Saori Minami -- Hito Koishikute（人恋しくて）

While I was just listening to a YouTube recording of an old Japanese radio music program, I heard this tune that I hadn't heard in decades. I had first heard it as one of the songs featured on an episode of "Sounds of Japan" back on CHIN-FM in the 1980s, but as luck would have it, I lost the listing for the playlist so I couldn't find out who sang it or even what the title was.

However, thanks to the DJ of that old radio music program, I have finally been able to resolve the decades-long mystery. It just happened to be 70s aidoru Saori Minami（南沙織）and the song title was "Hito Koishikute" (Missing You). Released as Minami's 16th single in August 1975, it possesses a distinctive introduction which has haunted me all these years, sounding like exotic Asia. And I guess because of the nature of "Hito Koishikute", I couldn't really peg it as a Minami song at first.

It's a sad folk song about a couple breaking up after a major fight and the woman at least regretting every moment that she's now separated from her one true love. With folk singer Masamitsu Tayama（田山雅充）composing the song, Tsuzuru Nakasato（中里綴）wrote the lyrics for which the first line has stayed with me: "Kuresou de kurenai, tasogare doki wa"（暮れそうで暮れない黄昏どきは...This twilight time when I can despair but I won't）. It resembles a chant. According to Minami's fan website, that entire first line was supposed to have been the title, but the producer for the song, Masatoshi Sakai（酒井政利）, changed it to its current title.

"Hito Koishikute" managed to get as high as No. 8 on Oricon and finished the year as the 52nd-ranked single. It also won Minami a Japan Record Award for Best Performance and got her another invitation to the 1975 Kohaku Utagassen. The album "Hito Koishikute" was released in December of that year, and topped off at No. 19.

Katsuhisa Hattori -- Kyodai Keiji（兄弟刑事）

Last night, I put on my TV nostalgia cap and went through some old American TV themes on YouTube, notably in the detective show vein. A few days ago, I'd undergone the same phase when I was writing up that article for one of the theme songs for the "Kosuke Kindaichi"（金田一耕助）series in Japan. But last night, I saw the classic opening credit sequence for "The NBC Mystery Movie" with its surprisingly romantic Henry Mancini theme song that has become the de facto theme for "Columbo". Now, whenever there is a power blackout in our building and I have to go down the corridor to investigate with a flashlight, I will always keep getting reminded of that song.

I also revisited an old favourite, the opening credits for the 60s show "Mannix" which was one of the earliest memories in my TV-viewing career. Lalo Schifrin created this one. Of course, he will probably be most famous for the legendary "Mission: Impossible" theme but whereas that one was determined and suspenseful, Schifrin's theme for "Mannix" was an intense but sweepingly jazzy number that I think perfectly described the life of good ol' Joe Mannix in Los Angeles.

Then, there was the funkiness of the theme song for "The Streets of San Francisco" by Patrick Williams. Love the wacka-wacka guitar, those drums and the horns. Couldn't feel more downtown than if I were actually in The City by the Bay itself.

I've had this video on backlog for a while and wading myself into those American cop show theme songs last night, I finally pulled the trigger on covering this one. This is Katsuhisa Hattori's（服部克久）opening instrumental theme for the Fuji-TV drama "Kyodai Keiji" (The Detective Brothers) which premiered some months after the curtain had finally fallen on "The Streets of San Francisco" on ABC.

Last month, I wrote about Hattori tackling some Shibuya-kei even probably before the term was born through his 1985 "Juicy and Crispy" album. Well, it looks like nearly a decade beforehand, he was whipping up some choice Quinn/Martin-friendly theme songs. There is something about his theme for "Kyodai Keiji" that reminds me of not only Williams' theme for "The Streets of San Francisco" but also the theme song for "Kojak". Perhaps Hattori was inspired by those tunes since there is also some funkiness in his creation as well as some of that urban intrepid feeling.

Misako Tanaka -- Spain e Ikitai（スペインへ行きたい）

From writing about Jelly Beans' "BLUE" yesterday and finding out that veteran actress Misako Tanaka（田中美佐子）also had her brief time in the recording booth, I found on the right side of YouTube that she had been parlaying her singing even before the late 1990s.

According to her J-Wiki profile, Tanaka released exactly one single and one album in late 1983. "Spain e Ikitai" (I Want to Go to Spain) was the single written by Yu Aku（阿久悠）and composed by Spectrum（スペクトラム）keyboardist Keiichi Oku（奥慶一）. The amazing thing is not just the fact that Tanaka acquits herself fairly well through this fast-paced song of adventure and intrigue but to my ears, she also sounds quite similar to Akina Nakamori（中森明菜）and Momoe Yamaguchi（山口百恵）. In fact, "Spain e Ikitai" sounds just like a tune that early 80s aidoru Akina would have tackled.

I don't know how "Spain e Ikitai" fared on Oricon. Maybe listeners pooh-poohed it in 1983 as someone just copying Miss Nakamori, but for me, it's quite fascinating as an Akina tune that Akina didn't actually record.

Vickeblanka -- Wizard

Based on my amity for the catchy "Buntline Special" and some of his other songs from YouTube by singer-songwriter Junya "Vickeblanka" Yamaike（山池純矢）, I decided to get his 2nd album "Wizard". As you can see above, the good folks at Avex have even provided an "appetizer" video of sorts for the November 2018 release.

Track 2 is "Winter Beat". Kinda sounding like a mix of Queen and Spitz（スピッツ）, Vickeblanka（ビッケブランカ）seems to like his videos infused with a generous heaping of whimsy. From what I could understand from his lyrics, the lad is going the extra mile to express his undying affection for the lucky lass. The truck carrying him and his piano may as well be hauling from Toronto down to Miami.

