Pocket Park by Miki Matsubara - 1980

There are a number of female voices associated with City Pop in this past decade. The first one that comes to mind is Mariya Takeuchi and her hit viral single, Plastic Love, however, there's one singer that rivals Mariya in her late internet stardom; the late & great Miki Matsubara.

THE HISTORY

Miki Matsubara (松原 みき) was a Japanese singer, lyricist, and composer born on November 28, 1959, in Nishi-Ku, Sakai, Osaka, Japan. She is known today mainly due to the other viral city pop hit, Midnight Door (Mayonaka no Door): Stay With Me. The song originates from her 1980 debut album, Pocket Park, however, it suffers the same problem that Mariya Takeuchi had with her album Variety, where the one single overshadowed the rest of the album completely. So how does the rest of Pocket Park stack up against such an iconic single?

For this record they spared no expense in acquiring top talent. Featuring veteran composers in the AOR scene like Yoshino Fujimaru, Tetsuji Hayashi, and Ken Sato, who also happens to be the husband & producer of Junko Ohashi. The album also features such lyricists as Tsuzuru Nakasato, Machiko Ryu, folk singer Kohei Oikawa, Yumi Morita who wrote for Rajie and Monta & Brothers, and Yoshiko Miura, who's also written for Junko Yagami, Hitomi Ishikawa, and Hiroshi Kamayatsu. Vocal groups Time Five and Eve appear as backing vocals throughout the album as well. And of course, no City Pop record is complete without the late & legendary Jake H. Conception on saxophone.

Midnight Door would peak at No. 28 on the Oricon charts while Pocket Park rose as high as No. 13 on the album charts. Unfortunately, Matsubara would pass away due to complications from uterine cervix cancer. Thankfully she left behind an illustrious career and a viral internet sensation, as today Midnight Door rivals Plastic Love in popularity, not just as a popular track on YouTube, but in the form of memes found all over the internet, especially TikTok.

THE MUSIC

1. 
   真夜中のドア/Stay With Me:⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Starting off with the most iconic song of her career. Midnight Door is a soulful disco number where Miki laments and reminisces about a lover who walked out on her, begging them not to leave.
2. It’s So Creamy:⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ A smooth R&B number with a hint of Latin, featuring some nice flutes and a beautiful string arrangement. Miki's vocal gets more sultry as the lyrics get more flirtatious.
3. Cryin':⭐⭐⭐ A funky dance track with a lively brass section stacked on top of awesome guitar riffs.
4. That's All:⭐⭐⭐⭐ A Bossa nova-style ballad where Miki begs her lover not to say goodbye while crying in the pouring rain.
5. His Woman:⭐⭐⭐ A more typical disco track with a funky bassline and great horns.
6. Manhattan Wind:⭐⭐⭐⭐ Another funky upbeat groove about strutting down the busy streets of New York on an autumn day. It features some funky horns and a very jazzy piano.
7. 愛はエネルギー | Love is Energy:⭐⭐⭐ Another upbeat groove about dancing in the name of love. The electric piano sounds to give it a tropical-sounding vibe.
8. そうして私が | Then I...:⭐⭐⭐ A soulful ballad where Miki sings about accepting her self-image, comparing her reflections in the mirror to shooting stars and gentle birds in the windowsill.
9. Trouble Maker:⭐⭐⭐ Another unique dance number with more emphasis on aggressive guitars and Miki warns us about an unruly and scandalous heartbreaker.
10. Mind Game: ⭐⭐⭐ A slower disco song very reminiscent of ABBA's Dancing Queen, but with more resort pop flourishes.
11. 偽りのない日々| True Days:⭐⭐⭐ Another slow dance number starts off with a very beautiful minimalistic intro that leads into typical disco fare.

THE VERDICT

As far as debut albums go Pocket Park is an excellent start. It has everything you'd expect from a good disco album; funky bass lines, melodic guitars, a harmonious string section, and an awesome backing chorus. All of these qualities are best shown in the album's most iconic song, Midnight Door: Stay With Me, which combined with its catchy English chorus, makes it one of the most iconic City Pop themes ever.

Of course, this highlights the album's biggest drawback; They wasted the best track for the opening number. The rest of the songs, save for two, while well-produced, are pretty average Showa pop fare. The exception being It's So Creamy, which happens to be my other favorite song on the album because of how smooth and lighthearted it is (despite the scandalous title, but that might just be my dirty mind), and Manhattan Wind, which would feel right at home alongside Tatsuro Yamashita's New York-themed Circus Town. You also get the feeling that the composing team was less concerned with creating songs that flowed into a narrative, but rather just came up with a bunch of run-of-the-mill love songs hoping one of them would stick. This is very noticeable with Love is Energy, which has almost the same progression as Stay With Me, but with a less memorable arrangement. What really carries the album is Matsubara's unique, operatic voice, singing in a way that feels sophisticated, but still sexy and soulful when needed.

Overall, Pocket Park is a pretty standard Soul-Pop Album with one iconic anthem and a couple of hidden gems that you won't regret listening to or dancing to. If you're looking to experience Pocket Park for yourself, you can get it on Spotify, and get the re-issue from Ponycanyon.