Fairies: "Hero"

Is it just that I’m getting older, or does it seem like the new idol/dance groups have been getting younger and younger each year? (answer: both) LOL, anyway, here’s the latest “Young Gal” unit that’s been capturing my attention with their sweet (and rather mature sounding) vocals and (VERY “Kara”-ish) Dance Moves, the adorable seven member group, FAIRIES, with an excerpt from their extrememly catchy song “Hero”…

Here's a nice Fan Shot Video with the girls doing Promotion at a Mall Event. They're performing "Hero" to a backing track, but you get to see their cool dance moves, which may or may not be sexy, depending on whether or not you care that these girls look to be about 12 to 14 years old...LOL

Fairies won the Record Taisho Best New Artist Award a few months ago, and with three singles under their belts, this girl group is just starting to come into their own,  hopefully we'll be seeing a lot more from them in the future!

False Advertising, Ikimonogakari Style!

I always tend to like whatever pop trio Ikimonogakri releases as they always have an upbeat and genki feel to them, and in fact I frequently refer to lead singer Kiyoe‘s bubbly style akin to a “mouse singing its heart out atop a matchbox”, meaning whenever you hear them, ya just gotta smile!

Catching up on the latest episodes of the wildly fun and wacky VS Arashi show, I came across one of those RAW files that had kept the commercials intact, and by chance one of them had a CM for some new drama or movie (or something), main point was that this commercial featured Ikimonogakari singing their brand new song “Itsudatte Bokura Wa “ and WOW, what a catchy song it was!

The whole song was the same genki Ikimonogakari we’ve come to know and love, but what just BLEW ME AWAY was the way the song began with Kiyoe taking a deep breath before the song blasted in with her cheerful vocals and those bright and jangly guitars…I was thinking, MAN, this is a CD Mix OPENER, for SURE!

I knew that I was going to HAVE to get it, but what I didn’t realize at the time was that the part of the song I loved the most (that breathtaking beginning) was in fact only an edit manufactured for that CM! Aww, man, the song was still terrific, but I was SOOOO bummed that it didn’t have that beginning from the commercial!

Ah well, in the end it didn't matter, because Itsudatte Bokura Wa is SUCH a warm, feel-good tune, it STILL became one of my favorite songs, and happening upon a PV set up with translations via KUMASUBS, I found the song even MORE sweet and heartwarming! Even as I type this, I've got a huge smile on my face!

PS, Just what exactly is this a commercial FOR? What is "Yukan"? A Drama? A Movie? Or just some generic “Feel Good” thang?

1998 J-Idol Calendar Order Sheet

Another interesting artifact I dug up going through my papers was this xeroxed order form for that year's J-idol choices. REALLY nostalgic to see names like Nishida Hikaru and Miura Rieko on the list, and seeing names like Fujisaki Nanako, Yamada Mariya and Hinagata Akiko reminded me of just how much 1998 was really like the golden days of J-idol gravure for me!

Among the interesting tidbits are the fact that not only did both Megumi Ooji AND Megumi Oishii have calendars, there already was one for both Kazue Fukiishi and Takeuchi Yuko! And WHOA...there was one for Ayako Fujii? Man, the choices were endless and about as VARIED as you could get!!!

All The Hot (1998) Young Idols

Tanaka Rena

Looking for some old paperwork, I came across this incredible 1998 pictorial I saved from some long-forgotten magazine featuring eight popular and up-and-coming Idols in a wonderfully beautifully shot spread! Flipping through the eight glossy pages, it was like INSTANT NATSUKASHII seeing all the familiar faces! Really didn't think it had been all that long ago til you see these gals so YOUNG!

Tomosaka Rie

Yada Akiko

Kato Ai

It’s sweet and pleasing to see that quite a few of these girls featured are still among us and have gone onto successful careers, mainstays like Tomosaka Rie, Kato Ai, and the recently gushed-about-here Yada Akiko are all still very much around, but wow, for some like Niiyama Chihara and Kamon Yoko (who were popular enough back then, and  so pretty!) you just have to wonder, “Whatever happened to them?!”

