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| ワインのラベル買い |
先日、スーパーマーケットを元気にして来ました。
昨日も書いたように、私の住む街はインバウンド効果で、主に関東地区や東京の品物がやって来ています。
また近くの県に大きな工場が出来たので、やはり東京からその大きな産業の関係社員さんと技術者がやって来ているようです。
近くの県なので、私の住む街にはあまり流通が変わる理由が無いように思われますが、ひょっとして新幹線通勤を選ばれている方やご家族は私の住む街で暮らし、週に一回こちらに戻るという働き方なのかもしれません。
なので、あっちこっちで「この商品は東京の物では？」という商品がいっぱいあります。
日本はどちらかと言うと流通が発達している国の部類に入りますが、それであっても東京や関東の方達が目を丸くする程、各街で流通している商品の種類やメーカーが違います。
以前、東京近郊に引っ越された方がネットで書かれておいででしたが、東京近郊の都市であっても「店に商品が無いということが無い」ととても驚いておられました。
私の住む街も2025年であっても未だに、出版物は東京近郊の発売日から一週間遅れや数日遅れの物が日常的に存在します。
他の商品もこの10年程でやっと全国一斉同時発売が可能になりましたが、実は食品・衣類なども遅れが日常的にありましたし、こちらでは販売されていない物も沢山ありました。
違う街で暮らしていますが、その方の驚きはとても良く分かります。
確か昔、関東地区に引っ越した知り合いも、すごく遠慮がちに「何でも売ってる」と言っていました。
なのでインバウンドと近くの県に大きな工場が出来たおかげで、主に東京・関東地区の商品が、私の住む街にやって来てくれて本当に嬉しいんです。
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| カヴェルネ・ソーヴィニヨンの18というワインです |
私はデビューからの松田聖子のファンで、彼女の初期の名曲に「Eighteen」という曲があります。
そっと帰り道に口ずさめて覚えやすいメロディで、不思議と聴いたり聖子ちゃんと一緒にそっと歌うと、優しく淡い気持ちになれます。
心の底からどうでもいいと思いますが、当時松田聖子さんと田原俊彦さんは、高原の避暑地を舞台にしたアーモンドチョコレートのCMに出てしまったが為に、あまりにも２人がお似合い過ぎて日本中が夢中になってしまい、とある歌番組では、2人のファン達からの強いお願いが殺到し、テレビの中でも2人を隣同士に並ばせないと、公約して下さいました。
私は2人が結婚したらいいなぁ、と思っていましたそんな手紙は送ってません（すごい早口）
シングル「風は秋色」のB面（カップリング）で、この頃出された「NorthWind」という彼女のファーストアルバムは、
・歌謡曲での松田聖子というアイドルの解釈。
・松田聖子という、新しくやって来た歌手を歌謡曲で表現する。
という期待も期待の超大型新人にだけ許される楽曲が満載されています。
私は「NorthWind」もとても良いアルバムだと思っています。
実は彼女がデビューする直前に、皆さんもご存知であろう山口百恵という不世出の歌手が、短く圧倒的な光り放った活動を、彼女の幸せな結婚という結末で終える予定でした。
これは大変異例な事です。
山口百恵という人は、アイドルでは無かったと私は感じています。
実際のアイドルと歌手の定義は分かりませんが、当時を生きていた方々の多くは、百恵ちゃんは歌手だったけど、聖子ちゃんはアイドルからが始まりだった、と認識しているのではないでしょうか？
つまり、アイドルは松田聖子の代名詞だったんです。
彼女は不思議な奇縁に導かれるように、当時CBSソニーの小さな事務所が、中学生の時に優等生だった彼女がささやかな憧れを叶えたくて、たった1度だけ受けたオーディションで後の松田聖子を発見し、その後ご家族の大反対に遭いながらも彼女を歌手にする為に、東京から遠く離れた彼女の自宅に月に1回通い続け、高校卒業前にやっとお父様の許しが出て、裸足の季節でデビューしたんです。
そしてその時期に、引退直前のスーパースター山口百恵さんと、パウダールームの鏡の前で初対面し、聖子ちゃんが百恵さんに挨拶して握手して頂いたそうです。
恐らく、百恵さん側の会社のご快諾により、その素敵なエピソードを公的に話す許可を頂き、聖子ちゃんは嬉しそうにその話をテレビで話したことから、「ポスト山口百恵」と呼ばれ、長い間、百恵に比べれば聖子なんて、という目まで注がれていました。
とにかく、聖子ちゃんの事を誰も認めようとしないのに、聖子ちゃんは既に大人気で、私は聖子ちゃんが出ていたe・ku・bo(エクボ)のCMを見て、自分が住んでいる田舎町の化粧品売り場にe・ku・bo(エクボ)が置いていない事が不満な上、松田聖子なんか絶対認めない、という、"そういう空気"の始まりを、とても嫌だな、と思っていたのをよく憶えています。
実はデビュー当時の聖子ちゃんファンの皆さんは、どこか戦友のような感覚を互いに頂いています。
私は小学低学年でしたが、聖子ちゃんの熱心なファンで、やっぱりずっと自分のコミュニティ内での松田聖子に対するひどいバッシングと、決して彼女は本物では無い、ただの可愛いお人形さん、という扱い両方と、無言の戦いを繰り広げていたんです。
私も散々やられました。
初登場の紅白歌合戦の松田聖子の衣装は、若草物語の一番上のお姉さん「メグ」のイメージなんですけどね。
実は聖子ちゃんはお姉さんっぽい雰囲気だったんです。しっかりしてハキハキ話す人でした。
あの衣装の帽子で、散々赤ちゃんと嘲られた（あざけられた）んですが、私もハイミドルになったのでそろそろ静かに剣を抜きますが、「物を知らないって恥ずかしいですよね」（無表情）。
田舎町の小さなレコードショップで、2枚目のSQUALLというアルバムを手に取った時、CBSソニーの営業さんがこんな所にまで足を運んでいたのか、と今なら驚く所なんですが。
当時、大変厳しい評を書く新聞の芸能部の記者さんが「新人離れした歌唱力である」と、タイトル曲である「SQUALL」の松田聖子の歌唱を誉めた記事のコピーが入っていた事は、ランドセルを背負わされていた私だけで無く、当時の日本歌謡界で大事件だった、と分かります。
今でも松田聖子がコンサートで必ずこの楽曲を歌う理由の1つは、これかもしれませんね。
以上、 街を元気にして来ました 2 でした。
