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.
And here I thought that The Bangles'"Eternal Flame" was a mid-1980s power ballad. Actually, it came out in January 1989, just half a year before I took off on my first stint in Japan as a teacher.
In the Wikipedia article for the song, I read that critics rather had pooh-poohed it as a minor piece of sap in their discography although I believe that fans and other listeners had far more approving feelings for "Eternal Flame". I remember hearing it this all the time on the radio and with the strings and the chorus provided by the band members behind Susanna Hoffs' main vocals, I thought that there was something Beatles about it, but the article also mentioned that there was also a hint of Carpenters in there as well.
"Eternal Flame" has been treated as a power ballad and I can imagine other singers launching the title like a howitzer, but Hoffs is more measured in her delivery...more of a comfortable simmer than full boil. And to be honest, I can imagine a group of girls singing this around a campfire more than I can see a diva belt this out on a stage. The song reached No. 1 in a number of countries including the United States, Australia and Norway, while in Canada, it hit No. 2.
So, what else was being released in January 1989? Here are three singles.
By the late 1980s, I'd gotten the distinct impression that the multi-week megahit on video shows and radio programs was beginning to fade in frequency. It wasn't quite like the early 1980s when there would be a song by a music superstar taking the baton from the previous artist to be the new No. 1 (or slightly below) person for the next little while. But perhaps that was just my perception.
So, it was something when Brenda Russell's"Piano in the Dark" first appeared in the pop culture zeitgeist as a single in February 1988. I'd never heard of this singer-songwriter before and to be honest, I never quite heard from her again. But for a long time that year, this soulful song was getting the heavy rotation on radio and TV. Created by Russell, Jeff Hull and Scott Cutler, it was this melancholy tune about wondering whether to leave a guy, only for his piano playing to draw the protagonist back in (kinda reminded of a famous "The Godfather Part III" quote here). The moody and smoky arrangement was such that it had me thinking of Quiet Storm again along the lines of Anita Baker.
In Canada, "Piano in the Dark" did OK by scoring a No. 23 ranking on RPM but did far better in the United States where it reached No. 6 on Billboard. It was also a track on Russell's fourth studio album"Get Here" which came out in the same year.
So, what else was coming out as singles in Japan in February 1988?
Tomorrow is the official opening day of the Paris Olympics although there has already been some action today, and I figure that it's time to put up some Olympic fare for Reminiscings of Youth this week.
A reviewer from "Rolling Stone" once described Canadian record producer and composer David Foster as a "master of . . . bombastic pop kitsch". Like ouch! And nope, it wasn't even a tongue-in-cheek backhanded compliment. However, with all of his contributions to Canadian, American and Japanese pop music, I'd like to state that he is MY master of bombastic pop kitsch. There are songs that he helped craft for other singers that I still like to hear after so many decades.
One of them has even been mentioned before when I did an Author's Pick on the man himself back in early 2019, and that was "Winter Games" for the Calgary Olympics in February 1988. I'd already been aware of his works as an 80s pop song enthusiast but this one landed a 10 on the mat when it premiered because it sounded so epic, friendly, wintry and downright Canadian for some reason. That main piano melody has always reminded me of shushing down the ski slopes without a care in the world, and I believe that it probably hit the Japanese in a nice way, too, because over the years, my impression has been that they have always appreciated nimble-fingered piano pop from musicians like Foster and Richard Clayderman outside of Japan and their own Midori Karashima（辛島美登里）and Hiroko Kokubu（国府弘子）.
So, let's see what else was being released in Japan during the Calgary Games, according to the CD/record sales calendar for 1988.
Welcome to the weekend. Perhaps it's time for a bit of kawaii and since Japan is into its festival season, being torrid and yukata-friendly, I believe that this tune will definitely suffice.
80s aidoru Noriko Sakai（酒井法子）released a special single in July 1988 titled "Nori-P Ondo"(The Nori-P Folk Song), and it's about as cute as a button can be. It is quite special since it was only released on cassette tape, not on vinyl or CD. However, if you ever wanted to know what a traditional festival tune sounds like aidoru style, well, this is your lucky day.
Lyrics were provided by Hiromi Mori（森浩美）and the melody was by Koji Makaino（馬飼野康二）. Everything was all arranged by Jiro Takemura（竹村次郎）who had been responsible for some very big kayo kyoku hits including Tokiko Kato's（加藤登紀子）"Shiretoko Ryojou"（知床旅情）and Harumi Miyako's（都はるみ）"Kita no Yado Kara"（北の宿から）. The Tokyo-born arranger and composer passed away in January this year at the age of 89.
The whole thing about Japanese summer festivals brings to mind about the fact that though I was never a festival freak in my years in the nation (the heat and humidity were very discouraging), I did have my opportunities walking through a few of them including the Firefly Festival in Tsukiyono, Gunma Prefecture when I was assigned there on the JET Programme. I wonder if any of you regular KKP readers have experienced a natsu matsuri as well. If so, I'd be interested in hearing your stories.
