Ichiro Mizuki -- Captain Harlock（キャプテンハーロック）

 

Just imagine this! Some part-time worker barely into his adulthood (in Japan at least) is working at an advertising firm representing Toei Animation comes up with the crazy idea of making an anime special based on the very popular TBS music ranking series at the time "The Best 10"（ザ・ベストテン）...and it sells. Yup, 21-year-old Kaoru Sugita（杉田薫）was likely walking on air for many months and perhaps years after Toei had caught the ball and ran with it. Sugita even got the credit of production manager for his idea.

And the result was "Animation The Best Ten 1980"（'80アニメーション ザ・ベストテン）, a little under one hour of special programming shown at theatres featuring what was thought to be the best ten examples of anime around at the time. It not only got done up like an episode of "The Best 10" but Sugita was also able to pick the hosts for the show, comedian Tamori（タモリ）, who is now one of the most well-known TV personalities in Japanese history, and actress/singer Miyuki Kojima（児島美ゆき）who dressed and tried to speak like (didn't quite get the nasality) the dandy rapid-firing co-host of "The Best 10", Tetsuko Kuroyanagi（黒柳徹子）.

My good friend and fellow KKP writer, JTM, was kind enough to give me a copy of "Animation The Best Ten 1980", and crazily enough, there is the YouTube video of the December 1980 short film as you can see above. For me, the big thing was seeing Tamori in his early years only about five years into his long career and a couple of years away from hosting Fuji-TV's "Waratte Ii Tomo"（笑っていいとも!）which would become one of the longest-running noon hour variety shows, finally drawing the curtains in 2014.

At about 17:00 of the video, No. 6 clattered in. It was the theme song from the original TV Asahi anime "Uchuu Kaizoku Captain Harlock"（宇宙海賊キャプテンハーロック...Space Pirate Captain Harlock） which ran from March 1978 to February 1979. To be honest, I never saw this series although the face of Harlock is an iconic one that is most likely recognizable anywhere in the anime community. I did witness his cameo appearance in the first movie for "Galaxy Express 999" in 1979.

Even the theme song "Captain Harlock" recorded by the late Ichiro Mizuki（水木一郎）, the Big Brother of Anison, rang a few bells. Written by Kougo Hotomi（保富康午）and composed by prolific songwriter Masaaki Hirao（平尾昌晃）, it's a most heroic and sweeping kayo anthem for the title character and his motley crew. The timing to post this is very good because in less than a month, we'll be reaching the one-year anniversary since Mizuki's passing on December 6th.

Masaki Ueda -- Night Train to the Stars

 

There was that episode of "Uta Con"（うたコン）about two weeks earlier which had hit my head and heart so hard that I quickly devoted space on "Kayo Kyoku Plus" to it. Singer-songwriter Masaki Ueda（上田正樹）was part of the lineup, and though I didn't mention it in that article, I had to say that I was a tad worried about Ueda's health since he looked so frail at the age of 74 and I know that one of his contemporaries, Shinji Tanimura（谷村新司）, had passed away some weeks ago at the same age. However, he and fellow singer-songwriter Diamond Yukai（ダイアモンド☆ユカイ）took care of the former's famous hit "Kanashii Iro ya ne" (悲しい色やね....Osaka Bay Blues) with caressing aplomb.

"Osaka Bay Blues" is one of the great City Pop songs by Ueda with all of its stylish bluesiness. Recently though, I came across the B-side to the original October 1982 single, "Night Train to the Stars" which is actually a bit more playful and upbeat. Written and composed by the singer, the night train of note is simply the metaphor for a couple of enjoy their evening together, fueled not by coal but by some fine and strong libations. As someone who went a little overboard on the screwdrivers and creamsicles early in his drinking career, I can certainly sympathize.

The arrangement was handled by Akira Inoue（井上鑑）, and there's an interesting melange of tropical, some Tin Pan Alley and maybe even some Steely Dan swimming about. Plus, a rock guitar crashes into the proceedings from time to time. Perhaps those aforementioned libations include the Scorpion Bowl, another product made from a melange of ingredients.

