I've been a fan of Japanese popular music for 40 years, and have managed to collect a lot of material during that time. So I decided I wanted to talk about Showa Era music with like-minded fans. My particular era is the 70s and 80s (thus the "kayo kyoku"). The plus part includes a number of songs and artists from the last 30 years and also the early kayo. So, let's talk about New Music, aidoru, City Pop and enka.
Credits
I would like to give credit where credit is due. Videos are from YouTube and other sources such as NicoNico while Oricon rankings and other information are translated from the Japanese Wikipedia unless noted.
I see that those marathons are still taking place at the Metro Zoo in Toronto. Over forty years ago, I actually ran a couple of those in successive years as a high school student. Yes, it's hard to believe, but I, J-Canuck, did something healthy by training and then running what was actually half-marathons. Those were still enough to nearly kill me.
Jogging was starting to become a thing sometime in the mid to late 1970s as I recall, and I guess that may have also been true in Japan according to this song by Yuko Kawamura（川村ゆうこ）. Compared to her cool and refreshing debut single"Kaze ni Naritai"（風になりたい）from April 1976, her second single "Kodoku na Runner"(Lonely Runner) which was released later in September is a bit more jaunty as if the song itself were on its own jog in the countryside. In terms of tempo, I'd probably put it above a languid folk tune but not quite at the same level as an upbeat aidoru song. Kawamura is a songwriter but this time, "Kodoku na Runner" was handled by lyricist Takashi Matsumoto（松本隆）, composer Katsuo Ono（大野克夫）and arranger Mitsuo Hagita（萩田光雄）. Her first two singles were placed onto her debut album, released in November, "Konna ni Sora ga Aokute wa"（こんなに空が青くては...For the Sky to Be This Blue）.
Maybe it says something about veteran folk singer-songwriter Kosetsu Minami's（南こうせつ）April 1990 single"Ano Hi no Sora yo"(The Sky on That Day) that I could only find concert footage on YouTube rather than the original recorded version.
I also heard it for the first time on a recent episode of "Uta Con"（うたコン）which is why I'm writing about it now. Written and composed by Minami with Shozo Ise（伊勢正三）co-writing the lyrics, I had thought that his summery paean to almighty love had been created back in the 1970s so it was with some surprise that I discovered its emergence to fans happened a couple of decades later. But it goes to show that Minami has made some wonderfully timeless singalong music since he debuted over fifty years ago.
Well, that was quite the coincidence. I just posted up "The Firsts (Mariya, Tatsuro, Akina, EW&F, EPO)" earlier this afternoon and it contained a few of my 80s favourites that helped start my path of kayo kyoku glory. Then, I find out that this week's "Uta Con"（うたコン）was having an 80s theme night. It was quite the manna from heaven for me.
I recall that I wrote up years ago a somewhat rambling account of my history of liking kayo kyoku so in a way, this article will emulate the overall theme. However, this time around, I'm just going to be a little more judicious with my thoughts here. But let it be said that these songs made a foundation to start things off for me thanks to an old classmate's "The Top 10" and "The Best 10" videotapes and my graduation trip to Japan in 1981....before I got to listen to "The Sounds of Japan" and watch my first ever Kohaku Utagassen in January 1982.
The long black hair, the wide smile and the voice that could part clouds and let sunshine through. It was this ballad that started my own fan feelings for Hiromi Iwasaki（岩崎宏美）and pretty much pegged her in my mind as the Queen of Pop Balladry for a number of years.
Matchy the tough but tenderhearted teenager will always be represented by "Blue Jeans Memory" whose titular movie posters were all over the place when I was traveling through Tokyo and Osaka in the torrid summer of 1981.
One reason that I haven't included Yellow Magic Orchestra in the list is that listening to their "Firecracker" on the local Japanese-Canadian community TV show here in Toronto had me intrigued but not quite head-over-heels for Japanese pop music. It took that graduation trip several months later to finally cement things. Anyways, Jun Horie's（堀江淳）"Memory Glass" was more kayo than "Firecracker" but that certain synthesizer in play here further fired up my interest in technopop.