Well, yesterday's meteorological maelstrom is happily yesterday's matter. It's nice and sunny today although I would still be hard-pressed to call it spring. Still, maybe we can still bring some smiles here.
Or perhaps we can bring one hundred million of them. Yup, I've got Noriko Sakai's（酒井法子）bouncy 6th single, "Ichi Oku no Smile" (One Hundred Million Smiles) from May 1988. Nori-P always had a gleaming and attractive grin so I can say that she possessed a one hundred million-watt smile of her own, and the song itself rather reflects a very happy frame of mind. Lyrics were by Hiromi Mori（森浩美）with arrangements by Motoki Funayama（船山基紀）. ASKA of Chage & Aska fame was responsible for this very cheery melody which doesn't sound the type of music that he would come up with, and indeed, it's a very aidoru tune.
The song rang a bell with me and since I don't have any Nori-P albums...just a couple of singles from the 1990s...I think that I probably heard "Ichi Oku no Smile" on one of the old music ranking programs. What surprised me was that this was her biggest-selling single by reaching No. 2 on the Oricon weeklies, so none of her singles ever hit the top spot. "Ichi Oku no Smile" was also used for a Ban deodorant commercial (probably starring Sakai) and it first appeared on an album via her "LOVELY TIMES / NORIKO Part III" which was released in August 1988; it hit No. 8 on the charts.
Well, a Happy New Year to everyone out there and welcome to 2023! 新年あけましておめでとうございます。
As would usually be the case in my family, we had the traditional o-zoni（お雑煮）breakfast this morning after the New Year's greetings. Because our ancestors originally hailed from western Japan, our o-zoni have round mochi in a miso soup. Folks in the Kanto area, however, tend to grill square mochi before putting the cakes into a clear soup. I've had both styles but in each case, I'm always careful to chew pieces of mochi well and over several seconds lest I end up a victim of choking. French kissing a vacuum cleaner isn't my idea of enjoying January 1st.
Anyways, getting onto the first business of KKP this year, 2023 is known as the Year of the Rabbit and I've illustrated that with the thumbnail of the cute little bunny at the top of the article. Not that I'm into astrology, but I did manage to find what Rabbit people are supposed to be like from the website Chinese New Year, although the paragraphs below don't tell the whole story:
To outsiders, the Rabbit’s kindness may make them seem soft and weak. In truth, the Rabbit’s quiet personality hides their confidence and strength. They are steadily moving towards their goal, no matter what negativity the others give them.
With their good reasoning skills and attention to detail, they make great scholars. They are socializers with an attractive aura. However, they find it hard to open up to others and often turn to escapism.
A plain and routine life is not their style. Though conservative and careful in their actions, they need surprises every so often to spice things up.
Just to let you know, I'm not a Rabbit but a Snake person, so it'll be a few more years before I commemorate that. However, as the first article for 2023 on "Kayo Kyoku Plus", I thought I would pay tribute to the occasion by putting up some rabbit-themed songs or songs that have something to do with rabbits just for kicks.
I don't know how former 80s aidoruand actress Noriko Sakai（酒井法子）has fared over the past several years. As of early 2021, according to her J-Wiki article, Nori-P, had left her management company to set up her own individual company. With all of the tumult that she's gone through in the past, I hope that she's found some level of stability and happiness.
Regrettably I forgot which of the Twitter accounts that I follow had shown this last night, but I am grateful to have caught this Halloween-themed performance video of Nori-P although obviously I'm a little late to the party now that we've officially crossed over into November. Incidentally, the Fukuoka native is singing "HAPPY AGAIN", her 7th single from September 1988,
A typically bouncy number written by Hiromi Mori（森浩美）, composed by Eiji Nishiki（西木栄二）and arranged by Motoki Funayama（船山基紀）, it's all about finally getting out of the tunnel of doom and gloom and into the light of relief and happiness. In this case, I think lyricist Mori had intended this to be on the romance angle, but after what I've written down in the first paragraph, I'm hoping that this has applied to Sakai's life in general. "HAPPY AGAIN" peaked at No. 4 on Oricon and it can also be found on "Singles 〜NORIKO BEST〜" which was released in March 1990 as her first BEST compilation. It hit No. 1.
Y'know...I've seen this title for Noriko Sakai's（酒井法子）5th single, "GUANBARE" for a number of years now, but I couldn't really remember the song. Then when I finally heard it, I realized that I did hear it before. It just so happened that I was watching an episode of "The Best 10", and Nori-P was performing this very song on some elaborate set of a house. As she was traipsing through the living room toward the front door, crazy cut-up tall Takaaki Ishibashi（石橋貴明）of comedy duo Tunnels（とんねるず）was lying in wait right by the door, so when the lass stepped outside, he gave her his famous insane leer right in the middle of the song which threw her off. She could only scream and yell "Iya~da~!" in immensely cute fashion, and in all likelihood, that set off tons of hearts to flutter like butterfly wings. Hijinks aside, basically, this is probably the very first song by her that I had ever heard.
