Serene state of mind

A year ago tomorrow was 35th anniversary of Sing Like Talking.
Satou Chikuzen says that Suzuki Masayuki alias Martin advised Chikuzen to celebrate everything related with anniversary year.
That's why Chikuzen is celebrating his anniversary of solo career.

Have you, including international visitors, watched TV commercial of McDonald's "Big Mac Set"?
From this July, Chikuzen's first recording in 1987 is used for this advertisement.
When he passed an audition and got selected as a commercial singers of Coca-Cola Company's jingle, he was twenty-three years old.
Back then, Japan was in the middle of Babble Era, and many companies could afford to spend lavishly on publicity.
This Jingle was recorded by a bunch of big-time musicians; Steve Gadd, Will Lee, Jeff Mironov, Joe Caro, Ralph McDonald, Richard Tee.
After this Jingle was appreciated highly among industrial world, about two-hundred companies requested jingles to Chikuzen and Inoue Daisuke, the composer.
However, Inoue told Chikuzen that he was going to turn down all of those offers if Chikuzen wanted to keep performing in the band, while he wouldn't mind if Chikuzen wanted to work as a jingle singer in the future.
Inoue has seen singers who become well-known by jingles eventually get all-too-familiar and go decline.
Back then, Chikuzen felt that it was a pity to throw away opportunity to make more money.
But now, he says that without Inoue's wise decision, he would have not been what he is now.

His first solo work was Japanese translation of "Something Sad".
In the aftermath of the single, he made a release of first solo album "Cornerstones", his cover works series.
Back then, record company side reacted negatively toward covers.
On the other hand, fans welcomed this work, appreciating him for introducing those great songs.
Chikuzen criticizes that it's only Japanese who underrepresents covered songs than original.
That's why such a shameful thing happened in Japan that the singer who sang Japanese version theme song of a famous musical movie is abused.
Chikuzen says there is no difference between original and covered songs in expressing with singing.
Also, he points out that singers who cannot perform covered songs are unable to express themselves with original songs written for them.
　Classical music and jazz have no notion of "cover".
　　Even Enka, Japanese's favorite, either.

For about forty years, Chikuzen and members of Sing Like Talking have been stubbornly honest to what they want to perform and express.
Fans must be proud of being fans of them.
And their challenge goes on...

(Translation: Unable-to-think-up-Handle)

◇：Ready to place translation if asked



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