I got to hear this in Japan, I also did the same on those videotapes and then finally, Hitomi Ishikawa（石川ひとみ）showed up on the 1981 Kohaku Utagassen. It was pretty much wall-to-wall "Machibuse" for several months so there was no way that I would leaving this one off the list.
This was another wall-to-wall song because of the Japan trip and videotapes although I wouldn't hear about the background behind the making of this song and even how the name of this group came about for several years. On tonight's "Uta Con", I even learned some more information which answered one question that had been rattling about in my head just as long: Why didn't these guys show up on the Kohaku despite the crazy popularity of this song in 1981? Well, Imo Kin Trio（イモ欽トリオ）, the trio of young comics-turned-sudden singers who did show up to perform "High School Lullaby" tonight, explained that they actually had been given that golden offer by NHK. However their mentor, legendary comedian Kin'ichi Hagimoto（萩本欽一）who starred with them on their Fuji-TV variety show shot the question across their bow, "Do you really consider yourself singers?" and explained that if you accept the invitation, you're taking away a spot from a real singer who's dedicated to their craft. So, long story short, the answer was NO. I find this a bit ironic on Hagimoto's part since I believe he was the one who got the trio to get themselves into the music business; I guess he hadn't realized how successful they were going to get. Sorry, I did say I was going to be more judicious but couldn't help myself here.
This was another wall-to-wall song that I heard in Japan and on those videotapes. And not surprisingly, it was the one to start things off on "Uta Con" tonight with Yo Oizumi's（大泉洋）rendition of the song. Still miss Nishida（西田敏行）who passed away almost two years ago.
This may go down as one of the tougher and more intense years in terms of famous people passing away. We lost Dolly Parton a couple of days ago and just in the last few hours, I've been hearing of other celebrities leaving this mortal coil. Alongside the news of Parton passing away, the news scroll here on television also mentioned that actor and singer Tim Curry had also died.
For recent generations, Curry may have been known for his roles as hapless and/or somewhat clueless characters on movies like "Home Alone 2". I also remember him as Chief Medical Officer Petrov on the Red October in "The Hunt for Red October" back in 1990,
But my memories go even further back when Curry played the terrifying but charismatic Dr Frank-N-Furter in the original 1973 London and 1975 Broadway productions of "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" and then the 1975 cinematic version with a very young Susan Sarandon and Barry Bostwick. Now, I wasn't even a pre-pubescent kid when "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" came out so I missed out on all of the bread tossing and other audience participation stuff. The bits of media that I got about this bizarre show in the pre-Internet age frankly scared the heck out of me, and I think the good doctor was most likely the first instance of me ever seeing a guy dressed up and made up like a girl
Dr. Frank-N-Furter got his own song: "Sweet Transvestite". However, I don't know that one although I did hear that Curry (along with the rest of the cast) was able to sing the one song that I do know from the show, the rock-n-roll "Time Warp". Yet, it wasn't through either the movie or the play that I first found out about it.
Like a lot of high schools, my junior high school had regular after-school dance parties in the cafeteria. My crippling shyness, uncoolness and dancing ability (which could be compared to a hobbled T-Rex stuck in a tar pit) meant that I very rarely attended those gigs. However, against my better judgment and due to peer pressure, I ended up at one of those dances, and strangely enough, at the persuasion of one young lady who took pity upon me, she dragged me onto the floor to do "Time Warp". I should've listened more intently to the lyrics by Richard O'Brien (music by both him and Richard Hartley) since they basically instruct listeners how the dance is done, but then again, I was never much of a lyrics guy anyways. It would be years before I realized that "Time Warp" was a part of "The Rocky Horror Picture Show".
"The Rocky Horror Picture Show" made its very first appearance in London on June 19th 1973. I was able to find the Top 3 of Oricon for the day before.