"GUANBARE" (Cheer Up) was released in February 1988 with Yukinojo Mori（森雪之丞）and Koji Makaino（馬飼野康二）taking care of words and music respectively. There isn't any J-Wiki article for the song so I can't find out why the title, which would usually be spelled ganbare（がんばれ）, has that extra U. Perhaps it's an affectation for Nori-P's way of pronouncing words.
As for the lyrics, Sakai is singing about standing up from the ground and getting back onto that horse following the end of a romance. There are always plenty of other fish, she's saying. And I'm sure that there were plenty of fans who would have lined up to take the cad's place. Strangely enough, this most Nori-P of aidoru singles "only" got up to No. 7 after her three previous singles peaked at No. 4, but "GUANBARE" will still remain a dear Noriko Sakai song in my heart. ❤
Perhaps not the most pleasant point to begin from, but on hearing about the recent arrest of actress Erika Sawajiri（沢尻エリカ）for drug possession and usage on NHK News, I started wondering how former aidoru and actress Noriko Sakai（酒井法子）was doing. It's hard to believe that it's been a decade since Sakai herself and her now ex-husband had been arrested for drug possession. When I left Japan a couple of years later, she still seemed to have been persona non grata in the media so I lost contact although as long as she desired a return to show business, I couldn't imagine that she would be in exile for an entire decade.
And apparently, according to her J-Wiki article, she was taking those baby steps right from the early 2010s in regaining her career through some TV appearances, stage acting and career anniversary celebrations including an overseas dinner show in Taiwan earlier this year.
My earliest memories of her involved Nori-P's（のりピー）appearances on the 1980s music ranking shows such as "The Best 10" as this pixie-ish aidoru with the twinkling eyes and beaming smile, although I never became a big fan of hers. Her debut single was released in February 1987, "Otoko no Ko ni Naritai"(I Want to Become a Boy).
Written by veteran lyricist Yoshiko Miura（三浦徳子）and composed by songwriter and producer Frankie T., who would later start up a music group called SEIRIOS, "Otoko no Ko ni Naritai" deals with a young girl who seems to be having trouble getting close to the local heartthrob since he likes hanging out with his buddies. But, as she theorizes, if she were to become a guy, she could finally make that approach and then convince him that she's the one for him once she makes the change back.
Nori-P was already pretty dynamic in her performances if the above video is any representative example. The song is also fairly catchy with that synthesizer beat and that bit of onomatopoeia near the end. "Otoko no Ko ni Naritai" broke the Top 10 by coming in at No. 8. The album version also started off her debut release "Fantasia"（ファンタジア）which was released in July 1987.
Recently, I’ve found a compilation called “I Love Dance Number [September, 1990]” in a Brazilian online marketplace. Comprised of singles released in 1989 and 1990 by female pop singers signed to Victor Entertainment (ビクターエンタテインメント), most of them aidoru, I knew right away that I had to buy it… and it was cheap, which is always a good thing.
The
artists were quite diverse, ranging from famous aidoru such as Noriko Sakai (酒井法子),
Kyoko Koizumi (小泉今日子) and Yoko Oginome (荻野目洋子), passing
through some middle ground names like Saki Takaoka (高岡早紀), to
a good portion of obscure singers (that’s the fun of these compilations, by the
way). Musically, despite the word ‘dance’ in the title, it also offered a good
variety of genres, from rock, American pop, aidoru-pop, some exotic stuff and
even a more laidback Japanese-style ballad (not enka, but something
middle-of-the-road).
Before talking about some of the songs, here's the complete tracklist:
01) ダイヤモンド☆ブルー (酒井法子)
02) 好きだから (久我陽子)
03) La La La… (小泉今日子)
04) ギャラリー (荻野目洋子)
05) Wet Wet (葉山レイコ)
06) 独立戦争 (鈴木彩子)
07) ボクはパワー (相原勇)
08) フリフリ天国 (高岡早紀)
09) 恋のハレルヤ (渡辺めぐみ)
10) アプローチ (深津絵里)
11) 微笑みを見つけた (酒井法子)
12) 見逃してくれよ! (小泉今日子)
13) 悲しくてやりきれない (松本伊代)
14) イフ・ウィ・ホールド・オン・トゥゲザー (長山洋子)
15) ユア・マイ・ライフ(荻野目洋子)
The compilation starts in a good note with the summery “Diamond Blue” (ダイヤモンド☆ブルー) by Noriko Sakai, a song I could totally see AKB48 recording nowadays, or maybe five years ago. Following, there’s the obscure “Suki Dakara” (好きだから) by Yoko Kuga (久我陽子), which, as a friend pointed out to me earlier, could have been the ending theme to a shoujo/magical girl anime at the time, thanks to its overall dreamy and romantic feeling. Unfortunately, though, the video above only showcases a small bit of the song.