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| Buying wine by its label |
The other day, I went to the supermarket to cheer myself up.
As I mentioned yesterday, my town benefits from inbound tourism, so goods mainly from the Kanto region and Tokyo are arriving here.
Also, a large factory opened in a nearby prefecture, so it seems employees and engineers related to that major industry are coming from Tokyo too.
Since it's a nearby prefecture, you'd think there wouldn't be much reason for distribution patterns to change in my town. But perhaps some people choose to commute by bullet train, or their families live here while they work there, returning once a week.
So, you see products everywhere that make you wonder, “Is this actually from Tokyo?”
Japan is generally considered a country with a well-developed distribution network. Even so, the variety and brands of goods circulating in each town differ so much that people from Tokyo and the Kanto region would be amazed.
I recall someone who moved to the Tokyo suburbs once wrote online about how surprised they were that even in those suburban cities, “there's never a shortage of products in stores.”
Even in 2025, where I live, publications routinely arrive a week or several days after their Tokyo release date.
While nationwide simultaneous releases for other products have only become possible in the last decade or so, delays for food and clothing were actually commonplace here, and many items simply weren't sold locally.
Though I live in a different city, I completely understand his astonishment.
I recall an acquaintance who moved to the Kanto region years ago also timidly remarked, “They sell everything here.”
So, thanks to inbound tourism and large factories opening in nearby prefectures, I'm truly delighted that products mainly from Tokyo and the Kanto region now reach my town.
The reason I bought it for the label, not the jacket, is the name “18.”
I've been a fan of Seiko Matsuda since her debut, and one of her early hits is a song called “Eighteen.”
It's a melody you can softly hum on your way home, easy to remember. Strangely, whenever I hear it or softly sing along with Seiko-chan, it makes me feel gentle and faintly nostalgic.
I know it's completely irrelevant deep down, but back then, Seiko Matsuda and Toshihiko Tahara appeared together in an almond chocolate commercial set in a mountain resort. They looked so perfectly suited for each other that the whole country became obsessed. On a certain music show, they received so many strong requests from fans that they publicly promised: if they weren't seated next to each other on TV, they wouldn't appear together.
I thought it would be nice if they got married. I didn't send any letters like that (super fast talking).
