Let's Go Sanbiki -- Shinchi Waltz（新地ワルツ）

 

When I heard this pleasant song on the most recent episode of NHK's "Shin BS Nihon no Uta"（新BS日本の歌）the other day, I assumed that it was one of the veteran enka singers who had tackled this way back since it had that certain old kayo sound. Not surprisingly, I'm once again having crow for dinner.🐦‍⬛

Nope, when I looked up this tune via J-Wiki afterwards, I found out that "Shinchi Waltz", a laidback enka about the commercial area of Shinchi in Osaka, had actually been recorded by a comedy trio by the name of Let's Go Sanbiki（レツゴー三匹）. Written by Jun Hashimoto（橋本淳）and composed by Tadashi Yoshida（吉田正）, "Shinchi Waltz" was released as the trio's second single in 1973. From what I can glean from Hashimoto's lyrics, it's all about love gained and lost in the titular neighbourhood. And with the titular dance, there is that rhythmical flow in the melody that almost approaches that of a lullaby. The song was a hit, selling around 100,000 records.

Despite the three fellows, Let's Go Shouji（レツゴー 正児）, Let's Go Jun（レツゴー じゅん）and Let's Go Chousaku（レツゴー 長作）, being shown on the single cover, I only hear one of them singing away. Maybe the other two couldn't sing a note to save their lives but they were there in the recording booth as moral support. Anyways, although I was surprised to find out the identity of the singer behind "Shinchi Waltz", I also remembered that comedy groups in Japan are not unknown to cut records. The manzai duo Saruganseki（猿岩石）and the group Imo Kin Trio（イモ欽トリオ）are just two examples I know that have had their hits.

Let's Go Sanbiki first got started in 1968 when Shouji, Jun and then-member Let's Go Isshuu（レツゴー 一修）had trained within a comedy troupe known as Rookie Bakusho Gakudan（ルーキー爆笑劇団）. Their name came about from a Nagoya yakitori restaurant called Sanbiki that they had frequented but added the phrase "Let's Go" for further oomph. Isshuu would leave the team a year later and was immediately replaced by Chousaku. Let's Go Sanbiki would last until the early 1990s when they would go on indefinite hiatus but with the passing of Jun in 2014, the trio would officially break up.

Mari Sono/Shinichi Mori/Hiroshi Itsuki -- Ryoujou（旅情）

 

Back in September, I posted up that All-Points Bulletin for Neff regarding some Chinese covers of songs that he couldn't quite identify. I believe that he was able to resolve most of the mystery songs thankfully. But I also remember while trying to help him out that I came across a few songs that may have been connected to the mystery ones but ended up nothing of the sort. Of course, I was disappointed but in the process, I was able to find some new kayo kyoku with their common denominator being a common title.

"Ryoujou" on Jisho.org talks about "the mood when traveling". And of course, travel is a big theme in kayo kyoku, notably as the action one takes when there's a need to get away from a problem, usually post-romantic in nature. The protagonists take trains and planes (not sure about automobiles, though) to some faraway place in Japan, away from Tokyo or Osaka (Tsugaru Strait is especially popular) or even overseas to mourn and/or reset those feelings.

Through Google, I even discovered some very specific terminology for that particular mood. Wanderlust was one word that I had already known but here are some of the others:

Wanderlust: A strong desire to travel and explore the world.

Eudaimonia: A state of intense happiness and contentment while traveling, when everything feels right.

Resfeber: The restless, anxious excitement that comes before a journey begins.

Strikhedonia: The joy of being able to say, "to hell with it!" and go on an adventure. 

Fernweh: The opposite of homesickness; an ache or longing for places you have never seen before.

Sehnsucht: A wistful yearning for something far-off and indefinable, or for travels past and future.

Where enka and kayo kyoku are concerned, I think perhaps Fernweh and Sehnsucht might be the traveling moods that match the feelings there, although the words themselves sound like alien crewmembers on the Enterprise on "Star Trek".