Like I mentioned earlier, besides Noriko Sakai, the other two big stars on this compilation are Kyoko Koizumi and Yoko Oginome. While Nori-P was still a relatively new aidoru in 1990 and, therefore, still seeking her true big break (it would eventually come in the form of her many acting roles in trendy dramas and, musically, “Aoi Usagi” [碧いうさぎ]), Kyon Kyon and Oginome were already past their prime (both girls also branched out into acting, but I think they were bigger as aidoru singers in the 80s). In the case of Yoko Oginome, even if the edgy “Gallery” (ギャラリー) wasn’t something completely fresh or different from her 80s streak of Euro-oriented singles, I think it was still able to showcase a more mature side of her.
One of the things I liked the most in this compilation
was how adventurous a couple of the songs sounded, even if the ending result
came out as a little awkward at times. Like Yoko Kuga’s “Suki Dakara” before,
it’s unfortunate that just some seconds of “Wet Wet” are available on YouTube,
since this song by sexy aidoru Reiko Hayama (葉山レイコ), with its heavy sexual mood, is one of the most
unique songs compiled here (the song begins in the 1:47 mark, by the way). The
other strange song is the lysergic and almost psychedelic “Furifuri Tengoku” (フリフリ天国) by another sexy aidoru, this
time our beloved Saki Takaoka. The link for this song is not available to me
here in Brazil, but maybe it’s open to other countries.
Between
“Wet Wet” and “Furifuri Tengoku”, one can listen to “Dokuritsu Sensou” (独立戦争),
the anthemic arena-rock style debut single released by Saiko Suzuki (鈴木彩子), and,
while I wouldn’t rank it as one of my favorites, it’s nice to have something
like that in the compilation, since those were the days when Pink Sapphire,
Princess Princess (プリンセス・プリンセス) and other all-female rock bands
were booming in Japan.
Like
I said earlier, even though there’s ‘dance’ in the title, the compilation also offers
some slower songs, like Eri Fukatsu’s (深津絵里) beautifully arranged “Approach” (アプローチ) and
Iyo Matsumoto’s (松本伊代) “Kanashikute Yarikirenai” (悲しくてやりきれない),
which could be seem as something close to a more traditional Kayo song (it’s
actually a cover of a song of the same name by The Folk Crusaders [ザ・フォーク・クルセダーズ]).
Regarding Matsumoto, long gone were the “Sentimental Journey” (センチメンタル・ジャーニー)
days, so she was also way past her prime here, and “Kanashikute Yarikirenai”,
one of her final singles, wasn’t even released in 1990, but in the year before,
1989.
“Hohoemi
wo Mitsuketa” (微笑みを見つけた) is Noriko Sakai’s second offer,
and I like how it comes later on the CD, since it goes well with other mellower
songs, like the two mentioned before. Besides Nori P’s cute vocals, I think the
nostalgic arrangement combined with the melody results in this type of warm
song that connects well with the heart. Unfortunately, though, I can’t give
much praise to Kyoko Koizumi’s “Minogashitekure yo!” (見逃してくれよ!),
even if acknowledge its quirkiness and fun style. It’s an okay song, but not
one of favorites here. In fact, Kyon Kyon got the short end of the stick, since
her two featured songs, the other being the slow reggae “La La La…”, were quite
weak, in my opinion.
Our
final song is “You’re My Life” (ユア・マイ・ライフ) by Yoko Oginome, and I think it’s
a good way to end the compilation. Next to Yoko Nagayama’s (長山洋子) “If
We Hold On Together” (a cover of a Diana Ross’ song of the same name), which I
didn’t include, “You’re My Life” is the most direct American-style song here,
and that’s basically because it was composed by an American rock musician
called James Christian. Other than that, it does sound like your typical watered
down FM rock ballad, and while I have nothing against it, it’s funny to see
Oginome pull something like that off. Also, it’s another song that was
originally released in 1989, and not in 1990.
With all of the trials and tribulations pounding upon ASKA over the past several weeks due to his drug problems (although the police didn't have enough evidence to indict him this time), I've been reminded of former 80s aidoru Noriko Sakai（酒井法子）due to the drug scandal that she and her ex-husband had gotten mired in. I wonder what she is doing now. When I checked her J-Wiki article, the most recent news was that she was supposed to have appeared in some stage performance in 2014 but then suddenly left the show just before its premiere.
Marcos V. wrote about Nori-P's 27th single"Aoi Usagi"（碧いうさぎ...Blue Rabbit）which was the theme song for a popular drama that she starred in "Hoshi no Kinka"（星の金貨...Gold Coins of the Stars）back in 1995. For this article, I'm writing up about the theme song for the sequel to that drama which was titled "Zoku - Hoshi no Kinka"（続・星の金貨....Gold Coins of the Stars: The Sequel）, and this was also sung by Sakai as her 29th single.