Niiyama Chiharu

Kamon Yoko

Hinagata Akiko

And though it was a kick to see such a YOUNG Rena Tanaka in there, no picture shocked me more than when I came across the newest idol in that article, a then bright and freshly scrubbed 16 year old KAZUE FUKIISHI! You know, seeing her in dramas like SCANDAL, and of course most recently in the Matsumoto Jun drama LUCKY SEVEN, I had NO IDEA that in my files I had idol pictures of her from back when she was first starting out!

Fukiishi Kazue

Keep Up the Good Work, Ladies! We’ll keep tuning in!

And For the Counter Argument...

Riona Hazuki

Aside from the Eight pretty Idol Girls featured in the earlier article, the magazine (was it FRIday?) ALSO featured a pictorial on some of the popular actresses/gravure idols who were shot in a decidedly more SEXY vein than the “Cute” predecessor!  So here's a whole 'nother set of eight lovely ladies to feast your eyes on...

Whoo! A Smouldering Aiko Sato

... a Devastatingly Gorgeous Yumi Aso

...and a luscious Yuka in her Curvy Salad Days

Ahhhn, Looking over the girls, It’s kind of the same dilemma I had with the Idol Article, in that it’s so funny how some of these girls have endured and some of them were never heard or seen from again!

Nanako Okochi

Senna Matsuda

Jun Matsuda

As we all know, actresses Aiko Sato, Aso Yumi and Yuka went on to popular and successful  (and in the case of Hazuki Riona, perhaps infamous) careers, but for some like Jun Matsuda, and Nana Okohchi, they just fell off the grid! It’s hard to relate to someone now just how hugely popular someone like Senna Matsuda was back in the day, but she was strictly the Cat’s Meow of Gravure back then, and someone like Mariya Yamada (a personal fave of mine)- heck, besides acting bits, this girl was a regular on Tamori’s Waratte Ittomo show, so you’d think she’s still be around in SOME capacity, right? 

A Fave of Mine, Cute Mariya Yamada

Well, it’s just been announced that Yuka’s going to be releasing an all-new Bikini Shashinshuu (Awww, Hell YEAH!) , and from what they've shared with us so far, she’s looking GREAT! I think this is a good opportunity to tell all of these OTHER former Gravure Idols to get back in the groove and follow suit! LOL

The Oddest Coincidence...

So I had two programs set to enjoy this afternoon: this Sunday's podcast of eclectic NPR Radio Show "This American Life", and the latest subbed episode of the awesome Kyoko Suzuki/Yamada Ryosuke drama "Riso No Musuko". Though the two were about as different as you could get, a funny coincidence happened!

This week's This American Life's story was "Switched At Birth", the unnerving story of two girls who were switched at the Hospital when they were born, and how they and their mothers dealt with it when the thing came out 43 years later. (If you're interested, you can listen to it here.)

After that sad and rather poignant show, I REALLY needed something fun and zany to brighten back up my day, and of COURSE Riso No Musuko was the way to go! I immediately put that show on and settled in, but funnily enough, not even five minutes had passed before they unveiled the story of that week's episode:

EH?! HONTO KA? (Or, Rather, Are You Fo' Reals, Yo?!) It seems that (at least for today) I can't get AWAY from the subject! AHAHAHAHA

Yubiwa Wo Hametai: Onegai Shimasu!

Yubiwa Wo Hametai

Awhile ago, Car had told me about this upcoming Yamada Takayuki movie coming out that I was sure to want to see, since it starred not one but THREE actresses i really liked, Yoko Maki, Chizuru Ikewaki, and Manami Konishi in a humorous love-triangle story with Yamada as the hapless guy-in-the-middle.

Yoko Maki, Yamada, Manami Konishi and Ikewaki Chizuru

Well, months passed, and funnily enough, only a week or so ago, I asked Car, "Hey, whatever happened to that movie the those three girls I liked? Did It even come OUT yet?" Car admitted she hadn't heard anything about it , but said she'd go online and check up on in when she had the time. 

