sound. As I mentioned in my first article about the singer-songwriter CHARA, I never became a huge fan of hers but for the songs that got onto the charts and therefore onto music programs like "Countdown TV", I believe that she also contributed to that down-to-earth sound to a certain extent as well.

That first article, by the way, was for "Swallowtail Butterfly" by Yen Town Band (1996) which was a huge hit for CHARA. The one other song that has sealed itself into my memories of her is "Yasashii Kimochi" (Kind Feelings) which was released almost a year after "Swallowtail Butterfly" under her true geimei.

Different in tone from the earthy "Swallowtail Butterfly", "Yasashii Kimochi" had that rather spacey feeling to it; that air was further enhanced by those quintessentially whispery vocals of the singer who wrote, composed and arranged her 14th single from April 1997. The song and the original music video seemed to have been up on the charts for months on end. Excerpts of that distinctive video were always being shown on "Countdown TV" and "Music Station" with CHARA shown in different costumes by a carousel. She was absolutely striking in her guises. Unfortunately that video doesn't seem to be allowed to be shown on YouTube outside of Japan but an alternate video labeled the Special Kiss version is right above...mind you, sans CHARA.

With that spacey melody and the intriguing video, I had wondered what "Yasashii Kimochi" was all about. Looking at her lyrics, I realized that it was about a woman inviting a man to love her without having to put on any attitude. The big line is "te wo tsunagou..."（手をつなごう...Let's hold hands）. For the longest time, because of her soft and whispery delivery, I had assumed that she was saying "Sayyy, hello!" which was also inviting but also not accurate. Indeed I now stand corrected.

Although "Yasashii Kimochi" didn't hit the No. 1 spot like "Swallowtail Butterfly", it was still a smash hit when it peaked at No. 7, going Double Platinum. But like that song, it also earned a spot on the annual Top 100 when it ranked in at No. 56. Not surprisingly, this will probably be the trademark song for CHARA, and to date, it is her most successful single.

(Sorry but the video has been taken down)

In 2009, the Okinawan singing and dancing duo HALCALI did their own cover of "Yasashii Kimochi" titled "Re: Yasashii Kimochi". It was a light rapping tribute without any dancing.

Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra & CHARA -- Sapphire no Hoshi （サファイアの星）

Perhaps I can invent a new J-Pop genre right here: skayo (ska + kayo). Not sure if some enterprising journalist has already come up with the name but I think Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra's "Sapphire no Hoshi" (The Star of Sapphire) could become a representative entry. For some reason, listening to TSPO's 29th single from February 2006 just has this feeling for me of ska overlaying an old-fashioned 60s Japanese pop song.

That's some breathiness by guest vocalist CHARA for "Sapphire no Hoshi". She sounds like skates gliding on ice while the Orchestra provides some fine mellow music for a Monday night. No matter the venue...in an intimate underground nightclub or a huge stadium under a night sky, the song sounds just like you want keep on sipping on a cocktail for the rest of the evening with a significant other.

Band keyboardist Yuichi Oki（沖祐市）composed the song with saxophonist Atsushi Yanaka（谷中敦） providing the lyrics. "Sapphire no Hoshi" managed to get as high as No. 16 on Oricon and is included on Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra's 12th album, "Wild Peace" from June 2006 which peaked at No. 2 on the album charts. The single was also the 2nd of a trio of duets of which the finale was TSPO's duet with Hiroto Komoto（甲本ヒロト）, "Hoshi Furu Yoru ni"（星降る夜に）.

Yen Town Band -- Swallowtail Butterfly ~ Ai no Uta （あいのうた）

The singer CHARA was a pretty big presence in the early years of my second long-term stay in Japan, but I never really became a big fan of hers for some reason. However, I always remembered her breathy voice and those somewhat Betty Boop looks.

However, there was one ballad that of hers that remains a musical counterpoint in my memories of my life overseas. That was "Swallowtail Butterfly ~ Ai no Uta" (A Love Song) that came out in July 1996. It was the theme song for a Shunji Iwai（岩井俊二）film, "Swallowtail" about life in a future dystopian Japan that also starred the singer-songwriter in the role of a Chinese prostitute. The song was also released not under her usual nom de plume but under the name Yen Town Band in homage to the nickname of the movie's Tokyo. Although I never caught the film, it and the song got a lot of attention at the time.... also enough for me to buy the CD. According to her J-Wiki article, CHARA was labeled partly as an alternative rock singer, and at least for this ballad, it had that languid exotic sound that was atypical during the time of Tetsuya Komuro's（小室哲哉）reign atop the Oricon charts and even Shibuya-kei.

"Swallowtail Butterfly" was written by CHARA, the director Iwai and Takeshi Kobayashi（小林武史）, who was helping out bands Spitz and My Little Lover at the time. Kobayashi also took care of composing duties here. A couple of months after its release, it hit the top spot on Oricon and later became the 26th-ranked song of the year.

Personally, the song has attached itself to my memory of going up to a friend's house in the student district of Takadanobaba for a dinner party one Saturday night. I remember the walk from Takadanobaba Station being particularly long since that friend wanted to keep his rent as low as possible so the long trek was the sacrifice made. He must have played the song on his stereo, but at the time, the 1996 Atlanta Olympics were also on the telly, so there was a rather interesting contrast seeing all the rabid sports activity while this laid-back ballad was playing over the speakers.