Favorite J-pop Singles: Matsuda Seiko / Kagayaita Kitsetsu e Tabidatou

What can I say here that I haven’t already blathered on and on before? This is just my hands down favorite single from the once and future j-pop queen, Matsuda Seiko!
The first time I laid eyes on the legendary Seiko Matsuda was performing one of her popular medleys for the 1995 Red and White Song Festival, and I have to say that my first impressions of her were totally NOT what I expected! Somehow, I thought I'd see someone with more of a stand-offish personality like Barbra Streisand, and though she CAN have that effect some of the time, for THIS night anyway, she was channeling the spirit of an elementary school girl! I was charmed!
But the hits didn't stop there! On that same tape was yet another performance from Seiko,(from the 1994 Red and White)  but THIS time, though still as playful as a kid, somehow, THIS ensemble was SEXY as HELL!!! Dressed as an angel of sorts, Seiko's mischievous attitude seemed more like the sweet devil, and I was BLOWN AWAY!
The song was called Kagayaita Kisetsu  E Tabi Datou, and MAN! Talk about someone enjoying their performance- Seiko was  beaming from ear to ear here, and her energetic dancing made the totally catchy pop tune all the more infectious! I watched that song over and over again, and to this day, it's STILL my favorite performance of this song!
Once you've seen her performing this onstage dressed in a heavenly gown complete with strap-on angel wings and scampering around like a 15 year-old girl, you know you can never go back! Never.

Favorite J-Pop Singles: Zard / Nemurenai Yoru O Daite

By the time ZARD released their seventh album TODAY IS ANOTHER DAY, I was a MAJOR fan of their work, and made it a point to track down just about every abum  and Cd single that I could! All their albums were top-notch, but (for me, anyway) the three albums that really stood out were the aforementioned TODAY IS ANOTHER DAY,  their frist album proper MOU SAGASANAI, and what must be their finest album  of all, HOLD ME!

HOLD ME works on so many levels, it has so many of my favorite ZARD tracks here, and what holds the whole thing together and makes it a tight, concise piece is the way the songs are strung together and of course , the most important thing: a KICK-ASS beginning song , and that’s EXACTLY what  “Nemurenai Yoru O Daite” is!!! From its awesome majestic keyboard opening to the droning chugging of the guitars and powerful drum beats, this was a ZARD single par excellence!

 Besides being one of my all-time favorite songs from ZARD (along with the similar sounding  “Fushigi Ne” and “My Friend”), Nemurenai Yoru O Daite also has the distinct status of being one of only a few songs ZARD ever performed, and so when we saw the clips of them performing it on the MUSIC STATION 10 Year Anniversary Special, we went nuts!

In later years ZARD would actually go out and tour, but at the time seeing her singing on any TV shows was almost unheard of! It was thrilling enough just to see the band moving around  and playing onstage, but additionally, Izuki Sakai looked so damn pretty, we could hardly stand it! And so we watched those clips Over. And. Over. Again!

PS: Hahaha, Just noticed that during the interview part of the show, you can see Reiko and the rest of the CoCo girls behind the hosts! Ah, these really were the Golden Days!

Favorite J-Pop Singles: Nishida Hikaru / C'mon, C'mon, C'mon

The theme song for the wacky drama Natsu! Depart Monogatari starring Tatsuya Yamaguchi of TOKIO fame as the bumbling but hard working department store clerk whose dream is to become a first rate employee and date the daughter of the company, played by Hikaru Nishida!

Though this show was fun and entertaining, I must warn anyone wanting to check this drama out for the sole purpose of seeing Nishida Hikaru: She 's hardly in it at ALL! Far from what you might think by the promotional picture. (above) Hikaru only appears at random points in the show to smile at or encourage Yamaguchi as he bumbles earnestly through the latest problem! Sigh...but she does look nice when she's onscreen!

C'mon, C'mon, C'mon (or rather, C'mon3, as it's REALLY titled) played during the ending credits as the cast members all gathered together at the beach to play volleyball, followed by the TOKIO song “Soko Na Shi Love” as the previews for the next week’s episode ran...

Maybe it was the visual of the kids playing volleyball and having fun or the sheer poppiness of the song, but this tune always seemed like a really “genki” song, sure to put a smile on your face!

A nice bonus to picking up the C’Mon3 single was the c/w song called “Go Beep”, which is a great, catchy little song she performed live on the “Live 2-4” tour that isn’t available on any album!

Below: Behind The Scenes via BOMB Magazine:

BOMB really was CHOCK full of good stuff for the budding J-pop/Idol enthusiast!

Favorite J-pop Singles: Field Of View / Totsuzen

Theme song from the 1995 Pocari Sweat campaign! Another terrific song  written by the late Izumi Sakai of ZARD, and you can find her version on the terrific TOMORROW IS ANOTHER DAY album.
ZARD's version is an airy and sweet song, quite a different feel from this incredible gothic, chorus-laden version...Field Of View sure knew how to arrange and produce their singles for maximum effect, ne!
Field of View had already sung the absolutely pop-perfect KIMI GA ITAKARA, another great song by ZARD and subsequently another great single from Field Of View! Both songs were performed by the boys when they appeared as Music Champs on Hey! Hey! Hey!

PS: No, You're not imagining things...this post is an almost exact replica of Field Of View's previous post! AHAHAHAHA

Favorite J-Pop Singles: Mizuki Arisa / Promise To Promise

Theme song from the drama/comedy NURSE NO OSHIGOTO, starring Mizuki herself as the klutzy nurse-in-training Asakura, this was a show that started off as wacky and zany as could be, but somehow always seemed to end each episode on a somber/poignant note. And that's a good thing, too, because Promise to Promise just has to be one of Arisa's most beautiful songs, a dreamy tune that makes one feel thoughtful and lonely (at least, that the effect if always had on ME) and it just wouldn't have matched with those early scenes of Asakura dropping needles all over the floor for comedic effect! (and in these days of malpractice and lawsuits, I wonder who the heck would think this was funny anyways! AHAHAHAHA)

The wacky scenes were VERY wacky, and yet, the serious episodes were REALLY  touching, and after it was over, I remember making a copy of the series for my friend Golden, who watched Asakura zanily banging around the Hospital and dropping medications for about 10 minutes before turning off the tape and giving it back to me!


I told him, 'But it gets better! Trust me, only the openings of the episodes are crazy- This is a REALLY GOOD drama! But he just couldn't make it through the silliness and shrugged his shoulders! AHAHAHAHA!