Posts

The Boy's Dream Has Come Alive

-
Image
  When we talk about anime composers, many people will always talk about the most popular ones, such as Yoko Kanno, Kenji Kawai, Kohei Tanaka, Yasuharu Takanashi and others. We're talking about retro anime where music isn't just full-on action or slice-of-life music. Back when anime themes aren't really full-fledged pop/rock tunes and instead explains the premise of an anime show. It was one time when he claimed himself the first anison singer-songwriter . And little did he know that he was right all along... It was the mid-70s. Japan had the likes of Takeo Watanabe, Chumei Watanabe (not related), and Shunsuke Kikuchi providing just the most Showa-esqe tunes to ever grace the anime and tokusatsu period. Little problem is that none of the singers who provided the themes ever had done some lyrics and composing for those themes. Isao Sasaki, Ichiro Mizuki and Mitsuko Horie are such popular singers during that time, but neither of them ever made their own songs until later in t...
Post a Comment
Read more

2024 Recap

-
Image
 2024 was...indeed a turbulent year. The 50th debut anniversary went bitter, sure, but at least the  Sainou no Kiseki  Blu-ray set released last month saw many Masayukists watching any of his old concerts for the first time as if they were actually seeing him in person. I wish I was born in the late 70s/early 80s... This year had me also go on a different approach since I am also an artist who draws. If I am not doing college duties, I am mostly focused on my art and sharing them across social platforms that I currently run on. In fact, this year, I had little ideas. Little motivation. Little plans in updating my fanpage and providing translations of liner notes, song commentaries and interviews. Those fan pages I made are still sparse and incomplete. I didn't even have the time to write album reviews. DOES THIS MEAN I HAVE STOPPED BEING A FAN OF MASAYUKI??!! IS MY YAMAMOTO-SENSEI FIXATION OVER???!! Absolutely not. I still listen to him almost every day. I'll still love t...
Post a Comment
Read more

Mid-Year Updates

-
 Hiya! As college is on the way again, and with my third year coming, it's time to put my fan pages on (rather) semi-hiatus. Oftentimes I'll become very inactive since I need to prioritize more as college gets more serious, but that won't stop me from checking and updating from time to time. Ever since I opened a Tumblr page the past few months, I've been more starstruck on any Masayuki Yamamoto pics I've been grabbing from; and by that, I mean I couldn't stop looking at him with that innocent look, adorable smile and energetic altitude. Here for The Masayuki Paradise, I somehow lost motivation to continue translating the Zunbara Zuihitsu series, instead mercilessly translating some album liner notes and song commentaries. I'll make myself sure to continue when I have the time. And....for the original Masayukist's Zone, it doesn't seem to be updated at all. As somebody with autism, I'm part of the multi-fandom gang and sometimes I had other stuf...
Post a Comment
Read more

"SOLO Hiki no Yoru ~2nd night~" Song Commentary

-
Yah³ [ やあ³ ]  - Members of Pink Piggies have been temporarily replaced with Hiroko Kasahara, a voice actress known from "R" at the center, with first generation Pink Piggies Yoshi Hara ( Pollon  theme songs) and Hazuki Monma (wife of actor Ikkei Watanabe) on her sides as they go for P.P.R Heroine . Let's bring the world of "R" with piggybacks after this. Bouken Langerhans-tou full [冒険ランゲルハンス島full] - The initial plan was to have Blue Piggies for the chorus, but since we didn't have recording plans for the Rekishi Series , we didn't have good reasons to invite BP, and  Hitori Crazy  participated for the first time in years. It came to my conclusion that this was more age-appropriate for blood glucose level relationships. Zettai Zetsumei Bellabeaux Man no Uta [絶体絶命ベラボーマンの歌]  - If you think your work isn't good, say no! Just say it, I tell you, say it! Get calm.  President of Bella Beaux entertainment: " I'd like to play this song over the speak...
Post a Comment
Read more

In Memoriam - Noriko Ohara

-
Image
Noriko Ohara passed away from a terminal illness on July 12, which is sad because this was just a day after Masayuki Yamamoto's birthday. While best known for voicing Nobita in Doraemon '79, Conan in Future Boy Conan and Claudia and the narrator in The Super Dimensional Fortress Macross, she is the evil trio leader of all the classic Time Bokan Series, you know, Doronjo and her other counterparts. Yamamoto has left a tribute on his website recently, which I have translated: Our Miss Doronjo It is with great sorrow that we leave Noriko Ohara behind with much weeping. I wish I could've spent more with her more on stage. Shortly before her departure, she was happily watching the "Time Bokan Matsuri" video. I can hear her voice every now and then, "Ma-chan, that was fun, wasn't it?" She was the most beautiful and most graceful actress in the world. Thank you, Noriko Original:
Post a Comment
Read more

Mass-a Tidbits #6 - Birthday Twins(?)