Anyways, let's begin with the first "Ryoujou" that was recorded by Mari Sono（園まり）for release as a single in June 1972 to commemorate her 10th anniversary in the music business. Quite the poignant kayo kyoku, this was written by Jun Hashimoto（橋本淳）and composed by Kyohei Tsutsumi（筒美京平）as the lyrics describe a woman who has either broken up or is on the verge of breaking up with her beau by flying off to Paris. It's the strings and what sounds like a harpsichord that give me the heavy sense of the melancholy here but I also have to note the deep horns that pop up as if the lady is about to take one major leap of faith.

Less than a couple of years later, enka veteran Shinichi Mori（森進一）released an album "Ryoujou" in March 1974. The title track was written by Kohan Kawauchi（川内康範）and composed by Kosho Inomata（猪俣公章）as a song of longing by a fellow who's looking upon a woman he's had feelings for. She hasn't reciprocated them and maybe she isn't even aware of them especially since she's probably just broken it off with another guy. It's a got a bit more brass and heart-on-a-sleeve emotion so I can put it between kayo kyoku and enka.

Then, we come to Hiroshi Itsuki's（五木ひろし）"Ryoujou" which was released much later in 1998. With lyrics by Reiji Mizuki（水木れいじ）, the singer himself came up with the melody. If there were such a thing as Itsuki Song, then his "Ryoujou" would be the class example with the haunting chorus, the seemingly tear-choked vocals and the wistful arrangement.

The Kingtones -- Namida no Graduation Day（涙のグラジュエーション・デイ）

From Amazon.jp

 

Not sure how a famed doo-wop group such as The Kingtones got to do a song regarding the often tear-soaked graduation ceremonies in the Japanese education system. But of course, the guys handled the task with their usual harmonic aplomb.

"Namida no Graduation Day" (Tearful Graduation Day) was released as the group's 19th single in February 1981, just around the time when those graduation ceremonies are about to launch. Written by Jun Hashimoto（橋本淳）and composed by Shunichiro Katsuyama（勝山俊一郎）, the song has that old-fashioned doo-wop delivery but with an arrangement that sounds more contemporary, kinda like another doo-wop group that was making the rounds at the time, The Chanels. Not surprisingly, the lyrics by Hashimoto have to do with the tearful goodbyes from students, knowing that they will not be seeing their beloved tough-but-fair teacher ever again on a regular basis. Being a former JET Programme teacher, I got to see that up close and personal.

Shinichi Mori -- Bokyo（望郷）

 

It's Monday once more on KKP and therefore I'd like to get some weird stuff off my chest. When I remember a very young Shinichi Mori（森進一）decades ago, I internally remarked that this enka singer basically looked like a Japanese Pavel Chekov from "Star Trek"; as if the USS Enterprise's beloved Russian had been merged in a transporter accident with his fellow bridge officer, Hikaru Sulu. Mori had that short stature, the pinchable cheeks and those adorable brown eyes. Not sure if he was quite as voluble as young Pavel, though.

Anyways, I found this No. 1 hit by Mori from Christmas Day 1970 titled "Bokyo" (Homesickness). It's one of the first enka songs to reach the top spot in the Oricon era (started in 1967 or 1968) although the melody and arrangement by Kosho Inomata（猪俣公章）has me also thinking of drowning one's tears in drink in a watering hole just like in any Mood Kayo tune (the sax helps). Jun Hashimoto's（橋本淳）lyrics talk of someone dearly missing the hometown and also that significant other left behind there. His gravelly voice sounds almost on the verge of tears. And if we're talking about sound effects, the sound of a train and the mournful woman's chorus really help with the homesick punch.

Most likely, there were a lot of people in the big cities of Japan who could relate which would explain its popularity. Over a year later, Mori's 18th single actually became the 9th-ranked single for 1971. Interestingly enough, a movie based on "Bokyo" would be produced in 1971 starring the singer himself as Shinichiro Morikawa（森川信一郎）. Not exactly the biggest leap in imagination when it comes to naming characters, but I hope it did well.

Ayumi Ishida & Tin Pan Alley Family -- Bye Bye Jet（バイバイJet ）

Wikimedia Commons
by Inunami

Welcome to Urban Contemporary Friday on "Kayo Kyoku Plus" as usual. I wanted to continue my tribute to actress and singer Ayumi Ishida（いしだあゆみ）who sadly passed away almost a couple of months ago on March 11th. 

