80s Idols in the 90s (Along with 90s Dramas...)
This is an article about 80s idols.
With the end of "The Best Ten" in 1989 and "Yoru no Hit Studio" in 1990, the environment surrounding idols changed significantly as the Heisei era began, with music programs on television decreasing drastically.
This period is known as the "winter era for idols," and many 80s idols, faced with a sharp decline in opportunities to sing on television, moved into fields like acting and variety shows, with many stopping their singing careers altogether.
Also, for those idols who continued to sing, since there were few music programs, a common strategy in the 90s became effective tie-ins, such as "pairing a song with the theme song of a drama they were appearing in."
In this article, I would like to introduce 90s drama theme songs by those 80s idols, and I hope you will read it while also reminiscing about the dramas themselves.
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■ ■ ■ Kyoko Koizumi Edition ■ ■ ■
First, I would like to introduce Kyoko Koizumi who debuted in 1982.
Although Kyoko Koizumi had already starred in "Getsuyo Drama Land" and "Daiei Dramas," I get the impression that she shifted to acting in earnest after the 1989 "Getsu 9" drama "Aishiteru Kai!."
Speaking of hit drama theme songs by Kyoko Koizumi in the 90s, "Anata ni Aete Yokatta" and "Yasashii Ame" come to mind, but can you remember which dramas they were from?
"Anata ni Aete Yokatta" May 1991
Lyrics: Kyoko Koizumi / Composition & Arrangement: Takeshi Kobayashi
"Yasashii Ame" February 1993
Lyrics: Kyoko Koizumi / Composition: Shoko Suzuki
◎ ◎ Answer ◎ ◎
First, the big hit song "Anata ni Aete Yokatta" was the theme song for the TBS "Kin 9 Drama" series "Papa to Natchan", in which she played the daughter of Masakazu Tamura.
Personally, I really enjoyed and loved Masakazu Tamura's home comedies!
This drama also has its slapstick moments, but there are also touching scenes, and the theme song, "Anata ni Aeteyokatta" (I'm glad I met you), really resonates with me.
By the way, the person that "Nacchan," played by Kyoko Koizumi, marries is Senri Oe.
Also, the drama that featured "Yasashii Ame" (Gentle Rain) as its theme song was also a "Friday 9 PM drama," titled "Naoto Ogata co-starred in, called "Aisuru to Iu Koto" (What It Means to Love).
This drama is a story where the protagonist, played by Naoto Ogata, falls in love at first sight with an office worker played by Kyoko Koizumi and pursues her aggressively. The way he persistently pursues Kyoko Koizumi, who already had a fiancé, in the name of "pure love," might be considered a pretty "scary drama" by modern standards. It really captures the era...
Kyoko Koizumi continued to appear in dramas like "Boku ga Kanojo ni, Shakkin wo Shita Riyu" (The Reason I Borrowed Money from Her) and "Mada Koi wa Hajimaranai" (Love Hasn't Started Yet), but for the '94 drama "Sweet Home", she only participated with the theme song "My Sweet Home".
"My Sweet Home" 1994.2
Lyrics: Kyoko Koizumi / Composition & Arrangement: Takeshi Kobayashi
■ ■ ■ Miho Nakayama Edition ■ ■ ■
Miho Nakayama actually debuted as an actress, so she appeared in numerous dramas and movies even in the 80s.
In that sense, I think she is the 80s idol who shone the brightest during this 90s trend.
As for drama theme songs, I'd like to introduce three songs: the Christmas song "Tooi Machi no Dokoka de..." (Somewhere in a Distant Town...), the collaboration with WANDS titled "Sekaijuu no Dare Yori Kitto" (Surely More Than Anyone in the World), and "Tada Nakitaku Naru no" (I Just Feel Like Crying). Can you remember the titles of the many dramas Miho Nakayama starred in?
"Tooi Machi no Dokoka de..." 1991.11
Lyrics: Mika Watanabe / Composition & Arrangement: Hideya Nakazaki
"Sekaijuu no Dare Yori Kitto" 1992.12
Lyrics: Show Uesugi & Miho Nakayama / Composition: Tetsuro Oda / Arrangement: Takeshi Hayama *Miho Nakayama & WANDS
"Tada Nakitaku Naru no" 1994.2
Lyrics: Yurie Kokubu & Miho Nakayama / Composition & Arrangement: Masaki Iwamoto
◎ ◎ Answer ◎ ◎
So, first, "Tooi Machi no Dokoka de..." is the theme song for the "Getsuku" (Monday 9 PM) drama "Aitai Toki ni Anata wa Inai..." (You're Not Here When I Want to See You...).
This drama's theme was long-distance relationships, and her partner in it was Yoshitani Ozu.
Since the lyrics of the song say "HAPPY Merry X'mas," you can imagine that it has a happy ending, but in the final episode, one trouble after another kept happening, lol, it was a very suspenseful development!
Also, the man who approached Miho Nakayama was played by Toru Kazama, and the women around me were all saying, "If it were me, I would definitely choose Toru Kazama."
Next, the show that featured the smash hit "Sekaiju no Dare Yori Kitto" as its theme song was "Dareka ga Kanojo wo Aishiteru," which aired in the Fuji TV "Wednesday Theater" slot.
Does everyone remember this drama?
Miho Nakayama plays a woman who falls in love with a father and son played by Koji Matoba and Jinpachi Nezu. It's like... should I choose the son? Or the father?
Well, how did it end... (Wait, don't you remember?!)
Finally, the show that featured "
Tada Nakitaku Naru no" as its theme song was the TBS "Friday 9 Drama" series "Moshimo Negai ga Kanau Nara."
I really loved this drama.
It's a comedy about three brothers who had been separated from her suddenly showing up one day, and those brothers were so unique and fun.
