[Mellow & Jazzy]
No.166 "Love won't let me wait" by Mieko Hirota
Hi. Today's song is "Love won't let me wait" by "Mieko Hirota".
This is a mellow & Jazzy song cover of a Major Harris's 1974 hit song, "Love Won't Let Me Wait".
The performer is "Mieko Hirota", who is a popular, and one of the longest serving singer of Jazz, R&B, and pops in Japan.
If you like, please listen.
Links to the music shops, offering song samples, are located on the bottom of this page.
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Song data
| Title | Love won't let me wait |
|---|---|
| Artist | Mieko Hirota |
| Album Title | |
| Catalog Number | COCP-38347-8 |
| Track No. | 9 |
| Duration | 4:03 |
| Released | 1977 |
| Publisher | |
| Lyricist | |
| Composer | |
| Arranger |
About the creators
Vinnie Barrett Songwriter
Ms. Vinnie Barrett & Mr. Bobby Eli are both credited as a "Songwriter".
So, we would like to introduce them just briefly in this order, since we couldn't find who did which, namely lyricist & composer.
Singer-songwriter
Vinnie Barrett is an award winning American singer-songwriter active since 1969.
She has written quite a few hit songs for the various music artists.
"Just Don't Want to Be Lonely" (Ronnie Dyson, 1973), "Sideshow" (Blue Magic, 1974), "Love Won't Let Me Wait" [(Major Harris, 1974), (Luther Vandross, 1988)], and "Just as Long As We Have Love" (Dionne Warwick, 1974) are considered to be her representative works.
For more detailed information, please have a look at the references linked below.
Video clip
Finally, here is a music clip of a "Vinnie Barrett" song, "Promise Me Love".
To say more precisely, the song is written by Vinnie Barrett & Q Sumler.
We could not find much information on the songwriter, "Q Sumler". Perhaps because we are searching from Japan.
The track is a relaxed, pretty nice mellow ballad.
If you like, please listen.
Bobby Eli Songwriter
Bobby Eli is an American guitarist, multi-instrumentalist, composer, arranger, and music producer active since around the late '60s.
According to Wikipedia, He has participated in recording of the numerous music artists since the late '60s, including,
- Teddy Pendergrass
- The Jacksons
- David Bowie
- Patti LaBelle
- Elton John
- The Spinners
- The Temptations
- B.B. King
and many.
As a songwriter, his notable works like, "Love Won't Let Me Wait", (Major Harris, 1975 ), "Just Don't Want to Be Lonely" (The Main Ingredient, 1974), or "Sideshow" (Blue Magic, 1974), were all created while he had tagged with Vinnie Barrett in the mid '70s.'
For more detailed information, please have a look at the references linked below.
Video clip
Lastly, here is a small interview clip to Bobby Eli.
He is talking about his guitars and the use of effects.
This video clip was filmed for a video channel "Philly Pop Music", which is releasing interview clips of Philadelphia related music personalities.
And the owner of the channel was the uploader George Manney.
If you like, please have a look.
Hiromasa Suzuki & Kiyoshi SugimotoArranger
"Hiromasa Suzuki" & "Kiyoshi Sugimoto" are credited as the Arrangers of this album, so we would like to introduce both of them very briefly.
Hiromasa Suzuki
"Hiromasa 'Colgen' Suzuki" was a Jazz pianist, composer, arranger, and a leader of a Fusion group, "The players", active from 1969 to 2001.
He was a talented pianist, and music creator, and participated inquite a number of music recordings of the various artists.
His nickname "Colgen" is likely coming from the name of a long-selling cold relief "Colgen". Since its advertising mascot "Kero-chan" had some meaning to him. (Not clear.)
We have posted an article related to him some time ago.
There is a slight more additional information about him, so please have a look from the link below, if you like.
Kiyoshi Sugimoto
And "Kiyoshi Sugimoto" is a Jazz guitarist, composer, and arranger active since 1960.
He is a known, sought-after kind of guitarist particularly as a session, or recording musician.
He was actively participating in many recordings of the various main stream pop singers, particularly from the mid '50s to the mid '60s, though his name was not credited often. (It was normal.)
We could not find enough references about him, so would like to update the section if we find anything new.
Video clip
Finally, here is a music trailer of a sound track album, "Circuit no Ōkami" (The circuit wold), which "Colgen Suzuki" composed, and performed in 1977.
"Circuit no Ōkami" (The circuit wolf), is originally a car action manga (comics) series drawn by "Satoshi Ikezawa".
It was very popular in the '70s, and a person like our writer "Satsuma" enjoyed it much when he was a boy.
We didn't know the live action film of this comics was made in 1977, then, surprised that its screen music was performed by "Colgen Suzuki".
The sound track seems it wasn't released in real time. But was dug out in 2015, and released as an album.
The tracks are mostly thrilling Fusion music, which reminds us a sound of his groups, "Colgen bands", or "The players".
If you like, please listen.
Cover art today
* Cover art of the original
album is not available.
Song image & Lyrics
Open
Link to the lyrics
Copyright notice on the lyrics link
Sound impression
Sweet & mellow
This is a very sweet & mellow Jazz ballad in a slow rhythm.
Tempting
The drums, bass, electronic organ, semi acoustic guitar, and Eb (sopranino) Clarinet begin to play a mellow, and tempting slow introduction in a nightly atmosphere.