Leafing through the original "Japanese City Pop" guide by Yutaka Kimura, I was surprised to find out that kayo kyoku singer Ishida had also dove into the new pond of the groovy uber-genre City Pop in the late 1970s via her collaboration with the band Tin Pan Alley in their one-and-only album together "Our Connection"（アワー・コネクション）from April 1977. I posted on the first track "Watashi Jishin"（私自身）back in 2018 and noted her light and feathery vocals flying over the burbling and funky notes of city life.

Well, I'm here today to talk about the final track "Bye Bye Jet" also created by lyricist Jun Hashimoto（橋本淳）and composer Haruomi Hosono（細野晴臣）with Mitsuo Hagita（萩田光雄）providing an interesting arrangement of a laidback reggae rhythm in the beginning before the melody gives way to something with a romantic twist. Meanwhile, Ishida sings about being at Haneda Airport in the early evening to see if she can spot her old flame with his new bride as they head off on the next jet. She doesn't seem to be too perturbed and in a way, she is gallantly if perhaps surreptitiously seeing the newlyweds off with her blessing. Love the background chorus, by the way.

Considering the release year of 1977, I thought it was rather poignant that "Bye Bye Jet" is set at Tokyo's Haneda. Maybe it was one of the last songs to feature the downtown airport because by that point, Narita Airport in Chiba Prefecture had probably already been open and gaining in prestige while Haneda shrank over the decades.  Happily though, Haneda was back in the ascendant over the last ten years as a boffo international airport.

Keiko Mari and Toshiaki Yokota & Rio Alma -- Hadashi no Mama de（裸足のままで）

 

As I have mentioned a few times over the course of this blog, my first time in Japan was in 1972 as a wee lad, and as such a young kid, I don't remember much about that initial foray into the country of my ancestry aside from playing about on my grandfather's farm during the summer. In retrospect though, it was a rather quiet time there although I know that I drove my relatives up the wall with my antics which included an emerging arachnophobia that lasted several years.

Most of the time was spent in the southern end of Wakayama Prefecture, but I know that we spent some days as well in Osaka where another group of relatives resided and so I got to see some of the big city in the early 1970s which included seeing plastic food on display outside of restaurants, telephones of all sizes and colours, and vast underground shopping malls. Considering how hot Japan could get even back then, those malls were a godsend. Maybe then, the early 1970s weren't all that much different from the late 1960s when the nation was plowing away and growing economically. Perhaps seeing videos like the one above can bring wistful memories of a somewhat more innocent age although I'm sure that the cities were more polluted back then and the leisure boom was still years away for most citizens.

Still, when I listen to "Hadashi no Mama de" (Going Barefoot) which was a June 1969 release by a collaboration between actress/singer Keiko Mari（麻里圭子）and the group Toshiaki Yokota & Rio Alma（横田年昭とリオ・アルマ）, I can't help feel a certain sighworthy nostalgia for a long-past time. It's all about the gentle summer stroll sans shoes on one of the countless beaches along the Japanese seashore. 

It was the dream team of lyricist Jun Hashimoto（橋本淳）and composer Kyohei Tsutsumi（筒美京平）behind "Hadashi no Mama de" which also has a certain bossa nova lilt. There is pretty much nothing in terms of information on Yokota & Rio Alma as far as I could find, so I don't know whether they were a Group Sounds band or a vocal group (will gladly accept any data that commenters can give me). However as for Mari, she was raised in Tokyo and started life in entertainment as an extra in film scenes. She made her debut as a recording artist in the genre of enka in 1967 but some advice from TV personality Kyosen Ohashi（大橋巨泉）got her to veer into kayo kyoku instead. Up to the end of 1972, Mari released around fifteen singles and three albums.

Ayumi Ishida & Tin Pan Alley Family -- Hitori Tabi（ひとり旅）

 

A few days ago, I mentioned the passing of veteran actress and singer Ayumi Ishida（いしだあゆみ）. She was definitely one representative of the kayo kyoku era, but I was later surprised by the fact that even she had her dalliance with the emerging wave of City Pop in the late 1970s. Through leafing through my first issue of Yutaka Kimura's "Japanese City Pop", I discovered that she was involved in a collaborative project with the band Tin Pan Alley which resulted in the April 1977 album "Our Connection"（アワー・コネクション）.

