Off-Course feat. Taeko Ohnuki -- Uso to Uwasa（嘘と噂）

By Raita Futo via Wikimedia Commons

As they say out there, there are a million stories in the big city. Two of them may currently be entwined in a crisis spiral.

"Uso to Uwasa" (Lies & Rumours) is the final track on the band Off-Course's（オフコース）13th album "as close as possible" from March 1987. As the title hints at, it is a rather enigmatic song about a couple, perhaps a fairly famous one, who are going through tough times because of mistakes committed by at least one partner and what has been said about them. They are currently walking toward the harbour on a misty evening and it could be their final stroll together although there is no hint that anyone is going to take a permanent dive.

Written and composed by Kazumasa Oda（小田和正）and arranged by Off-Course, "Uso to Uwasa" had initially been meant to be sung by Oda alone but then decided that a female singer just had to tackle half of the lyrics. In the J-Wiki writeup on "as close as possible", Oda professed that he had wanted to find someone that he didn't usually work with, and so he approached singer-songwriter Taeko Ohnuki（大貫妙子）. And to be honest, I wouldn't have guessed that he and Ohnuki would ever work together during the 1980s since their styles seemed rather divergent. I think it would have been more likely in the 1970s when both artists were in the New Music mix.

But it all works marvelously here. Right from the synth bass (Ryuichi Sakamoto [坂本龍一] was handling the keyboards) launching things off which had my shoulders shimmying, both Oda and Ohnuki have those clear yet haunting vocals gracing an urban and urbane nocturnal melody which describes more of Oda's solo career style of music in the late 80s going into the early 90s rather than his band's style.

"Uso to Uwasa" was also incorporated into Ohnuki's BEST compilation "palette" from April 2009. As for "as close as possible", the album reached No. 2 on Oricon and ended up as the 42nd-ranked album of 1987.

Chikara Ueda & The Power Station -- Breeze in Memories

 

There's nothing like an old-fashioned Japanese cop program to show how things are probably not done in real-life law enforcement in Tokyo. But dang, it's crazy and cool at the same time. The above program was basically a one-and-done series titled "Keishichō Satsujin-ka"（警視庁殺人課...Metropolitan Police Department Homicide Division） that was broadcast between April and October 1981 on TV Asahi. The big thing about this one is that it starred the late actor Bunta Sugawara（菅原文太）, who had usually been getting cinematic roles as antiheroes and mobsters, before getting this good-guy role as Inspector Taro "Mister" Godai, a blood-and-guts police commander who had spent ten years with the NYPD before returning to Tokyo. Apparently, this was also Sugawara's first foray into television.

Last week, I posted a City Pop/jazzy number for the suspense "Inubue no Tehma"（犬笛のテーマ）by Yuji Ohno（大野雄二）, so I guess it might be becoming a thing for me to put up such tunes from law enforcement-based TV shows on Urban Contemporary Fridays. Chikara Ueda & The Power Station（上田力＆パワーステーション）were partially responsible for the soundtrack for "Keishichō Satsujin-ka" and in 1981, they released the soundtrack for the show simply titled "Mr." after the lead character.

One track is "Breeze in Memories" by the band which fits perfectly with the usual Japanese TV cop show. There is that feeling of the million stories in the big city along with some fervent jazz noodling via saxophone. I assume that "Breeze in Memories" was used as background music whenever Mister and one of his officers hit a nightclub for pleasure or a bust. Of course, I can also imagine the guys with tumblers of scotch in their hands during the same song, too.

Junko Yagami -- No!

 

I covered a number of tracks on the article for Junko Yagami's（八神純子）"Full Moon" way back in 2017, but not all of them. Perhaps it's time to take care of some of the remaining ones at least.

Yes to "No!". This was one track that was written and composed by Yagami for the 1983 album and it was arranged by Ichizo Seo（瀬尾一三）. It's pretty fun listening (especially with the repeated insistence of the title) so I was surprised that I hadn't included it in the writeup for "Full Moon" but still I'm happy to cover it now. I've categorized it as City Pop but it also has some of that synthesizer-and-guitar feel of New Wave. I think it could have also been included in my Author's Picks article for "Driving to City Pop" as Yagami sings about a woman who's enjoying a drive in her potential new steady's car...so much so that she won't entertain any questions about her romantic situation and premonitions from the guy right now. It's all about enjoying the present as much as possible before the inevitable heavy stuff has to be dealt with. I gather that the light and bouncy nature of "No!" is the proof in the pudding.