As I said above, it's been a tough year already for famous people leaving Earth. Within the last 12 hours, I've also heard about the passings of the following people that I also got to know. For these folks and for Curry, my condolences to their families, friends and many fans.
The return of NHK's "Uta Con"（うたコン）last night from summer hiatus was a special one, to be sure. I don't think I've ever seen a special episode of the long-running music show devoted to a single artist; it's usually been a highlight reel of the year's best performances. But last night, concierge Shosuke Tanihara（谷原章介）had former aidoru Mizue Takada（高田みづえ）onto the show along with her friends and fellow singers Hiromi Iwasaki（岩崎宏美）and Ikue Sakakibara（榊原郁恵）, and Takada was given a tribute in what was advertised as "a one-night-only comeback".
After the episode, I read an article regarding it on Mixi and it mentioned that in March, her husband, the former sumo wrestler Wakashimazu（若嶋津）, had passed away at the age of 69 from pneumonia, something that I hadn't known about. My belated condolences to Takada, the rest of her family and his fans. I don't really know whether his passing and the aftermath triggered the idea to have this special episode but it was great to see Takada again on stage to perform a couple of her old hits including her 1980 single"Watashi wa Piano"（私はピアノ）which was the very first song that I had heard by her as a teenager and was therefore one of the first kayo that got me into this very long hobby in the first place.
"Watashi wa Piano" is this urban Latin-spiced song that has stayed in my memories for almost a half-century. However, the B-side is a completely different song. "Kikyou" (Homecoming) is a warm, folksy and calming tune about the old hometown and the feelings tied with it. With lyrics by Takashi Taka（たかたかし）, the song was actually composed as an instrumental known as "The Poet and I" from 1974 by Canadian pianist Frank Mills. I don't think there was much change in the arrangement during its transition from "The Poet and I" to "Kikyou" so Mills' original was a fine fit for kayo kyoku.
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.
Ah, it's a Monday once more. Incomplete recovery from the weekend, deadlines to fulfill, another buildup of stress. You wonder when Friday is coming.
Well, sorry, I'm not an in-company counselor or a masseur. However, perhaps I can provide some aural solace through one of folk group Higurashi's（日暮し）songs. The trio has had their City Pop tunes but this is a folksier and very relaxing tune called "Odayakana Gogo"(Peaceful Afternoon), and boy, is there truth in advertising here. Right from Note One, Naomi Sugimura（杉村尚美）immediately lulls you into an existential nap with her vocals while your eyesight becomes less strained by looking into the calm blue sky. The acoustic guitar, the strings and electric piano become additional melodic massage therapists as "Odayakana Gogo" goes at a very leisurely tempo. The background chorus is just barely heard as it acts like a summer breeze.
Written and composed by Higurashi guitarists Seiichi Takeda（武田清一）and Yukiyo Nakamura（中村幸雄）, the track belonged to the band's fourth original album"Arifureta Dekigoto"（ありふれた出来事...Ordinary Events） from 1977. Chamomile tea, coming up!
It's been close to about a couple of years since the passing of actor and singer Toshiyuki Nishida（西田敏行）. I will always remember him for his biggest hit "Moshimo Piano ga Hiketanara"（もしもピアノが弾けたなら）from April 1981 , and it'll probably be difficult for his fans to prevent anything flowing from the eyes whenever the telly shows him singing this one.
Well, out of curiosity, I had been wondering what was on the B-side of Nishida's famed single. I've said it only recently but it's often been the case that a quiet A-side would beget a more upbeat B-side and vice versa. As it turns out, "Ii Yume Mire yo" (Sweet Dreams) is just as adorable and perhaps a bit more tenderhearted. Not surprisingly for a song with that title, it has a kayo lullaby-type melody and rhythm as if Nishida himself were singing softly to his own little children back in the day. The same songwriters for the A-side were behind the B-side: lyricist Yu Aku（阿久悠）and composer/arranger Koichi Sakata（坂田晃一）.
