Back to Japan and back to 1983 for another Jukebox from Junko Yagami and was a prominent artist in the 70s and 80s. To date, they have released over 25 albums in 4 decades.

Today, Yagami resides in Los Angeles but flies to Japan to perform live.

黄昏のBAY CITY (“Bay City” here within) was released on the A Side of the 1983 Album ‘Full Moon’ and is considered another ‘staple’ with the City pop genre.

Lyrics:

[Intro]
Uh, uh, uh (Bay City)
Uh, uh, uh (Bay City)

[Chorus]
Ah, ah anata wo otte
Tasogare no bay city
Ah, ah meguri aetara
Damatte dakitomete

[Verse 1]
Tabako no kaori, hiekitta kiss
Nageta dake de anata wa kieta
Sunao ni nareba tsudzuiteta ai
Shizun ofu no umi wa warai
Kaze ga kooru wa

[Chorus]
Kogoekitta kamome mitai yo
Tasogare no bay city
Ah, ah anata no suki na
Minato ga kurete yuku

[Verse 2]
Wakasa wa tabun mienai naifu
Motsure atte kokoro ga kireta
Baka ne ima goro ai ga itai no
Anata dake ga kono kizuguchi
Fusageru hito yo

Uh, uh, uh
(Bay City)
Uh, uh, uh
(Bay City)

[Bridge]
Sora ga umi wo idaku mitai ni
Aishi aeta kiseki wo
Mou ichido dake mou ichido dake
Maboroshi de ii

[Chorus]
Ah, ah anata wo otte
Tasogare no bay city
Ah, ah meguri aetara
Damatte dakitomete

[Chorus]
Ah, ah anata wo otte
Tasogare no bay city
Ah, ah meguri aetara
Damatte dakitomete

English

A~h, I follow you to
The Bay city in twilight
A~h, and if I see you there
Just shut up and hold me

The smell of your cigarettes, and the cold kiss
You blew to me, and then you disappeared
If we had been honest, we’d still be in love
This winter sea is laughing at me
And the wind is freezing

I’m like one of the gulls, frozen to the spot
The Bay city in twilight
A~h, and your beloved
Harbor is growing dark

Youth is like, a hidden knife
We got tangled up, and my heart was cut open
And I feel so silly now, with this painful love
And you are the only man, who can heal this wound
The only man

Like the sky, embracing the sea
It was a miracle that we met
Just one more time, just one more time
Even just a vision of you

A~h, I follow you to
The Bay city in twilight
A~h, and if I see you there
Just shut up and hold me

A~h, I follow you to
The Bay city in twilight
A~h, and if I see you there
Just shut up and hold me

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It’s time for Mariya’s hit parade.

(Yes, I know I’m posting this in October… I was busy OK)

September, released in August 1979 on RCA Records label and was part of the 1980 album LOVE SONGS. It spent over half a year within the Oricon Top 100 charts for 1979 and won the “Best Newcomer Award” at the 1979 Japan Record Awards.

There isn’t much to say but I like the song. You can’t go wrong with Mariya.

YouTube

[No Spotify… The album looks to be geolocked to Japan. I have reached out to Sony via Twitter and asked them to add it]

Lyrics

I jumped into the door of the train
Chasing after your mustard yellow shirt
I know I shouldn’t be
So I hid when you turned around
The city’s been colored in with crayons
I run along, my tears stained from it too
I know you’re meeting up with someone older
September   And then you
September   Turned into fall
You cast a shadow over my heart
As if your summer sunlight was dimming
September   And now September
September   Is a land of goodbye for us
The knot holding our love together is coming apart
My tears become the leaves on the trees

I wanna meet her so I can ask
For her to give him back to me
But I can’t, I’m too timid– my lips freeze over
September   And then you
September   Turned into fall
The fact that we can’t even talk now
Is proof that you’re over me
September   And now September
September   Is a land of goodbye for us
The moon’s the loneliest color
Of all the seasons

Tomorrow I’ll give you back the Dictionary you lent me
The way you can tell the only word I cut out was “Love”
Is “good-bye good-bye”
September   And then you
September   Turned into fall
Being the only one to have my feelings hurt
That was the kindness you left behind
September   And now September
September   Is a land of goodbye for us
I’ll never wear these tricolor beach clothes
Ever again