As I mentioned yesterday, my town benefits from inbound tourism, so goods mainly from the Kanto region and Tokyo are arriving here.
Also, a large factory opened in a nearby prefecture, so it seems employees and engineers related to that major industry are coming from Tokyo too.
Since it's a nearby prefecture, you'd think there wouldn't be much reason for distribution patterns to change in my town. But perhaps some people choose to commute by bullet train, or their families live here while they work there, returning once a week.
So, you see products everywhere that make you wonder, “Is this actually from Tokyo?”
Japan is generally considered a country with a well-developed distribution network. Even so, the variety and brands of goods circulating in each town differ so much that people from Tokyo and the Kanto region would be amazed.
I recall someone who moved to the Tokyo suburbs once wrote online about how surprised they were that even in those suburban cities, “there's never a shortage of products in stores.”
Even in 2025, where I live, publications routinely arrive a week or several days after their Tokyo release date.
While nationwide simultaneous releases for other products have only become possible in the last decade or so, delays for food and clothing were actually commonplace here, and many items simply weren't sold locally.
Though I live in a different city, I completely understand his astonishment.
I recall an acquaintance who moved to the Kanto region years ago also timidly remarked, “They sell everything here.”
So, thanks to inbound tourism and large factories opening in nearby prefectures, I'm truly delighted that products mainly from Tokyo and the Kanto region now reach my town.
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| Cabernet Sauvignon 18 |
The reason I bought it for the label, not the jacket, is the name “18.”
I've been a fan of Seiko Matsuda since her debut, and one of her early hits is a song called “Eighteen.”
It's a melody you can softly hum on your way home, easy to remember. Strangely, whenever I hear it or softly sing along with Seiko-chan, it makes me feel gentle and faintly nostalgic.
I know it's completely irrelevant deep down, but back then, Seiko Matsuda and Toshihiko Tahara appeared together in an almond chocolate commercial set in a mountain resort. They looked so perfectly suited for each other that the whole country became obsessed. On a certain music show, they received so many strong requests from fans that they publicly promised: if they weren't seated next to each other on TV, they wouldn't appear together.
I thought it would be nice if they got married. I didn't send any letters like that (super fast talking).
The B-side track “Kaze wa Akiiro” (Wind in Autumn Colors) from her single, coupled with her first album “North Wind” released around this time, is packed with songs that only an ultra-promising newcomer like her could deliver. These songs embodied:
・An interpretation of the idol Matsuda Seiko within the context of kayōkyoku (Japanese pop ballads).
・An expression of Matsuda Seiko, a newly arrived singer, through kayōkyoku.
I personally think “North Wind” is also a very good album.
Actually, right before her debut, the legendary singer Momoe Yamaguchi—whom I'm sure you all know—was scheduled to end her brief yet overwhelmingly brilliant career with her happy marriage.
This was extremely unusual.
I feel that Momoe Yamaguchi was not an idol.
While the actual definitions of idol and singer are unclear, many who lived through that era likely recognized that Momoe-chan was a singer, whereas Seiko-chan started as an idol, right?
In other words, idol was synonymous with Seiko Matsuda.
As if guided by a strange twist of fate, the small CBS Sony office at the time discovered the future Seiko Matsuda when she auditioned just once, fulfilling a modest dream of hers from her days as a top student in junior high. Despite facing fierce opposition from her family, they persisted in making her a singer, traveling monthly to her home far from Tokyo. Finally, before she graduated high school, her father gave his permission, and she debuted with “Barefoot Season.”
Around that time, she met the superstar Momoe Yamaguchi, who was about to retire, for the first time in front of a powder room mirror. Seiko-chan greeted Momoe-san and shook her hand.
Likely with the kind permission of Momoe's agency, she was allowed to publicly share this lovely story. Seiko happily recounted it on TV, leading to her being called the “post-Momoe Yamaguchi.” For a long time, people looked at her with eyes that seemed to say, “Compared to Momoe, Seiko is nothing.”
Anyway, even though no one would acknowledge Seiko-chan, she was already hugely popular. I clearly remember feeling very annoyed when I saw her in the e・ku・bo (dimple) commercial and was frustrated that my local cosmetics counter in the countryside didn't carry e・ku・bo. I also hated the beginning of that “atmosphere” where people would say, “I absolutely refuse to acknowledge Matsuda Seiko.”
Actually, fans of Seiko-chan from her debut days all share a kind of comrade-in-arms feeling with each other.
