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.
By chance, did anyone check out the Oscars last night? To be honest, and I have most likely mentioned this in past articles, I had once been a regular watcher of the Academy Awards when I was a kid because of the glitz and the fact that it was Hollywood celebrating Hollywood. But living in Japan all those years gradually weaned me off due to the fact that the live presentation was happening while I was at work.
Then when I returned to Toronto for good in the early 2010s, I realized that I had lost interest in the glitz and the celebration of celebrity. Plus, my track record of seeing those Oscar movies is frankly abysmal. The last Oscar-nominated movie I caught was "Oppenheimer" back in 2024. I don't really consider myself a cinephile and yet, I still cherish some of the older stuff such as "Casablanca" and "Roman Holiday" (as for newer stuff, there is "Inception" and a few of the MCEU movies). And to be frank, when I occasionally catch a movie, the purpose is to get away from reality for a couple of hours and be entertained...not necessarily to be educated or moved.
OK, I'll just jump off my rapidly sinking soapbox and give you my latest Author's Picks. Over the years, I have discovered that from time to time, certain songs pop up which have at least a titular connection with Hollywood or movies, so here's a short but varied list.
Once again, the car stereo last weekend brought another song ripe for Reminiscings of Youth this week. I got to hear Belinda Carlisle's"Heaven is a Place on Earth" for the first time in a while. So, of course, I started remembering when it was first released in September 1987. The Go-Gos lead singer was already well into her solo career when this one came out and both the song and the music video were long runners on radio and television respectively. Considering the context of the title, I had thought that there were religious implications although it sounded like the ultimate cool and catchy power pop song for kiddies.
The fact that there were kids bouncing globes assisted in that impression but also seeing Belinda making out with that guy made me think "OK, kids...avert those eyes!". Speaking of which, the song and that video has quite the revelatory Hollywood background. For one thing, that guy just happened to be the singer's husband, Morgan Mason, who not only was the child of actors James Mason and Pamela Mason but held a key role in Ronald Reagan's administration in the early 1980s. The late thespian Diane Keaton directed the video, and the backup singers included Michelle Phillips of the sunshine pop band of the 1960s, The Mamas & The Papas, her daughter Chynna Phillips of Wilson Phillips and songwriter Diane Warren. Even the actual writers of "Heaven is a Place on Earth", Rick Nowels and Ellen Shipley were also behind the mikes backing Belinda up.
"Heaven is a Place on Earth" hit No. 3 on Canada's RPM and No. 1 on America's Billboard chart. It also hit the top spot in countries such as Ireland and South Africa. So, let us see what was being released at the same time in September 1987 in Japan.
In my high school, we had this rather eccentric English teacher, Mr. A., whose girth and reputation preceded him. He had a massive intellect, and it was often the case that he would go on flights of fancy (frequently insightful though they were) on certain authors and stories but these were also paired with episodes of him just staring at us and having us read through our novels for the entirety of the 45-minute class. When a teacher simply and laconically mumbles out at the beginning, "Ohhh...do you think that I should actually teach a class today?", well, let's say that it wouldn't be a run-of-the-mill afternoon. Because my desk was right in front of his, he asked me that very question directly and I responded, "Well, it would make for a nice change of pace, sir". I'm glad that he liked me.
One of my smart-alecky schoolmates also had Mr. A. in a separate class and sometimes his mouth would be a little too potently filled, sparking our English teacher to chase him around the classroom in rage. My schoolmate also told me that the teacher once had his entire class stand up and do a march around the room in what was labeled one of the teacher's special "tribal experiences". I always thought that Mr. A. and that class had been reenacting the march toward Dunsinane Hill in "MacBeth".
This particular song by the band Picasso（ピカソ）sparked my memories of Mr. A. and his tribal experiences. After all, with the title of "Tsukiyo ni Dance"(Dance on a Moonlit Night), I have treated dancing under the moon (perhaps clothing-optional) as a tribal experience by various small groups. Maybe it's something that happens now and then at Stonehenge, I don't know.
