Happy Lunar New Year!/Naoko Kawai -- Chinatown Rhapsody（チャイナタウン・ラプソディ）/Koji Tamaki -- Hong Kong

                                                               From Alexandra Sigrit2323

via Wikimedia Commons

 

I realize that I should have done this yesterday when the Lunar New Year began but it was getting late into the night and I was just too tired. Anyways, perhaps it's just as well that I'm doing this today on Hump Day when I need to get some energy expended especially on a dreary stormy day. So, allow me to give my Happy Lunar New Year greetings to everyone who's celebrating it this week and they include some of my friends and some of my brother's in-laws. Hopefully, you have eaten very well so far. 

To be frank, I'm kinda surprised that I hadn't done an Author's Picks based on the Lunar New Year before but that simply means that I get to do it today when folks are celebrating the Year of the Horse. My picks here don't have any significantly deep meaning aside from the fact that they include song titles connected to areas whose populations would celebrate the holiday. Among the five I'm listing here, three of them already have their own articles on KKP, while the last two are newbies, so I guess this article is a hybridization of an Author's Picks and a regular posting.

(1977) Masataka Matsutoya -- Hong Kong Night Sight

(1980) Takashi Sato -- Peking de Choshoku wo （北京で朝食を）

(1981) Yasuha -- Fly-Day Chinatown (フライディ・チャイナタウン)

(1985) Naoko Kawai -- Chinatown Rhapsody 

The entries above and below are the newbies as I mentioned at the top and they're being included now since I had been looking for these songs on YouTube for years (and giving up) before they finally popped up. I actually borrowed Naoko Kawai's （河合奈保子）March 1985 11th studio album "Stardust Garden ~ Sennen Teien"（STARDUST GARDEN -千・年・庭・園-...Millennium Garden） from a friend back in my university days but never got my own copy, and the one song that I remember from it is "Chinatown Rhapsody" which also has the English subtitle of "Missin' Girl" which hints at some sort of neighbourhood intrigue. Written by Masao Urino（売野雅勇）, composed by Kyohei Tsutsumi（筒美京平）and arranged by Hiroshi Shinkawa（新川博）, the song goes at a good clip with a certain mysterious aura imbued throughout. I do like that twanging instrument in the intro.

(1987) Koji Tamaki -- Hong Kong

Honestly speaking, I hadn't gotten a great impression of Koji Tamaki's（玉木浩二) "Hong Kong" in the intro which sounded like a combination of a soundtrack from an episode of "Doctor Who" deep into the 1980s when the show was frankly going downhill and a little smidgen of a Pet Shop Boys tune. Now that I've gotten to hear it for the first time in many years, "Hong Kong" still won't enter my Top 5 Tamaki songs but it's a pretty tight and sexy song thanks to his considerable vocals and the simmering arrangement by Chris Cameron. Tamaki was responsible for melody while Goro Matsui（松井五郎）provided the lyrics. 

I'd never seen the music video for "Hong Kong" before and it appears that the director was going for a Neo-Noir look in the titular city with Tamaki cutting quite the figure as someone reminiscent of the late actor Yusaku Matsuda（松田優作）. Tamaki's naturally saturnine looks can have viewers wondering about which side he's working for. "Hong Kong" is a part of his debut solo album "All I Do" which was released in August 1987 and peaked at No. 2 on Oricon.

Hitomi Ishikawa -- Amore（アモーレ）

 

Kinda feeling sleepy this final Saturday of February 2025 after being kindly treated to an enormous Salvadoran lunch earlier today. Plenty of protein and carbs for this ever-growing boy.😁

Anyways, although I couldn't track down the commenter, I remember having a recent conversation with them about singer Hitomi Ishikawa（石川ひとみ）and her 20th single titled "Amore" that she released back in July 1984. When it comes to her, I will always remember her hit "Machibuse"（まちぶせ）from 1981 and her impression as that quintessentially early 80s aidoru (although she'd been around since 1978).

Well, with "Amore", I think that aidoru tag was most definitely left behind in her room as she sings about a torrid affair between two lovers. Even her voice deepens here, compared to her high twinkly vocals from "Machibuse". There's more Latin and rock woven into her pop and the overall arrangement reminds me somewhat of the one for a big hit from that same year of 1984, Mariko Takahashi's（高橋真梨子）"Momo Iro Toiki"（桃色吐息）. Strangely enough, the composer, Takashi Sato（佐藤隆）, created both "Amore" and Takahashi's classic. Machiko Ryu（竜真知子）was responsible for the lyrics.