It was back in 2018 on KKP when I wrote on the first track of that album which was also her first single under the name Ayumi Ishida & Tin Pan Alley Family, "Watashi Jishin"（私自身）. For some reason, "Watashi Jishin" doesn't show up anywhere on Ishida's discography in her J-Wiki profile but from the thumbnail above, the B-side is also the second track on "Our Connection", "Hitori Tabi" (Traveling Solo).

As with "Watashi Jishin", "Hitori Tabi" was made by lyricist Jun Hashimoto（橋本淳）and composer Haruomi Hosono（細野晴臣）, and just from the title itself, I could make out that this was a post-breakup tune as the protagonist heads out alone to the more rural areas by train in late winter or early spring to forget about a now-dead romance. The uncanny thing about "Hitori Tabi" is how the intro at least sounds a lot like the one for Steely Dan's "Black Cow" although their legendary album "Aja" didn't actually get released until September 1977. Things that make me go Hmmmm. But in any case, despite Hashimoto's lyrics, Ishida's delivery sounds footloose and fancy-free, and Hosono's melody is filled with slow funky licks and still-romantic strings shimmering in the wind. It would seem that the lady on the train isn't lamenting a broken silk rope but is celebrating fallen shackles.

Miki Hirayama -- Ureta Kajitsu（熟れた果実）

 

Encountering this single by Miki Hirayama（平山みき）recently, I couldn't help but feel the similarity between it and her most famous hit from a few years earlier, "Manatsu no Dekigoto" (真夏の出来事）, especially in the intro.

But perhaps this was intentional. Anyways, I'm talking about Hirayama's 10th single from June 1974, "Ureta Kajitsu" (Ripe Fruit) and yep, Jun Hashimoto's（橋本淳）lyrics even include a partial reference to the singer's big hit through "...natsu no dekigoto". Not surprisingly, "Ureta Kajitsu", about another torrid summer romance on the beach, was written and composed by the same duo behind "Manatsu no Dekigoto", the aforementioned Hashimoto and Kyohei Tsutsumi（筒美京平）. The arrangement by Tsutsumi is indeed rather similar to the earlier song but I think this particular song is slightly more laidback.

Nana Kinomi -- Makka na Boots（真赤なブーツ）

 

Last week, "Uta Con"（うたコン）had its tribute to the Queen of Kayo Kyoku, Hibari Misora（美空ひばり）. So, I posted a song by her in my own tribute on "Kayo Kyoku Plus" later that day. Well, earlier today, legendary composer Kyohei Tsutsumi（筒美京平）, who would have been 84 last week (he had passed away back in 2020), got his own themed segment for a good part of the "Uta Con" episode and therefore I will post a song by him. 

With the usual 13-hour time difference and getting the show live, I was actually having breakfast away from the television so I could only hear the montage of his hit compositions so I'll probably be watching the NHK program again during its rerun later tonight. Yep, Tsutsumi is indeed a favourite of mine and in fact, the first Creator article on KKP was on him.

As I've mentioned on the blog over the years, Tsutsumi had long earned the label of being the "He created THAT?!" composer. So many songs of different styles over so many decades. Today, I decided to go way back when he was nearly 27 and he composed his second single alongside lyricist Jun Hashimoto（橋本淳）, a frequent songwriting partner of his back in the day. That was "Makka na Boots" (Deep Red Boots) for singer-actress Nana Kinomi（木の実ナナ）when she was all of 20. 

Listening to this, people (including myself) can marvel that he was creating and arranging the go-go dance type material of those 1960s. According to the J-Wiki article for "Makka na Boots", which I don't think was featured in the "Uta Con" montage, it was put together as a solo singer Group Sounds effort but apparently, there were folks who also likened it to an Italian pop song of the day. However it's interpreted I can imagine young Kinomi dancing away in those long scarlet boots on some stand on a music-variety show while singing it.

Of course, I've known Kinomi for a karaoke favourite from much later in her career.

Mieko Hirota -- Kawaii Uso（可愛い嘘）

 

I'm not a Mieko Hirota（弘田三枝子）super fan or expert by any means but when I found this single by her, I began to wonder about the different voices that the late singer possessed in her singing arsenal. The last few times I've written about her, they've involved her early prodigy-level teen jazz scatting in songs such as "Comin' Home Baby" from 1965 and then her Cleo Laine approach with her City Pop "Body Talk"（ボディー・トーク）in 1980.

