Katsumi -- It's My JAL

 

Yup, good ol' Richard Gere. Of course, he'd long been one of Hollywood's biggest stars which also meant that he just had to do one of those stylish if enigmatic commercials for Japan. He may have done ads for other brands but I will always know him for the ones that he did for Japan Air Lines. Yeah, I fly JAL. Well, not really. I wish I could, though.

It speaks to how long I've been doing "Kayo Kyoku Plus" when I actually get nostalgic about not just the song in question but also the article that I wrote for it. Yes, I fondly remember the article that I did for singer-songwriter Katsumi's "Just Time Girl" from April 1991, a song that I also fondly remember as one of the last ones I would hear within Japan before heading home from the JET Programme later that summer. 

Well, he followed that one with his 5th single in June, "It's My JAL". While Katsumi wrote the lyrics, veteran composer Kisaburo Suzuki（鈴木キサブロー）took care of the melody which followed the singer's penchant for synth-driven upbeat tunes. I think "Just Time Girl" will always be my Katsumi tune but "It's My JAL" isn't too shabby either. In fact, it made it up to No. 3 on Oricon.

Katsumi -- Yes, Dakishimete （YES,抱きしめて）

Those "nostalgia from my JET days" feelings continue from my Princess Princess article with Katsumi's "Yes, Dakishimete" (Yes, Hold Me). I did probably hear this for the first time from that commercial selling a particular automobile but it was all confirmed when I bought his 2nd album "One" from February 1991. A bit of an aside about that album; the title track which starts things off is pretty much an anthem based on Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody". Katsumi has got the high-tone pipes to do a Freddie Mercury but I'm not sure whether taking a riff off of one of the 1970s greatest songs was the way to go.

Anyways, "Yes, Dakishimete" was Katsumi's 3rd single from November 1990. Seeing Katsumi in that hairstyle and hearing the arrangement had me reminiscing about oyaji gyaru, the sauvage (frizzy) hairdo and the Lambada once again. Written by Katsumi and composed by Hiroshi Ishikawa（石川洋）, it's a pretty happy and frenetic pop song for the most part aside from a rock diversion near the end. This was the single just before Katsumi made it big with another commercial campaign tune, "Just Time Girl" that became his 4th single the following year.

His 3rd single was actually a double-A-side disc with "Yes, Dakishimete" sharing status with "With Me". It went as high as No. 47 on the charts but along with "Just Time Girl", this is the only other tune by Katsumi that I am familiar with.

Katsumi -- Just Time Girl

Katsumi's "Just Time Girl"was the song for a Kao shampoo commercial that was just so sunny and bouncy that I decided to get the single. And shouldn't all hair be sunny and bouncy? It's also one of those nostalgic songs from the early 90s because of those synths back then.

Katsumi was born Katsumi Watanabe（渡辺克己） in Ibaraki Prefecture and was playing in bands in the Tokyo area during the 80s when he gave his demo tape to someone in the music industry. He officially debuted in 1990 with "Shining in the Night". "Just Time Girl" was Katsumi's 4th single, released in April 1991 which ended up being the 35th-ranked song of the year. I also bought his 2nd album, "One", which has "Just Time Girl" and whose title track was basically the singer's tribute to all things Freddie Mercury, his inspiration.

And here is the commercial with "Just Time Girl".　Sunny and bouncy forever!