Haruomi Hosono/T Jiros -- Koi wa Momo Iro（恋は桃色）

 

I think the last time I posted a Haruomi Hosono（細野晴臣）article on KKP, it was back in January for his jazzy and tropical AOR for "Jamaica Ginger" from 1979.

Well, let's go further back to the early 1970s when Hosono came up with his first solo album following the breakup of Happy End（はっぴいえんど）. "Hosono House" was released in May 1973 and though it's been pegged as a rock album, at least one of the songs on the album doesn't quite strike me as rock.

"Koi wa Momo Iro" (Peach is the Colour of Love) was written and composed by Hosono, and it's a laidback Sunday of a song with a friendly and contented country arrangement. The lyrics tell of a man who's found himself in his piece of paradise which may indeed be along the Iruma River cutting through the city of Sayama in Saitama Prefecture, according to the notes for the song on J-Wiki. I recall that there is a famous brand of green tea from that city.

There have been covers of "Koi wa Momo Iro" by artists including Akiko Yano（矢野顕子）and the band T Jiros（T字路ｓ）. T Jiros' take on the song can be found on their first full album "T no Sanka"（Tの讃歌...T's Songs of Praise） from June 2015.

T Jiros -- Kore Sae Areba（これさえあれば）

 

I think that one of the more interesting acts that premiered on NHK's "Uta Con"（うたコン）this past year has been the duo T Jiros（T字路s）consisting of vocalist/guitarist Taeko Ito（伊東妙子）and bassist Tomohito Shinoda（篠田智仁）. Formed in 2010, unfortunately I don't remember exactly what they performed on the show, but because of that appearance, I looked them up on J-Wiki and then their website. However, their style is memorable since T Jiros shows off some old-style American blues (maybe Delta blues?) and folk (plus, their style of dress also reflects a time many decades past). In particular, Ito's voice has been compared to that of the late Howlin' Wolf, although when I myself first heard her, Tom Waits came to my mind.

From their June 2013 3rd mini-album "Kore Sae Areba" (If I Only Had This), I give you the title track. It's been a while since I heard them, so hearing Ito tackle this amiable and jaunty tune, I was still struck by that really gravelly voice of hers. I mentioned above that T Jiros has that old-fashioned style, and yet, I remember when there were certain acts in the early 1970s on radio which had that similar approach to their music.

Along with their three mini-albums, T Jiros has released four full albums and a couple of albums filled with cover tunes that have come out this year. Three analog singles and three digital singles have also been released.