Ray Parker Jr. -- Ghostbusters

 

Halloween is indeed just a few nights away and it looks like that trick or treat can go ahead in my neck of the woods, albeit carefully. Just wondering what Shibuya Scramble is going to look like this weekend with Tokyo treating things as if they're out of the woods but that's why I will be looking at the live camera overlooking the massive intersection over the next few days.

Of course, Thursdays also mean Reminiscings of Youth and that means that I'm putting up my first Halloween-themed ROY article today. I've decided to go with Ray Parker Jr.'s "Ghostbusters". Who ya gonna call, and all that!

I remember all of the hoopla surrounding "Ghostbusters" when I was just a high school kid in 1984. It was seen as an exciting high-concept vehicle for the guys at "Saturday Night Live" and "SCTV" to come together with some of those amazing Industrial Light and Magic special effects. Ever the late bloomer, I didn't finally get to see the movie until the end of summer about three months after "Ghostbusters" had launched at theatres. Catching the Tuesday afternoon matinee, there was barely anyone inside aside from a few other folks including a young couple about two rows in front of me half-watching the movie and half-canoodling by themselves. I honestly focused on the cinematic experience in front of me.😶

"Ghostbusters" was a fun movie to be sure but I didn't particularly laugh out loud at most of the cracks since Bill Murray was the main jokester (merely smirked and lightly chuckled), and his humour has always been more of the dry and droll type, although I did burst out at the famous line above. That didn't mean that I didn't like the movie. As I said, it was fun and I enjoyed it because it had a heart. I actually cared for Peter, Ray, Egon, and Winston and their proton packs as they were ready to believe paying customers with ghost problems. Mind you, I was no fan of the sequel overall.

Of course, the biggest calling card for the movie "Ghostbusters" was the single "Ghostbusters" by Ray Parker Jr. as one popular and muscular commercial jingle. Yup, I did hear about the legal wrangles over plagiarism between Parker and Huey Lewis but a financial settlement put that to rest and a "Premiere" article in the early 2000s (via Wikipedia) finally explained what the heck was going on with that. Apparently, Parker didn't want a new drug but an old song...or the basic rhythm, at least.

But hey, I like both "Ghostbusters" and Huey Lewis and the News' "I Want a New Drug", although when I eventually put up a ROY for the latter group, I'll probably go with another one of their hits first. Anyways, there have been variations on "Ghostbusters" within the later movies but it's always been the original for me because of Greg Phillinganes' funky work on the keyboards and the fact that it does sound like the most infectious jingle with the call-and-response of "Who ya gonna call?" and "GHOSTBUSTERS!". Plus, there's the music video with Parker, the fetching young lady plus all of those celebrity cameos.

After its release in June 1984, it hit No. 1 in both Canada and the United States and it even ended up in the Top 10 in both nations' year-end charts. Even in Japan, Oricon's international chart had it at No. 1 for six weeks in a row. It was even nominated for Best Original Song at the Oscars that year and I distinctly remember it being performed by Ray Parker Jr. at the ceremonies; it didn't go well. I've always wondered whether "Ghostbusters" was arranged so tightly and distinctly that only Parker and those Phillinganes keyboards could ever give it justice.

Although I'm keeping my expectations low, I hope that "Ghostbusters: Afterlife" does well. Strangely enough, this isn't Ray Parker Jr.'s first rodeo on "Kayo Kyoku Plus" since he did compose a tune in the late 1970s that has been covered by singer-songwriter EPO. Now, what were some singles that came out in June 1984...or thereabouts according to Showa Pops?

Takashi Sato -- My Classic: In Your Action!（マイ・クラシック）

Hiroko Yakushimaru -- Main Theme （メイン・テーマ）

Mariko Takahashi -- Momo Iro Toiki （桃色吐息）

Rajie -- Natsu ~ Hachi-gatsu no Memoir（夏～8月のメモワール）

 

September has entered rather peacefully here. It's sunny and unlike several of the past days, it actually feels cooler and drier (although I've still got the fan going in my room). Knowing Toronto, in a few weeks, we may actually be hearing frost warnings at night. Sorry to my heat-loving fellow Torontonians...I don't mean to jinx anything.