But getting to "Tsukiyo ni Dance" the song, Picasso really made their July 1990 single a really thumpy and catchy tune. I'm not sure if that is a sitar in the intro, but the beginning reminded me of a song that Canadian legend Bruce Cockburn once made back in the 1980s. And heck, that music by vocalist Tetsuji Tsujihara（辻畑鉄也）could really describe that tribal experience taking place under a full moon during harvest season (also love the way that he throws out the word "DANCE" in the chorus). The lyrics by Yukinojo Mori（森雪之丞）are fairly fantastical with streaming stardust, strawberry fields everywhere, and dreams piling up in hearts galore. Goes to show that Picasso shouldn't just be known for their association with the anime,"Maison Ikkoku"（めぞん一刻）.
Well, just for whimsy's sake (perhaps Mr. A. is still influencing me here), I'm also including Nash Music Library's"Tsukiyo no Dance", which, one Japanese particle difference aside, basically has the same meaning as "Tsukiyo ni Dance". Compared to the quirky pop of Picasso's song, NML's "Tsukiyo no Dance" is an elegant orchestral number.
I did promise in my first article for NML, which I wrote because I've been enjoying the incidental music that he's been providing for Japan's Weathernews Live all these years, that I would most likely bring in other examples from him. I've never heard "Tsukiyo no Dance" aurally adorning a weather map thus far, but it's still a lovely atmospheric song, and to be honest, when I heard those opening strings, I'd assumed that I was listening to a particularly dramatic B'z number. However, the 2008"Tsukiyo no Dance" comes across as something that I could potentially hear as background music in a swords-and-sorcery anime. Of course, such a show would also contain its fair share of tribal experiences.
Along with the City Pop and other J-Pop YouTube channels, I've also subscribed to some other interesting channels including the drive-focused J Utah that I've mentioned in past articles. Recently, though, I've also cottoned onto another traveling channel called "Kuga's Travel" which since 2019 has had Mr. Kuga (if that is indeed his real name) travel on trains and ferries around Japan. The above video is his most recent entry from only several hours ago in which he's taking a ferry with cruise ship ambitions from Sendai to Hokkaido. Although I don't consider myself a traveler, I'm sure that there are many travel-starved folks who would appreciate his videos, and even I've enjoyed the soothing rides that he has provided.
I've used the oceangoing story above to introduce the appropriately titled "Tide" by the 80s/90s band Picasso（ピカソ）. For those "Maison Ikkoku"（めぞん一刻）fans, this group should be well known to them since they came up with one of the theme songs for the beloved 80s anime,"Cinema"（シ・ネ・マ）. Actually, "Tide" is the 2nd single from January 1985 by Picasso, just preceding "Cinema" by exactly 7 months.
The Wikipedia article for the band cites their "experimental sound", and I think that "Tide" is perhaps a reflection of that. Right from Note One, there's something of a unique arrangement which feels quite ska or a peppy reggae, and there's something in Tetsuya Tsujihata's（辻畑鉄也）voice which also hints at that, but then there are those synths and even a shift into a more tango-like rhythm as we go deeper into the song.
As was the case with "Cinema", "Tide" was also written by Junko Ohyama（大山潤子）and composed by Picasso. The song was also used for a commercial for Flouveil Cosmetics. Lastly, I don't think that I ever mentioned this but according to both the Wikipedia and J-Wiki articles for the band, keyboardist Hideharu Mori（森英治）is the younger brother of prolific lyricist Yukinojo Mori（森雪之丞）who is well represented on "Kayo Kyoku Plus".
Hearing about the adulation behind the 1980s anime "Maison Ikkoku"（めぞん一刻）all these years, I think that the various opening and ending themes have probably added to the show's fame as well as getting fame themselves due to the popularity of "Maison Ikkoku". Of course, the show's got the moody opening theme "Suki sa"（好きさ）by Anzen Chitai（安全地帯）, and then the ending theme "Cinema"（シ・ネ・マ）by Picasso（ピカソ）.