And in between those two songs, and yep, I realize that there are a good 15 years between them, there was also her 42nd single "Kawaii Uso" (Pretty Lies) which was released in September 1968. Created by the golden songwriting duo of lyricist Jun Hashimoto（橋本淳）and composer Kyohei Tsutsumi（筒美京平）, the J-Wiki article for the song noted that the team had basically gone for a Motown kayo kyoku based on The Temptations' "My Girl". At the same time, we also got another new voice from Hirota: that of the velvety and purring sex kitten surreptitiously twirling her beau around her pinkie while at the same time admitting that she really does have feelings for the guy.  

Sachiko Nishida -- Anata no Kurai Jounetsu（あなたの暗い情熱）

 

Well, after all of the technological sturm und drang that I've had to go through this past week, and it seems as if every electronic device had wanted to gaslight me in some way, I'm ready for that stiff drink now. However, I don't really drink.

Therefore, I will settle for the music version of a good tasty cocktail. That would be in the form of Sachiko Nishida's（西田佐知子）song "Anata no Kurai Jounetsu" (Your Dark Passions). A track on her July 1977 album "Itsumo no Gogo"（いつもの午後...The Usual Afternoon）, this combination of 1970s City Pop, Mancini-esque jazzy lounge and light pop, does make for a pretty potent mixture to calm down one's nerves. Time to contemplate one's fortunes on that balcony at sunset.

Created by that wonder duo of lyricist Jun Hashimoto（橋本淳）and composer Kyohei Tsutsumi（筒美京平）, the story is a tad more bittersweet as Nishida sings languidly about a woman begging her paramour to let her go since she feels that she would never be able to ultimately satisfy him in the long term. Plus his wife may be an issue as well. I'd probably say that this is another kayo kyoku example of a beautiful melody supporting some sad lyrics.

Feifei Ouyang -- Ame no Airport（雨のエアポート）

 

The weather was gloomy out there at Haneda Airport on November 18th 2017 when I was waiting for my flight back to Toronto after a couple of weeks seeing friends and going to all of the old haunts in Tokyo. Happily though, there wasn't any rain.

Perhaps singer Feifei Ouyang（欧陽菲菲）wasn't quite as lucky with her 2nd single "Ame no Airport" (Rainy Airport) which was released back in December 1971. The song was on the heels of her hit debut single "Ame no Midosuji"（雨の御堂筋）which had come out earlier in September. I gather that the songwriters and all around her felt that anything with rain in it couldn't hurt her chances for another successful tune. 

In any case, "Ame no Airport" was created by the golden partnership of lyricist Jun Hashimoto（橋本淳）and composer Kyohei Tsutsumi（筒美京平）. As has often been the case with kayo kyoku involving airports, there is much romantic heartbreak in the air as a couple say their goodbyes in a middle of a dreary precipitation-laden day at presumably Haneda Airport which had been at the time the main terminal for Tokyo until Narita wrested the title away for many years. Melodically, it has that familiar kayo sound of life in the city with the horns, shimmering strings and the rollicking percussion. Ouyang's sophomore entry hit No. 4 on Oricon and ended up as the No. 31 song for 1972.

But as the commercial pitchperson says, "Wait...there's more!". On Ouyang's 4th album "Return" from September 1979, she recorded another version of "Ame no Airport" with a very slight change in the arrangement.

Dr. Dragon and Oriental Express -- The Birth of a Dragon

from Good Free Photos

 

2024 is the Year of the Dragon and as such, I was wondering what I could post on here to commemorate this observation. Well, it didn't take too long because my mind was able to pop out the late great composer Kyohei Tsutsumi（筒美京平）. You see, he had a couple of nicknames, one of which was Jack Diamond and then the other was Dr. Dragon.