When it comes to the folk duo Gamu（雅夢）, most listeners of Japanese pop music of the past will quickly recollect their debut single and biggest hit, the wistful "Ai wa Kagero"（愛はかげろう）from September 1980.
Well, vocalist and songwriter Kazuto Miura（三浦和人）went really dramatic with his group's 2nd single "Kanashikute"(I'm Sad/I Miss You) from February 1981. Man, starting with that epic pipe organ, it almost sounded like a particularly mournful take on Albinoni's "Adagio in G Minor". What has just been wrought here, I initially thought. Mind you, the folk ballad quickly simmers down to a melancholy piece about being alone after a breakup with the home that used to be for two now an emptier space for one. Nope, I really don't think this will be played at any wedding receptions.
I figured that for an A-side so almost overwhelmingly sad, the B-side has just got to be a whole lot more optimistic for balance's sake. And sure enough, although there is some of that romantic ache in "Yume de Aitai kara" (Because I Want to See You in My Dreams), there is also more hope in this tenderhearted tune. Miura and songwriter Haruaki Kato（夏冬春秋）co-wrote the lyrics while Miura took care of the languid melody.
Well, this one crept on me fairly quickly. I guess it's because this week at least is part of the O-Bon Holiday season but I had completely forgotten that August 11th is Mountain Day in Japan, a national holiday.
Of course, folks visited their nearby mountains. My old English conversation circle's members are all mountain-hiking enthusiasts although I'm glad that none of them invited me to any of their journeys up the slopes. My heart would have exploded.😨
So, on this Mountain Day, I went searching for whether there was a song that commemorates the most famous mountain of them all in Japan. And sure enough, it didn't take long before I encountered "Fuji no Yama"（Mt. Fuji）which is also known as "Fuji-san"（富士山）.
Designated as a children's song sanctioned by the Ministry of Education, "Fuji no Yama" made its first appearance in a 1910 elementary school student book of songs. Although the composer remains unknown, the lyricist was Sazanami Iwaya（巖谷小波）who was also a children's book author and a scholar of German literature. The song of course proudly boasts of the magnificence of Japan's most famous peak.🗻 The translation below is from Google Translate.
Rising high above the clouds,
Looking down upon the surrounding peaks,
Hearing the thunder roll far below—
Mount Fuji is Japan's greatest mountain.
Towering high in the blue sky,
Clad in a robe of snow,
Trailing a hem of mist far into the distance—
Mount Fuji is Japan's greatest mountain.
In 2007, almost a century after the first appearance of the song, "Fuji no Yama" was accepted as one of the songs in Nihon no Uta Hyakusen（日本の歌百選...Collection of 100 Japanese Songs）. During the past century, it's been sung by various people and bands including school choruses. I did find this rather interesting take on "Fuji no Yama" by veteran vocal group Bonny Jacks（ボニージャックス）. Their soulful cover (I almost thought that they were going to be joined by a few Pips) comes from their 1997 album"Bonny Jacks no Nihon no Shouka"（ボニージャックスの日本の唱歌...The Songs of Japan by Bonny Jacks）.
Not only did I hear "Just One Look" on the radio but I also heard plenty of it as a commercial jingle for cars. I just forgot it was for the Mazda. By the way, the actor speaking in the ad ended up becoming a doctor at "General Hospital". In any case, "Just One Look" renditions by different singers and bands were used in other commercials; that title was just perfect for selling.
But the first time was on radio. Didn't know at the time that this wasn't even an original by Linda Ronstadt but a cover version done by her, but it has been the one that I will always remember. Released as a January 1979 single, it's a tune that starts off country congenially but then becomes progressively buzzier with the rock edge. I also didn't realize that the main chorus is only heard once and at the end of this fairly short song at just a little over three minutes. Ronstadt's cover did modestly well on the Canadian and American charts by posting somewhere in the 40s but in the former's Adult Contemporary chart, "Just One Look" placed in at No. 4 while on the latter's East Listening chart, it had a No. 5 ranking.
