Quick rundown/rec thread that no one asked for about the Japanese artists I listed on my music chart https://twitter.com/QueerAltMossy/status/1246183904517607424

The first artist I listed is Yumi Matsutoya, who also recorded a few albums under her maiden name Arai. She's a *strong* contender for my favorite singer-songwriter, and her albums are all even on Spotify and Apple Music in the USA! (Though not iTunes, somehow?)

The best place to start is with her 1973 debut, Hikoukigumo. Miyazaki fans may recognize the title track from his film The Wind Rises. This album is one of my Top 3. It's basically the Japanese version of Carole King's "Tapestry" but slightly more diverse https://open.spotify.com/album/2Apn7plsxGOwwD7anbcAOS

From there, I recommend listening to the other 3 albums she recorded as Yumi Arai. Between the 4 of them, there's exactly one song I don't like, and less than 5 that I would consider non-essential https://open.spotify.com/artist/5W7F9IM2vsR9EDCk5T2Uqz

Her career post-marriage is a lot more daunting w more than 35 albums + lots of singles/B-sides. This era is also tough to sift through bc while she made consistently good albums up to the mid-'80s (and good individual songs long after) she never quite reaches her early heights

My favorite of her post-marriage albums is 1980's Toki no Nai Hotel, which is kind of an oddity for her. A moody, rock-influenced album with baroque pop undertones and a flair that strikes me as heavily influenced by British bands of the late '70s https://open.spotify.com/album/01Lb7g4apnDHM7q31yMf7c

Next we have Ami Ozaki, another female artist who started out in Japan's thriving singer-songwriter scene of the '70s. Unfortunately, her '70s albums aren't available digitally outside Japan, but Spotify and iTunes have most of her stuff from the '80s and '90s

Truth be told, Ami's catalogue isn't totally indespensible; she has a few strong albums and a lot that range from "about 50% great" to "really only has 1 good song". As far as what's on Spotify, my fave is 1981's Air Kiss, a mostly AOR-based concoction https://open.spotify.com/album/0HPFK3PQpRl1bU3Maptq78

I do have to give a shout-out to her 1980 song "You...Tamashii no Mama ni" which is possibly my favorite song of hers. It's an unusual blend of AOR + disco that builds dramatically to a soulful, hedonistic dancefloor anthem that shows off her unique voice https://open.spotify.com/track/4xO8vTuNlSoDG2OoFia0J2

Her 1976 debut Shady (first 10 tracks on this list) is prolly my favorite album of hers overall. It's not as perfect a '70s singer-songwriter hit parade as Yuming's debut but all the tracks are at least pleasant, and the best are pretty perfect AM Pop https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_th1ypBmj6tZHbwe1asZAsKlvKSBF8pO

Then there's Minako Yoshida, a wonderful soul and funk singer-songwriter. Only her 1st album is on Spotify and iTunes stateside, but it's also a solid '70s singer-songwriter effort. Think Laura Nyro meets Carly Simon. https://open.spotify.com/album/6RIPbKWjHHRcmwAInhfZc5

But, like I said, Minako's main claim to fame is her skill at writing and singing funk and soul. Take her stripped-down, sexy funk banger full of colossal hooks "Midnight Driver," which has (along w the album it appeared on) become a cult hit on YouTube

And I have to say, her 1977 soul track "Koi wa Ryuusei" is easily one of the very best songs I've ever heard, in any language, from any genre. It's just godly. If you listen to nothing else from this thread, listen to Yuming's debut album and *this song*