Platinum 900 -- 246

 

One of the most luxurious neighbourhoods in Tokyo is Shirokanedai（白金台）in Minato Ward. I was actually there once in my last few years there since a couple of students and I had lunch at a French restaurant in the area, and yep, I had to pull out the dark suit for that one. I can't remember the name of the place anymore but it was pretty chic and tasty. The waiter explained the nature and origins of each dish during our four-hour gastronomic odyssey. I don't ever recall being in any dining establishment for that length of time outside of wedding receptions.

Now, the reason I bring this up is that I had always wondered about the origin of the band name Platinum 900. HRLE92 posted the first article on the band back in 2020 when he posited that it was the most overlooked City Pop group. He did state that vocalist Naoko Sakata (坂田直子), guitarist and bassist Kazuhiko Nishimura (西村一彦), and keyboardist Hiroshi Iihoshi (飯星裕史) had started Platinum 900 in Tokyo (in 1994), and although I don't think that there was a J-Wiki article on them up at the time, there is one now. But as for that name, Nishimura finally gave an explanation on how they came to be called Platinum 900:

I want to aim for the kind of music a wealthy woman in her fifties—living in a detached house in Shirokanedai—might listen to on her Mark Levinson system in the living room... A "Chic Wealthy Lady" concept! From there, I’ll add "Platinum" to the name, and throw in "900" for good measure...

I have to admit that Nishimura had quite the ambitious thoughts stirring about in his head. So, according to him, the rich ladies had a thing for some sunny side music that did a toe dance between the genres of 90s City Pop and Shibuya-kei. OK, I can go for that. Now to further break down what he'd said, the word "shirokane"（白金）in Shirokanedai can mean "platinum" (although according to Jisho.org, the kanji is usually read as "hakkin"), so there is the first part of the band name right there, and as he said, he decided on the number 900 for some reason.

Then what I have here from Platinum 900's first maxi-single "missing star" from July 1998 can be considered to be the prototypical Platinum 900 song. "246", which was created by all of the band members, has got all of the elements: sunny side, Shibuya-kei and City Pop. And although I couldn't get all of the lyrics, I'm gathering that the title stands for Highway 246 which runs through several wards in Tokyo including the aforementioned Minato Ward before heading out through Kanagawa and Shizuoka Prefectures. I can imagine that a drive there would be quite pleasant.

I also have to remark how Sakata's vocals remind me of the singing of Chisato Moritaka（森高千里）from those velvet tones and also because of the type of song "246" is which sounds similar to the type of music that the latter lady was tackling at around the same time.

Casiopea -- Dazzling

 

Yesterday, my Twitter feed showed me something which led me to a page on InterFM, a radio station in Japan, and I gather that the staffers there had a chance to interview fellow Torontonian and far more charismatic and talented singer and musician The Weeknd. The Weeknd apparently has his own love of Japanese pop music and he offered a playlist he has enjoyed which includes Hiromi Go's（郷ひろみ）"Kimi no Na wa Psycho"（君の名はサイコ）from 1983. That shouldn't be too surprising considering that a few years ago, he was more than happy to sample a piece of Tomoko Aran's（亜蘭知子） "Midnight Pretenders".

Another song from that year of 1983 that was also on his playlist: fusion band Casiopea's（カシオペア）"Dazzling" from their 9th studio album "Photographs". He loves to listen to his playlist whenever he's in Tokyo (wonder how many times he's been there) and "Dazzling" is a nice fit. Composed by Casiopea guitarist Issei Noro（野呂一生）, it's got that fun-loving atmosphere of a night out on the town; if it's Tokyo, then let's head out to Shinjuku, Roppongi or Ginza (Odaiba was yet to be created). Noro has his time to show how he fiddles on his guitar but the rest of the band (including vocalists) also have their turn to wang chung the night away via their instruments. A truly dazzling time can be had by all.