Anyways, I was trying to see if there were any other September-themed kayo out there but I did discover this song by Rajie titled "Natsu ~ Hachi-gatsu no Memoir" (Summer ~ Memoirs of August) that seems to fit the bill whenever I write anything at "Kayo Kyoku Plus" on September 1st. It's fairly contemplative with the singer's breathy vocals and that languid piano. "Natsu" does feel like the summer has suddenly gone into hibernation again and it's just a matter of time before the leaves begin changing colour. Uploader purplesound was quite accurate when he describes it as a Dream Pop number. Maybe it's a little like Fashion Music as sung by folks like Ruiko Kurahashi（倉橋ルイ子）and Asami Kado（門あさ美）.

The song comes from Rajie's October 1984 album "Gogo no Relief"（午後のレリーフ...Afternoon Relief） with lyricist Machiko Ryu（竜真知子）and composer Takashi Sato（佐藤隆）working on it, and City Pop master Makoto Matsushita（松下誠）arranging everything. 

Takashi Sato -- Rose no Wine（ローゼのワイン）

 

I remember the first Takashi Sato（佐藤隆）song that I profiled back in early 2017. It was his debut single "Peking de Choshoku wo" （北京で朝食を）from 1980 which was this appealingly quirky combination of City Pop and exotic kayo. Because of this, I kept an eye out for his other creations.

Always nice hearing different styles from a particular singer, Sato indeed did do that to my ears with his "Rose no Wine" (Rose Wine), a track from his August 1982 4th album "P.S. I Love You". Instead of City Pop and exotic kayo, I get some Eiichi Ohtaki（大滝詠一）and Motoharu Sano（佐野元春）through the guitar and keyboards. To add some other stuff, I could even hear some Donald Fagen via his "New Frontier" in some of those piano rumbles, although Fagen's landmark album "The Nightfly" wouldn't actually be released for another couple of months.

Regrettably, I couldn't find the lyrics by Takashi Matsumoto（松本隆）, who was also behind "Peking de Choshoku", with Sato's good-time melody but from what I could catch, it seems like the singer is playing the fun-loving summer playboy. Certainly looking at the album cover for "P.S. I Love You" above, I think he is indeed playing it up to the hilt.😉

Takashi Sato -- My Classic: In Your Action!（マイ・クラシック）

Of the five KKP articles that have so far involved singer-songwriter Takashi Sato（佐藤隆）, there has only been one that has actually had him behind the mike, and that would be the eclectic "Peking de Choshoku wo" （北京で朝食を）from 1980. Even as a City Pop song, it's not one of the more typical Japanese urban contemporary tunes.

But that's what makes the exploration all the more fun and intriguing. Here is my second article with Sato behind the mike in the recording booth, "My Classic: In Your Action!", his 6th single released in May 1984.

This was actually the campaign song for Daimaru Department Store in that year, and I couldn't find the commercial for it on YouTube, but I'm wondering if Daimaru had been aiming for one of those strange and exotic ads along the ones that Parco had done in the 1980s. The reason that I posit this is just how strange and exotic "My Classic" sounds. With Sato behind the music and Akira Ohtsu（大津あきら）taking care of the lyrics, a couple of listens to this one has had me thinking Andrew Lloyd Webber  musicals. With those sweeping synth strings and the haunting keyboards, I just imagine the late set designer Eiko Ishioka（石岡瑛子）whipping up some sort of fantastic and retro-futuristic setting in an Eurasian mansion in the wilds of Mt. Takao in Tokyo. Now, could you imagine what it would have been like to have Webber and Ishioka working together on a project?

"My Classic: In Your Action!" was also the first track in Sato's 5th album "Otoko to Onna"（男と女...Un homme et une femme） which came out in June 1984. I've taken a listen to one more track on that one, and yep, it's pretty different and attractive. Perhaps it's something along the lines of Faye Dunaway biting into a hard-boiled egg for millions of dollars.

Rajie -- Inshouha（印象派）

I did buy that 2-CD BEST compilation for City Pop singer Rajie（ラジ）earlier this year. BEST compilations are fine for getting that overall picture of a singer's work, including any hit tunes. However, there is still something to be said about getting the original studio albums and even some of the singles at least. Of course, it all depends on the individual listener, but I've found that those studio albums and the B-sides of singles have also contained gems that simply didn't get onto a BEST collection.

Case in point: Rajie's "Inshouha"（Impressionist）, a track from her 1984 album "Gogo no Relief"（午後のレリーフ...Relief in the Afternoon）. It didn't get onto that BEST compilation but I'm not left looking askance at my ceiling while I wonder why. There were so many fine tracks from so many of her albums that got put onto those 2 CDs that probably some perfectly decent stuff had to be left behind.

