Japan in the 70s

Great band. The shock of realization upon first seeing the back cover of Gentlemen Take Polaroids and then hearing the music -- and thus in two quick steps explaining *everything* about who Duran Duran were really trying to be -- was quite something! Their earliest stuff is fairly inexcusable even to a glam hound like me, but when their role models switched from the New York Dolls to Roxy Music, things improved. By the time of Tin Drum, they were freaking gods -- they had perfected the Roxy elegant dissipation Eurodisco style and then went beyond it!

Search: Gentlemen Take Polaroids, Tin Drum, Quiet Life.

I could go on about Sylvian's solo stuff and the various collaborations between Karn and Barbieri and Jansen and Barbieri's work with Porcupine Tree and Tim Bowness...

But Japan in the 70's! Wow! "Adolescent Sex" and "Obscure Alternatives" are two faves of mine that absolutely nobody mentions... unknown, and unhip, to the point where I don't even bother mentioning them. But let's take a closer look; the closest analogue I can come up with would be first-album era Roxy Music crossed with... I dunno, maybe a little New York Dolls? All off- kilter, where's the hook oh I see tunes, dueling guitars where you're never sure who the winner is, and, oh yeah, that voice. Forget the "elegant" Sylvian of the 80's... this guy is all bitchy mewling, screaming and pouting. Even Miss Guy sounds butch in comparison. It's brilliant!

And the look? Well, it's a mess, of course. Teased, bleached and died hair, jelly shoes, bad makeup... check out the first Ultravox! album cover... now imagine it more effiminate, more tacky, more outrageous. Did I mention I love this??

Frankly, I don't care who hates this stuff, and I know a lot of people do, 'cuz it just makes it all the more special to me. True Story: I was spinning at the Hole in the Wall a few years ago, and this guy who usually didn't speak to me walks up and asks "Is this Japan?" I answer yes, and he walks away, saying nothing. I've seen him many times since, but he's never spoken to me again. I know it's not because I was spinning a Japan record ("Automatic Gun", in case you're curious), but it's fun to think so anyway.

Marry me? ;-)

OK, I can't get over _Visions of China_ that is a classic, I have vague memories of this promo-clip: communist uniforms and enough foundation on their faces to cover the entire continent of said country.

But for now, more heavymetal-fans-think-Japan-was-cool-in-late-70s- answers

Did it inspire Momus' _I was a Maoist intellectual_?

Just kidding. Actually, I remember when those records came out. The word on the street (or at Bleecker Bob's) was that even though they looked like the Dolls and the singer's name was Sylvian (almost Sylvain), that was about as far as the resemblance went. So avoid! And buy Ultravox instead! At least that's what I was told at the time. Silly me. That photo of the band (Japan, that is) sitting in the middle of the street is so classic. So even though I got into them around Gentlemen Take Polaroids, I never backtracked to these albums. Are they still in print? Your description of Sylvian's vocals back then--I never knew, that sounds great!

Speaking of early, early glam revival bands, I did buy the Girl album Sheer Greed (1980) when it came out cause it featured a cover of "Do You Love Me". And because they were called Girl. But it was just passable pop metal. They weren't no Def Leppard.

Hey you punk, I was going to offer to buy you a drink in December, so scratch *that* gift off the list. ;-)

I think to my ears the first two albums just sound amusingly ridiculous as opposed to truly wonderfully ridiculous, if you get my sense of it. My friend Karen's favorite bit from that time is when Sylvian slavers "Just keep on dancing, ba-hy-be!" on "Adolescent Sex" itself. I give them points for effort, but Quiet Life is when they really started to work for me (and I agree, "Life in Tokyo" is a dream).

To Arthur: Sean's recommendations make perfect sense, knowing your taste. All of the albums are or were in print in America via Caroline, so go forth!

Sylvian's "Red Guitar" video kind of sums up everything that I loved about the 80's.

I still have a done in highschool, pointilist portrait of him around here somewhere.

Don't rain on our parade, please

Does anyone have the David Sylvian 2-CD set "Everything and Nothing" - I'd be interested to hear any views.

maybe you can do something like that only ones?

I prefer the single-version _Adolescent Sex_ over the one on the album though.

Patience, my pet! We can all be happy in this life, so retract the claws. ;-)

A cousin of mine owned a copy of Adolescent Sex and I remember she playing it when i was very young. For a long time it was the lost- record-of-my-childhood.

I saw a dance-performance recently from a Belgian company, where boys between 12 and 18 years were playing the cool kids on the schoolground, moving around on that song. It was exactly the mood it makes me feel every time I play it.

I just found Obscure Alternatives and Tin Drum on vinyl today and I'm quite happy about it.

I like Japan a lot, but not their 70s material. Other than "Life In Tokyo" that is.

I love early Japan. That cover of Don't Rain On My Parade is more of a divine artifact to me than Hendrix playing SSB. I'm not saying its better than later Japan - just different.

And way better than Blemish and that Nine Horses remix album

What Nine Horses remix album?

You mean the Blemish remix album, don't you?

Sorry, it's an e.p

'Money For All is an extended play cd from David Sylvian, Steve Jansen, and Burnt Friedman's band 'Nine Horses'. It features two new tracks, 'Money For All' (the title of the ep), co-written by David and Burnt and 'Get the hell out' by Steve and David. The ep also features remixes and interpretations by Burnt of three tracks from the Nine Horses album 'Snow Borne Sorrow' (The Banality Of Evil, Wonderful World, and Serotonin) and alternative versions of the two new tracks plus the Japanese only released bonus track 'Birds Sing For Their Lives' with Stina Nordenstam.'

but it's a bloody long one...

My god, I fucking love 'Automatic Gun'.