TPO Meets Linda Masters -- Rock the Hour

From Discogs

Well, if I'm going to jump and burrow down a rabbit hole, why not do it on a sunny Sunday afternoon? Plus, I also gotta shake off the post-lunch narcolepsy. All this began became I was scrounging around to sate my curiosity on other Japanese technopop bands; one can't survive simply on YMO alone. Then I found this 2025 album titled "Techno Kayō Vol. 1 - Japanese Techno Pop 1981 - 1989" which was produced in the Netherlands.

One track tugged at my ears and it was called "Rock the Hour" from the 1985 album "Linda". This was a collaboration that went by the moniker TPO Meets Linda Masters (getta load of that big 80s hair!). Neither band nor singer were familiar to me; from Gemini, I found out that Masters was an American chanteuse who was active in the 1980s synthpop and Hi-NRG scene, especially via Japan. TPO may have stood for Tiny Panx Organization and it was also active during the 1980s. Their membership included keyboardist Taku Iwasaki（岩崎工）who was involved with the technopop band FILMS and then much later got into the soundtrack for the 2013 anime "Gatchaman Crowds".

"Rock the Hour" isn't rock at all but it is a fascinating and catchy blend of City Pop and technopop with Masters' plaintive vocals that often get into some nice jazzy harmonies. It was noted that TPO had wanted to bridge the gap between YMO's technopop and the 80s dancefloor stuff, and "Rock the Hour" has been provided as one big example of this bridge. Plus, for all those pop culture nostalgia buffs, there is plenty of music (including orchestral hits) from those old-fashioned synths and drum machines. As well, I do love the design of the cover. The Memphis Group would be so proud.

Yuji Ohno -- Inubue no Tehma（犬笛のテーマ）

From Amazon.jp

Back in late July, I posted an article regarding the late Yuji Ohno's（大野雄二）"Wavelet"（ウエイブリット）, which was the B-side to "Inubue no Tehma" (The Theme for "Inubue"). "Inubue" (Dog Whistle) was the 1978 TV adaptation of a suspense novel by Jugou Nishimura（西村寿行）about a man and his faithful dog who track down the kidnappers who grabbed his kid. Considering that most of the show took place in the woods, I was surprised that something so jazzy and City Poppy could be applied to something like this.

I did mention in that article that I would have a posting about the A-side in August. Well once again, I broke that promise which means you folks shouldn't trust what I write in terms of dates and I will never make such guarantees again. So, I ought to say something rather generic like "soon".

Anyways, "Inubue no Tehma" is another classy and refined instrumental by Ohno but I think there's also that hint of suspense in the arrangement as well (although there is also a hopeful-sounding "middle eight" section). Hearing it a few times now and perhaps adding a sharp horn section, this could have made for a fine opening for those Quinn Martin detective shows in the States back in the 1970s.

Night Drive

By Yudai_photography via Wikimedia Commons

Welcome to another Urban Contemporary Friday on "Kayo Kyoku Plus". I'm starting things a little differently today with an Author's Picks. I was inspired to do this one this way from actually viewing a segment on Wednesday's edition of NHK's "Asaichi"（あさイチ）morning infotainment program which focused on the Kawasaki Industrial Site.

I not only remember seeing this glittering otherworldly complex of lights and metal but for one night, I was actually within it! That night, due to a teacher falling ill, I was assigned to teach a lesson for a couple of the employees working within the complex and yep, it was pretty stunning especially when seeing it from the train. Entering the area felt like boarding the mother ship.

The Japanese tourism industry certainly didn't let the opportunity go. There are now tours on foot, bus and boat to take a look at the Kawasaki Industrial Site through selected spots. If you're interested, you can take a look at the relevant page at Japan Experience. Also, the above video is by YouTuber Hachimantai Outdoors.

The reason that I wanted to do this "Night Drive" is because seeing the Kawasaki Industrial Site from the air had me thinking of Kazumasa Oda's（小田和正）lovely ballad "Oh Yeah!". The official music video for Oda's 1991 song had couples enjoying each other's company but there were a couple of scenes in there showing some glorious eagle-view night shots of Tokyo which stayed with me.

Now, to be honest, this Author's Picks isn't something unprecedented. I've already noted "Oh Yeah!" in a 2014 article "J-Canuck's Nighttime Playlist". Plus in 2022, I whipped up "Driving to City Pop" with its cool songs. So, consider "Night Drive" to be the love child of the two articles and I will be choosing different tunes that still reflect in my opinion, the nighttime drive experience in Tokyo, Yokohama, Osaka, etc. (although of course, you may have your own choices). Furthermore, another inspiration for this one is the old "Night Ride" 1980s late-night Toronto show that appeared almost every night in the wee hours on Global Television to relax those night owls.