Then, just the other day, I'm laughing and telling Car about some movie they'd posted onto the marvelous OUR HOUR site with a picture of Yamada Takayuki wearing a yarmulke or something on his head. Pausing, Car asked, "Wait, what's the name of that Movie?" 

Clicking Back, I re-uploaded the page and said, "Um, it says it's called Yubiwa Wo Hametai""

"Yubiwa?" asked Car excitedly, "Yubiwa means...RING!" Then she exclaimed, "That's IT! THAT'S THE MOVIE WITH THOSE THREE ACTRESSES! Remember, Yamada plays a guy with amnesia who can't remember which girl he gave the engagement Ring to before his accident?"

"Oh," I said, laughing, "So that's bandages on his head, NOT a Yarmulke! AHAHAHA"

Well, a celebration was to be had, but I'll still have to sit tight as there are so far no subtitles to be found for this film. To all of you wonderful subbers out there I gesture towards Yubiwa Wo Hametai and ask (in my best Harvey Keitel) "Please. Pretty Please. With Sugar On Top!" Consider THIS movie for your next project! All us non-Nihongo speakers will love you for it!

PS, Looking at that Press release picture  above, several things occur to me: 

1. Yamada's doing his best Robert Downey Jr. in that Picture.

2.  I never knew Konishi was so freakin' TALL! (or all the rest of 'em SHORT?)

3. I hope that pic isn't spoiling the ending of who he marries. I really hope not.

Akiko Yada Wines and Dines in "Hungry!", Looks Sexy Doing So

The Delectable Akiko Yada

Aw MAN, Akiko Yada looked sooooo YUMMY in the latest episode of Hungry! Nice to see she's maturing very nicely, getting even more and more gorgeous each day! This episode showcased the beauty doing all the things I love:

 Looking Sexy as Hell

As She gives Eisuke the 411, telling him she 

wants him and his restaurant off her property...

Looking Adventurously Cute 

as she Salt n Peppers the HELL out of a Gourmet Dish...

 And of Course, All the Eating and Drinking you could shake a stick at!

I was in HEAVEN with the Screencaps!

Bottoms Up!

More Gastonomic Glee...

and even a bit of Sexy J-Drama Femme-Fatale flair when she destroys Eisuke's dreams of building his restaurant on her property, and all over a meal with a smile!

Yup, this is one DREAMY chick who has it ALL!!!!

The Zdorama Blogsite gives her a 5 out of 5!!!!

Re: The Akanishi Jin Penalty

This slightly edited Calvin and Hobbes strip (from the story where Calvin is transmogrified into an owl) says everything that I'm feeling about the penalty laid upon Akanishi regarding  his marriage to / destroying music career of Meisa Kuroki...LOL

Yamaguchi Momoe Premium LIVE Box Set

Momoe Premium Live Box Set

As documented here on the zdorama blogsite, I was a relatively late-comer to the awesomeness that is the eternal idol Momoe Yamaguchi, and though I had a few of her singles from various Hit Record Collections, it wasn’t until the arrival of Youtube that I realized what a cool, charismatic singer and performer this girl was! impressed by what I was seeing and hearing, I ran out and purchased a double CD Collection of hers, and was then so blown away by what I heard, I made it a point to try and get all of her regular releases!

Momoe Premium Box Set

The most sensible way for me to get those albums was, of course, to purchase her epic PREMIUM BOX set which contained all of Momoe’s albums as well as bonus disc of Karaoke and unreleased tracks, but unfortunately for me, by the time I came around to it, the Box Set was long out of print, and I had to do some SERIOUS wheeling and dealing (and shelling out quite a bit of the green, truth be told) to get that Box Set sent to me from Japan! Even more riling was when I had to go through the business all over again when I realized there was an equally out-of-print Two-Disc Premium Box Set ADDENDUM (featuring all of Momoe’s non-album tracks and Singles), that came separately!

