An album and a tour from this group would have been great, but seeing there were problems from early on nad UFA putting all their effort in Morning Musume what happened happened.
I found someone revieweing the singles, re-posting it here:
http://totallyhelloproject.wordpress.com/2007/07/09/coconuts-musume-discography-review/
As I just recently managed to get a copy of each Coconuts Musume single I’ve finally had a chance to listen to each full single, previously I hadn’t heard most of the c/w tracks and so I’ve decided to do a mini-review for each, even although the singles are old I thought it might be informative.
Single 1 – Halation Summer / Summer Night Town (English Version) (1999-07-23)
1. Halation Summer
2. Summer Night Town (English Version)
3. Halation Summer (Instrumental)
Some people forget that Coconuts Musume’s first single was indeed a “double A-side” featuring their first original song; Halation Summer and a cover of the Morning Musume single Summer Night Town in English. Halation Summer, as the title implies has a “sunshine mood” and is a very upbeat song with nice vocals, Chelsea has a majority of the main lines with the other girls getting fewer solo lines. The song has never been concert performed as far as I am aware of. Summer Night Town (English Version) sounds quite different from Morning Musume’s in terms of vocals, Coconuts Musume sound more high pitched and the English lyrics are quite suggestive and at times a little odd.
Single 2 – DANCE&CHANCE (1999–08-25)
1. DANCE&CHANCE
2. Zurui Onna (English Version)
3. DANCE&CHANCE (English Version)
4. DANCE&CHANCE (Instrumental)
Coconuts Musume’s second single contains four tracks and is the first of their singles to be released on the now standard 12cm CD. DANCE&CHANCE is a pretty decent song though it took some getting used to for me. The Japanese version is far better than the English version in my opinion as the lyrics of the English version have clearly been tailored to suit the rhythm of the original composition. Zurui Onna (English Version) is a cover of a SharanQ song and isn’t too bad. Mika’s American accent at the start is quite humorous. I find it odd that it is a direct translation Zurui Onna as the song is about being in love with a girl. Like Halation Summer, DANCE&CHANCE features Chelsea as the main vocalist and in the PV she takes center position.
Single 3 – Tokonatsu Musume (2000-05-17)
1. Tokonatsu Musume
2. Tokonatsu Musume (Reggae Version)
3. Tokonatsu Musume (Instrumental)
This is where I think Tsunku began to get lazy. Although the a-side of this single is a very fun track and somewhat like Haltion Summer, the c/w is a poorly remixed version of it and I myself don’t class a remix as a proper coupling track. As for Tokonatsu Musume, it’s Lehua Sandbo’s debut single with Coconuts Musume and although she’s not quite as good a singer as Chelsea her voice is pretty cute. You get some Coconuts Musume stickers with this CD which is a nice surprise.
Single 4 – Watashi mo “I LOVE YOU” (2000-07-26)
1. Watashi mo “I LOVE YOU”
2. Watashi mo “I LOVE YOU” (SAMBA DE CoCo Remix)
3. Watashi mo “I LOVE YOU” (Instrumental)
Again instead of a proper coupling track this single has another pretty awful remix of the a-side which in all fairness is a rather good song. Watashi mo “I LOVE YOU” is a very fun song continuing the feel from Tokonatsu Musume. Each girl has a balanced number of lines in this song and all of them sound pretty good, Lehua’s inexperience in Japanese is notable however, though she manages to make it sound alright. The remix isn’t as bad as the Reggae Tokonatsu Musume, but it’s still not very good and sounds quite strange.
Single 5 – Jounetsu Yuki Miraisen (2001-08-22)
1. Jounetsu Yuki Miraisen
2. Koibito Boogie-Woogie
3. Jounetsu Yuki Miraisen (Instrumental)
In a change of style from the last two singles Jounestu Yuki Miraisen is a more serious song though still fast paced and fun to listen to. Ayaka, Mika & Lehua all sound very good in this single and it’s possibly their best single in terms of musical arrangement and vocals. What’s more, the single includes a completly original coupling track, not an English cover or a shoddy remix. Koibito Boogie-Woogie is a great song and the “Oh Yeah!” line which is repeated throughout the song seems to fit very well.
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