Released in October 1996,"Kagami no Dress" (A Mirror Dress) is this vulnerable-sounding ballad that has Sakai wishing for that desirable young man to help her out of her sadness. There's nothing like synthesized pan flutes to help set the proper mood. I never saw the drama but I did enjoy the song enough that I ended up getting the CD single. Listening to the song and especially the performance above, I think that Nori-P really broke out of that aidoru mold. Her vocals sounded quite a bit more mature than I remembered them back in the 1980s although they weren't exactly Akina-deep.
"Kagami no Dress" was written by Rara Miura（三浦らら）and composed by Kyoichi Usamoto（宇佐元恭一）. I don't know how it did on Oricon, but at this point, I'm hoping that the singer is doing well somewhere.
Happy Monday! Well, I figure if the the anime world can come up with their programs devoted to Heidi, Anne of Green Gables (yeah, Canada) and even Princess Diana, then The Three Musketeers shouldn't be a problem. And I found out that there was indeed an anime about the adventures of Athos, D'Artagnan and the rest of the gang in the late 80s known as "Anime San Juushi"（アニメ三銃士...The Three Musketeers Anime ）by NHK.
I also discovered that none other than Noriko Nori-P Sakai（酒井法子）took care of the opening theme, "Yume Boken" (Dream Adventure) as her 4th single from November 1987. I mentioned on an article for another late 80saidoru some time ago that a number of the aidoru tunes from that time were infused with a hint of melody lines from other genres. I think with "Yume Boken", there was something faintly classical thrown in by composer Eiji Nishiki（西木栄二）which fit in with the anime it opened for. Hiromi Mori（森浩美）provided the lyrics.
My memory of how Nori-P sounded back in the early days is somewhat hazy unfortunately but listening to her in the opening credits for "Anime San Juushi" and in the cute little video above, I think she had quite the pure delivery for a lack of a better way to describe her vocals. I once borrowed a videotape of the singer one time and I vaguely remember seeing this particular video.
"Yume Boken" placed at No. 4 on Oricon and was the title track on her 2nd album"Yume Boken/NORIKO SPECIAL" which came out later on New Year's Day in 1988. The song was also adopted as the theme for the opening ceremonies of the 1988 High School Baseball Tournament at Koshien Stadium. And there's nothing better for the record companies than having a tune used in that sports tournament as promotion.
Actually, the first thing that had me noticing the anime was this song which I discovered on YouTube titled "Sora Iro no Pierce" (Sky-Blue Earrings) sung by actress/singer Noriko Watanabe（渡辺典子）. The Oita Prefecture-born Watanabe debuted in 1982 and was placed alongside Hiroko Yakushimaru（薬師丸ひろ子）and Tomoyo Harada（原田知世）to be collectively known as Kadokawa San-nin Musume（角川三人娘...The Three Daughters of Kadokawa） representing Kadokawa Pictures.
"Sora Iro no Pierce" was used as an image song during part of the anime, and it has more of an urban contemporary feel. It was Watanabe's 9th and 2nd-last single from December 1987, and although she didn't vocally hit it out of the park, the music by Godiego's Yukihide Takekawa（タケカワユキヒデ ）helps it out. Masumi Kawamura（川村真澄）provided the words.
I had actually been waiting for a friend of mine to give his insights on this song for a few years, but I don't think I really can wait any longer, so with all due respect to him, here is my own take on "Sekaijuu no Dare yori Kitto" (Undoubtedly More Than Anyone Else in The World).
Miho Nakayama's（中山美穂）duet with rock band WANDS was released in October 1992 as her 25th single which meant that I first heard about it between my two jaunts in Japan. So, I believe I must have first come across it when my university club was operating its weekly Wednesday night offerings of J-Dramas. "Sekaijuu no Dare yori Kitto" was the theme song for the Fuji-TV drama, "Dareka ga Kanojo wo Aishiteiru"（誰かが彼女を愛してる...Someone Loves Her） which also starred Miporin as the target of love.
According to the J-Wiki article, the song had been intended to be a ballad but then Nakayama's producer requested that it be something with a Christmas party feeling which led "Sekaijuu" to become the upbeat song it is. I'm not quite sure even after learning about this piece of trivia that it feels anything like a Xmas song, but it is a happy, happy, joy, joy song. And with the synths and wailing electric guitar arrangement from the early 90s, it's also a memorable nostalgic song.
In fact for me, I think this particular song is probably the one that I identify most with Miho Nakayama with the possible exception of "You're My Only Shinin' Star". The reason for this is basically media exposure. With the latter ballad, I just saw the song performed tons of times on those rentals of "The Best 10" episodes. But with "Sekaijuu", it just became a rather big piece of discussion on that ancient Internet format known as the BBS. My friends and I were half-jokingly talking about it becoming an unofficial song for the aforementioned club, but no doubt it was the popular tune not just within our own rarefied circle but also in Japan itself.