(1976) Yuming -- Chuo Freeway（中央フリーウェイ） 

(1982) Yasuhiro Abe -- We Got It!

(1982) Tohoku Shinkansen -- Up and Down

(1984) Anzen Chitai -- Mayonaka Sugi no Koi （真夜中すぎの恋）

(1985) Akina Nakamori -- Lonely Journey （ロンリー・ジャーニー）

(1987) Kahoru Kohiruimaki -- City Hunter: Ai yo Kienai de （愛よ消えないで）

Strangely enough, I'm already getting entries in my head for "Night Drive 2". Maybe next month. In the meantime, you can also enjoy "Night Walk".

Sweet Sweet Sweet by Dreams Come True

Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is the coolest video games of all time.

This is not up for debate.

I'm sure some of you will call me biased because Sonic the Hedgehog 2 for the Sega Genesis—or Mega Drive, if you measure things in kilometers—was the first video game I ever played.

However, you're just wrong.

Listen, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 had everything a good game should have: great graphics, exciting levels, an excuse to bully your little brother by making him play as Tails, plus it makes great Julian Fries. most importantly, it has great music.

Sonic is notoriously famous for its fantastic soundtracks, but Sonic 2 easily ranks among my top ten video game soundtracks of all time.

From the exciting, disco energy of "Emerald Hill Zone," to the jazzy swagger of "Casino Night Zone," to the strange & cryptic funk of "Mystic Cave Zone," the soundtrack delivers on all fronts.

But the track that has always stuck with me the most is the song that plays right after you beat the game.

Once you defeat Dr. Eggman for the final time and skydive out of the Death Egg—from space, mind you—the sequence that follows was probably one of the most satisfying moments of my childhood.

And the whole thing is accentuated by the triumphant melody of the ending theme.

Now here's the fun part. 

The composer of the first two Sonic games, Masato Nakamura (中村正人), just so happened to be a member of the enormously popular J-Pop band Dreams Come True.

And to top it all off, some of Nakamura's Sonic melodies would eventually find their way into Dreams Come True's own repertoire.

Case in point: "Sweet Sweet Sweet," featured on their 1992 album The Swinging Star.

The song is essentially the Sonic 2 ending theme transformed into a full-fledged J-Pop ballad, complete with lyrics and a much more elaborate arrangement.

And somehow, it works perfectly.

The album version almost feels like a wedding anthem, especially with all those bells ringing in the background. The melody still feels very triumphant like the game version, but with the addition to Dorikamu's signature ballad stylings and Miwa Yoshida's wonderful voice, suddenly it becomes warm, sentimental, and romantic.

Rediscovering Sweet Sweet Sweet outside the context of Sonic felt pretty satisfying. It was the perfect recreation of my childhood.

Then, in 2006...they ruined it.

2006 was not a good year for Sonic, as most fans already know. Sonic the Hedgehog for PS3 and XBOX had just release, famously just called Sonic 06, to polarized fanfare. After playing the game for myself, there are a few things that I can forgive it for...but this remix is not one of them.

Look How They Massacred My Boy

Who thought this was a good idea!? I'm not sure when this trend began, but not everything needs a hip hop remix. To top it off, they got Akon to do weird vocal fill-ins for the song. I'm not familiar with the Senegalese-American singer, outside of his philanthropic work in Africa (which I commend him for), but if this song is anything to go off of, I'll pass on his discography. I'm not kidding when I say this version is annoying to listen to. they might as well have went all out and put DJ Khaled on the track to shout "WE DA BEST MUSIC" at the top of his lungs. 

I'm sure there's somebody out there that has nostalgia for this version, it's just not me. If you want to hear how it's supposed to sound, go check out Dorikamu's best album, The Swinging Star. Or even better, go play Sonic 2!

Hatsumi Shibata -- Mou Ichido Kikasete（もう一度聞かせて）

 

Finishing off this Friday's take on Urban Contemporary songs on KKP, I've decided to go with something mellow and older...maybe the aural equivalent of good scotch. And I found this one not from the City Pop guides above as you might think, but from a YouTube City Pop compilation video.