Chiyoko Shimakura -- Kono Yo no Hana（この世の花）

 

"Uta Con"（うたコン）devoted some minutes of its broadcast last night to the late singer Chiyoko Shimakura（島倉千代子）who had passed away ten years ago today at the age of 75. There were some very familiar kayo kyoku sung including her 1980s hit "Jinsei Iroiro"（人生いろいろ）which I posted on the day that she left this mortal coil.

However, one Shimakura song that I hadn't included here on "Kayo Kyoku Plus" was her debut single, "Kono Yo no Hana" (A Flower of This World). Released in March 1955, it was used as the theme song for the cinematic adaptation of a Makoto Hojo（北條誠） novel of the same name, and as written by Yaso Saijo（西條八十）and composed by Tadashi Manjome（万城目正）, "Kono Yo no Hana" is a wistful and wiser if sadder observation on the sweet fragility of a first love as it fritters away like a blossom. Though I've categorized it as an enka tune, enka tunes officially didn't exist until the early 1970s with a lot of sudden retrofitting of songs into that particular genre. But back then, the song had been considered to be a kayo kyoku so I've also put in the pop Label as well.

For Shimakura, who was a month shy of her 17th birthday, her dreams came true on an overwhelming level since "Kono Yo no Hana" became a huge hit, selling two million records within six months of it being put on the shelves. It has remained her biggest hit although Shimakura wouldn't actually sing the song on the Kohaku Utagassen for the first time until her 26th appearance on the NHK New Year's Eve special in 1982. 

Original Love -- Tsuki no Ura de Aimashou （月の裏で会いましょう）~ A Follow-Up

 

In early 2018, I posted an article on one of the many supremely catchy Original Love songs, "Tsuki no Ura de Aimashou" (Let's go to the darkside of the moon) created by band members Takao Tajima（田島貴男）and Ryutaro Kihara（木原龍太郎）. Released back in November 1991 as their 2nd single, I was rather reminded of the song once again when I heard it being performed a few days ago on NHK's amateur singing contest "Nodo Jiman"（のど自慢）. 

The reason that I'm doing a follow-up, along with the fact that "Tsuki no Ura de Aimashou" is a darn fine song, is that I've gotten a little more information since first finding out about it a few years ago. For one thing, the YouTube video that I added to the original article was that of a revised version of the song. The one above is an older take that is slightly less funky but no less wonderful which was on their 2nd album "Kesshou ~ Soul Liberation"（結晶 -SOUL LIBERATION-...Crystal） from May 1992. 

I also mentioned in the original article that the song was used as the opening theme for the Fuji-TV drama "Banana Chips Love"（バナナチップス・ラヴ）. The above is the opening credits sequence that was first put up a couple of years following my article so it's nice to see it up here now. Apparently, the late-night drama involved a young lady following a romantic breakup who decided to start a new life for herself in the Big Apple (all of the episodes were filmed in New York City) and by the usual magical coincidence encounters an even older flame. Many hijinks ensued, I'm sure.

According to the liner notes in one of Original Love's BEST compilations "The Very Best of ORIGINAL LOVE" from April 1995 via J-Wiki, the director for "Banana Chips Love" Tsuyoshi Takashiro（高城剛）, who had requested the song from Tajima and company in the first place, wasn't impressed at all with the first result of the song and it sounds like he acted like the typical irritated corporate section chief and demanded a better take by having the song start out with the chorus to bring in the viewers. Well, as they say, you gotta break a few eggs to make an omelette. 

Masato Shimon -- Mr. Driver（ミスター・ドライバー）

 

I've known Masato Shimon（子門真人）as the fellow who cornered his own little market in anime and tokusatsu theme songs along with a tune having to do with a Japanese confection that became the biggest selling single of all time at 4.5 million records in Japan. So it's always something special when I can hear the singer do something that's just a plain pop song not having to do with animated figures or live-action superheroes.

Well, I was able to find one such song which just happened to be his 6th and penultimate single released in July 1976 according to J-Wiki. "Mr. Driver" has this feeling of a Glen Campbell urban cowboy song as Shimon sings about begging the cab driver in presumably New York City to hold on a few more minutes before saying his final tender goodbyes to his now-former paramour. Of course, referring to the legendary Campbell already meant that the nostalgia was flowing out of "Mr. Driver" in waves, but at the same time, I was also reminded of some of the more country-style Carpenters tunes.

