Memories of Live Concerts (13) - Time Jumps Again, Southern All Stars in 1984
I tried to trace my memories chronologically and went back to 1978, but I am jumping through time again. This is unavoidable because of the flow of events. April 1984 was a major turning point for me, as I had graduated from university, started working, and was, in a sense, standing on my own two feet. On the eve of that, for three days on January 30th, 31st, and February 1st of that year, Southern All Stars held the final performances of their "SAS Great Presentation: I Was Deceived!! Tour '83" at the Nippon Budokan.
During my university days, I continued listening to Western music as I had in high school, entered the world of jazz, and was enthusiastic about RC Succession domestically. During a trip to America with friends, I was also lucky enough to experience a Bruce Springsteen concert in Los Angeles.
Under those circumstances, and following the flow I wrote about yesterday, I ended up going to this concert.
I was in the first-floor seating, not the arena.
If I may be so bold as to write my impression at the time, it was, "It felt like a 'makunouchi' bento box of a concert." It was unfocused, lacking a core...
I don't think that's entirely off the mark. That is because Southern/Keisuke Kuwata incorporates a wide range of musical genres, digests them in their own way, and outputs music that only Southern/Kuwata can create. In the end, they even go as far as doing a
"Solo Kohaku Uta Gassen". That is why everyone ends up having their own personal version of Southern.However, at the time, I lacked the ability to accept that straightforwardly. When it came to live concerts, I was likely seeking the catharsis that would release something within me, like I found with Springsteen or RC. I felt that Southern's concert was "a bit different," and I was also disappointed that "Itoshi no Ellie" was not performed.
Looking at the setlist again now and playing it in order, it is actually a wonderful flow. After a series of works from the album "Kirei," there is "Ya Ya," and the second half includes works from "Stereo Taiyozoku" and "NUDE MAN," in addition to "Tokyo Shuffle" and "Body Special II," which they performed at the '83 Kohaku. With an encore of "Natsu wo Akiramete" and "Tabisugata Rokuninshu," it couldn't have been bad, yet my impression remained as stated above.
In the 1983 chapter of Susie Suzuki's
"Southern All Stars 1978-1985" (Shincho Shinsho), there is a passage like this. That summer, Southern held joint concerts with various artists, and in Hokkaido, they performed with RC Succession. Seeing a performance where the audience was on their feet from the start, Keisuke Kuwata said at the after-party, <"No one probably noticed, but I shed tears"> (quoted from "Taishita Natsu" in the previous book).Susie Suzuki writes that Southern's path of <"strengthening the 'contemporary' color"> after "Kirei" <"might have been influenced by the realization that 'you can't beat RC Succession in rock and roll'">. This description seems to express my feelings at the time.
As a result, my relationship with Southern from then on became "neither too close nor too distant" again, but Southern, having become a "national band," outgrew the Budokan and moved to stadium concerts. While I was slightly interested, I thought getting tickets seemed difficult and just said, "Oh well."
Years have passed, but now my wife says, "I want to go to a Southern concert." I also thought, "I really should see them."
So, on December 10, 2022, I went to Keisuke Kuwata's solo concert at the Tokyo Dome. For some reason, I couldn't bring myself to write an article about it, so I haven't recorded anything.
Finally, it is Southern's turn. On May 28th, I will go to see Southern All Stars' Tokyo Dome performance—for the first time in 41 years!
*1984
Setlist (Album included)**
Apple Music Playlist Kashi no Ki no Shita de ("Kirei")
Matilda BABY (ibid.)
Hoshifuru Yoru no HARLOT (ibid.)
MICO (ibid.)
Sarah Jane (ibid.)
EMANON (ibid.)
Ya Ya ~ Ano Jidai wo Wasurenai (Single)
My Foreplay Music ("Stereo Taiyozoku")
Rappa to Ojisan ("Stereo Taiyozoku")
Akai Honoo no Onna ("Kirei")
Nioi Iro THE NIGHT CLUB ("NUDE MAN")
Asagata Moonlight ("Stereo Taiyozoku")
Omoide no Stardust ("NUDE MAN")
Yokohama Lady Blues (Single)
NEVER FALL IN LOVE AGAIN ("Kirei")
DJ Cobby no Densetsu ("NUDE MAN")
Tokyo Shuffle (Single)
Big Star Blues ("Stereo Taiyozoku")
Body Special II (Single)
YELLOW NEW YORKER ("Kirei")
Encore
Natsu wo Akiramete ("NUDE MAN")
Tabisugata Rokuninshu ("Kirei")
