"CHALLENGE CONCERT"

It's one thing to listen to a studio album that's slickly produced where the singers take heaven only knows how many takes in order to get a song just right, but when it comes to a live album in front of a loud and frenzied crowd when there's not retake (just the sound check and practice before the show), that's when and where a singer can truly shine. So, when Pink Lady released “Challenge Concert” in early 1977, their first live album, I found it to have been positively remarkable.

After an instrumental version of “I Love How You Love Me” to open the proceedings, Mie and Kei began the show with some old school 60's pop songs “Keep On Dancing”, followed by the first of three medleys, featuring “Money Honey”, “Angel Baby”, “Rock and Roll Love Letter” and “I Only Want To Be With You”, ironically, the same songs that were on the B-side of Pink Lady's debut album, and the girls handled those songs (in Japanese) quite well, and energetically too. After regaling the crowd with “Pepper Keibu”, the song that introduced Nippon to Mie and Kei and another US tune, “Rock and Roller Coaster”, the girls did two solos apiece, including (much to my surprise back then) country and western songs, Mie did Dolly Parton's “Jolene” while Kei covered John Denver's “Take Me Home Country Roads”. Just imagine, Japanese pop stars, doing country songs, what an absolutely fascinating concept to say the very least. HA!

But the girls didn't stop there, they handled R & B as well, doing Stevie Wonder's “Sir Duke”, in English by the way, followed by a snazzy second medley featuring “Money (That's What I Want)”, “Please Mr. Postman”, “I Want You Back” and “You Keep Me Hanging On”, showing a good deal of panache in doing Motown. Next came my new favorite PL B-side, “Your Toast Girl”, then the two solo tunes from PL's debut album, Mie's “Depressing Day” (which doesn't sound at all depressing) and Kei's “Inspiration”. And, in what would become part of their mystique, the girls paused a couple of times between songs to cheerily chat with each other, and the audience, something that's positively charming. The third and final medley, six more Motown songs included three the girls did in English, “Stop In The Name Of Love”, “Baby Love” and “Where Did Our Love Go”, all by The Supremes ironically enough, and I found that cool.

After the final medley, the girls sing “SOS”, their first number #1 hit song, followed by their second hit, the forever saucy “Carmen '77”, then closing the concert with “Bye-Bye Baby”. And to think this was the first of Pink Lady's fantastic live albums where they put their amazing talent onstage for their fans to enjoy.

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