I was in the lower grades of elementary school, but I was a devoted fan of Seiko-chan. I was constantly engaged in a silent battle against the harsh bashing of Matsuda Seiko within my own community and the treatment of her as nothing more than a cute doll, never a real artist.
I got beaten up pretty badly too.
Seiko Matsuda's outfit for her first appearance on the Kohaku Uta Gassen was actually based on Meg, the eldest sister from Little Women.
Truthfully, Seiko-chan had this big-sister vibe. She was a poised, articulate person.
That hat with the outfit got me mocked relentlessly as a baby, but now that I'm a high schooler, I'll quietly draw my sword: “Ignorance is embarrassing, isn't it?” (expressionless).
・An interpretation of the idol Matsuda Seiko within the context of kayōkyoku (Japanese pop ballads).
・An expression of Matsuda Seiko, a newly arrived singer, through kayōkyoku.
I personally think “North Wind” is also a very good album.
Actually, right before her debut, the legendary singer Momoe Yamaguchi—whom I'm sure you all know—was scheduled to end her brief yet overwhelmingly brilliant career with her happy marriage.
This was extremely unusual.
I feel that Momoe Yamaguchi was not an idol.
While the actual definitions of idol and singer are unclear, many who lived through that era likely recognized that Momoe-chan was a singer, whereas Seiko-chan started as an idol, right?
In other words, idol was synonymous with Seiko Matsuda.
As if guided by a strange twist of fate, the small CBS Sony office at the time discovered the future Seiko Matsuda when she auditioned just once, fulfilling a modest dream of hers from her days as a top student in junior high. Despite facing fierce opposition from her family, they persisted in making her a singer, traveling monthly to her home far from Tokyo. Finally, before she graduated high school, her father gave his permission, and she debuted with “Barefoot Season.”
Around that time, she met the superstar Momoe Yamaguchi, who was about to retire, for the first time in front of a powder room mirror. Seiko-chan greeted Momoe-san and shook her hand.
Likely with the kind permission of Momoe's agency, she was allowed to publicly share this lovely story. Seiko happily recounted it on TV, leading to her being called the “post-Momoe Yamaguchi.” For a long time, people looked at her with eyes that seemed to say, “Compared to Momoe, Seiko is nothing.”
Anyway, even though no one would acknowledge Seiko-chan, she was already hugely popular. I clearly remember feeling very annoyed when I saw her in the e・ku・bo (dimple) commercial and was frustrated that my local cosmetics counter in the countryside didn't carry e・ku・bo. I also hated the beginning of that “atmosphere” where people would say, “I absolutely refuse to acknowledge Matsuda Seiko.”
Actually, fans of Seiko-chan from her debut days all share a kind of comrade-in-arms feeling with each other.
I was in the lower grades of elementary school, but I was a devoted fan of Seiko-chan. I was constantly engaged in a silent battle against the harsh bashing of Matsuda Seiko within my own community and the treatment of her as nothing more than a cute doll, never a real artist.
I got beaten up pretty badly too.
Seiko Matsuda's outfit for her first appearance on the Kohaku Uta Gassen was actually based on Meg, the eldest sister from Little Women.
Truthfully, Seiko-chan had this big-sister vibe. She was a poised, articulate person.
That hat with the outfit got me mocked relentlessly as a baby, but now that I'm a high schooler, I'll quietly draw my sword: “Ignorance is embarrassing, isn't it?” (expressionless).
At a small record shop in a rural town, when I picked up the second album titled SQUALL, I'd be surprised now to think that a CBS Sony sales rep had actually made it all the way out here.
Back then, a copy of an article from a newspaper entertainment reporter known for harsh reviews praised Seiko Matsuda's vocals on the title track “SQUALL,” calling them “beyond what you'd expect from a newcomer.” This wasn't just a big deal for me, a kid still wearing a school backpack; it was a major event in the Japanese pop music scene at the time.
Back then, a copy of an article from a newspaper entertainment reporter known for harsh reviews praised Seiko Matsuda's vocals on the title track “SQUALL,” calling them “beyond what you'd expect from a newcomer.” This wasn't just a big deal for me, a kid still wearing a school backpack; it was a major event in the Japanese pop music scene at the time.
This might be one reason why Seiko Matsuda still always performs this song at her concerts even now.
That's all for “ I've been Bringing Vitality to the City 2.”