It became Miporin's first No. 1 hit in almost 3 years since "Midnight Taxi" back in 1990 (all of the hits in between the two songs peaked at No. 3), and broke through the 2-million barrier in sales. The lyrics were written by Nakayama and WANDS vocalist Show Wesugi（上杉昇）with Tetsuro Oda（織田哲郎）taking care of the music. Even with the relatively late release date, "Sekaijuu" managed to become the 37th-ranked song for 1992 but then a year later, it would also become the 10th-ranked song for 1993. The popularity of the song also earned both halves of the duet a ticket to the 1992 Kohaku Utagassen although WANDS wasn't officially listed on the performer slate (their name appeared just like with this phrase in brackets). And for a while at least, "Sekaijuu" was the most successful single by a solo female vocalist.
Another arbiter of a song's success is how often it's been covered. Composer Tetsuro Oda has done his own take on "Sekaijuu" along with other singers like Junichi Inagaki（稲垣潤一）and Hitomi Shimatani（島谷ひとみ）. And even Noriko Sakai（酒井法子）did a cover of the song as an official single in 2007. It would also be her final single to date before those personal problems started to set in.
To leave off, the coupling song for the original single by Nakayama and WANDS was "Sekaijuu no Dare yori Kitto Part II" done in a ballad style with the two halves switching roles. Nice, but I still favour the original.
Drama related posts are not what I do best, but after spending some nights watching the medical/romance themed “Hoshi no Kinka” (星の金貨) I just had to write something about its theme song, “Aoi Usagi”, and Noriko Sakai (酒井法子).
"Nori-P" was never one of my favorite aidoru singers, although I always agreed that she was extremely cute. In 1995, though, she starred in “Hoshi no Kinka” as the beautiful Aya Kuramoto, which was a mute and deaf nurse (in the music video featured above, Noriko Sakai performs “Aoi Usagi” in both ways, with her actual singing and doing sign language). I’ll not try to explain the story here, mostly because the most interesting part of the drama, for me, was seeing Noriko acting without saying one word during the whole series. In my opinion, she really nailed the facial expressions and was capable of communicating properly with the other characters during all the situations. Among the cast, I can highlight the sexy Minako Tanaka [田中美奈子] (the main reason why I chose to watch “Hoshi no Kinka” in the first place), Yutaka Takenouchi [竹野内豊] (I really liked his acting as the spoiled doctor Takumi Nagai. Because of that I have another one of his dramas on hold here) and Takao Osawa [大沢たかお] (Unlike Yutaka Takenouchi, I didn’t like this one. Well, not him, but his boring Shuichi Nagai, the talented yet hesitant doctor who hurt the lovely Aya). Cute aidoru Tomomi Nishimura (西村知美) and veterans like Raita Ryu (竜雷太), Masato Ibu (伊武雅刀) and Wakako Sakai (酒井和歌子) were also some of the actors featured on the drama.
If "Nori-P" didn’t speak a word during “Hoshi no Kinka”, there was a time when we
could actually hear Noriko’s voice very well, and it was when “Aoi Usagi” was played in
the opening of each episode. About the song, it’s a ballad about reaching
someone’s heart, something that relates directly to “Hoshi no Kinka”. Also,
although I’m not the biggest ballad fan, I couldn’t resist Noriko’s beautiful
vocals. In this sense, “Aoi Usagi” was a nice example of how much she matured
since her aidoru days in the late 80s, even though her image, similar to the
Aya character, was still of a virginal and innocent young lady. As for the
arrangement, it mixes the usual ballad feel with Latin sounds, resulting in a
rich background that helps the conduction of the song and saves it from
sounding bland. It’s not the strongest song, and my bond to it is basically
because of the drama itself, so let’s see if I’ll keep listening to it after a
long time...
And
here’s Noriko Sakai, as beautiful as ever, singing “Aoi Usagi” earlier this year in
some Chinese show (Apparently, she was big in Taiwan and Hong Kong during the
90s). Also, she still performs it doing the sign language. In the end, it’s
great to see that she returned do the stages after all the trouble she faced
some years ago.
“Aoi Usagi” ended being Noriko Sakai’s biggest hit. It was released in May 1995, reached #5 and sold around 982,600 copies. It also ended 1995 as the #29 best-selling single of the year. Lyrics were written by Emi Makiho (牧穂エミ), while the music was composed by Tetsuro Oda (織田哲郎). As for the arrangement, it was done by Hiroshi Shinkawa (新川博).
Singer-songwriter Keiko Mizukoshi's（水越けいこ）"Hoho ni Kiss Shite"(Kiss Me on the Cheek) was a song I found on one of the discs for the "Good Time Divas" series of female singers in the latter half of the 20th century (in fact, the 2nd picture in the article for that series is the CD that has the song). From what I've heard of some of her other songs on YouTube, the Yamanashi Prefecture native sounds like another one of those singers that I would like to get to know better and perhaps grab a BEST compilation.
