Someday is the 3rd solo album by Japanese singer-songwriter, Motoharu Sano (佐野元春), released in 1982. Sano is considered to be one of the most important artists in Japanese music, especially in rock and roll. As a child born in Taito, Tokyo, Motoharu Sano originally wanted to become a mangaka like his hero Osamu Tezuka(手塚治虫), the creator of Astro Boy. However he did not receive much support from his parents, his mother even ripped up the comic he wrote. Thankfully Sano would find another creative outlet in the form of music when in junior high, his friend gifted him with a transistor radio. He soon became hooked on The British invasion, with bands like The Beatles and the Who. His interest in western music deepened in high school when he started listening to Bob Dylan.
Sano began writing music in high school, but wouldn't make his solo debut until 1980 when he signed up with Epic Records Japan. He released his first single, "Angelina", the same year, which was also featured in his debut album, Back to The Street. He would release his 2nd album, Heart Beat, the following year in 1981. Unfortunately, neither album performed well financially, but his gig as a radio DJ and a steady stream of live concerts kept him afloat with a solid fanbase. He would get his big break in 1982 with his seminal 3rd album.
Sano would get his big break in 1982 with his 3rd seminal album, which also happens to be his first self-produced work. When composing the album, he was working to convey the theme of "Innocence alive in a devastated city". The name of the album and the titular song was inspired by classic songs from the 60s that used "Someday" in the title or theme, particularly "Someday Never Comes" by Creedence Clearwater Revival, and "Someday We'll Be Together" by The Supremes. You can definitely hear some of the CCR influence in the song as well. Assumably out of his admiration for Bob Dylan, Sano intended to make the opening song, Sugar Time, a protest song and wrote the lyrics with hard content but ended up changing them due to pressure from the record company.
The album also features the vocal talents of singer-songwriters, Masamichi Sugi(杉真里), superstar idol Kenji Sawada(澤田研二), and Ginji Ito(伊藤銀次), who also assists on the electric guitar. The album was backed by Sano's own band, The Heartland, featuring Takashi Furuta(古田たかし) on drums, Yoshitake Abe(阿部吉剛), Akira Nishimoto(西本明) on keyboards, and bassist Kiyofumi Onoda(小野田清文).
THE MUSIC
- Sugartime ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Happy Man ⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Down Town Boy ⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Birthday for Two (二人のバースディ) ⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Beatiful Donna Anna (麗しのドンナ・アンナ)⭐⭐⭐
- Someday ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
- I'm In Blue ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Purify At Midnight (真夜中に清めて) ⭐⭐⭐
- Vanity Factory ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Rock & Roll Night ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
- Sunchild is My Friend(サンチャイルドは僕の友達)⭐⭐⭐⭐
THE VERDICT
Someday ended up being a pleasant surprise. I wasn't sure what to expect but it certainly wasn't a Bruce Springsteen & Billy Joel collab produced by Eiichi Ohtaki. At least that's what it felt like I was listening to. The record feels like a natural evolution from Ohtaki's A Long Vacation, taking that Baroque, resort pop sound and adding an extra layer of heartland & arena rock on top. Motoharu even sounds a bit like Ohtaki himself when he sings, if he was giving a Springsteen impression instead of Neil Young. He even has that sort of spoken word style cadence when he sings, it's pretty interesting to hear it in Japanese, and I eventually got used to it.
"Sugartime" is a Sunshine pop number that lives up to its name, it's hard to believe that this was originally going to be some sort of political statement, it's way too cheery to be anything but a bubblegum new wave dance number. "Birthday For Two" detours into a more yacht rock sound with a funky jazz beat. "Someday", is a pleasant Baroque pop love ballad number that feels like a more fleshed-out version of Springsteen's "Hungry Heart", the mellow piano playing accompanied by the ambiance of city traffic gives the song a down-home feel to it. "Vanity Factory" is another epic track that's a throwback to old-school rock & roll with a glam twist, which explains why it was originally written for a male idol, Kenji Sawada.
Like any good City Pop album, there's always a rich sense of nostalgia, embodied in songs like "Downtown Boy", a classic rock anthem that paints a scene straight out of American Graffiti or Grease. A spry youth riding his hot rod around town, falling in love, going to the driving movies, and getting heartbroken. Then you have the sentimental "Rock & Roll Night", an epic ballad about friends who end up growing up to lead their own separate lives, unsure of where life will take them. It's a very somber song, reminiscent of Billy Joel's own "Scenes From An Italian Restaurant", however, this song feels a bit more optimistic, with each time the chorus, you hear more and more voices singing with each other, almost as if these friends are meeting one last time at a bar to mark a significant change in their life and reassure each other that everything will be alright.
I can appreciate why "Someday" is considered a Motoharu Sano classic. It's got a great nostalgic rock & roll sound with relatable lyrics about coming of age and being young and in love, all packaged in a gorgeous Wall of Sound production.
Good writeup on "Someday", and I think the comparisons to The Boss and the Piano Man are spot-on. I did get some vibes of Joel's "The Stranger" and "An Innocent Man" from "Someday". I never listened to Springsteen's "The River" in its entirety aside from the wonderful "Hungry Heart" but perhaps there is some influence from that album as well?
ReplyDeleteThanks Canuck! Yea many of the early songs would fit right in with the River. Although I think Someday & Downtown Boy are far superior, especially the remixed version.
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