Romanji

karashi-iro no shatsu oinagara
tobinotta densha no doa
ikenai to shirinagara
machi wa irodzuita kureyon ga
namida made somete hashiru
toshiue no hito ni au yakusoku to shitte’te
September soshite anata wa
September aki ni kawatta
natsu no hizashi ga yowamaru you ni
kokoro ni kage ga sashita
September soshite kyuugatsu wa
September sayonara no kuni
hodokekakete’ru ai no musubime
namida ga ki no ha ni naru

atte sono hito ni tanomitai
kare no koto kaeshite ne to
demo dame ne ki no yowasa kuchibiru mo kogoeru
September soshite anata wa
September aki ni kawatta
hanasu koto sae naku naru nante
watashi ni akita shouko
September soshite kyuugatsu wa
September sayonara no kuni
meguru kisetsu no irodori no naka
ichiban samishii tsuki

karite ita Dictionary ashita kaesu wa
“Love” to iu kotoba dake
sore ga Good-bye Good-bye
September soshite anata wa
September aki ni kawatta
watashi hitori ga kizutsuku koto ga
nokosareta yasashisa ne
September soshite kyuugatsu wa
September sayonara no kuni
torikoro-ru no umibe no fuku mo
nido to kiru koto wa nai

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When a Macross 82-99 album releases, you can’t help but be sucked into a particular track. For me. there are far too many to choose from and one for me features the fantastic vocals of the talented Neon Vectors.

Two of a Kind was released as part of SAILORWAVE III last March on Neoncity Records and while this song is a banger, the whole album and its previous 2 albums are also bangers. Well worth a listen.

With the album released on NCR’s Bandcamp, they also released limited physical editions via vinyl and cassette.
It would be cool to get a record player and all 3 SAILORWAVE albums (Plus the rest of Macross 82-99’s back catalogue) but I have limited space in my house and I don’t think a record player would fit in anywhere. Maybe, a cassette player would work as it has a smaller footprint.

Maybe a project for another day?!

Grab some headphones and enjoy the sick bass line of this fantastic song.

YouTube

Bandcamp

https://macross82-99.bandcamp.com/track/two-of-a-kind-feat-neon-vectors

Spotify

Lyrics

We’re two of a kind, you and I
We’re always on the run, never satisfied
We’re always looking for the next big thing
The next adventure, the next thrill

We’re two of a kind, we’re meant to be
Together we’ll conquer the world, you and me
We’re two of a kind, we’re unstoppable
Together we can do anything, we’re unstoppable

We’re always breaking the rules, never conforming
We’re always marching to the beat of our own drum
We’re always looking for something new, something different
Something that will make us feel alive

We’re two of a kind, we’re meant to be
Together we’ll conquer the world, you and me
We’re two of a kind, we’re unstoppable
Together we can do anything, we’re unstoppable

I know we’re not perfect, but we’re perfect for each other
We’re two of a kind, and we’ll always have each other

We’re two of a kind, we’re meant to be
Together we’ll conquer the world, you and me
We’re two of a kind, we’re unstoppable
Together we can do anything, we’re unstoppable

We’re two of a kind, we’re a team
We’re always there for each other, no matter what
We’re two of a kind, and we’ll always be together

Normally with The JukeBox posts, I discover a song or an album, add it to my Spotify playlist, go back through the playlist at a later stage (Normally 6 months to a couple of years) and then decide whether to create a post for it.

This song, I heard one day and I must have instantly liked it but never added it to any playlist and therefore I forgot about it.

It recently came back up during one of my many City pop listening sessions using the new ‘Enhance’ feature on Spotify.

This song is fantastic. It’s a Japanese song by MONDO GROSSO (Real name: Shinichi Osawa) who is a DJ from Tokyo. I will not lie and say that I haven’t heard any other of MONDO GROSSO’s work!

Here is Labyrinth with Hikari Mitsushima as the dancer.

YouTube

Spotify

Lyrics:

Mitsumenaide kanashii hou wo
Me wo tsubutte kuchizuke shiyou
Amaku tokeru merodii

Hikikomarete
Meikyuu no paradaisu
Deguchi mo naku owari mo naku
Tsutsumarete itai no
Jama shinaide
Mayonaka no paradaisu
Iki mo sezu ni
Mogutte iku
Futari dake no dansu

Sagasanaide
Utsukushii rabirinsu
Kuchizuke shite mou modorenai
Futari dake no dansu

Mayoikonde
Byakuya no you ni
Shibireta mama dochira kara mo
Kaerou to wa sezu ni

Tomaranaide
Yurete itai no
Nanimo iwazu
Kuchizuke shite
Wasuresasete subete

Tomaranaide
Yurete itai no
Nanimo iwazu
Kuchizuke shite
Sora kara ochiru

Mitsumenaide kanashii hou wo
Me wo tsubutte kuchizuke shiyou
Amaku tokeru merodii

Hikikomarete
Meikyuu no paradaisu
Deguchi mo naku owari mo naku
Tsutsumarete itai no

Mitsumenaide kanashii hou wo
Me wo tsubutte kuchizuke shiyou
Amaku tokeru merodii