Akira Ohtsu（大津あきら）provided the lyrics while Takashi Sato（佐藤隆）created the music, and it's Sato's oh-so-City Pop melody that got me hooked (gorgeous keyboard work) and has me thinking about investing in this 6th album of hers. That melody just courses around the metropolis like a smooth-running sports car in the mood for a good tour of the bright lights and big city. And yet, what makes it even more interesting is Rajie's vocals which reminds me of the delivery of Taeko Ohnuki（大貫妙子）in her early 80s technopop/European phase. Maybe "Inshouha" leaves the impression of taking a ride around Paris of the 22nd century.

Akina Nakamori -- AL-MAUJ（アルマージ）

It may be Friday July 13th so the superstitious ones are avoiding sidewalk cracks and black cats, and in the small community of Port Dover, Ontario, motorcycle enthusiasts have been rolling in as they always do on Friday the 13th, but for us Akina Nakamori（中森明菜）fans, July 13th is the birthday we celebrate.

Happy 53rd birthday, Akina! Good heavens, it was over 6 years ago that I wrote my first article on the songstress. In fact, it was just the second day of existence for "Kayo Kyoku Plus" when I gave my thoughts on her album "Bitter and Sweet", still my favourite album by her.

As such, I would be remiss if I didn't write an article about Akina-chan today, and although I had been a little worried that I wouldn't be able to find anything, I was able to track down this particular single that I hadn't tackled yet.

Back in the late 1980s, my feelings on Nakamori had been that she had gone into a "weird" phase due to the fact that she seemed to become more experimental with her album releases starting with "Fushigi" (1986). At the time, I wasn't quite as open to her more creative ventures and it's only been recently that I re-conciliated with "Crimson" (1986) at some sacrifice. My somewhat unsure impressions of her unfortunately did filter into her singles to a certain extent as well (although those singles didn't get onto those albums, except for the BEST compilations and "Cruise"), including her 20th single "AL-MAUJ" (Waves) which was released in January 1988.

Now, it wasn't the first time that Akina had tackled something with that old exotic kayo feeling. There was "Sand Beige" from 1985, but I think she dove deeper into the mood with "AL-MAUJ".

And that included her appearances on the music shows when she came out in that full regalia. The music by Takashi Sato（佐藤隆）seemed to undulate like those waves, and with Akira Ohtsu's（大津あきら）lyrics about a bewitching and intoxicating and perhaps dangerous romance, all "AL-MAUJ" needed was Akina's deep and dramatic vocals (including her famous vibrato at the end of refrains) to set the mysterious atmosphere surrounding the song. For "Sand Beige", it was about the singer making the transition from really popular aidoru to pop superstar but with "AL-MAUJ", the diva had indeed landed.

The song was another No. 1 hit for her and it became the 14th-ranked single for 1988. It made its first appearance on an album through her second-BEST compilation "BEST II" which came out on Xmas Eve that year.

"AL-MAUJ" will still not enter my Top 6 favourite Akina songs but with mellowing age and growing nostalgia, I'm good with it now. And it's definitely 100% Akina.

P.S. I know that there a few collaborators on "Kayo Kyoku Plus" who are Akina fans as well, so I invite them to write about their favourite Akina tunes or the Akina song that got them to become her fans, if they are so inclined.

Kenji Sawada -- Megami（女神）

I sometimes think that Kenji "Julie" Sawada（沢田研二）is the only Japanese Time Lord on Earth right now. Considering some of the forms that he has taken in his career, whether it be the 1970s streetwise pop troubadour, the early 80s J-Bowie glam rocker or the pale New Waver, just like Doctor Who, the singer has come up with some pretty interesting incarnations.

One fellow who contacted me reminded me of yet another 1980s song by Julie and yet another "regeneration" of his...that of the louche rock star. The song in question is "Megami" (Goddess) which was his 46th single from October 1986.

I remember the song since Sawada did indeed perform it at the Kohaku Utagassen of that year, and I'm sure that a lot of viewers and audience were wondering what would the Japanese pop chameleon be dressed up in that time. Well, I guess it was a lot of tresses, eye makeup and black leather as he gave his heartfelt ardor for the woman of his dreams who may just be well out of his league.

