Well, since this is the "Shady Acres Jukebox" thread, it's about time I revived a prior thread wherein I unveiled MormonDiscussions.com's official J-Pop group,
Wink, originally posted
here.
As I explained in that other thread, when I was on my mission to Japan from 1990-1992, by far the most popular musical group was "Wink," a female duo comprised of Sachiko Suzuki and Shoko Aida.
Click here for several pictures of them.
Here is their entry on Wikipedia.org.
They completely dominated the charts and buried the competition the entire time I was there. A lot of their work consisted of covers of previous songs, in Japanese of course, but their covers were invariably better than the originals (in my opinion).
Wink was characterized by angelic vocals and subdued dance routines. Their image was that of high fashion and an almost otherworldly elegance. To enhance the mystique, they almost never smiled (not because they were snobs, mind you, but as part of the act). And to top it all off, in contrast to the current American fare, Wink was able to do all this without ever showing a single stray inch of skin.
The Japanese music industry is notoriously fickle, with flash-in-the-pan singers and groups coming and going as consumers constantly embrace and then discard them in favor of the newest thing. Wink, on the other hand, was able to remain in the industry for eight whole years--an eternity by Japan's standards and a near-unprecedented achievement.
I'm a huge fan to this day. One of my favorite albums is a collection of their singles that I got at an import store in San Francisco back in 1994.
So, to introduce you all to the magic and wonder that is Wink, here are some of their promotional videos from YouTube (God bless the Internet!). In the following videos, Sachiko is almost always to the viewer's left, whereas Shoko is almost always to the viewer's right. In addition, Shoko almost always sings first, whereas Sachiko almost always sings after the first chorus.
WINK: THE CLASSIC PERIOD, 1988-1992This era was characterized by upbeat sounds and pop-heavy riffs, tempered with and enhanced by an unmistakable feminine touch. Most of their album sales and popularity took place during this period.
- New Moon ni Aimasho (Let's Meet Under the New Moon) This is my favorite song of theirs. I was lucky enough to see this video while I was still in Japan. The melodic vocals combined with the heavy bass gives this one of the best choruses I've ever heard.
- Kitto atsui kuchibiru (Warm Lips, I Know) This is a very close second as my favorite Wink song of all. It's a video that I selected once from a video juke box while I was still in Japan. I only got 1/3 of the way through it before my Japanese ZL dragged me away. Almost 16 years later, thanks to the Internet I finally got to see the rest! Watch this and tell me you're not hypnotized by their vocals.
- ~Boys don't cry~ Although this isn't my favorite song of theirs, it's definitely my favorite video, by far. They break tradition in a HUGE way and smile almost all the way through. It's a really upbeat and cute video. Fun for the whole family.
- Yo ru ni Hagurete (Where were you last night?) This is the first song of theirs I ever heard. Although this link is to the promotional video, I heard the song--and saw them perform--during a broadcast of a live performance. I had seen their posters and merchandise everywhere, so I'd been curious, but this is the song and that was the performance that got me hooked for good.
- Ai ga tomaranai (Love never stops) This is the video of their very first hit back in 1988. They may look young, but Sachiko was 19 and Shoko was 18 at the time.
- Samishii Nettaigyo (Sad bedtime story) This is the video of their first hit to reach #1. Watch the whole video and tell me you haven't become a fan.
- One Night in Heaven I first heard this song in a tape given to me by the investigator I baptized. Here is the extended version with an entirely new video. It shows them driving around the suburbs of L.A. at one point.
- Sexy Music Another song from the aforementioned tape.
- Sugar Baby Love This one is quite different from their usual fare, since, rather than cutting-edge fashion, it has them dressed in period costume and hairstyles from the 1940s and 1950s. This was one of their earliest videos, back in the first year of their reign. Perhaps they simply hadn't found their own "look" yet, style-wise?
- Haitoku no Scenario (???) Breaking tradition, Sachiko sings first in this one. Here is a second video for the same song.
- Manatsu Toremolo (???) I first heard this song on their singles collection I'd purchased.
- Furimukanaide (Don't turn away) This video is rather unique because it employs a "split screen" throughout.
- Matenrou Museum (???) In a sharp departure from their standard way of doing things, this video hints at the sexier side of Wink as opposed to their elegant side. Perhaps it was the first sign of their imminent transition into the modern period.
- Amaryllis A rather inexplicable video.
- Navy Blue This is a song from their first album. Apparently they were still generic J-pop-ish and hadn't evolved their unique Wink musical style yet. The visuals in this video are fan compilations of snippets from another video.
- Mighty Mighty Love What makes this video unique is that they don't dance at all; they only sing.
WINK: THE MODERN PERIOD, 1993-1996This era saw their music mature quite a bit. They became substantially less "pop"-ish, experimented a little bit, and saw their music transcend genre to a much greater degree. Think of it as music you can take home to your parents, if you will.
- Cherie, Mon Cherie One of the first (and best) songs of their modern period. You can really tell the difference in artistic style from the previous songs, since it is heavier on the vocals and lighter on the music. I came across this video just this week.
- Kekkon Shiyo ne (Let's get married!) One of their more upbeat titles.
- Jive Into the Night True to the name of the song, the speed is amped up quite a bit in this one. Yet another diversification from their earlier years.
- Sakihokore Itoshisayo (???) This video departs from their usual beaten path by interspersing lots of behind-the-scenes and candid backstage footage.
- Angel Love Story Not my favorite, but what the Hell.
- Twinkle Twinkle Their vocals are tour-de-force in this one and really exemplify their modern period.
- Only lonely This video shows them at various out-of-the-way locations around L.A. and Hawaii.
- Itsumade mo suki de itakute (I want to keep loving you always) This is probably the softest song they released as a single. It reminds me of nothing more than a picnic on a lazy Sunday.
There is a substantial number of additional Wink songs on YouTube to which I didn't link, but they're all live performances (as opposed to the promotional videos I've provided above). You'll notice links to those other songs (along with links to live performances of the songs I've already provided) to the right as you watch these videos. If you dig deep enough, you can even find several short commercial spots they did during their heyday.
So, there you have it!
Wink--The official J-Pop group of MormonDiscussions.com. Are you a fan yet? :-)
(NOTE: This post does
not constitute an invitation to post utter crap. Just because some song or group is from Japan or has a Japanese person in the band doesn't automatically mean I'm going to like it. If you
must post a link to such things, please screen the music in advance to ensure that it is actually
good. Thank you.)
"Finally, for your rather strange idea that miracles are somehow linked to the amount of gay sexual gratification that is taking place would require that primitive Christianity was launched by gay sex, would it not?"
--Louis Midgley
