Today's playlist. This 18th edition is "Cross Country."
I bought it at "Flash Disc Ranch," my favorite record store in Shimokitazawa.
This store is a record shop I've been frequenting since shortly after I started living in Setagaya. As long as the store is open, their point card is valid, and once you collect 50 stamps, you get half off any number of records under 15,000 yen, which is a popular and amazing system.
"Cross Country" is a vinyl LP compilation album released in 1984 by Warner Bros. Records in Germany. This album includes rock, blues, pop, folk/country music, and features artists such as Crystal Gayle, Johnny Lee, Gail Davies, T.G. Sheppard, Rodney Crowell, and Emmylou Harris. Specifically, it includes tracks like Crystal Gayle's "The Sound of Goodbye" and Johnny Lee's "Looking For Love In All The Wrong Places."
From this album, I've selected and will introduce two artists.
Both are American country-pop that you might have heard at an old bowling alley.
I found a good image on the website of "思い出のボウリング場" (Memories of Bowling Alleys), so please take a look if you like.
Shin-Tokorozawa Bowl (It seems to have closed in 2010. My childhood memories must be from the early 2000s.)
First up is "Crystal Gayle."
Brenda Gail Webb (born January 9, 1951), known professionally as Crystal Gayle, is an American country music singer. She is best known for her 1977 hit "Don't It Make My Brown Eyes Blue." Initially, Gayle was signed to the same management and record label as her sister, Loretta Lynn. After several years without much success, Lynn encouraged her to try a different approach. Gayle then signed a new record deal and began recording with Nashville producer Allen Reynolds. Gayle's new sound was dubbed middle-of-the-road (MOR) or country pop, becoming part of a larger musical trend of many country artists in the 1970s appealing to a broader audience. Gayle then became one of the most successful crossover artists of the 1970s and 1980s. She is also known for her distinctive floor-length hair.
And the second artist is "Gail Davies."
Gail Davies made her mark as a successful singer-songwriter in the 1970s and 1980s, scoring numerous Top 10 and Top 20 Billboard hits. She was one of the most influential artists in country music and became the genre's first female record producer. She is seen as a role model for other female singers, including Suzy Bogguss, Kathy Mattea, Mary Chapin Carpenter, and Pam Tillis.
At WAITER-U, we select not only camping gear but also music, books, and movies.
We've also created a playlist on Spotify, so please feel free to listen to it, perhaps in the car on your way to a camping trip.