According to the J-Wiki article on the song, Picasso's 6th single was "Begin The Night" released in September 1987. It also served as the final ending theme for "Maison Ikkoku", and unlike the atmospheric tango of "Cinema", "Begin The Night" was more of a conventional pop ballad, perhaps similar to the output of pop band H2O at the time.
Written by Etsuko Kisugi（来生えつこ）and composed/arranged by Picasso, "Begin The Night" does sound contemporary 80s but I can also hear a bit of a 1950s sound at points as if Richie and Mari Beth are holding hands on that porch swing. The slight echo in the song also gives it a haunting quality as if it was indeed the end of the story of the famous boarding house.
Every time I heard the company Epson, I couldn't help but think of those bath salts from the old days. Of course, those were actually epsom salts, and Epson represents printers. I used to see some of their ads on TV, and their Tokyo headquarters has their name hugely displayed in Shinjuku.
I didn't particularly pay attention to any of the songs that were played in their commercials, but I did find out recently that one of those songs was performed by the pop band Picasso（ピカソ）.
Picasso was the band that I usually knew for "Cinema"（シ・ネ・マ）, one of the themes for the 1980s anime "Maison Ikkoku"（メゾン一刻）, but here is their 17th single"Boku no Hitomi mo March" (The March of My Eyes) from July 1992. It's a pretty anthemic piece that starts off almost like a toy soldier's tune before it switches to a more Beatlesque number. Just makes you want to stride off and get an Epson jet printer.
Chizuru, Tezuka and Picasso leader Tetsuya Tsujihata（辻畑鉄也）provided the lyrics while the band all pitched in for the music.
However, it's the coupling song that I have enjoyed even more than "Boku no Hitomi no March". "A Piece of Love" was the theme song for the motion picture treatment of another manga-turned-anime, "Ranma 1/2"（らんま1/2）. Specifically, it was for the August 1992 movie "Ranma 1/2 Kessen Tougenkyo! Hanayome wo Torimodose!!"（らんま1/2 決戦桃幻郷! 花嫁を奪りもどせ!!...Ranma ½: Battle at Togenkyo! Get Back the Brides）.
Actually, my anime buddy has played "Piece of Love" a few times during the anison hour over his giant speakers. Again, I feel that there is a bit of Beatles in this one as well, and the melody is even catchier. Shouta Namikawa（並河祥太）wrote the lyrics and Tsujihata composed the music. Overall, the feeling of the song has me reminiscing over the guitar pop that was fairly popular back in that part of the decade.
"Boku no Hitomi no March" peaked at No. 65 on Oricon.
When I think about the old 80s anime, "Maison Ikkoku"（めぞん一刻）, I usually remember the atypically moody theme by Anzen Chitai（安全地帯）,"Sukisa"（好きさ）. For years, I'd had no idea that the song had any connection with an anime. I just naturally assumed that it was another adult contemporary urban song by the band.
Then, came another revelation recently. On another visit to my anime buddy's home, he played this other ending theme song, "Cinema", for the show by a band called Picasso. Once again, I was struck at how dramatically this song played out, considering my image of anison in that decade seemed to fall into two categories: loud and proud rock or cutesy pop. This song, though, felt like a heart-on-a-sleeve light tango.
Picasso debuted in late 1984 with "Honki! Tricky Lady"（本気！トリッキ・レディー...Really! Tricky Lady） with "Cinema" being their 3rd single coming out in August 1985. The band has three members: Tetsuya Tsujihata（辻畑鉄也）, Junji Azuma（東純二） and Hideharu Mori（森英治）, and had been praised for its "experimental sound" among the anime fans. "Cinema" itself was written by Junko Ohyama（大山潤子） and composed by Picasso. Along with the tango rhythm, Tsujihata's voice also caught my attention since it seemed to resemble a mix between Koji Tamaki (Anzen Chitai) and the vocals of the band H2O, which had come up with a couple of well-regarded anime themes of their own just a few years before. I guess for a number of male non-aidoru pop singers, lilting and haunting was the way to go back in that decade.
The band stopped recording in 1995 but was signed up by another record label in 2000 to help shepherd some of the new generation.