In gradually learning more about Tsutsumi, I realized that he had quite a sweet tooth for disco and R&B back in the day, and in fact, under his Dr. Dragon name, he even released a June 1976 album titled "The Birth of a Dragon". Well, the band's full name was Dr. Dragon and Oriental Express and it was quite the band with Shigeru Suzuki/鈴木茂 (guitar), Tsugutoshi Goto/後藤次利 (bass), Tatsuo Hayashi/林立夫 (drums) and Akiko Yano/矢野顕子 (keyboards).

Dr. Dragon was responsible for the composition and arrangement of all of the songs, and arguably the most famous track is the oddly-titled "Sexy Bus Stop" which was originally an instrumental but then given lyrics by Jun Hashimoto（橋本淳）and then given over to then-70s teen aidoru Yuko Asano（浅野ゆう子） to be made into a hit. It has its own article and when I posted it over ten years ago on "Kayo Kyoku Plus", I even gave viewers a glimpse at another track, "The Theme of Dr. Dragon" which is now above this paragraph. It starts out with a bit of a brass explosion, sounding like the intro to a Bruce Lee movie (remember "Enter the Dragon"?) before it gets into the funk underlain by a rumbling rhythm which reminds me of something similar from the American cop show "SWAT". The urgency gives way in parts for an upbeat Asian riff.

Hashimoto would provide lyrics to some of the tracks including this one, "Peanuts", although he never got credited for his work on the album. Yup, "Peanuts" goes heavy into the disco, rather like Van McCoy, as the vocalists (perhaps EVE?) give their full-throated love for the goobers. It's all rather light-hearted though overall and I could even imagine the aidoru trio The Candies tackling this one.

One more tune that I'll provide here is "Hustle Jet" which has Goto going hard into the bass and once again, the happy-go-lucky nature of the disco here makes it friendly for any aidoru and even any soundtrack for a television drama or comedy. Hashimoto once again gives his few lyrics to "Hustle Jet". I've yet to hear the remaining tracks but I gather that they will also sound like disco with some of that added kayo kyoku-ness, thanks to Dr. Dragon.

Rumiko Koyanagi -- Aitakute Kitaguni e（逢いたくて北国へ）

 

Right at the end of last month, I posted a Momoe Yamaguchi（山口百恵）article for her "Pearl Colour ni Yurete"（パールカラーにゆれて）single because I'd seen her performance of the song on an old episode of "Yoru no Hit Studio"（夜のヒットスタジオ）. Well, on the same episode, there was also 70s aidoru Rumiko Koyanagi（小柳ルミ子）.

Her contribution for the evening was her 20th single "Aitakute Kitaguni e" (I'm Heading to the North to See You) from September 1976. A pretty intrepid tune with a bouncy beat possibly reflecting the female protagonist's feelings and that train ride up north of Tokyo, the lass is quite assertive in asking the love of her life to take her up there with him (hometown or job transfer?) if there's room in the apartment. Oh, those Tokyo ladies!

"Aitakute Kitaguni e" was written by Jun Hashimoto（橋本淳）and composed by Tadao Inoue（井上忠夫）, formerly of the Group Sounds band Jackey Yoshikawa and His Blue Comets（ジャッキー吉川とブルー・コメッツ）and someone who would change his name to Daisuke Inoue（井上大輔）in 1981. The song would peak at No. 15 on Oricon and Koyanagi got her 6th invitation to come onto NHK's Kohaku Utagassen to sing it at the end of 1976.

Hiromi Go -- Anata ga Ita kara Boku ga Ita（あなたがいたから僕がいた）

 

In continuing for one more post following last night's writeup on Miki Hirayama & Maki Nomiya's（平山みき・野宮真貴） "Artist"（アーティスト）which was a part of the Kyohei Tsutsumi（筒美京平） tribute on "Uta Con"（うたコン）last night, I have here another song by another guest on last night's broadcast.

Unlike "Artist" which was a recently newly-found song by the golden combination of lyricist Jun Hashimoto（橋本淳）and composer Tsutsumi, Hiromi Go's（郷ひろみ）"Anata ga Ita kara Boku ga Ita" (I'm Here Because You Were Here) was released all the way back in August 1976 as his 18th single and as another Hashimoto & Tsutsumi concoction. I can already hear those deeper yet nasal tones that would represent the Go voice for me all these years. It's an upbeat tune about a man's gratitude toward his significant other for going through both the good and bad times with him.