What was notable about "Megami" was the artsy arrangement by Chito Kawachi（チト河内）with those strings especially which made me imagine French castles and Marie Antoinette along with all of the political and romantic intrigue. Meanwhile, Julie was somewhere in the middle of all of that kerfuffle, only focused on his one and only unattainable lady. If the song and singer had been hits back in the 1960s, I'm fairly confident that a movie would have been made of the story.

The lyrics were provided by Yu Aku（阿久悠）and music by Takashi Sato（佐藤隆）. The song did modestly well by peaking at No. 47. I've come across a few examples on YouTube of a later updated version of "Megami" which takes on a more Latin hue.

Takashi Sato -- Peking de Choshoku wo （北京で朝食を）

Breakfast in Toronto is a fairly mundane affair. The mornings alternate between cereal and oatmeal with some form of bread in the toaster followed up with a cup of coffee. Of course, can't forget the OJ! And that was indeed the case for me as well when I was living in Ichikawa. Yep, Japanese supermarkets do sell corn flakes and the other types of cereal; they even have oatmeal on the shelves although I didn't really have that too much. I never cottoned onto the idea of the old-fashioned idea of a Japanese breakfast with pickles, rice, grilled fish and tea. And apparently even Emperor Hirohito eschewed a wa-shoku morning meal for most of his life since he fell in love with the Western variety after his visit with King George V when he was still the young Crown Prince.

The closest I ever got to a breakfast in Beijing was a breakfast in Hong Kong many years ago when I visited there with a couple of students. One of them who absolutely adored HK took her friend and me to a small restaurant in the Central district to have a piping hot bowl of congee with pieces of deep-fried bread stick. Simple yet delicious.

All this preamble of breakfast has been given just to introduce this 1980 debut song by singer-songwriter Takashi Sato（佐藤隆）, "Peking de Choshoku wo" (Breakfast in Peking). Starting right off the bat with a little riff that hinted at those kayo with an exotic beat which were pretty popular during the late 1970s, the song was created by Sato and another Takashi...namely lyricist Takashi Matsumoto（松本隆）. The song was arranged by another former member of rock band Happy End, Shigeru Suzuki（鈴木茂）. Although the instrumental parts did have that exotic bent, the sung parts by Sato had a folksy City Pop swing that almost sounded downright European.

Matsumoto's lyrics related the protagonist's wish to find that mystery woman who he may have come across in the titular city while traveling there. The one notable thing there was how Sato delivered the English translation of the title. Although it was written down as "Breakfast in Peking", I couldn't help but hear "Beck! Boston Becky!" As someone who has enjoyed the YouTube series of misheard anison lyrics, I could enjoy the humour.

"Peking de Choshoku wo" was also a track on Sato's debut album from the same year, "I've Been Walking". Since that debut in 1980, he became even more famous for a song that he contributed to chanteuse Mariko Takahashi（高橋真梨子）, "Momo Iro de Toiki"（桃色吐息）in 1984. And he has provided tunes for singers including Kenji Sawada（沢田研二）, Akina Nakamori（中森明菜）and Shinji Tanimura（谷村新司）.

Mariko Takahashi -- Momo Iro Toiki （桃色吐息）

Released in May 1984, "Momo Iro Toiki"(Peach Coloured Sighs) has become one of Mariko Takahashi's （高橋真梨子）signature songs, winning a Japan Record Prize and earning Takahashi her first appearance on the Kohaku Utagassen as a solo artist (previously she had been on the New Year's Eve special as a member of her old band, Pedro & Capricious).

What sets this song apart from some of her other hits such as "for you..." is its exotic rhythm and esoteric lyrics. As an example, here is a translation of the chorus and the first verse:

Bloom, bloom, peach-coloured sighs
When I'm held by you, I become a falling blossom

Greek wine, painted in the colors of the sea
Whenever I'm embraced, my skin takes on an evening glow
On the night we are together, though we start our journey
Noone has seen the country of love
They are lonely things, your words
They resemble the echoes of a foreign country, strange

"Momo Iro Toiki"peaked at No. 4 on the Oricon weeklies and ended up becoming the 23rd-ranked song of 1984. It was a track on Takahashi's 9th album, "Triad" which was released in September of that year. The song has been put alongside Anzen Chitai's（安全地帯）"Wine-Red no Kokoro"（ワインレッドの心）, which was also a huge hit in 1984, as examples of the genre of Mood Kayo.

Thanks, by the way, to Utamap.com for the lyrics, speaking of which, they were provided by Chinfa Kan（康珍化）with the music by singer-songwriter Takashi Sato（佐藤隆）.