For the longest time, the only recordings I had of Yamaguchi Momoe were ones that were included on compilations. Between four Golden J-pop Records collections and two Hit Parade Melodies collections, I had seven songs in total at the time, a fairly sub-par amount for an artist who was one of the most prolific singers of the late seventies!
My two favorite songs from Momoe were Aoi Kaijitsu and Playback, Part 2, and my initial 70’s j-pop collection purchases were bought with those songs in mind. Along the way I also acquired the songs Hitonatsu No Keiken, Imitation Gold, Natsu Hiraku Seishun, Pearl Color Ni Yurete and Cosmos, and over time these songs became just as beloved as my first favorites…It would be only a matter of time before I wanted to hear more!
Browsing around the web, I was fascinated to find that there were files and files of vintage Momoe Yamaguchi performances just waiting to be viewed, and I dove headfirst into the smorgasboard. Of course, the first songs I looked for were my faves as listed above, (yep, lots of Playback part 2 and Hitonatsu No Keiken) but before you knew it, I was immersed in a whole new world of unknown songs- and EVERY ONE OF THEM WAS JUST INCREDIBLE! Listening to Momoe on CD is one thing, but being able to watch her go through the motions with that cool, serene disposition just made it all the better! I made up my mind that I had to get my hands on a real Momoe Yamaguchi anthology, to catch up on the sweet songs I’d been missing!
Doing a bit of research online, I found quite a few excellent Momoe Yamaguchi collections (including an impressive “every album and single she’s ever done” collection called “Premium Momoe” going for- eek!- 37,800 Yen!), and came across a recent release called GOLDEN☆BEST/PLAYBACK MOMOE part2…
This is really a terrific anthology- originally released as a three-album anthology on vinyl a few years after Momoe retired, it collects all of Momoe’s singles as well as two bonus songs onto two CD discs. CD Japan was selling this collection for the great price of $27.50, but I couldn’t wait and shelled out $40.00 at good old reliable Shirokiya so I could have it and listen to it immediately!
I popped in the first disc and absentmindedly drove around, taking in the good sounds- enjoying the ones I knew, and getting blown away / enraptured by the songs that were new to me! This collection is an incredible piece of work- listening to Momoe’s songs from her very first single Toshigoro in 1973 all the way through to her last single Ichie in 1980, you really hear her growing and maturing with each track as it plays! From cheery pop tunes to smouldering ballads, and all the fun tunes and kick-ass rockers in between! (and yes, I’m thinking Rock N Roll Widow as I type that!) Golden Best also includes a couple of extra singles, one of which, Atata e no Komoriuta, was released a few years after her retirement. An A++ Investment!
Since then, I've become a major lover of all thing Momoe, even down to getting that aforementioned awesome, awesome MOMOE PREMIUM BOX SET shipped over from Japan, and what with it being already out of print, you can BET that cost me a pretty penny, but when I found out it contained ALL of Momoe's various Album releases...I just HADDA have it! (And for more on THAT, see below...)