Go had pointed out though in the talk segment before he performed "Anata ga Ita kara Boku ga Ita" that the message in the hit song could easily apply to his relationship with Tsutsumi. Basically, he said if it hadn't been for the legendary composer, he wouldn't be here. The song would peak at No. 2 on Oricon and end up as the 46th-ranked single of the year. Go would also perform it at the Kohaku Utagassen that year but before that he had accepted a Japan Record Award so he would be standing with his fellow Shin-Gosanke（新御三家）members, Hideki Saijo（西城秀樹）and Goro Noguchi（野口五郎）with their own awards that night.

Miki Hirayama & Maki Nomiya -- Artist（アーティスト）

Good Free Photos

About a week ago, I noted that "Uta Con"（うたコン）was going to have a tribute to composer Kyohei Tsutsumi（筒美京平）who had passed away nearly three years ago. As such, I posted the debut single for Natsumi Shimai（夏海姉妹）, "Hotel Sabaku"（ホテル砂漠）which wasn't only released for the first time last month but it gained life as a long-gestating product of the golden combination of Tsutsumi and lyricist Jun Hashimoto（橋本淳）. 

Well, tonight, the tribute to Tsutsumi did happen on "Uta Con", so there were the cover performances of his timeless creations such as Judy Ongg's "Miserarete"（魅せられて）and Ayumi Ishida's（いしだあゆみ）"Blue Light Yokohama" （ブルーライト・ヨコハマ）. However, there was the revelation of a previously unrecorded song by Tsutsumi and Hashimoto, but it wasn't "Hotel Sabaku" which may have been a little too raunchy for the show.

Instead, we got a duet by veteran singer Miki Hirayama（平山みき）and Pizzicato Five's Maki Nomiya（野宮真貴）titled "Artist". It was released just today and in contrast with the stripperific Natsumi Shimai song, this one is a lot more palsy-walsy with Hirayama and Nomiya acting like good ol' buddies getting together for an old-fashioned pop tune with enriched beats for some reason. In fact, I'd say that there is a certain senpai-kohai relationship between the two.

Natsumi Shimai -- Hotel Sabaku（ホテル砂漠）

 

In recent weeks, I've picked up a rather odd interest in that I've been checking out the websites for some of the more luxurious accommodations in Tokyo such as the Imperial Hotel and the ol' Keio Plaza Hotel. Maybe it's out of some envy for what other people can afford whenever they go on vacation. Mind you, I have stayed in some very nice places such as the Keio, the Tokyo Prince and the Portopia Hotel in Kobe, but those were very long ago.

Well, I know that a few Mood Kayo have had hotels as their lyrical basis because a number of those songs deal with those illicit trysts, so extrapolating from my hotel searches, I began to look for any hotel-themed songs. Surprisingly enough, I couldn't find very many with even the word "hotel" in the title. However, there was one new song that came out within the last few weeks.

And my search ended on a fascinating song. Through shows like "Uta Con"（うたコン）, I've often heard of songs created by songwriters that have long left this mortal coil such as Yu Aku（阿久悠）but never saw the light of day until very recently. Well, now to add to the legendary Aku, I discovered that the golden songwriting tandem of late composer Kyohei Tsutsumi（筒美京平）, who died almost three years ago, and lyricist Jun Hashimoto（橋本淳）, who is still with us thankfully, left a song that has also been unearthed to the listening masses.

"Hotel Sabaku" (Hotel Desert) was recorded by Natsumi Shimai（夏海姉妹...The Natsumi Sisters） consisting of long-haired stripper Jun Natsumi（夏海ジュン）and short-haired enkai entertainer Ai Natsumi（夏海愛）as their debut single. I noticed though that the Yahoo Japan interview with the two put the two professions in quotations so I'm uncertain whether the ladies really did work at those jobs or whether their names really are Jun and Ai, but I'll leave that for eventual confirmation.

In that same interview, "Hotel Sabaku" was described as a "beat enka". I'm not sure about that, but I am able to pick up on some old Mood Kayo, light funk disco and even some swinging 60s, so maybe the two could get together to create another example of New Adult Music. Gotta vouch for that adult part considering the music video above as we get a good eyeful of the night life in the big city as Jun sexily sings a pretty stark invitation for some boot-knocking in the titular hotel.