However, I was happy to find the song all by itself in a separate video, so I will go with that. This is "Mou Ichido Kikasete" (Please Play it Again) by the late singer-songwriter Hatsumi Shibata（しばたはつみ）. Written by Shibata and composed by Yuji Ohno（大野雄二）, it's got that wonderful flute, the bluesy guitar and the splendid harmonies provided by the singer and others. 

It's been around three years since I've had Shibata up on the blog, so I'm glad to have found this lovely example of 70s City Pop which was recorded onto Shibata's November 1975 2nd album "Singer Lady"（シンガー・レディ）. There's also a goodly amount of soul in "Mou Ichido Kikasete" which reminds me a bit of Minnie Ripperton's music. 

Natsu Summer -- Pretty in Summer

夏-red by Muke Dever 

From what I've read, Autumn 2026 officially arrives on September 22nd, so we've got about another 18 days left to enjoy the hot season. Hopefully, a lot of that can be done over the Labour Day long weekend here in North America.

Something to have with your cocktail is singer Natsu Summer's "Pretty in Summer" which was a 2024 release. Written and composed by Ryusenkei's（流線形）Cunimondo Takiguchi（クニモンド瀧口）, the song follows the singer's style of mixing Neo-City Pop and reggae for a most relaxing number. Enjoy this with a really potent rum punch. 🍹If you would like to listen to another collaboration by the two, there is always "Twilight Shadow" from 2022.

Tomita Lab feat. Kirinji -- Kaori to Kage（香りと影）

 

I used to get a kick (no pun intended) out of watching those ancient Hai Karate commercials where the "poor" wearer of the cologne has to revert to his sudden martial arts abilities to fend off Valerie Leon. The above ad is the one that I do remember seeing as a child. As an addendum, I've never bought the stuff (if it even still exists today) so I don't really know how potent it is.

Hai Karate was what I remembered when I heard this track from Tomita Lab's（富田ラボ）2003 "Shipbuilding" album. "Kaori to Kage" (Scent and Shadows) was another songwriting collaboration between Tomita Lab and Kirinji（キリンジ）as a man seems to go crazy with obsession (again, no pun intended) when he picks up on the scent of a woman in an elevator. Hopefully, he didn't go too far in his pursuit, olfactory or otherwise, of the lass. Still, the song has this fun and cheerful mild funk arrangement that could span the 1970s into the 1980s. It could even fit as a theme song for a rollicking rom-com in Japan. Hey, nice little piano jazz in the middle, too.

Back in the old days, I was rather miserly when I posted KKP articles regarding albums and that was true with the original article on "Shipbuilding" although I have tried to make amends by providing articles based on specific tracks from the album in the years since such as Yuming's（ユーミン）contribution to "Shipbuilding", "God Bless You!". By the way, I don't think I've ever seen the commercial below.

Saki Kubota -- Ku-gatsu no Iro（九月の色）

 

In this currently uncommentable environment as I mentioned in the last announcement, again I apologize for the inconvenience and hope things improve shortly. However, I also have to mention that some time over the last 48 hours, "Kayo Kyoku Plus" has been able to garner 25 million views in the nearly fifteen years that it's been up and running, so I along with Kayo Grace and Mr. Calico would like to thank you for all of the viewings, comments and discussions since 2012.

And what more appropriate article is there than Saki Kubota's（久保田早紀）"Ku-gatsu no Iro" (The Colour of September) considering where and when we are in the calendar year? A track on the singer-songwriter's third album November 1980 "Saudade" (the one that starts off with Kubota's big hit "Ihojin"（異邦人）from 1979), it's quite the spirited City Pop tune spritzed with a generous amount of Latin disco thanks to the singer's words and music along with Mitsuo Hagita's（萩田光雄）arrangement. I also think the song also has that feeling of early 1970s American drama soundtrack dealing with the footloose-and-fancy-free jet set.

The Firsts (Mariya, Tatsuro, Akina, EW&F, EPO)

 

Good heavens! It's September already! Time sure has flown in 2026. But as it is, autumn is just around the corner, school will be starting up again here and NHK will officially announce that the Kohaku Utagassen will be broadcast once more on December 31st. Ironically, though, for a summer that really hasn't been all that blazing hot this year in Toronto, today's been a really hazy and humid affair. But no worries, things will cool down by this long weekend.