Not to say that Vickeblanka is Japan's 21st-century answer to Fred Astaire or Gene Kelly, but he does like hoofing it up a fair bit in his videos, I find. Adds some good fun there. Anyways, I'm not 100% sure whether to romanize Track 5's 「ウララ」as "Ooh La La" or "Urara". Although the title is never mentioned in the lyrics, I'm kinda wondering whether the young lady that Vickeblanka's caddish persona is pursuing is actually named the latter or the former is referring to his raging libido. Whichever the case, it's a pretty fun tune with the strings and piano. is also Vickeblanka's first CD single released in April 2018 although there have been three previous digital singles by him.

From the whimsical to the wistful...Track 3 is "Masshiro"（まっしろ...Pure White）, a ballad about two people with the world seemingly against them trying to make their way into a better place and time. "Masshiro" was used as an insert song for the Fuji-TV drama "Kemono ni Narenai Watashi Tachi"（獣になれない私たち...We Who Can't Become Beasts）, and thanks to its strings, I get reminded of some of the sweeter material by Misia.

The last song here that I will provide is "Black Rover" which was one of the opening themes for the anime "Black Clover"（ブラッククローバー）that has been going on and on like the Duracell Bunny since October 2017. Although it doesn't quite grab me like "Buntline Special" did for "DOUBLE DECKER! Doug & Kirill"（ダグ&キリル）, it still strikes me as a quintessential anison opener for an action-packed show.

In fact, I would say that "Buntline Special" is still the lone earworm of "Wizard" although I think tracks especially such as 「ウララ」are quickly growing on me. Still curious as to what Vickeblanka has in store in the future and what he has provided in the past. Perhaps a look into his 2017 debut album "Fearless" may be in order.

Jelly Beans -- BLUE

Actresses Yuko Asano and Misako Tanaka（浅野ゆう子・田中美佐子）have been veterans on the small screen for years and years. Plus, they had their own comedy-drama together titled "Mama Chari Keiji"（ママチャリ刑事...Mommy Bike Detectives）in 1999 with a happy theme song "Takaramono"（宝物）sung by Mayo Okamoto（岡本真夜）.

As much as I came to realize that Asano had started out as an early 1970s aidoru slowly making that transition into City Pop in the late 70s and early 80s, I didn't know that both she and Tanaka got together a couple of years before "Mama Chari Keiji" to form the duo Jelly Beans. The duo would record two singles with the first single titled "Uso mo Honki de Pure na Heart de"（嘘も本気でピュアなハートで...With True Lies and Pure Hearts） from February 1997.

The coupling song to that first single is "BLUE". I only came across it by accident one night and recognizing Asano and Tanaka, decided to give it a spin. I was delightfully surprised that the actresses were pretty good as singers, too. With some nice groove and a very obvious tribute to that disco classic "The Hustle", "BLUE" probably didn't get too close to achieving a Japan Record Award but it is nice to chase away some of those blues away. Jun Amemiya（雨宮純）and Ryo Ogura（小倉良）were the songwriters here.

Miyako Chaki -- Azami no Gotoku Toge Areba（あざみの如く棘あれば）

Back in the days of detective shows of the 1970s, it seems as if every detective featured had to have some sort of distinguishing aspect or habit. Of course, there is Lieutenant Columbo, who's beloved in Japan and America and Canada, with his self-deprecating schleppiness hiding a genius mind. Then, there are the private eyes from the Quinn/Martin family such as the elderly Barnaby Jones, the larger-than-life Frank Cannon and suave Theo Kojak.

Perhaps not in the same numbers, mind you, but Japanese TV had its share of distinctive sleuths. One of them was Kosuke Kindaichi（金田一耕助）, an eccentric-but-brilliant detective with a seemingly chronic case of scalp itch created by mystery novelist Seizo Yokomizo（横溝正史）and played by Ikko Furuya（古谷一行）in the 1970s in two seasons of "Furuya Ikko no Kindaichi Kosuke Series"（古谷一行の金田一耕助シリーズ...Ikko Furuya's Kosuke Kindaichi Series）.

The theme songs for both seasons were performed by folk/City Pop singer Miyako Chaki（茶木みやこ）. It's the theme song for the second season that grabbed my ear. "Azami no Gotoku Toge Areba" (If There are Thorns Like a Thistle) entranced me with that spacey intro helped by the clanging percussion and what sounds like a mandolin. True to the nature of the story, there is a feeling of melancholy and exotic mystery imbued into the arrangement which makes the song stand out. It's definitely not City Pop but not too folksy either. Probably New Music might be the closest label.

Chaki came up with the music while legendary lyricist Yu Aku（阿久悠）was responsible for the words. It was released as a single in March 1978.

Yutaka Yokokura -- Dragonfly

Dang! I really ought to invest more in Yutaka Yokokura's（横倉裕）material. Well, this will be the third article intended to smooth some rough edges in my day today along with my just-posted "Hajimete no Machi de"（初めての街で）.

As much as Sachiko Nishida（西田佐知子）plied me with sake in "Hajimete no Machi de", I'm definitely feeling tropical cocktail-bound with Yokokura's "Dragonfly" from his 1978 album "Love Light". This takes me from the izakaya to the patio of a beachside bar. All I can say is that it's one funky insect darting about with Yokokura handling both the Fender Rhodes and koto to create one smooth fusion piece.

"Love Light" would definitely be the first solo Yokokura album that I would love to purchase but the last time I checked, it was in that dreaded haiban（廃盤...discontinued）status. However, during my time on this blog, some albums have come back from the dead. This is one that I would love to have reincarnated for not only "Dragonfly" but also for the title track. However, one question that I need to pose is what is up with that aroused red tribble on the cover.