Interestingly enough, next week on "Uta Con", there will be a tribute to Tsutsumi but alas, Natsumi Shimai is not on the slate. Maybe they are a tad too hot for prime time on NHK.

The Village Singers -- Barairo no Kumo（バラ色の雲）

 

When I hear about the Group Sounds band The Village Singers（ヴィレッジ・シンガーズ）, the go-to song that comes to mind is the cheerful and laidback "Amairo no Kami no Otome"（亜麻色の髪の少女）from 1968. It has since gone on to become a kayo classic.

About half a year earlier in August 1967, The Village Singers also had another hit in the form of "Barairo no Kumo" (Rose-Coloured Clouds). Via J-Wiki, according to the liner notes in another major CD collection for the late composer Kyohei Tsutsumi（筒美京平）who had made this one of his earliest compositions, the title originated through lyricist Jun Hashimoto（橋本淳）whose father was poet Junichi Yoda（与田凖一）; apparently, Hashimoto picked up the secret from his father and fellow literati that listeners' and readers' imaginations can be aroused through the intriguing usage of abstract words. Personally though, I think rose-coloured clouds can exist depending on the time of day and the angle, but that's about as far as I will go on my theories.

In any case, "Barairo no Kumo" has got quite the urgent rhythm compared to the relaxing "Amairo no Kami no Otome" as the protagonist in the song looks on those titular clouds in the sky as he pines for that woman he left behind in her hometown. There's also some good power through the popping percussion and the sharp strings. The song managed to hit No. 2 on Oricon.

Hide & Rosanna -- Ai wa Kizutsukiyasuku（愛は傷つきやすく）

 

In the most recent ROY article that I've written, I noted that I didn't bother profiling the Top 3 songs on the August 3rd 1970 Oricon chart (yep, exactly 53 years ago) because I had yet to write about any of them. Well, that's now down to two songs.

That is correct since I'm now covering the kayo kyoku that hit No. 1 on that day, Hide & Rosanna's（ヒデとロザンナ） May 1970 5th single "Ai wa Kizutsukiyasuku" (Love is Fragile). Despite the direct translation that I've provided, the record cover has the official English title as "Love is Free". 

It's a little surprising that it's taken this long to cover "Ai wa Kizutsukiyasuku" since I did write about their "Ai no Kiseki"（愛の奇跡）here several years ago and the melody is familiar to me as one that has probably been performed on music shows such as "Uta Con"（うたコン）. Written by Jun Hashimoto（橋本淳）and composed by Taiji Nakamura（中村泰士）, the opening verses show a vocal give-and-take between Hide and Rosanna about their love along with an uncertainty in the melody before it gives way to a key shift into something happier and more hopeful with the two singing together.

I love the triumphant trumpet, by the way. The song not only hit No. 1 on August 3rd 1970 but it stayed there for the rest of the month. "Ai wa Kizutsukiyasuku" eventually ended up as the No. 7 single of the year, and it became a million-seller with it also leading to Hide & Rosanna getting invited onto the Kohaku Utagassen for the very first time that year. They would make one more appearance on the annual NHK special the following year.

Yoko Nakamura -- Teenage Soldier（ティーンエイジ・ソルジャー）

 

Usually when I hear the term "teenage soldier", I get some ominous images such as Kurt Russell's "Soldier" from 1998. 

However, I get much more of a benign impression with Yoko Nakamura's（中村容子）debut single "Teenage Soldier" which saw the light of day in March 1984. Her high tones and appearance had me musing an 80s version of Kohmi Hirose（広瀬香美）although of course, her voice doesn't quite hit the same level of stratosphere although her delivery is slightly similar. The song was written by Jun Hashimoto（橋本淳）who also acted as her mentor, composed by singer-songwriter Kantaro Yamamoto（山本寛太郎）and arranged by the prolific Motoki Funayama（船山基紀）.

Raised in Saitama Prefecture, she got into show business when her then-boyfriend in junior high school had her photo published in a magazine which got her a number of offers to star in commercials. But Nakamura also became an actress and TV personality which lasted into the early 1990s, although her singing career lasted only four singles and one album up to the middle of 1985. She left show business in 1992.