Moonglow is the fourth studio album by Tatsuro Yamashita, released on 21 October 1979. It was his first LP on the Air label — and the first studio album Air ever issued — and won Best Album at the 22nd Japan Record Awards.[1]
Background
Ryuzo Kosugi launched the Air label inside RVC so that Yamashita could work free of the company’s restrictions, and Moonglow became its first studio release.[1] Two singles were issued, “Let’s Kiss the Sun” on 5 April 1979 and “Eien no Full Moon” on the album’s release day; neither entered the Oricon singles chart.[1]
Recording
Minako Yoshida wrote most of the lyrics, with Chris Mosdell supplying the words to “Touch Me Lightly”.[1] The sessions drew on Yamashita’s road band — Kazuo Shiina, Hiroyuki Namba and Yutaka Uehara — alongside guests including Shuichi “Ponta” Murakami, Yukihiro Takahashi, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Hiroshi Sato and Haruomi Hosono.[1]
Release
The album peaked at No. 20 on the Oricon LP chart, stayed on the chart for fifty weeks and sold 146,000 copies.[1] It received the Best Album Award at the 22nd Japan Record Awards on 31 December 1980; a 2002 remaster with three previously unreleased bonus tracks reached No. 26.[1]
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| Side A | |||
| 1. | “Nightwing”夜の翼 | Tatsuro Yamashita | 1:30 |
| 2. | “Eien no Full Moon”永遠のFull Moon | Minako Yoshida | 4:25 |
| 3. | “Rainy Walk” | Minako Yoshida | 5:08 |
| 4. | “Storm” | Minako Yoshida | 6:22 |
| 5. | “Funky Flushin’” | Minako Yoshida | 5:40 |
| Side B | |||
| 6. | “Hot Shot” | Minako Yoshida | 5:55 |
| 7. | “Touch Me Lightly” | Chris Mosdell | 4:23 |
| 8. | “Sunshine”Sunshine (愛の金色) | Minako Yoshida | 4:20 |
| 9. | “Yellow Cab” | Minako Yoshida | 4:48 |
| 10. | “Let’s Kiss the Sun”愛を描いて | Minako Yoshida | 4:00 |
All music by Tatsuro Yamashita.
Personnel
- Tatsuro Yamashita – vocals, Syndrum, synth strings, glockenspiel, vibraphone, producer
- Minako Yoshida – vocals
- Kazuo Shiina – guitar
- Hiroyuki Namba – piano, electric piano, Minimoog
- Shuichi “Ponta” Murakami – drums (A4, B2)
- Yukihiro Takahashi – drums (A3)
- Haruomi Hosono – bass (A3)
- Hiroshi Sato – electric piano (A3, A4, B2)
- Ryuichi Sakamoto – Korg PS-3100 (B4)
References
- “Moonglow (Tatsuro Yamashita album)”. Wikipedia. Retrieved 11 October 2026.
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