Liberty Bells – Shiawase ga Hoshii / Yasashii Kankei (1974 7″ Single)

About this Record

Released in late 1974 on CBS/Sony (SOLB-186), this 7-inch single by college vocal group Liberty Bells (リバティ・ベルス) serves as both the theme song and insert song for the NTV Grand Gekijo drama series Tonari no Tonari (となりのとなり). While packaged as a television tie-in kayōkyoku single, the record holds immense historical significance for Japanese pop and City Pop aficionados.

Both sides feature lyrics by the legendary Takashi Matsumoto (松本 隆, founding member of Happy End) and composition/arrangement by prodigy arranger Yasuo Higuchi (樋口康雄, also known as ‘Pico’). Furthermore, a look at the group’s profile printed on the sleeve reveals that one of the male vocalists, then a student in the literature department at the University of Tokyo, is none other than Shigeki Miyata (宮田茂樹)—the revered future music producer/director at RCA who went on to discover and produce Taeko Onuki, EPO, and Pizzicato Five. With Higuchi’s lush orchestral arrangements and sweet collegiate soft-rock vocal harmonies, this release is an essential, under-the-radar gem of early ’70s Japanese soft rock and pre-City Pop.

Tracklist & Notes

• Side A: 幸せがほしい (Shiawase ga Hoshii) [3:05]
  Theme song to NTV drama Tonari no Tonari. Lyrics by Takashi Matsumoto; Composed & Arranged by Yasuo Higuchi.
• Side B: やさしい関係 (Yasashii Kankei) [2:36]
  Insert song to NTV drama Tonari no Tonari. Lyrics by Takashi Matsumoto; Composed & Arranged by Yasuo Higuchi.