Anyways, I'm dusting off the KKP category of The First once again. I began this one with "The First -- J-Canuck" almost a decade ago with a rambling recounting of some of the first Japanese songs that I heard and then a few years later, I posted "The Firsts by J-Canuck" where I selected some of my other firsts via genre. Other writers on the blog have also chimed in with their firsts.

Well, being whimsical me and acknowledging the fact that today is September 1st, I've decided to put up some of the first songs I heard by five artists. I also acknowledge that I'm putting up a couple of examples of "September" since I'm so shamelessly enthralled by them nearly fifty years following their release, but I'll defend myself with Blog Founder's Prerogative. 

(1978) Earth Wind & Fire -- September

Yup, this was my first exposure to the legendary guys at Earth Wind & Fire thanks to my pink SONY radio. I always wondered why these guys were so funkily devoted to the ninth month of the year but the disco and the dancing kept distracting my (soul) train of thought. I hope the guys at Area 51 have another great time this year, too.

(1979) Mariya Takeuchi -- September

The whole Mariya Takeuchi（竹内まりや）thing began with this song on "Sounds of Japan". It put my whole impression of aidoru voices in a different perspective because up until this tune, I'd thought that female Japanese singers had to sing up in the ionosphere. I actually thought Mariya was Mario for a few days because her vocals were so low. As the years and decades have passed, I've come to realize that her "September" is pretty unique: a combination of 50s/60s girl pop, a bit of disco and contemporary pop.

(1983) Akina Nakamori -- Kinku （禁区）

I always remember my first and for Akina Nakamori（中森明菜）, it was "Kinku". I hadn't known anything about the singer or the image that her handlers had wanted to convey (misunderstood punk student) or the fact that the song was an example of techno aidoru music. At the time, it struck me as being this enigmatic and dramatic tune sung by a teenage girl whose vocals also went down to the basement.

(1983) EPO -- U, Fu, Fu, Fu, (う、ふ、ふ、ふ）

If EPO had actually gone with her first choice for a career path which was (I believe) a gym teacher, she would have had her young charges whipped into shape with that boomer voice of hers. Thankfully for me and the rest of her fans, she has used her vocals to provide brightness and spark into the music sphere. Her surrounding musical arrangement has frequently followed suit. "U, Fu, Fu, Fu" may come off as one of the most unusual titles in Japanese pop, but the entire song can have the power to transport listeners to happy and joyful 80s Tokyo.

(1990) Tatsuro Yamashita -- Endless Game

Indeed, it was neither "Christmas Eve" nor any of his City Pop classics that served as the introduction to Tatsuro Yamashita's（山下達郎）works. It was the theme song to the 1990 TBS drama "Yuwaku"（誘惑）that caught my ear due to its class and moodiness...and that trombone! Who was bringing a trombone solo into a late 80s pop tune? It wasn't City Pop per se but it sure was urban and urbane.

Yuko Shibuya -- Sail Away

 

Tokyo Cheapo on YouTube has presented the wonders of Odaiba (Rainbow Town) on Tokyo Bay. I've been to the area many times while I was living in Japan and it's chock-filled with stores, restaurants and places to see. But what makes things rather sobering is what is written on every signboard talking about Odaiba in Odaiba: if there's a huge Shindo 7 earthquake, the ground will tend to liquefy because the area is built on reclaimed land and garbage. Enjoy your visit!

It does make me wonder what that area by Tokyo Bay looked like back at the turn of the decade going from the 1970s to the 1980s. Was it basically like Toronto by Lake Ontario at around the same time when there was nothing but industrial factories and millions of dead fish floating on the water? Well, many years later, the waterfront of my hometown became the tourist spot of Harbourfront and obviously Odaiba popped up for Tokyo also as this very attractive place to live and visit.

At that turn of the decade, singer-songwriter Yuko Shibuya（渋谷祐子）released her 1980 album "Made in Japan", an LP that I've referred to a few times already including for one track "5AM wa Violet Pink de"（5AMはバイオレット・ピンクで）. I also have this track from "Made in Japan" titled "Sail Away" which is this welcoming City Pop song with flying disco strings as Shibuya invites listeners to take off on a pleasant tropical cruise with her. As the strings do a whirlwind effect at the end, there's even a trombone solo to bring some of that old-fashioned romance into the proceedings. Shibuya provided the melody while Machiko Ryu（竜真知子）was the lyricist.