Momoe Premium "Update"

Anyway, throughout all of those shenanigans, the one set that kept coming up in my searches and queries was ANOTHER box set in the “Momoe Premium” Catalog, and that was the Momoe Premium LIVE Box Set, containing all of Momoe’s Live Concert Album Releases. Live Concerts? At the time that I was still trying to get all of Momoe’s albums and singles proper, that last thing in the world I needed was her live stuff! Or so I thought…

Well, after getting the aforementioned Momoe Box Set and the Momoe Premium Extra set, I hunkered down and began immersing myself in the glory of all that is Momoe, and over time, she slowly but surely became one of my very, very favorite J-pop performers of all time! As time went on and EACH and EVERY Momoe Album became beloved and precious to me, and one night as I was out blasting Momoe’s awesome “MOEBIUS’ GAME Album and just LOVING every single track on it, that I realized: You know what? All these songs you love so much on Momoe’s albums are all performed LIVE on those Live Concert Albums! I realized the truth: I NEEDED TO GET THAT LIVE CONCERT BOX SET!

Momoe Premium Live Box Set

As with all of Momoe’s Box Sets, the Momoe Premium Live Box Set was out-of-print, (shimatta!) and I prepared myself for another stressful and confusing time trying to coordinate a purchase via Yahoo Japan or the like. More daunting was the fact that this Live Concert Box Set was selling upwards of $700 on the Amazon Used Dealer listings! GADS!!!! At that point I thought it might be easier to try and get the individual Live CDs myself, but not only was that even MORE scarce, the set offered a bonus DVD, remastering and BEAUTIFUL and collectible packaging. I just HAD to get the Box!

The searching went on for months before I finally hooked up with a dealer from Japan who was not only willing and able to sell and ship to America, but had it listed for a  (while still expensive) price range that I was a LOT more comfortable with! So when my tax return came, I pledged a chunk of it to that Dealer in Japan, and in DAYS, my beautiful, beautiful MOMOE PREMIUM LIVE BOX SET arrived! YATTA!

Momoe Premium Live Box Set Contents

Japan has ALWAYS set the bar for beautiful packaging, and the Momoe Premium Live Box was NO EXCEPTION! So much detail and CARE went into this thing- not one single thing was missed in its recreation of the original albums; CD Booklets and picture inserts had all been faithfully re-created, as well as the breathtaking double and even TRIPLE gatefold jackets themselves! 

Momoe On Stage Gatefold and Picture Booklets

Budokan At Last Triple Gatefold, Booklets and discs.

And Man, if that weren’t enough, they’ve even recreated the sleeves of each album’s corresponding “single” release with two selected karaoke tracks on eight 3” discs! What a gorgeous package!!!

3" discs featuring Karaoke Tracks

Momoe’s Live Concert Album output consisted of six double albums (!) and as the bonus for this set, they also included the heralded “Final performance” Concert at Budokan on DVD, making for a total of 13 discs!(heck, 21 if you count the 8 mini karaoke discs!)

Momoe Premium Live Digipak CDs, front

Momoe Premium Live Digipak CDs, back

Momoe Live Premium Box Set Contents:

MOMOE LIVE- MOMOE CHAN MATSURI YORI (10.01.75)

MOMOE ON STAGE (10.21.76)

MOMOE IN KOMA (11.01.77)

MOMOE-CHAN MATSURI ’78 (11.21.78)

RECITAL- AI GA UTA NI KAWARU TOKI (11.21.79)

DENSETSU KARA SHINWA O- BUDOKAN…AT LAST (11.19.80)

Momoe released a live concert album about every three records or so, so her entire body of work is covered nicely. Since each Live Album focused on the Momoe albums that were at the time current, you got to hear a lot of the more obscure tracks from the albums that were played only for those tours (and never again, or only in medley form) and it’s nice to listen and hear Momoe growing as an artist as well- from the first live album where she sounds very much like her Star Tanjo idol days, through her big theatrical events and onto her final at Budokan where she’d matured into this smoky chanteuse before giving her thanks to the audience and leaving the stage forever…

I’ve already got the first concert disc all set up in my car’s CD deck, and we’re off to give ‘er a spin! I plan on making these Momoe discs the main event this coming weekend, and one thing’s for sure- It’s gonna be one HECK of a ride discovering these NEW TREASURES for the first time!