-
Did you that two anison artists were born just one day of each other? Those artists are Kumiko Osugi and, of course, Masayuki Yamamoto, about to turn a year older tomorrow, which fits for this short post. They're both born in 1951, but while Yamamoto was born on July 11, Osugi was born on the 10th. Osugi is the singer behind some Showa anime themes, with the most popular being the 1979 Doraemon anime; while there have been tons of singers covering Doraemon no Uta , Osugi is apparently the original singer behind it. Osugi also sang the themes to Rascal the Racoon , Paul's Miraculous Adventure , Attack No. 1 , and the original Aim for the Ace! anime. However, as someone who uses Twitter, not many Japanese people seem to celebrate Osugi's birthday, and Yamamoto is more celebrated and greeted, granted someone more popular is greeted than Osugi's: a veteran voice actor who's played tons of Tatsunoko-based protagonists...
Post a Comment
Read more

"Megami no Jiyuu" intro liner notes

-
 Written by Aki Tomato, Yamamoto's artist manager at that time, translated by me. That day I became a Masayukist. Let's be honest, I was not an enthusiastic fan of Masayuki Yamamoto until I worked with him for the first time on Kyuukyoku Choujin R, that is, I had known the appeal of his music for a long time. I was an animator, so naturally I watched the Time Bokan Series , Gold Lightan and  Bryger  in real time, and I liked the theme songs so much that I could sing the full chorus to the top. Eventually, it was something that made me realize the true value of Masayuki Yamamoto's musical power. Twelve years ago, we went to a record store in Shizuoka for the R campaign. The stage was a small space bounded by partitions (more like plywood) and blackout curtains. After rehearsal, I casually wandered around the store. Then, he started singing " ♪Kin-kon-kan-kon-kenko~ " in front of a little kindergarten boy. He knew nothing about R or Masayuki Yamamoto; he just happe...
Post a Comment
Read more

Some Disappointing Updates...

-
Image
 Hello folks. You may notice that both The Masayukist's Zone and THE Masayuki Paradise, two of my fan pages related to Yamamoto sensei, hasn't been updated for the past few months. This may sound personal especially to many Japanese people, but I had been so hardly focused on my finals and my other interests that I never got the time to update my Wordpress site, nor add more translations and facts here as well. Does this mean these websites are gonna be dead, like the other Yamamoto sensei fan sites, never to be up-to-date in the future? Hopefully not. Meanwhile, Masayuki Yamamoto doesn't seem to get much physical appearances lately. Two written interviews since 2024 started, and when Super Anison Spirits 2024 was announced, Yamamoto's name was nowhere to be listed. My assumption could be that Yamamoto might as well enjoy much of his leisure time more than fixing a schedule of live appearances or maybe recording a brand new studio album. I understood why because doing ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Zunbara Zuihitsu Chapter 2 "The Mystery of Korea"

-
  By the time J9 ended, Fuji Television was airing an anime titled Korokoro Pollon   [tl note: J9 (specifically Bryger) and Pollon were made by the same studio and Yamamoto did BGM for both shows] . Mr. [Yukimasa] Ono, the TV station producer, is now [at the time he wrote this in 2000] the chief director of the Fuji TV Seoul office branch. He regularly comes back to Japan every two years!  With such an ulterior motive in mind, I embarked on a four-day, three-night trip. Ono: Yamamoto-san~~! You're here! I haven't seen you go to a foreign country since you stayed in New York. Yamamoto: Anyways, let's have yakiniku ! Take me to a yakiniku stall that doesn't stink. I stayed in Grand Hyatt, the most luxurious hotel in all of Seoul. I had a twin room all by myself (I definitely wasn't thinking of bringing anyone with me, you know). Outside the window was an overview of Seoul with the mountains in the sky. The TV played mostly in English, but it's a country where Eng...
Post a Comment
Read more