Initially performing as one-half of duo Hime Daruma（姫だるま）, she decided to go solo and debuted with "Shiawase wo Arigato"（しあわせをありがとう...Thanks, Happiness）in June 1978. But it was with her 3rd single in July 1979, "Hoho ni Kiss Shite", that she hit some measure of success on the Oricon charts. Kaoru Ito（伊藤薫）, who later provided Anri（杏里） with the cute "Cotton Kibun"（コットン気分） in 1981, wrote and composed this just-as-cute ditty whose lyrics and arrangement reminded me of an updated 50s novelty song. On listening to this, I immediately whipped up an image of a newlywed couple in their new manshon in which happy wife is waiting for that peck on the cheek from slightly embarrassed hubby before he takes off for his 12 hours at the company. Yup, cute as Hello Kitty.
The song managed to get as high as No. 33 on the singles charts and is also included as a track on "Heart",her 2nd album from August 1979.
In 2012, entertainment company Sun Music Productions introduced their first aidoru, individual or group, in 21 years since Michiyo Nakajima（中嶋美智代）. Named Sunmyu（さんみゅ～）, the group consists of 8 girls in their late teens and up to this point, they've released 5 singles of which their first three were covers of songs by Mizukoshi, Yukiko Okada（岡田有希子） and Jitterin' Jinn. Sunmyu's version of "Hoho ni Kiss Shite" is bright and skippy and the intro beat reminds me of the one that starts off Misato Watanabe's（渡辺美里）"My Revolution". Released in April 2013, it got as high as No. 91.
(Sorry but the music 163 link is dead.)
I didn't think I would find a copy of it on the Net, but the above is Noriko Sakai's （酒井法子）cover of "Hoho ni Kiss Shite" from February 1990 in all its synth glory. And Sakai sounds as cute and twinkly as ever. It was the coupling song to her 13th single, "Kofuku Nante Hoshikunai wa"（幸福なんてほしくないわ...I Don't Need Anything Like Happiness）.
(Unfortunately the performance video has been taken down.)
EDIT NOTE: In this particular performance of "GET WILD '89" Tetsuya Komuro is not playing the keyboards. In his place we can see Daisuke Asakura, another keyboard/synthesizer legend as well as Komuro's pupil during the late 80s/early 90s.
1989 surely was a great year for Eurobeat in
Japan. Many notable acts in the aidoru
world were relying in this dance music genre to conquer the charts. Among
those, Wink and Chisato Moritaka (森高千里) were the main exponents of the trend, but
newbies like Minako Tanaka (田中美奈子) and Eriko Tamura (田村英里子) were also trying to have the same
success.
Aside from the aidoru world, synth-pop/rock band TM NETWORK self-covered one of their
signature songs, the infectious “GET WILD” (released originally in 1987), in
purely Eurobeat fashion, releasing it as their nineteenth single in April 1989.
This version was called “GET WILD ‘89”. You can check a live performance of the original 1987 “GET
WILD” from Yoru no Hit Studio below to make the comparisons.
If “GET WILD” is a fun song, “GET WILD ’89” can
be called an epic song. The Eurobeat arrangement and the bouncing bass line
worked so well together that this revamped version could really be seen as an
update if the Eurobeat sound didn’t became even more outdated than the original
synth-pop one nowadays. But that’s not important at all, because like in
almost any musical genre, we need to find the beauty of what that particular
sound represented when it was originally conceived. And to be honest,
Tetsuya “TK” Komuro (小室哲哉) certainly did his homework in the late 80s (and in the 90s
as well), so kudos to him.
If anything, “GET WILD ’89” is a very exciting
and true Japanese Eurobeat song, and not an Eurobeat pop cover from Italian,
British, Yugoslavian or Swedish artists. I’m saying that because it was common,
especially with aidorus (hey Wink, I love you but I'm looking at you right now), to cover
songs from poppier Eurobeat artists that were signed to, or influenced by,
SAW’s “hit factory” PWL (artists like Kylie Minogue, Sinitta, Bananarama,
Yugoslavian duo Moulin Rouge and Swedish singer Annica). Combined with the aidoru system, those poppier Eurobeat
songs started to influence Japanese composers and arrangers to really adopt the
style, which resulted in a number of original songs as we can see in some late
80s songs by Noriko Sakai (酒井法子), Kyoko Koizumi (小泉今日子), Wink, Chisato Moritaka, Eriko Tamura and Aya Sugimoto (杉本彩), while also in some early 90s
songs by Akiho Sendo (千堂あきほ), Minako Tanaka, Yamadakatsutenai Wink (やまだかつてないWink) and Megumi Hayashibara (林原めぐみ), for example. To illustrate that I selected "GUANBARE" (1988) by Nori-P, "Glass no ECSTASY" (1990) by the sexy-but-bad-singer Ms. A(qu)iho Sendo and "DON'T SIGH" (originally recorded in 1991) by Megumi Hayashibara. The videos are in this particular chronological order. Take a look at the Eurobeat music style portrayed on each of the songs and how it differs from the clubby Eurobeat sound.
“GET WILD’ 89”, different from the songs above, is an Eurobeat song projected with club ambitions, like the
hits imported from Italy and presented in compilations like the “That’s
Eurobeat” series. The energetic and groovy feel are there to prove that.
