Namie Amuro - 60s 70s 80s

Thirty-three, ten, one, thirteen - what do these numbers have to do with Namie Amuro's latest single, 60s 70s 80s? Basically, 60s 70s 80s is Namie Amuro's thirty-third single, and the tenth single to reach number one on the Oricon charts in her thirteen-year solo career. Recently, Namie Amuro has been making a successful comeback, and 60s 70s 80s proves exactly why she’s been able to come back so strong.

As the name of the maxi-single suggests, each of the three songs on 60s 70s 80s represents its respective decade; additionally, each song features samples of a popular song from that decade.

The album starts off in the 1960’s with NEW LOOK. Even if you don’t understand Japanese, it’s quite obvious that the subject of the song is fashion and - if the name didn’t tip you off – a NEW LOOK. It’s a very cute and catchy song that fits in with the growing consumer obsession with fashion and name brands in today’s day and age. The sampling of The Supremes' Baby Love in the song’s background gives NEW LOOK a distinctly sixties doo-wop feel, while Namie Amuro’s thoroughly modern lyrics and vocals make the song very twenty-first century.

Picking up from NEW LOOK is ROCK STEADY, representing the 1970’s. NEW LOOK could be described as the song that girls would play while getting ready for a night out, while the more upbeat ROCK STEADY is the song to play while they’re partying in their limo on the way to a party or a trendy nightclub. Like NEW LOOK, ROCK STEADY uses samplings of an oldie (Aretha Franklin’s song of the same title) in its background. There are times when ROCK STEADY lacks the polish and control of NEW LOOK and the following track, WHAT A FEELING. Particularly in the chorus, it sounds like there’s just too much layered on. Amuro also does some vocalizations and belts out "ROCK STEADY" throughout the song, but it lacks the power to really knock listeners off their feet.

ROCK STEADY is nonetheless a great song to get pumped up to before getting down to the 80’s dance hit WHAT A FEELING. WHAT A FEELING takes samples from Irene Cara’s WHAT A FEELING (remember that song from Flashdance?). Of the three songs on this single, WHAT A FEELING does the best job of taking a sampling of an older hit and remixing it into a new song; the others had a tendency to take a section straight from the song that was being sampled and then loop that part as background music. Amuro’s WHAT A FEELING, on the other hand, takes the sampling from Cara’s WHAT A FEELING and reinvents it, creating an addictive, techno type song that you’ll want to replay and dance to over and over again.

With hit singles like 60s 70s 80s, Namie Amuro’s fame and success is well-deserved. Every title she has released is unique, and she has shown countless times that she’s willing to experiment and try out different sounds and styles, from a girly doo-wop tune like NEW LOOK to an energetic, jazzy song such as ROCK STEADY to a sleek dance beat à la WHAT A FEELING. And with instrumental versions of each song, 60s 70s 80s is something that you’ll definitely want to sing along to, whether it’s through a microphone at the karaoke bar - or through your hairbrush in front of your mirror.