Penthouse -- Koi Suru Kamisama（恋する神様）

 

When I was listening and reading up on this song, my mind made its own associations and my brain materialized that summer pastime in Japan, going to the rooftop beer garden among the skyscrapers. I'm basically a teetotaler but I had been to a few of these with friends and there is something appealing about having a mug and fried chicken under the stars. By the way, the above was provided by Samurai Junjiro Channel.

I guess all this beer garden on the brain is due to me coming across this latest album by the City Soul band Penthouse's latest album "Neon Garden" which was released on July 29th this year. One of the tracks here is the rapid-fire "Koi Suru Kamisama" (God of Love) that was written by vocalists Shintaro Namioka（浪岡真太郎）and Maho Ohshima（大島真帆）and composed by Namioka. It's quite the sangria of genres: technopop, jazz, soul, City Pop and all that as a young lass is going a little crazy about falling for a guy and asking for divine help to get her out of a sticky situation. Unfortunately, the titular deity probably has to deal with tons of other people in similar circumstances.

Just to let folks know, the above is an official music video for "Koi Suru Kamisama" and not a creditless anime opening or closing sequence, although seeing how polished and adorable it is, I wouldn't be surprised if fans are wondering if there shouldn't be an anime created because of it. Apparently, the story played out here has a more self-assured couple than in the lyrics.

Dolly Parton -- 9 to 5

Wikimedia Commons

It's been a rather sad week for music fans overall. Last week, I posted a ZZ Top song for Reminiscings of Youth due to the passing of band drummer Frank Beard. And now in the last 48 hours, we've lost superstar Dolly Parton and the great Tim Curry, both at the age of 80. I'll be posting about both people today for a special double ROY.

I have mentioned this in past KKP articles but our family used to watch a fair bit of country music television decades ago including "Hee Haw" in America and "The Tommy Hunter Show" up here in Canada. And a number of times, we got to see the force of nature that was Dolly Parton in the 1970s. Yes, she jumped out on the stage like a particularly buxom Annie Oakley with the big hair and long nails, and even more than her music, she was able to win people over with that friendly charm that practically invited everyone over to her place for dinner and dancing.

And then at the turn of the decade, the 1980 movie "9 to 5" was released which starred Parton, Lily Tomlin and Jane Fonda as three harassed employees of a scummy boss played by Dabney Coleman. Sadly, I don't remember much from the film aside from Coleman getting his comeuppance and Tomlin's dream sequence which featured her as Snow White. However, what has remained with me up to now is the upbeat and surprisingly short theme song by Parton herself. "9 to 5" hit the record store shelves in November 1980 and I remember it for the singer's happy-go-lucky vocals, the intrepid pounding piano and Parton's nails clacking away like a typewriter. 

"9 to 5" hit the top of the charts in both Canada and the United States. It was nominated for Best Original Song at the Oscars and three other awards at the Grammys. I also saw that even Buckingham Palace paid tribute to Parton with the King's Guard providing their own version of the song. I offer my condolences to Parton's family, friends and fans.

The song was released on November 3rd 1980 so what was hitting the top of the Oricon chart on that day?

1. Seiko Matsuda -- Kaze wa Aki Iro （風は秋色）

2. Toshihiko Tahara -- Hatto Shite! Good （ハッとして!Good）

3. Junko Yagami -- Purpletown (パープルタウン）You Oughta Know By Now

One Way or The Other by Fifth Avenue Band (1969)

You've probably heard this story before, but back in 1975, a small band called Sugar Babe (シュガー・ベイブ) released their first and only album, SONGS. The record developed a cult following but didn't perform particularly well financially, and the band itself would break up the following year.

Its core members—Tatsuro Yamashita (山下達郎), Taeko Ohnuki (大貫妙子), and Kunio Muramatsu (村松邦男)—would go on to pursue successful solo careers, while SONGS became increasingly influential within the Japanese music scene and was eventually recognized as a classic many years later.

Ironically, much of Sugar Babe's sound owes a debt to another short-lived group from the late 1960s: The 5th Avenue Band.