However, one can point out that I’m generalizing a lot here, as the poppier and
aidoru Eurobeat songs were also used
in clubs. To this one I reply that I’m aware of that as I even saw on YouTube
the mellow “Ai ga Tomaranai ~Turn It Into Love~” by Wink playing alongside “Bye
Bye Baby” by Max Coveri, an Eurobeat classic. You can check this out in the
video below between the 6:30 and 7:58 mark (unfortunately that video has been taken down but you can still hear "Bye Bye Baby" below).
What I’m trying to say is that “GET WILD ’89”
left a personal mark as the first mainstream club-oriented Japanese original
Eurobeat song that I listened (okay, that’s very specific). This fact alone
made me think that most of the clubby Eurobeat songs were imported and not produced in Japan. In conclusion, the poppier Eurobeat songs created in The
Land of The Rising Sun were more radio-friendly and aidoru-oriented than the original Italo-Disco/Eurobeat productions,
which represents an important characteristic of the mainstream Japanese music
market per se with its poppier
inclinations.
Now to the technical information, “GET WILD
‘89” was another hit single released by TM NETWORK as it reached #3 on the
Oricon (source: Japanese Wikipedia), selling over 129,000 copies (source: generasia). The song was written and
composed by Tetsuya Komuro. As for the arrangement, Komuro did it together with
Pete Hammond, a sound engineer from SAW’s “hit factory” PWL. (August 30 2017: J-Canuck has his own take on the original version.)
Kyohei Tsutsumi (筒美京平, real name Eikichi Watanabe) is in a
class of his own. Born in 1940, he has achieved high chart positions with his
compositions during 5 decades. Tsutsumi songs have been performed by enka
singers and rock bands (KinKi Kids) alike. Alone Judy Ongg’s Miserarete sold
over 2 million copies in 1979. The total sales of his songs is astronomical 76
million, including 39 number 1 hits. If there ever has been a king of
kayokyoku, it’s him.
A teenage idol
fits very well in this company. 15-year-old Noriko Sakai (酒井法子) auditioned in April 1986
for Momoco Club and was chosen as the host of the show. “When producer Masahisa Aizawa of Sun Music turned the unknown Noriko Sakai into a household name in the 1980s, he did so not with her singing voice, but by molding her into Japan’s little sister, making her famous for using a soon-to-be-widely-imitated childlike handwriting and an infantile speech style known as noripiigo, Nori-P language that changed Japanese popular culture.” (Mark D. West: Secrets, Sex and Spectacle, The Rules of Scandal in Japan and United States, University of Chicago Press, 2006.)
Yappii. It’s not very surprising that an idol is a product. The greatness of teenage Noriko Sakai was that she made us forget it. Her role allowed her to be silly, and she truly loved every second of it. Only very rarely, like in Yoruhit performance of No-re-na-i Teenage with her former classmates, the emotions of the moment were almost cracking the smiling and happy facade. As a 100% pro, in the end she didn’t allow her performance to become disturbed.
It was very
profitable enterprise. Noriko Sakai won the rookie of the year award over her Momoco Club friend Rie Hatada and enka queen Fuyumi Sakamoto (but to be honest, Fuyumi was not so impressive during her first years.) In the end of 1980’s she had a chain of Nori-P stores that sold only Nori-P merchandise. One of the shops was located in a hut on Fujiyama, in the height of 3000 metres. It was the highest fan shop in the world. The performance of Honki wo dashite above is from the tv premiere on Kayo Bin Bin House, 25th December 1988.
Like many idols
before, Noriko Sakai distanced herself from her idol image to become a popular actress. “Aoi usagi”, a signature tune for 1995 tv drama Hoshi no kinka became Sakai’s first million seller. Faithful to her role in drama she performed the song in Kouhaku Utagassen also in sign language.
In 2009 Noriko
Sakai’s husband was arrested for possession of amphetamine. When she finally arrived in a police station, a drug test was in order. It was positive. In the chaotic athmosphere of those days every tv channel sent out their own investigative reporters. Hotel rooms where she was located were screened from floor to ceiling. Every detail was in headlines. Sakai accused that her husband had forced her to participate in drug use, and she promptly divorced. Sun Music directors were demoted. Trolls of Nicovideo had a field day and rewrote “Aoi usagi” as “Shiroi kusuri” (White Medicine), starring Miku Hatsune. In the animation she was put behind bars by Kagamine sisters.
But Honki wo dashite is a great song. A sort of old photograph forgotten in the upper shelf of a closet, bringing us back to time when idols were still fun. Kyohei Tsutsumi’s composition flows so naturally that one can only wonder why there are no more songs like this. Arrangement by Motoki Funayama (船山基紀 ) simply works. Hiromi Mori’s (森浩美) lyrics are optimistic, perhaps even cruelly optimistic. As W.C.Fields used to put it: “This piece of advice is so precious that I have never afforded to follow it.”