The original "Just One Look" was recorded by singer-songwriter Doris Troy for release in May 1963 with Troy and Gregory Carroll creating the song. It's an even shorter tune with the main chorus basically acting as a fadeout coda.
We have here the Top 3 singles of Oricon for January 22nd 1979, a day before Ronstadt's cover was released.
It's been getting close to forty-four years since I heard my first Higurashi（日暮し）song on "Sounds of Japan" and that was without knowing the name of the folk/New Music band or the title of that song until I finally discovered it after returning from Japan for good in 2011. Furthermore, it's been fourteen years since I posted that splendid song, "Aki no Tobira"（秋の扉）, onto "Kayo Kyoku Plus".
Up until now, I'd seen Higurashi as a band that had its time in the 1970s before becoming a part of Japanese music history. However, I learned recently that the original members got together one more time in 2017 to release "Everlasting -Unreleased & Rare Tracks-". One of the tracks is "Tsukiyo no Highway" (Moon Night Highway) which was written and composed by members Seiichi Takeda（武田清一） and Yukio Nakamura（中村幸雄）, and the jaunty arrangement has that feeling of Higurashi especially with everyone getting in behind the mike including Naomi Sugimura（杉村尚美）, now Naomi Sakakibara（榊原尚美）. However, there is that contemporary freshness with the instruments and the recording which struck me. I especially like the addition of what sounds like a steel pedal guitar; gives the song a really nice accent of traveling smoothly on that titular highway.
When it comes to South Korean singer Cheuni（チェウニ）, I've always known her as someone who had gotten her career in the 1990s singing a mix of enka and other genres mixed together...something that I've labeled New Adult Music. It was quite the musical version of blended refined whiskey.
However, after I'd posted my previous Cheuni song, "Glass no Tokyo Tower"（ガラスの東京タワー）, a month ago, one commenter had to give me a correction in that Cheuni's debut had actually happened perhaps as much as a dozen years earlier than expected. For some reason, although J-Wiki had noted her debut as a child singer in the early 1970s at the age of 8 and a Japanese album release at the end of that decade via what is now known as the Taihei Record Company, there is currently no mention at all of a couple of singles in 1979 and 1981.
The anonymous commenter thankfully guided me to the above video on YouTube and it was for her debut single in Japan, "Wasurenagusa" (Forget-Me-Nots), which was released in 1979. She was in her mid-teens at the time so there was of course none of that familiar rasp in her vocals but listening to them now, I can still recognize them as Cheuni's. Considering her age, the single may have indeed been marketed as one belonging to an aidoru and there is something in the arrangement that hints at enka but I think most of the song gives me folk and kayo vibes.
Yoko Yamaguchi（山口洋子）provided the lyrics while the melody was composed by Masaaki Hirao（平尾昌晃）, the veteran songwriter who also had a hand in bringing over another lovely teen ingenue from overseas to Japan: Agnes Chan（アグネス・チャン）.
Last week, I posted up "Sagamihara Singers" in tribute to the fact that my hometown of Toronto and the city of Sagamihara had a sister-city relationship. Tonight, I'm talking about "Nagoya Singers" but my inspiration isn't connected to any similar bond between Nagoya and a Canadian city. In fact, I don't think Nagoya has any sister-city relationships with any urban zones in my nation although it does have them with Los Angeles, Mexico City and Sydney.
Nope, the impetus for writing about singers or bands who come from Japan's 4th-largest city is today's edition of NHK's "Asaichi"（あさイチ）morning information show. It just so happens that the focus was on Nagoya and all of those scrumptious dishes that originate there and elsewhere in its Aichi Prefecture. When I saw that wonderful dish of grilled eel called hitsumabushi（ひつまぶし）on my screen earlier, I just went "OK...got my second article for Hump Day!". But have a look at hitsumabushi and some of the other famous local treats in the video above from Mui's Diary.
Anyways, I've got four acts here from Nagoya. Please enjoy!