It turns out that Yamashita and Ohnuki were huge fans of the band's mellow arrangements and vocal harmonies, and you can hear that influence all over Sugar Babe's music, particularly on songs like "Sutekina Melody"(すてきなメロディー) and, of course, "Downtown."

Obviously, Sugar Babe drew inspiration from plenty of other American groups, including The Beach Boys, The Righteous Brothers, and The Lovin' Spoonful. But one listen to The 5th Avenue Band's "One Way or the Other" suddenly puts everything into perspective.\

I understand it now.

Written by Kenny Altman, "One Way or the Other" is a groovy little bubblegum-pop track that honestly wouldn't sound out of place in The 5th Dimension's discography. Its acoustic-driven arrangement gives the song this wonderfully relaxed, weekend-drive kind of vibe—the same sort of breezy atmosphere that would later become such an important part of the City Pop sound.

Listening to the rest of The 5th Avenue Band's album, I wouldn't be surprised if other Japanese musicians like Shigeru Suzuki (鈴木茂) or Sentimental City Romance (センチメンタル・シティ・ロマンス) were influenced by this kind of music as well. There's something about its mixture of folk-rock,  soul, vocal harmony, and laid-back instrumentation that feels remarkably compatible with the direction Japanese pop music would begin taking during the mid-70s.

Thankfully, "One Way or the Other" has continued finding new listeners over the years, helped in no small part by Tatsuro Yamashita, who has frequently played the song on his radio program.

Kirinji feat. Tomomi Oda/Chiaki Takahashi & Azumi Asakura -- LEMONADE

From E4024 via Wikimedia Commons

How does that saying go? When life throws lemons at you, make lemonade!

Apparently, that is the premise for this track from Kirinji's（キリンジ）January 2026 album "Town Beat". The appropriately titled "LEMONADE" is the melodic elixir for all that ails you as prepared by Takaki Horigome（堀込高樹）and served by both him and singer-songwriter Tomomi Oda（小田朋美）in a nice tall glass with plenty of ice. The album also has another collaboration between the two, "Room Dancer"（ルームダンサー）, but unlike the Motown vibe of that one, "LEMONADE" has more of a fleet-footed Neo-City Pop/technopop feeling. At the same time, the harmonies and maybe some of the chords also have me thinking some Steely Dan as well.

When I looked at the J-Wiki article for "Town Beat", I also realized that "LEMONADE" was a cover of a song that Horigome had provided the Idolmaster album "THE IDOLM@STER MASTER PRIMAL POPPIN' YELLOW" from December 2017. This was a duet between seiyuu Chiaki Takahashi（たかはし智秋）and Azumi Asakura（浅倉杏美）as their characters of Azusa Miura（三浦あずさ）and Yukiho Hagiwara（萩原雪歩）respectively. The original here goes a bit more for the technopop but also has a funkier groove. If I had heard this one before the Kirinji and Oda cover and then found out who was behind the songwriting, I most likely would have exclaimed "Oh yeah! That's Kirinji to a T!"

Rainy Street by Tchabows (1976)

I don't remember exactly when or where I first heard this song, but I do remember discovering it sometime last year. I was already familiar with Masami Yoshida thanks to his 1980 solo album My Tune, My Turn, but I had no idea he had been making music before that.

What initially caught my attention was the band's unusual name: Tchabows. Written in Japanese as 茶坊主 (Chabōzu), the term traditionally refers to a Buddhist temple attendant or, historically, someone who served tea to a feudal lord.

To be fair, the mellow sound of their 1976 album Tree of Life actually feels pretty appropriate for sitting indoors with a warm cup of tea while the rain comes pouring outside your window.

"Rainy Street" quickly became my favorite song on the album. It has this wonderful pseudo-bossa nova groove, a folksy, down-to-earth acoustic guitar, and a quirky yet strangely endearing synthesizer floating around in the background.

To top it off, vocalist Mami Kikuchi could honestly give Taeko Ohnuki a run for her money. Her voice has that same wonderfully soft, warm, and inviting quality—the kind of vocal performance that doesn't need to overpower the music to grab your attention.

While a few other songs on the record venture into more  Progressive Rock territory, everything about "Rainy Street" feels gentle and unassuming.