In addition to Downtown's Hamada, there was FLYING KIDS' Takashi Hamazaki, and To Be Continued's Kohki Okada... and Miho Nakayama's fiancé was played by KODOMO BAND's Tsuyoshi Ujiki... it was quite a fun J-POP casting.
By the way, here is "To Be Continued's "Kimi Dake wo Miteita," which was also an insert song for the drama. (This is also nostalgic.)
■ ■ ■ Shizuka Kudo Edition ■ ■ ■
Although she made her solo debut in 1987, Shizuka Kudo has a stronger image of the Heisei era than the Showa era.
She appeared in dramas here and there in the 90s.
Her hit drama theme songs include "Metamorphose" and "Doukoku," but I'd like to introduce "Gekijo," which was the drama theme song that had the most impact on me personally.
Now, the title of that drama is... it might be a bit of a difficult question.
"Gekijo" Nov. 1996
Lyrics/Composition: Miyuki Nakajima / Arrangement: Ichizo Seo
◎ ◎ Answer ◎ ◎
The drama that featured "Gekijo" as its theme song is the Kansai TV drama starring Chikako Kaku titled "Yuzurenai Yoru."
Actually, it was a gritty drama based on a work by Mikihiko Renjo, and Shizuka Kudo played the mistress of Masaki Kanda's character.
Well, the plot involved a battle with Chikako Kaku, who played Kanda's wife, but personally, I think it was a role that suited her quite well.
■ ■ ■ Seiko Matsuda Edition ■ ■ ■
In this vein, do you remember that Seiko Matsuda, the idol of idols, also starred in dramas?
The theme songs were " Kitto, Mata Aeru... " and " Taisetsu na Anata ", so there is no doubt that the songs were more memorable, but...
"Kitto, Mata Aeru..." Feb 1992
Lyrics: Seiko Matsuda / Composition: Seiko Matsuda, Ryo Ogura / Arrangement: Yuji Toriyama
"Taisetsu na Anata" Apr 1993
Lyrics: Seiko Matsuda / Composition: Seiko Matsuda, Ryo Ogura / Arrangement: Yuji Toriyama
◎ ◎ Answer ◎ ◎
" Kitto, Mata Aeru... " was the theme song for " Otona no Sentaku ", which aired on the TBS "Friday Drama" slot.
Seiko Matsuda's first starring drama, it was actually quite a bitter story.
The drama begins with the protagonist, played by Seiko, dumping her dull, aspiring manga artist boyfriend from her student days, Tetsuya Bessho, to marry Shin Takuma, who was considered a "3K" (high-status) man.
It was truly an adult choice, but the development was that, in fact...
The drawback of the drama was that Seiko's makeup was always so perfect that she didn't look like a housewife.
The other song, " Taisetsu na Anata ", was the theme song for " Watashi tte Busu datta no? ", which also aired in the "Friday Drama" slot.
It's still an amazing title even now.
Seiko Matsuda plays an ambitious woman working at an advertising agency, which fit her image quite well.
She is torn between two men; one is her colleague played by Saburo Tokito, and the other was a young photographer played by Hidetoshi Nishijima (what?!), which I remembered again while checking this time.
■ ■ ■ Noriko Sakai Edition ■ ■ ■
Now, finally, about the drama where Noriko Sakai's hit song " Aoi Usagi " was used as the theme song...
Noriko Sakai's starring drama, you say! So this one is easy, right?
For the record, there is another song called " Kagami no Dress ", but what about that one?
"Aoi Usagi" May 1995
Lyrics: Emi Maki / Composition: Tetsuro Oda / Arrangement: Hiroshi Shinkawa
"Kagami no Dress" October 1996
Lyrics: Rara Miura / Composition: Kyoichi Usamoto / Arrangement: Takayuki Hijikata
◎ ◎ Answer ◎ ◎
First, needless to say, "Aoi Usagi", is the theme song for "Hoshi no Kinka", which aired in the "Wednesday Drama" slot on NTV.
A woman with a congenital hearing impairment was played by Noriko Sakai and the brothers who were her love interests were played by Takao Osawa and Yutaka Takenouchi.
This was a drama that grew in popularity with each episode.
Noriko Sakai’s voice could only be heard during the theme song, but that made "Aoi Usagi" even more memorable. (Wasn't this drama the reason you wanted to learn sign language?)
Anyway, all sorts of hardships befall Noriko Sakai in this drama... It was full of twists and turns.
Now, do you remember how it ended for the three of them... You remember, right?
This drama also had a sequel, so that might be what's causing confusion in your memory of the ending.
And "Kagami no Dress" was the theme song for "Zoku Hoshi no Kinka".
It was full of even more hardships than the previous installment.
This and that happened, that person ended up like that, and this person ended up like this...
There were many fans of Yutaka Takenouchi around me, but I remember them always being angry at the bad guy played by Kazuki Sawamura, saying he shouldn't be forgiven.
Now, what happened at the end of this sequel...
Personally, I thought it was a subtle ending, but I wonder if you can relate.
This kind of development where one hardship follows another is a cliché, but I end up watching it because I'm curious.
Later, the Korean drama boom, starting with "Winter Sonata", occurred, and I sometimes think that "Hoshi no Kinka" might have been its roots.
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I've written about 80s idol drama theme songs in the 90s, and I hope you'll remember them along with the nostalgic dramas!
Also, if you look at the release years of the songs, you'll notice that this trend is concentrated in the first half of the 90s.
In the second half of the 90s, the TK boom and the Okinawa Actors School whirlwind occurred, and Namie Amuro, Tomomi Kahara, and SPEED created an idol image different from the 80s, and in '98, Morning Musume finally debuted.
Come to think of it, this first half of the 90s might have been a transitional period toward new idols.
(90s Japanese Music Note)
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