Anyways, Nagoya has been in the news for being one of the hottest places in Japan right now, so I'm hoping that folks there are trying to keep cool and safe. As a PS, you can also take a look at another Nagoya specialty, ten-musu（天むす）, from YouTuber Just One Cookbook.
For all those very dedicated "Kayo Kyoku Plus" readers and fans of singer-songwriter Shozo Ise（伊勢正三）in general, it's probably quite well known that Ise has had appendages in both the folk and City Pop fields. I've often written on his urban contemporary material including "Heart Beat" which was the topic of the most recent article that I wrote about him back in January.
Well, this time around, I'm swerving back to his folk roots via his song "Omoide ga Tsukinai Yoru" (A Night of Endless Memories) which was not only his first single from April 1980, but also a track on his debut album"Hokuto Shichisei"（北斗七星...The Big Dipper） which hit the record store shelves on the same day as that single. It's quite the folksy tune, written and composed by Ise, albeit with a richer sheen of sophistication in the arrangement. Maybe this could have been a transitional song for him from folk to City Pop. I also have to admire the song being played with the backdrop of a sky-view Tokyo at night, thanks to uploader Taka Kash. Would be interested in hearing what the rest of "Hokuto Shichisei" sounds like.
I was watching the local news here when the breaking news hit the screen that singer Bonnie Tyler had passed away at the age of 75 today. Apparently since the information came out regarding her death, her 1983 hit "Total Eclipse of the Heart" has been getting a lot of looks. Tyler already has recognition on this blog for that very song and I'd been thinking of using today's ROY slot to give tribute to her 1984 "Holding Out for a Hero", but then, I realized that when I had posted Miki Asakura's（麻倉未稀）cover of the song, I basically treated the article also as a proto-ROY one.
So, I've gone back several years before her really large feathery hair music video days in those 1980s and back to her 1970s days to listen to her "It's a Heartache". Released on November 4th 1977 as her 5th single, this was created by Ronnie Scott and Steve Wolfe and I remember it as this genteel country ballad that got a lot of airplay on AM radio. And strangely enough, I only heard it on radio and never saw the face behind the song. At the time, I wasn't much for remembering names so I was surprised years later that it was indeed Bonnie Tyler who had sung this one although it should have been recognizable because of her famously husky voice.
"It's a Heartache" was a No. 1 hit in several countries including Canada and France. In the United States, it got as high as No. 3 while in the UK, it reached No. 4.
Speaking of her husky voice, that all came about from a surgical procedure earlier to remove some nodules from her vocal cords. "It's a Heartache" was one of her first recordings following that surgery and from what I've read on the article for the song, her "new" voice made the song and most likely her entire career from that point onwards. Of course, I was interested in how Tyler had sounded in her first few singles before surgery so I pulled out her debut single"My! My! Honeycomb" from 1976. To be honest, I find her voice here to be a smoother version without the extra burr.
The Oricon rankings had their weekly report on November 7th 1977. So, what was up at the top of the list? Also, my condolences go out to Tyler's family, friends and fans throughout the world.
On this blisteringly hot day, Canada is 159 years old. Happy Birthday to the Great White North! Personally, I'm trying to stay cool in my room with the decades-old electric fan helping me out.
Of course, being a national holiday and all, Reminiscings of Youth will be having a special article today (along with the regular weekly one tomorrow) to commemorate Canada Day. Glad to read that Ottawa-born singer-songwriter Bruce Cockburn (pronounced KOH-bərn...like James Coburn) is with us at the age of 81. Forty-two years ago in 1984, he released his "Lovers in a Dangerous Time" which became a Top 40 hit here and a long resident on the music video charts on television. There were some contrasts here: 1) the contrast of young teens finding fresh new love during a time when the spectre of the Cold War was still looming large and 2) Cockburn's button-down and soothing pop-rock arrangement meshed with a performance video of what I could describe as something quite avant-garde Cirque du Soleil.
