Maybe since I first became interested in Brazilian music, I started at a loss in the face of a vast sea of music, , now I don’t have time to look for new, contemporary music. Maybe just because I’m just getting old. Well, even music from a hundred years ago is new to me when I hear it for the first time, so there’s no need to go after new music. Of course, it is very exciting to meet new music, and I listen to Peter Barakan’s radio program every week. But what I want to introduce you this time is music that seem s to be my home. I don’t know how many times I’ve listened to them, but I regularly find myself wanting to listen to them. A lot of them is music that I was obsessed with as a teenager. A three minutes long song can’t get any longer or shorter than that. In this sense, music is like sharing time. Here’s a list of songs that I’ve shared a lot of time with in my life.

First of all, Otis Redding. I don’t really remember how I came across his music, but I vaguely remember reading that Jimi Hendrix said that Otis made him cry irresistibly. When I was 19 years old I went on a trip to Europe and I was listening to music on a Walkman with cassette tapes, so I couldn’t take many tapes with me on the trip. Otis’s song is most important cassette I brought on that trip. I listened to his music over and over again. I don’t know why Otis’ voice never failed to capture the heart of a boy born in Japan. But there are days when I still play Otis at least once a month.

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One of the albums I had in Europe was the first album by The Blue Hearts, but I’ve already introduced them many times, so this time I won’t.

The first English-speaking artist I came across was Billy Joel. From the moment I dropped the needle on 52nd Street in my brother’s room (of course there were no CDs in those days) I was still under the spell of music. After a while I bought “Piano Man” with my own little pocket money and I remember listening to it over and over again, from the moment I got home from school until I ate my dinner, and after the moment I ate my dinner until I fell asleep.

Surprisingly, I can still sing most of Billy’s songs, even though I’m not a native English speaker. Junior high school boy’s fever is awesome!

I started listening to Charlie Parker because of Eric Clapton, and I read in a magazine or something that Clapton’s band, the Yardbirds, was named after an old jazz musician. I bought “Charlie Parker Story On Dial” with my little pocket money. Something faster and hotter than I’d ever heard before, coming through the noise, grabbed me completely.

I had no idea at the time that it was improvised, and I remember being baffled by the many different takes of the same song. I worried too much like so junior high school boy, I listened to it over and over again, trying to remember the sound in my head if I ever went deaf.

Then there was another one, “Ella and Louis”. I usually throw myself into this album on nights when I’ve had a bad day. I remember buying it for less than 1,000 yen at a wagon sale when I was a university student. Because I had been listening to jazz from Charlie Parker onwards, and I was going in the opposite direction to Louis, so I thought, Louis Armstrong, I know the name, I was just going to pay 1,000 yen for it. When I got home, I put on the CD and as soon as I heard the first notes of Oscar Peterson’s piano, my heart melted. For me, jazz is hard music, Charlie Parker and Sonny Rollins both seemed to fight for something higher. The jazz on this album is just so warm. It’s like napping in front of a fireplace with a good book. For me, there is no better medicine for peace of mind.

Finally, as always, my song. This song is dedicated to Otis. I think I did a good job with the lyrics. I had an online meeting with the producer of my current label and he said “let’s record some songs” and I was really excited and happy, and that night this song came to me. This song is full of my love to music.

Otis
Lyrics: KANEKO Chalin

He started to sing when he was born
Sweetest melody just like horn
Mom always fell in sleep
His voices reached into deep

All he needs is an old man guitar
He just needs simple chords
Starry sky is dancing far
Every solider fold sword

He can make every song to love
He wakes up inside you white dove

He was born to sing for a broken heart
Born to sing for present sinners
Born to sing for every butterfly
Born to sing for future cry

All he needs is an old man guitar
He just needs simple chords
Starry sky is dancing far
Every solider fold sword

He can make every song to love
He wakes up inside you white dove