In the middle of the main melody, a short ad-lib of the saxophone fills in, and increase alluring atmosphere further.
In contrast, "Mico"'seems to be singing not being too sexy, but in more soulful way.
It might not be intentional, but seems to be working to throttle the men not getting too excited.
Reference
About Google translate
About the artist
Mieko HirotaThe star of R&B, & Jazz
"Mieko Hirota", often called "Miko" or "Mico", is a pop, R&B, and Jazz singer active since 1961.
She is one of the longest serving singers, and a popular celebrity in Japan.
debuted in 1961 with a single, "Kodomo-jya naino" (Don't treat me like a child). Since then, 47 singles, and 27 original, 7 live, and many (no list) best albums have been released until now.
(Ref: Wikipedia-en, Mieko Hirota)
Early times
"Mieko Hirota" (Mico) started her music career by joining a children's theater group around 1956, when she was nine.
Since she was a school girl, "Mico" loved to listen "FEN" (Far East Network = American forces network) radio, and became totally absorbed into American pop music of the 50's.
In 1958, "Mico" began to learn singing in English from an expert Jazz musician, "Tib Kamayatsu", since he was a Japanese-American, and a head of his music school as well.
Thanks to this lesson, "Mico" passed an audition, for singers to perform at the military camps of allied occupation troops, being stationed in Japan in the '1950s.
For good or bad, the concerts or parties held in those military camps, worked like an incubator for young Japanese musicians to grow, for certain period of postwar.
Quite a few of big names, like "Chiemi Eri", "Yukari Itoh", "Toshiko Akiyoshi", or "Akihiro Miwa" etc, etc. experienced the same setting, and started their career as a professional musician.
"Mico" was welcomed, and praised as a talented young singer in the military camp.
Then in 1961, when "Mico" was 14, she contracted with a record company, and debuted with her first single, "Kodomo-jya naino" (Don't treat me like a child), which was the cover of a British singer, Helen Shapiro's hit song of the same title in 1961.
Top star
In the beginning of her career, "Mieko Hirota" (Mico) focused on singing the covers of Western hit pops, as well as her original songs. And surprisingly, she released 7 single records in only 1 years time in 1962.
Already in February 1962, her 2nd single, "Suteki-na 16-sai" [Happy birthday sweet Sixteen, (original, Neil Sedaka)] became a smash hit.
And in November the same year, "Mico" released a cover of an American hit song, "Vacation" (Connie Francis, 1962).
This became a big hit song, and thanks to this, she was selected as a performer for a prestigious year-end TV music program,"Kōhaku Uta-gassen", aired by NHK.
"Mico" continued to release fine hit songs, and became a top singer in only 2-3 years time form debut.
And in 1965, "Mico" was invited and performed at the "Newport Jazz Festival" as the first Japanese singer in the event. (2nd as a Japanese musician, after a Jazz pianist, "Toshiko Akiyoshi" performed in 1956.)
Japanese pops
In 1969, "Mico" drastically changed her image by releasing a new song, "Ningyō no ie" (A doll house), which was nostalgic, and elegiac, a typical Japanese mainstream pops of that time, in some sense.
This became another big hit for her, and naturally invited to "Kōhaku" for the 6th time in her life as a singer.
And she re-established her position as a popular singer.
Jazz, R & B or...
"Mico" has an interesting special skill to sing Japanese lyrics sounds like an English song.
It is really unique, and outstanding among the Japanese singers.
Her basic singing skill is already very high, and she has such special skill above all. Therefore, whatever song she sings, it becomes just like it should be.
That maybe why she is sometimes called, R & B singer, and sometime Jazz singer.
But she might not need such functional titles. She is just a "singer", but simply in a different class.
Fulfilling life
"Mico" continued to release excellent singles and albums throughout the '70s, and until mid '80s, as a top singer.
And around the mid '80s, she began to put more importance on live stages than album releasing.
Recent
In 1999, "Mico" collaborated with one of the most stylish pop-rock groups, "PIZZICATO FIVE", and released a cool track, "Darling of discotheque" for the first time in 15 years.
Since then she resumed recording new song, though it is very much on her own pace.
In 2006, "Mico" celebrated her 45 years anniversary since debut, and launched a new 8CD Box set as "Mieko Hirota Jazz collection".
Among them, there was a newly recorded CD titled "Mico Jazzing", and it was separately released in 2007 in the 13 countries in Asia.
-
(Ref:ameblo.jp/micomusic,
New port Jazz festival)🇯🇵
Video clip
Finally, here is a music clip (short ver.) of "Mico"'s latest single "Hii-fuu-mii-yoo" (One-two-three-four), released in 2016 for celebrating her 55 years (!) anniversary from debut.
"Mico" has a moist alto voice by her nature, and actually it is a characteristic charm of her.
As you listen, her voice is getting lower now. But it is a natural thing, and still perfectly lovely because it is "Mico"'s.
If you like, please listen.
Music Samples
9
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Amazon JP(en)
recochoku.jp
Apple Music(jp)
7 of Disk2
Japanese Letters
| Song Title | Love won't let me wait |
|---|---|
| Artist | 弘田三枝子(Mieko Hirota) |
| Album Title | In my feeling |
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