Various Artists – YUME no UTA (a J!-ENT World Groove CD Album Review)

1. 夢で逢えたら (10th Anniversary Solo Version) – 鈴木雅之
2. 夢を信じて  -  徳永英明
3. TRUE LOVE   -  藤井フミヤ
4. 接吻 kiss  – Original Love
5. 夢伝説 -  STARDUST REVUE
6. 真夏の昼の夢  – 大滝詠一
7. SWEET MEMORIES  -  松田聖子
8. デイ・ドリーム・ビリーバー   -  THE TIMERS
9. 夢をあきらめないで  – 岡村孝子
10. 夢の中へ  – 斉藤由貴
11. RASPBERRY DREAM  -  REBECCA
12. シェリー   -  中村あゆみ
    ユー・メイ・ドリーム  – SHEENA & THE ROKKETS
13. SOMEDAY  – 佐野元春
14. いつでも夢に花束を -  山本潤子
15. 夢の途中 -セーラー服と機関銃-  -  来生たかお
16. 夢先案内人 -  山口百恵

When it comes to GT Music, they are literally the kings of compilation albums right now.

Usually featuring hit songs from various decades or focusing on a decade in general, for their latest compilation titled “Yume no Uta” (which translates to “Dream Songs”), you get a little bit of everything from a variety of musical acts and vocalists.  And for this compilation, the CD was produced by Shigeru Nakamura of Sony Music Direct (Japan).

“Yume no Uta” comes with a 20-page booklet which are pretty much lyrics and a footnote regarding the song.  Also, included is an insert for GT Music’s other compilation albums currently available.

The album kicks off with Masayuki Suzuki’s 10th anniversary solo version of his hit song “Yume de Aetara” (which translates to “Dreaming of when me Met”.  When it comes to Suzuki’s music, this R&B track is what people think of.  And his 10th anniversary version of his hit song doesn’t devitate too much from the original.  Smooth R&B and a wonderful inclusion!

The second track is from popular solo artist Hideaki Tokunaga and his song “Yume wo Shinjite” (I believe in Dreams”) is a signature hit from the artist and another “Yume” (dream) song that fits perfectly with this compilation album.  The song was also featured in the anime series “Dragon Quest” back in 1990.

The third song is “TRUE LOVE” by Fumiya Fujii and considered one of the greatest Japanese love songs.  Featured as the theme song for the drama “Asunaro Hakusho”, the song is fantastic with its awesome melody and vocals from Fumiya Fujii, who came out with the song back in 1993 not long after going solo from his long stint in the band, Checkers.

The fourth track “Seppun Kiss” (which can be translated to “Kiss Kiss”) is by Original Love and back in 1993, this song was such an enormous hit and my favorite song from the band.  Love the music for this song and it’s a song that really takes me back in time and love it!

The fifth track “Yume Densetsu” (which translates to “Legendary Dreams”) is by STARDUST REVUE and was a big hit back in 1984 and another fitting song for this album and for anyone who grew up watching Japanese television in the ’80s, will remember this song playing on a Calpis CM.

The sixth track is an Eiichi Ootaki classic titled “Manatsu no Hiru no Yume” (which translates to “A Midsummer’s Day Dream”) and is a classic track from 1977.  A short song but still remains a classic hit to this day.

The seventh track is from Seiko Matsuda titled “SWEET MEMORIES” and was one of her hit songs from 1983.  A beautiful ballad about a breakup and how the guy trying to come back to her life and her asking the guy to not kiss her because she doesn’t want to be hurt badly again.  A beautiful song!

The eighth track is the Japanese cover of The Monkey’s song “Daydream Believer” by The Timers and was released back in 1989.  It was a big song back then because it was a commercial song for 7-11 stores in Japan.

The ninth track is from Takako Okamura and her hit 1987 song “Yume wo Akiramenaide”, which is an inspirational song that translates to (“Don’t Give Up on Your Dreams”) and one of her most popular songs after ending her folk duo act, Aming.

The tenth track is titled “Yume no Naka e” from Yuki Saito and the cover song of Yosui Inoue’s hit song was quite popular in 1989 as it was featured as a drama theme song.

The eleventh track “RASPBERRY DREAM” is by REBECCA from 1986.  While I listened to quite a bit of REBECCA, the song stayed in my head mainly for the piano.

The 12th track “Sheri” is sung by ’80s rockstar Ayumi Nakamura and is slow acoustic guitar track from 2008.

The 13th track “You May Dream” is sung by rock band Sheena & The Rokkets from 1979 and was popular because it the group was one of the few Mentai Japanese bands at the time and the song was featured in JAL’s My Heart Campaign.  The band was also known in America, as they opened for Elvis Costello and also released an American album in 1981.

The 14th track is “SOMEDAY” by Motoharu Sano who was very popular in the ’80s and his song “SOMEDAY” and a cool rock ballad.

The 15th track is from popular ’70s artist Junko Yamamoto and her song  “Itsudemo Yume ni Hanataba” (which translates to “Dreaming of a Bouquet of Flower Anytime”.  The song was released back in 1995 and was the theme for the drama “June Bride”.

The 16th track is from Takao Kisugi and is titled “Yume no Tochuu – Sailor Fuku to Kikanjuu-” (which translates to “The Middle of a Dream – Sailor Uniform and Machine Gun”) from 1981.  And the song was such an amazing hit that the song has been covered and released quite a few times.  Most recently, the song was covered by the rock band ACID BLACK CHERRY and by Hideaki Tokunaga.

The final track on the album is “Yumesaki Annainin” (which translates to “Dream Destination Guide”) and is sung by Momoe Yamaguchi and was released back in 1977 and the song was Momoe Yamaguchi’s first single to reach #1 on the Oricon Charts and stayed at #1 for two weeks straight.

Overall, “Yume no Uta” is a pretty cool compilation album with hard-to-find songs from the ’70s through the ’90s.    Granted, when it comes to compilation, songs are as important to the person who is purchasing the album.  But when it comes to artists and songs featured, this compilation does feature a good number of hits from yesteryear.  With 17 tracks overall, if the songs on this compilation album are of interest to you, then “Yume no Uta” is an album worth checking out

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