Ryuko Mizuta -- Hirado Ujou (平戸雨情)

I remember turning into a fan of gorgeous enka singer Ryuko Mizuta (水田竜子) through Noelle Tham’s article of the song "Yopparachatta" (酔っぱらっちゃった) back in 2016, and, thanks to that song, have always wanted to buy one of her CDs since then. During last Christmas, I ordered her “Best Selection 2016”, which featured almost all of her singles from 1994 to 2016, with the exception of one, if I’m not mistaken, in order to finally have it in my collection. However, not only of “Yopparachatta”-like songs the compilation was comprised, and that was sort of a problem (in fact, the problem is to become infatuated by the woman regardless of what she sings, but let’s not talk about that).

Mizuta’s discography, in special her latest singles, is comprised of… surprise, surprise… enka in its purest form, with the melismas and all the stuff required… which I’m not very fond of, to be quite honest. Her voice and technique are always on point, but the overall production, sometimes excessively dramatic, is not really for my taste (I still try to like it, though). So, besides “Yopparachatta”, some singles from the late 90s, and a couple of others from past years, like the already covered “Uwasa no Minato”, one of the highlights of the selection comes in the form of “Hirado Ujou”, a more restrained kayo kyoku released back in February 2014.

“Hirado Ujou” is quite smooth and classy, which is probably why I liked it so much. While I’m not an expert on the subject, I think the song could easily pass as an old Showa-era ballad with this nostalgic mix of Western arrangement with some Eastern details. And Ryuko Mizuta still sings it in a light enka style, but not in an overwhelming way. In the end, the song earned its spot in my enka playlist (yeah, even I have one of those).

Lyrics were written by Reiji Mizuki (水木れいじ), while music was composed by Hideo Mizumori (水森英夫). As for the arrangement, Toshioki Maeda (前田俊明) was the responsible.

Ryuko Mizuta Best Selection 2016

Ryuko Mizuta -- Uwasa no Minato (噂の港)

Ever since Noelle Tham introduced Ryuko Mizuta (水田竜子) to this blog through her cover of Miyuki Utsumi’s “Yopparacchatta” (酔っぱらっちゃった), I became a somewhat distant fan, following her singles releases and even listening to her back catalogue in the attempt of knowing her better. Now, thanks to some nice shopping points I had accumulated on CDJapan, I decided to buy one of her yearly best selections and finally have “Yopparacchatta”, among other great songs from her catalogue I discovered, in my collection. The bad thing is, since I’ve bought the CD very recently, and it didn’t leave the warehouses yet, it’ll certainly take some time until it finally arrives in Brazil.

From what I’ve heard so far, Ryuko’s work can be separated into two categories: the first, with a more Kayo Kyoku flavor, covers her first years; and the second, in which her true enka tunes shines, is something she’s been into since the mid-00s. Personally, I enjoy the first category a lot more, but some of her enka tunes have gradually grown on me, which is the case of “Uwasa no Minato”, a single released back in February 2015.

When I started searching for Ryuko’s live performances on YouTube, the one song that constantly appeared to me was “Uwasa no Minato”, and that’s probably because it was one of her newest songs at the time. So, after watching a lot of different live performances of it, I ended liking it a lot more than other similar songs she’d released in the past. I don’t know, maybe the melodic shifts were interesting enough to my ears, or it was simply the result of repeatedly listening. It also helps that, besides the usual heavy singing, “Uwasa no Minato” isn’t overdramatic as some other songs in the genre.

Aside from the music… oh, boy, I do love Ryuko Mizuta’s figure. If her singing talent wasn’t enough, she’s so classy and sexy that I can watch her sing even the most boring enka songs and still be fascinated.

Lyrics were written by Mitsuo Ikeda (池田充男), while music was composed by Hideo Mizumori (水森英夫). As for the arrangement, Toshiaki Maeda (前田俊明) was the responsible.

Source: https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/71W8Fdd5MTL._SL1261_.jpg

Miyuki Utsumi/Ryuko Mizuta -- Yopparachatta (酔っぱらっちゃった)

Aw man, last night, or should I say this morning, was one heck of a ride for yours truly and I doubt I'd forget it. After what seemed like an eternity of missed opportunities and disappointments on the part of some of my classmates, I was finally, as they would say, "steady" to head to a nightclub - as in, I was all for it. This caused much surprise and ecstasy in them as I'm usually one of the somewhat straight-laced or serious students in my cohort, so to get the chance to see me come out from my shell was like some sort of rarity. 

The night began with two handfuls of us having some drinks courtesy of a couple of those raring to go so as to loosen up before heading to Zouk (popular clubbing haunt for people my age), and by drinks I mean a cocktail of peach flavored Absolut Vodka and Sprite on the rocks. Thus far, it was the strongest alcoholic beverage that has entered my system, having an alcohol content of a burning 40%. It wasn't bad and was actually pretty good when not taken straight, but unfortunately that gave me the illusion that I could hold it up without much problem. By my second small plastic cup, I was giggling uncontrollably. By a few rounds of drinking games which I constantly lost, I was having trouble concentrating - took some sips from the third cup though. By the time we were to leave for Zouk, I was sloshed. It was my first time being so drunk and frankly it was quite frightening - jelly legs, blurry vision, and skyrocketing heart rate. Luckily the bunch of friends I was with were patient and understanding and waited for me to regain my composure; they even got me a bottle of water to get the alcohol out of my system. So eventually I was well enough to join them at the club, albeit being a little tipsy. Ah... After this experience I think I'll stay off the hard stuff for a while.

Continuing on the topic of drunkenness, the here's a song that involves being under the influence, "Yopparachatta", which basically means something like "I am/got drunk". Originally sung by Miyuki Utsumi (内海美幸), a singer who has dabbled in enka, folk and pop (kayokyoku?), I recall hearing it from time to time on "Kayo Concert" by a variety of enka guests. It's one jaunty and funky tune, and combined with Utsumi's delivery, it seems to represent someone in that alcohol high state either stumbling about the streets and chuckling at everything, or ready to indulge in more drinks. But as much as I would like to think that "Yopparachatta" mirrors part of my personal experience, I realise that it's not the case when the lyrics come in. From what I understand, the woman of interest here is trying to drink away her sorrow and forget about the fellow who was not meant to be. For me, I was just drinking for fun and to see how much I could take - still not very much though.

"Yopparachatta" was Utsumi's biggest and most well-known hit from 1982, selling around 300 000 copies. I suppose that's what happens when two renowned songwriters come together to put together a song - Kazuya Senke (千家和也) for the lyrics, Keisuke Hama (浜圭介) for the music. It's apparently a track that karaoke-goers love. I can see why though; picking up the karaoke mic after a few drinks, the fun-sounding "Yopparachatta" is the perfect choice.

As its one of those classic kayo (sounds like it), a number of singers have had their own renditions of "Yopparachatta", most notably Ryuko Mizuta (水田竜子) with her version being released in 2001. It's equally funky, but has a Latin flavour to it. I think I'm more a fan of the original.

(cover of the Mizuta version)

While recovering from my drunken stupor, I overheard a friend of mine sharing his first experience of being heavily intoxicated. The silliest thing was that he laughed at a bowl of noodles he was eating. What was your most memorable drinking experience?

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