Downtown by EPO - 1980

Back in 1975, a band called Sugar Babe, featuring Tatsurō Yamashita, Taeko Ōnuki, and Kunio Muramatsu, released an album simply titled SONGS. Though it would later be hailed as a turning point in Japanese pop and serve as ground zero for the City Pop genre, the album initially flopped. Within a year, Sugar Babe had disbanded.

Fast forward to 1978 in a small café in Mishuku, Setagaya. RCA producer Shigeki Miyata meets an aspiring singer-songwriter named Eiko Satō (佐藤栄子). She went by her childhood nickname, EPO, a moniker that stuck ever since a tongue-twisted “Eko-chan”(えーこちゃん) came out as “Epo-chan”(エポ ちゃん). EPO and Miyata talked for hours about her love for Sugar Babe. That conversation convinced Miyata they should make an album together, planting the seed for EPO’s debut, Down Town.

At RCA, EPO was promoted as “the next Mariya Takeuchi”, part of the so-called “Three Daughters of RCA” alongside Ōnuki and Takeuchi herself. During her debut, EPO described her style as “Yellow Pop”—a unique hybrid that was neither rock nor kayōkyoku (traditional Japanese pop). Much like Sugar Babe, she sought to carve out her own space in Japanese music. Many songs on Down Town came directly from her notebooks, including compositions written in high school and lyrics inspired by her personal experiences. The album was produced by Miyata, with arrangements by Tetsuji Hayashi and Nobuyuki Shimizu. The backing chorus featured a remarkable lineup of RCA peers—Yamashita, Ōnuki, and Takeuchi—bringing EPO full circle to Sugar Babe's legacy.

Released on March 21, 1980, Down Town was accompanied by the titular single, which became her signature song, cemented when Fuji TV adopted it as the ending theme for the wildly popular variety show Oretachi Hyōkin-zoku, starring comedian & actor Beat Takeshi.

THE MUSIC

1. Down Town ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
2. Yakusoko Ha Ame No Naka (約束は雨の中)⭐⭐⭐⭐
3.  Klaxon ⭐⭐⭐⭐
4. Nichiyo Wa Bell Ga Narumaeni (日曜はベルが鳴る前に) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
5. Katarai (語愛) ⭐⭐⭐ 
6. Pop Music Suite⭐⭐⭐⭐
7. Asphalt・Hitori (アスファルト・ひとり)⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
8. Iiwake Wa Shinaikedo (言い訳はしないけど)⭐⭐⭐
9. Suiheisen Oikakete (水平線追いかけて)⭐⭐⭐⭐
10. Caffe Time ⭐⭐⭐

THE VERDICT

I’ll be honest—it took a while for this album to grow on me. When I first heard EPO’s rendition of "Down Town", I brushed it off as little more than a karaoke imitation of Sugar Babe’s original. But over time—especially after buying the vinyl—it crept into my head and became an earworm I couldn’t shake. What eventually won me over was the pairing of its minimalist, synthpop-inspired arrangement with EPO’s jazzy, cheerful voice. 

It's impossible not to get cheery while listening to this record. Tracks like "Yakusoku wa Ame no Naka" and "Suiheisen Oikakete" carry a bouncy, peppy energy that flows effortlessly from one song to the next, and EPO’s singing is a big part of what keeps that momentum alive. It’s easy to hear shades of Mariya Takeuchi in her vocal style, but EPO brings a little more swing that makes Down Town feel more like its own unique experience. "Asphalt Hitori"  is the real unsung hero on this album, continuing the time-honored City Pop tradition of being a near celebratory-sounding disco track with lyrics about loneliness, complete with infectious vocal harmonies and beautiful string arrangements.

Down Town is probably the most prototypical City Pop record you can think of, yet cements itself as a seminal album in its legacy, and proof that sometimes you really can reinvent the wheel. It’s a fun, spirited debut that firmly established EPO’s signature perky, energetic sound, which she would refine further on her follow-up, Goodies. Blending the genre’s 70s roots with the 80s sparkle & sheen, Down Town is both a great intro to City Pop and an endearing showcase of EPO’s charm.