Shimon composed the song while Konosuke Fuji（藤公之介）provided the lyrics. Koichi Sugiyama（すぎやまこういち）arranged "Mr. Driver", and yes, it's the same Koichi Sugiyama behind the famous "Dragon Quest" theme.

Taro Hakase -- Himawari（ひまわり）

 

The first time that I ever had okonomiyaki（お好み焼）was when I was on that 1981 graduation trip from the Toronto Japanese Language School as a teen. I was spending three days with my host family associated with Tezukayama Girls' High School in Nara and they were kind enough to take me to lunch at an (Osaka-style) okonomiyaki restaurant. 

It was an amazing experience seeing my host sister, Akiko, pouring the thick and chunky batter onto the teppan（鉄板）hot plate built into our table. As it turned into something like a pancake through a few practiced flips, she finalized everything by slathering on the sauce, squirting the Kewpie mayo, sprinkling the bonito flakes so they looked like they were waving at everyone and finally a few shakes of ground nori. For a Japanese-Canadian who was used to having his pancakes with butter and maple syrup, the savory okonomiyaki was a gastronomic revelation.

Years later, as a working teacher in the Tokyo area, I'd already had my share of okonomiyaki but it was my first time to have the Hiroshima-style version when my friends took me to a restaurant in trendy Shimo-Kitazawa. Visitors will believe once and for all that a huge half-head of cabbage and a ton of yakisoba can be cooked down into a golden brown mix of flour and other ingredients. But why not have a watch of the above video by WAO RYU!ONLY in JAPAN and compare the two types?

Now, why am I expressing my okonomiyaki dreams out loud? Well, this 2010 NHK morning serial drama "Teppan"（てっぱん）has to do with a young lady who wants to open her own okonomiyaki restaurant in Osaka. The theme song "Himawari" (Sunflower) was recently performed once more on "Uta Con"（うたコン）by its composer, violinist Taro Hakase（葉加瀬太郎）, and though I haven't really been a purveyor of the asadora（朝ドラ）, "Himawari" has been a rather familiar song to me.

Sounding as comfortable and homey as a visit to an actual neighbourhood okonomiyaki restaurant, I can imagine that "Himawari" pretty much set the tone for the drama. The first half of the song has that innocent and homey feel before things go off on a tangent of jazzy self-exploration and then so that things don't get too self-indulgent, Hakase pulls back to the innocence once more. There's also something in the percussion that made me think that there was also something Okinawan in the arrangement. It's been placed as a song on Hakase's 14th album "Emotionism" from September 2010. The album, which peaked at No. 25 on Oricon, has been categorized as a New Age product on J-Wiki, and maybe I will eventually put up that genre onto Labels, but for now, I'll just place it as a jazz and pop song.

Naomi Akimoto -- Tonite

 

Just some lingering thoughts about the Hanshin Tigers winning it all earlier today. It's been the case that whichever team in professional Japanese baseball takes the championship, their corporate owners celebrate and their customers get the benefits. The Tigers are owned by the Hanshin Electric Railway Company, so does that mean free rides for the next few days? Otherwise, do any of their stations' commercial establishments provide massive sales or freebies? 

Anyways, we'll see over the coming days. But allow me to show off "Tonite" by Naomi Akimoto（秋本奈緒美）from her 5th album "Poison 21" from February 1984. Written by the actress and singer herself and composed by Masatoshi Nishimura（西村昌敏 ）, who was also part of Friends of Earth, the 1980s nostalgia waves emanating from this song were quite heavy due to that synth rhythm and even the sax solo. I swear that the late Laura Branigan could have covered this one; it just seems to be the right fit for what she was singing back in the day. As well, Hiroshi Sato（佐藤博）was helping out on backing chorus, electric guitar and synthesizers.

Did feel like getting a mullet, a silver-gray jacket and a skinny tie after hearing this one. It was pretty much around that time that the Tigers had last won a Japan Series championship.