In Canada, "Lovers in a Dangerous Time" reached No. 24 on the RPM charts while on US Billboard, it peaked at No. 56.
Barenaked Ladies was a band born in the Toronto suburb of Scarborough. It's nicknamed Scarberia because of how desolate parts of it can look like during the winter (just look at the music video) but it also has a ton of restaurants of all nationalities that can keep people very happy and fed. Anyways, Barenaked Ladies was the same band behind the theme song for the long-running American sitcom "The Big Bang Theory", and they've been a bunch of good local boys who love to rock with a sense of humour. I first found out about them through a friend's car tape-cassette recorder when he was playing a compilation of their stuff which included their cover of "Lovers in a Dangerous Time".
It's a friendly, folksy and peppy take on Cockburn's original and watching Ed Robertson and the gang perform from the back of a pickup truck while it drives on the streets of Scarborough in the dead of winter is probably one of the most Canadian things I've ever posted on the blog. Their cover first appeared on the 1991 Cockburn tribute album "Kick at the Darkness" and it was released as the band's debut single in 1992.
The original song peaked on August 18th 1984, so why don't we see what was hitting the top of the Oricon charts a couple of days later? Let's go with a scattering of songs here with Nos. 5, 7 and 10.
Yesterday on "Shin BS Nihon no Uta"（新BS日本の歌）, the episode's theme was on flower-titled kayo kyoku. That did get me to thinking...as I recall, there have been quite a few such songs that I've remembered over the decades, so I've decided to provide my own short list. My list kinda breaks out a little more widely although the first entry here was also included on the program's own list. Anyways, without further ado:
An orange house somewhere in Japan, eh? Well, I can think of a place with an orange sign and that would be the family restaurant Royal Host.
I was so glad that there was one right by the R&B Hotel where I stayed during my last trip to Japan almost a decade ago. Good for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Well, apparently the orange house in "Orange House ni Sayonara" (Goodbye to the Orange House) was a cafe where a lass and her now erstwhile boyfriend used to frequent during their relationship. Now, she can only sneak a peek outside at her ex with a new girl on her arm in the coffeehouse.
"Orange House ni Sayonara" was the 2nd single for the folk duo Marie（麻里絵）released in June 1977. From listening to this song whose words and music were provided by up-and-coming singer-songwriter Hiroko Taniyama（谷山浩子）, it's got that rather upbeat chorus accompanied by melancholy verses which I guess could represent the ups and downs of a typical romance life. Not sure if this had been used as a theme for a certain cafe (or family restaurant), although I don't think any commercial establishment would ever appreciate being associated with heartbreak. Heartburn, maybe, but not heartbreak. In any case, I had initially thought about writing on Marie's debut single"Ki ni Naru Anata"（気になるあなた ）, only to find out that I had already posted about it back in 2023.
Summer arrived in the wee hours of this morning. It certainly feels like summer in my room since my room is traditionally the warmest in the entire home. But outside, it's not too bad out there; it's sunny but there's a nice breeze wafting through the area so the heat isn't really torrid.
In any case, to commemorate the official arrival of the hot season, I decided to see what kind of summer song I can post up today. I figure that something about beer would be nice since in both of my countries of birth and ancestry, the golden suds are absolutely beloved especially on a really hot day.
Looking through the Net, I found this song was popping up a fair bit. BEGIN, the band of Okinawan blues, released a single in July 2002 titled "Ojii Jiman no Orion Beer"(Grandpa's Prized Orion Beer), an aural showcase for Okinawa's famous brand of beer. I've had Orion Beer a couple of times when I went to an Okinawan restaurant in Tokyo...it went down smooth enough. As the good folks put it in their lyrics, Orion is the elixir of the gods in Japan's southernmost prefecture. Not surprisingly, it became a commercial song for Orion itself.
Somehow, I don't think the Japanese needed the arrival of the summer solstice to go into happy hysterics today. But I think that a lot of beer of all brands was imbibed.
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