Viridian
1st Album
Epic/Sony 28-8H-5052
Released 10.21.1988
Track listing
- Natsu wa Doko e Itta
- Koi wa Tsumi
- Sayonara no Roudoku
- Baby It's You
- Viridian
- Kanashii Aozora
- Nami no Fossil
All lyrics by Masumi Kawamura
All music by Shoko Suzuki
Shoko Suzuki's first album -- or, as it was advertised at time, "7 songs album." Like all of Shoko's early albums, many of the songs on this album are mellow and/or acoustic. However, both "Koi wa Tsumi" (featuring Shoko on drums) and "Baby It's You" (not the Burt Bacharach/Hal David song) are punchy pop-rock numbers with '80s production values (not surprising, seeing as the album was released in 1988). Meanwhile, "Sayonara no Roudoku" and "Kanashii Aozora" are gorgeous ballads, with the former being possibly the best song on the record. "Natsu wa Doko e Itta," the album's single, is a fine song that set the stage for many mellow Shoko singles to come.
This album is out of print on its own, but is available in its entirety on the SHO-CO-SONGS collection 1 set.
Favorite songs:
Koi wa Tsumi
Sayonara no Roudoku
Baby It's You
Kanashii Aozora
Credits:
Shoko Suzuki: vocals, background vocals, drums, percussion, finger cymbals, synthesizer
Yoshiyuki Sahashi: electric guitar, acoustic guitar, steel guitar, gut guitar, 12-string guitar, flat mandolin, background vocals
Akira Nishihira: synthesizer, Fender Rhodes, Hammond organ, percussion
Chiharu Mikuzuki: bass, Guild Ashbory bass
Nobuo Ariga: bass
Shoji Fujii: drums
Toshifumi Shibata: acoustic piano, Wurlitzer piano
Toshihiko Furumura: soprano saxophone
Takao Matsui: synthesizer manipulator
Asuka Kaneko: Strings Concert Master
Produced and directed by Nobutaka Noura
Co-Produced by Keiko Shinozaki, Keiko Kanematsu and Shoko Suzuki
Arranged by Yoshiyuki Sahashi and Akira Nishihira
