I picked up a J-pop collection of theme songs for various japanese commercials and TV Show Theme songs (called, curiously enough, The TV-CF Songbook) primarily because it featured two songs by Kome Kome Club, a group that I rather liked at the time (And would LOVE a bit later) as well as singles from DREAMS COME TRUE and super cool MISATO. But it was the opening song that ended up being my favorite track off the album, an explosive rocker called simply OTOKO(男) by a gal listed as “Ruriko Kuboh”!Now, I didn’t know just who this gal was, but judging my what I could make out on the teeny-weeny picture of the single in the CD booklet, she was very pretty indeed! Sure, I didn’t know her at all, but that was about to change pretty fast!
Shortly after that, I remember playing the song to all my friends who had even the slightest interest in j-pop, blasting the song loudly upon their unsuspecting ears…Ahahahahaha!
I finally got to see Ruriko Kuboh in action as she performed her single”Hayaku Shite yo” on the 1994 Kouhaku Uta Gassen (that year that also featured awesome performances by TOKIO, Moritaka Chisato, X Japan and…Mikawa Kenichi!) It was pretty cool, as Ruriko was one of the first five artists to appear on the show, and assured me that I was not alone in my love of this young lady!
And if I was happy to see her in the 1994 Kohaku, I was absolutely STOKED when I finally got a copy of the 1993 Red and White Songfest, and found out that not only did Ruriko perform “Otoko” on the show, it was the OPENING SONG!!! YES! I was BLOWN AWAY!
Give a listen to “Otoko”, and remember…TURN IT UP!
